Mark 1
Worldwide English (New Testament)
1 This is the beginning of the good news about Jesus Christ, God's Son.
2 The men of God, called prophets, long ago wrote about it this way: God said, `See, I send my man ahead of you to tell about you. He will make the way ready for you.
3 A man is calling out in the desert, "Make the way ready for the Lord. Make the road straight for him." '
4 John baptised people in the desert. He told them to stop doing wrong things and be baptised, and God would forgive them for the wrong things they did.
5 People from all the land of Judea and all the city of Jerusalem went out to John. He baptised them in the Jordan River when they told about the wrong things they did.
6 John wore clothes made of camel's hair and a leather belt. He ate locusts and wild honey.
7 He told the people, `Another person is coming. He is greater than I am. I am not good enough to bend down and untie his shoe strings.
8 I have baptised you with water, but he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit.'
9 At that time Jesus came from the town of Nazareth in the country of Galilee. John baptised him in the Jordan River.
10 As soon as he came up out of the water, Jesus saw the sky open. He saw God's Holy Spirit come down on him like a bird called a dove.
11 A voice from the sky said, `You are my dear Son. I am very pleased with you.'
12 Right away, the Spirit made Jesus go into the desert.
13 Jesus was in the desert for forty days. All that time Satan tried to make Jesus do wrong. Jesus was with wild animals. Angels came and took care of him.
14 John was put in prison. Then Jesus went to Galilee. He told people the good news of God's kingdom.
15 `The time has come,' he said. `The kingdom of God is here. Stop your wrong ways, turn back to God and believe the good news.'
16 Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee. There he saw Simon and his brother Andrew. They were throwing a fishing net into the water. Their work was to catch fish.
17 Jesus said to them, `Come with me. The work I give you will be to catch people.'
18 Right away they left their nets and went with him.
19 Jesus went on from there and saw James and his brother John. Their father's name was Zebedee. They were in a boat mending their nets.
20 Jesus called them. Right away they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the workmen and went with Jesus.
21 They went to the town of Capernaum. As soon as it was the Sabbath day, Jesus went into their meeting house and taught the people.
22 They were very much surprised at his teaching because he taught them as if he had the right to teach them. He did not teach them like their teachers called scribes.
23 A man who had a bad spirit in him was in the meeting house at that time.
24 He called out, `Jesus of Nazareth, what do you want to do to us? Have you come to kill us? I know who you are. You are the Holy One of God.'
25 Jesus said to the spirit, `Be quiet! Come out of him!'
26 The bad spirit threw the man around. It called out loud and then it came out of the man.
27 The people were all surprised. They said one to another, `What is this? Is not this a new teaching? He tells the bad spirits what to do and even they obey him'
28 The people all around Galilee heard right away about Jesus.
29 As soon as they came out of the meeting house, they went to the home of Simon and Andrew. James and John went also.
30 Simon's wife's mother was sick and was lying down. She had a fever. Right away they told Jesus about her.
31 Jesus went to her. He took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her right away, and she began to do things to help them.
32 That evening when the sun went down, people brought to Jesus all the sick people and those who had bad spirits.
33 All the people in the city crowded around the door.
34 He healed many sick people. He drove the bad spirits out of people. And he did not let them speak because they knew who he was.
35 The next morning Jesus got up long before daylight. He went out to a place by himself. There he talked with God.
36 Simon and his friends went out after Jesus.
37 When they found him they said, `Everyone is looking for you.'
38 Jesus said, `We must go to the next towns. I must tell the good news to the people there too. That is why I came here.'
39 Then Jesus talked to the people in all the meeting houses in all the country of Galilee. He also made the bad spirits come out of people.
40 A man who was sick with leprosy [a bad skin disease] came to him. He kneeled down and begged Jesus saying, `I know you can heal me if you want to.'
41 Jesus was very sorry for him. He put out his hand and touched him. He said, `I want to. Be healed.'
42 As soon as he said this, the disease left the man and he was healed.
43 Jesus talked strongly to him and sent him away.
44 He said, `Do not tell anyone about this. But go and let the priest look at you. Moses gave a law about the gift you must give to God when you are healed. Give it to prove to people that you are healed.'
45 But the man went out and told everyone everywhere what had happened to him. Because he did this, Jesus could not go into any large town freely. He stayed in places where only a few people were. There people came to him from everywhere.
Mark 1
Easy-to-Read Version
John Prepares the Way for Jesus(A)
1 The Good News about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God,[a] begins 2 with what the prophet Isaiah said would happen. He wrote:
“Listen! I will send my messenger ahead of you.
He will prepare the way for you.” (B)
3 “There is someone shouting in the desert:
‘Prepare the way for the Lord.
Make the road straight for him.’” (C)
4 So John the Baptizer came and was baptizing people in the desert area. He told them to be baptized to show that they wanted to change their lives, and then their sins would be forgiven. 5 All the people from Judea, including everyone from Jerusalem, came out to John. They confessed the bad things they had done, and he baptized them in the Jordan River.
