Mark 2
American Standard Version
2 And when he entered again into Capernaum after some days, it was noised that he was [a]in the house. 2 And many were gathered together, so that there was no longer room for them, no, not even about the door: and he spake the word unto them. 3 And they come, bringing unto him a man sick of the palsy, borne of four. 4 And when they could not [b]come nigh unto him for the crowd, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the [c]bed whereon the sick of the palsy lay. 5 And Jesus seeing their faith saith unto the sick of the palsy, [d]Son, thy sins are forgiven. 6 But there were certain of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts, 7 Why doth this man thus speak? he blasphemeth: who can forgive sins but one, even God? 8 And straightway Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, saith unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the sick of the palsy, Thy sins are forgiven; or to say, Arise, and take up thy [e]bed, and walk? 10 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath authority on earth to forgive sins (he saith to the sick of the palsy), 11 I say unto thee, Arise, take up thy [f]bed, and go unto thy house. 12 And he arose, and straightway took up the [g]bed, and went forth before them all; insomuch that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this fashion.
13 And he went forth again by the sea side; and all the multitude resorted unto him, and he taught them. 14 And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the place of toll, and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed him.
15 And it came to pass, that he was sitting at meat in his house, and many [h]publicans and sinners sat down with Jesus and his disciples: for there were many, and they followed him. 16 And the scribes [i]of the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with the sinners and [j]publicans, said unto his disciples, [k]How is it that he eateth [l]and drinketh with [m]publicans and sinners? 17 And when Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are [n]whole have no need of a physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.
18 And John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting: and they come and say unto him, Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but thy disciples fast not? 19 And Jesus said unto them, Can the [o]sons of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? as long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. 20 But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then will they fast in that day. 21 No man seweth a piece of undressed cloth on an old garment: else that which should fill it up taketh from it, the new from the old, and a worse rent is made. 22 And no man putteth new wine into old [p]wine-skins; else the wine will burst the skins, and the wine perisheth, and the skins: but they put new wine into fresh wine-skins.
23 And it came to pass, that he was going on the sabbath day through the grainfields; and his disciples [q]began, as they went, to pluck the ears. 24 And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful? 25 And he said unto them, [r]Did ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was hungry, he, and they that were with him? 26 How he entered into the house of God [s]when Abiathar was high priest, and ate the showbread, which it is not lawful to eat save for the priests, and gave also to them that were with him? 27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: 28 so that the Son of man is lord even of the sabbath.
Footnotes
- Mark 2:1 Or, at home
- Mark 2:4 Many ancient authorities read bring him unto him.
- Mark 2:4 Or, pallet
- Mark 2:5 Greek Child.
- Mark 2:9 Or, pallet
- Mark 2:11 Or, pallet
- Mark 2:12 Or, pallet
- Mark 2:15 That is, collectors or renters of Roman taxes.
- Mark 2:16 Some ancient authorities read and the Pharisees.
- Mark 2:16 That is, collectors or renters of Roman taxes.
- Mark 2:16 Or, He eateth . . . sinners
- Mark 2:16 Some ancient authorities omit and drinketh.
- Mark 2:16 That is, collectors or renters of Roman taxes.
- Mark 2:17 Greek strong.
- Mark 2:19 That is, companions of the bridegroom.
- Mark 2:22 That is, skins used as bottles.
- Mark 2:23 Greek began to make their way plucking.
- Mark 2:25 1 Sam. 21:6.
- Mark 2:26 Some ancient authorities read in the days of Abiathar the high priest.
Mark 2
English Standard Version
Jesus Heals a Paralytic
2 And when he returned to (A)Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. 2 And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. 3 (B)And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. 4 And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, (C)they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. 5 And when Jesus (D)saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, (E)your sins are forgiven.” 6 Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, 7 “Why does this man speak like that? (F)He is blaspheming! (G)Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 8 And immediately Jesus, (H)perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? 10 But that you may know that (I)the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— 11 “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” 12 And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and (J)glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”
Jesus Calls Levi
13 He went out again beside the sea, and (K)all the crowd was coming to him, and he was teaching them. 14 (L)And as he passed by, he saw (M)Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.