6 John wore clothes made from camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist. He ate locusts and wild honey.
7 This is what John told the people: “There is someone coming later who is able to do more than I can. I am not good enough to be the slave who stoops down to untie his sandals. 8 I baptize you with water, but the one who is coming will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
Jesus Is Baptized by John(D)
9 About that time Jesus came from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to the place where John was. John baptized Jesus in the Jordan River. 10 As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw the sky torn open. The Spirit came down on him like a dove. 11 A voice came from heaven and said, “You are my Son, the one I love. I am very pleased with you.”
Jesus Goes Away to Be Tempted(E)
12 Then the Spirit sent Jesus into the desert alone. 13 He was there for 40 days, being tempted by Satan. During this time he was out among the wild animals. Then angels came and helped him.
Jesus Begins His Work in Galilee(F)
14 After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee and told people the Good News from God. 15 He said, “The right time is now here. God’s kingdom is very near.[b] Change your hearts and lives, and believe the Good News!”
Jesus Chooses Some Followers(G)
16 Jesus was walking by Lake Galilee. He saw Simon[c] and his brother Andrew. These two men were fishermen, and they were throwing a net into the lake to catch fish. 17 Jesus said to them, “Come, follow me, and I will make you a different kind of fishermen. You will bring in people, not fish.” 18 So they immediately left their nets and followed Jesus.
19 Jesus continued walking by Lake Galilee. He saw two more brothers, James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were in their boat, preparing their nets to catch fish. 20 Their father Zebedee and the men who worked for him were in the boat with the brothers. When Jesus saw the brothers, he told them to come. They left their father and followed Jesus.
Jesus Frees a Man From an Evil Spirit(H)
21 Jesus and his followers went to Capernaum. On the Sabbath day, Jesus went into the synagogue and taught the people. 22 They were amazed at his teaching. He did not teach like their teachers of the law. He taught like someone with authority. 23 While Jesus was in the synagogue, a man was there who had an evil spirit inside him. The man shouted, 24 “Jesus of Nazareth! What do you want with us? Did you come to destroy us? I know who you are—God’s Holy One!”
25 Jesus, his voice full of warning, said, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” 26 The evil spirit made the man shake. Then the spirit made a loud noise and came out of him.
27 The people were amazed. They asked each other, “What is happening here? This man is teaching something new, and he teaches with authority! He even commands evil spirits, and they obey him.” 28 So the news about Jesus spread quickly everywhere in the area of Galilee.
Jesus Heals Many People(I)
29 Jesus and the followers left the synagogue. They all went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. 30 Simon’s mother-in-law was very sick. She was in bed and had a fever. The people there told Jesus about her. 31 So he went to her bed. Jesus held her hand and helped her stand up. The fever left her, and she was healed. Then she began serving them.
32 That night, after the sun went down, the people brought to Jesus many who were sick. They also brought those who had demons inside them. 33 Everyone in the town gathered at the door of that house. 34 Jesus healed many of those who had different kinds of sicknesses. He also forced many demons out of people. But he would not allow the demons to speak, because they knew who he was.[d]
Jesus Goes to Other Towns(J)
35 The next morning Jesus woke up very early. He left the house while it was still dark and went to a place where he could be alone and pray. 36 Later, Simon and his friends went to look for Jesus. 37 They found him and said, “Everyone is looking for you!”
38 Jesus answered, “We should go to another place. We can go to other towns around here, and I can tell God’s message to those people too. That is why I came.” 39 So Jesus traveled everywhere in Galilee. He spoke in the synagogues, and he forced demons out of people.
Jesus Heals a Sick Man(K)
40 A man who had leprosy came to Jesus. The man bowed on his knees and begged him, “You have the power to heal me if you want.”
41 These last words made Jesus angry.[e] But he touched him and said, “I want to heal you. Be healed!” 42 Immediately the leprosy disappeared, and the man was healed.
43 Jesus told the man to go, but he gave him a strong warning: 44 “Don’t tell anyone about what I did for you. But go and let the priest look at you.[f] And offer a gift to God because you have been healed. Offer the gift that Moses commanded.[g] This will show everyone that you are healed.” 45 The man left there and told everyone he saw that Jesus had healed him. So the news about Jesus spread. And that is why he could not enter a town if people saw him. He stayed in places where people did not live. But people came from all the towns to the places where he was.
Footnotes
- Mark 1:1 the Son of God Some Greek copies do not have these words.
- Mark 1:15 is very near Or “is coming soon” or “has come.”
- Mark 1:16 Simon Simon’s other name was Peter. Also in verses 29, 30, 36.
- Mark 1:34 who he was Meaning that the demons knew that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God.
- Mark 1:41 These … angry Most Greek copies have “Moved with pity ….” But it is hard to explain why some good Greek copies and Latin versions have “Filled with anger …,” so many scholars now consider it to be the original reading.
- Mark 1:44 let the priest look at you The Law of Moses said a priest must decide when a person with leprosy was well.
- Mark 1:44 Moses commanded See Lev. 14:1-32.
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