15 And as he reclined at table in his house, many (N)tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 And (O)the scribes of[a] the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, (P)“Why does he eat[b] with tax collectors and sinners?” 17 And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. (Q)I came not to call the righteous, (R)but sinners.”
A Question About Fasting
18 Now (S)John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, (T)“Why do John's disciples and (U)the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” 19 And Jesus said to them, (V)“Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. 20 (W)The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and (X)then they will fast in that day. 21 No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. 22 And no one puts new wine into old (Y)wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.”[c]
Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath
23 (Z)One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples (AA)began to pluck heads of grain. 24 And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, (AB)why are they doing (AC)what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” 25 And he said to them, (AD)“Have you never read (AE)what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: 26 how he entered the house of God, in the time of[d] (AF)Abiathar the high priest, and ate (AG)the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” 27 And he said to them, (AH)“The Sabbath was made for man, (AI)not man for the Sabbath. 28 So (AJ)the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”
Mark 2
Tree of Life Version
Power to Pardon the Paralyzed
2 When He returned to Capernaum after some days, it was heard that He was at the house. 2 So many were gathered that there was no longer room for them even outside the door. He kept proclaiming the word to them.
3 Some people came bringing to Him a paralyzed man, carried by four men. 4 When they couldn’t get near Yeshua because of the crowd, they removed the roof where He was. After digging through, they lowered the mat on which the paralyzed man was lying. 5 Yeshua, seeing their faith, said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
6 But some of the Torah scholars were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, 7 “Why does this fellow speak like this? He blasphemes! Who can pardon sins but God alone?”
8 Immediately Yeshua, knowing in His spirit that they were raising questions this way within themselves, said to them, “Why are you questioning these things in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, and take your mat and walk’? 10 But so you may know that the Son of Man has authority to pardon sins on earth. . ..” He tells the paralyzed man, 11 “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home!”
12 At once the man got up, took his mat, and walked before them all. They were all astonished and glorified God, saying, “We’ve never seen anything like this!”[a]
Fellowship with Sinners
13 Again, Yeshua went out by the sea. The whole crowd kept coming to Him, and He continued to teach them. 14 As He was passing by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. He said to him, “Follow Me.” And he got up and followed Him.
15 Now it happens that Yeshua was reclining at the table in Levi’s house, and many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Yeshua and His disciples. For there were many, and they were following Him. 16 When the Torah scholars of the Pharisees saw Him eating with sinners and tax collectors, they began to say to His disciples, “With tax collectors and sinners He eats?”
17 And when He heard this, Yeshua said to them, “Those who are healthy have no need for a doctor, but those who are sick do. I did not come to call the righteous, but the sinful.”
Feasting in His Presence
18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. They came and said to Him, “Why do the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?”
19 And Yeshua said to them, “The guests of the bridegroom cannot fast while the bridegroom is with them, can they? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. 20 But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day.
21 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise the patch pulls away from the old, and a worse tear happens. 22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins; and the wine is lost, also the skins. But one puts new wine into fresh wineskins.”
Shabbat Restoration
23 Now it happened on Shabbat that Yeshua was going through the grain fields; and His disciples began to make their way, plucking the heads of grain. [b] 24 The Pharisees were saying to Him, “Look, why are they doing what is not permitted on Shabbat?”[c]
25 And He said to them, “Haven’t you ever read what David did when he was in need, and he and those with him became hungry? [d] 26 How he entered into the house of God when Abiathar was kohen gadol and ate the showbread, which is permitted only for the kohanim to eat, and gave some even to those who were with him?”
27 Then He said to them, “Shabbat was made for man, and not man for Shabbat. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of Shabbat.”
Footnotes
- Mark 2:12 cf. Isa. 53:12.
- Mark 2:24 cf. Dt. 23:25.
- Mark 2:24 cf. Exod. 20:10; 23:12; Deut. 5:14.
- Mark 2:26 cf. Lev. 24:5-9; 1 Sam. 21:1-6.
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The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.