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.”

A Man with a Withered Hand

3 ^(AK)Again ^(AL)he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. ² And ^(AM)they watched Jesus,^[e] to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. ³ And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” ⁴ And he said to them, ^(AN)“Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. ⁵ And he ^(AO)looked around at them with anger, grieved at ^(AP)their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” ^(AQ)He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. ^6 (AR)The Pharisees went out and immediately ^(AS)held counsel with ^(AT)the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.

A Great Crowd Follows Jesus

^7 (AU)Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and ^(AV)a great crowd followed, from Galilee and Judea ⁸ and Jerusalem and ^(AW)Idumea and from beyond the Jordan and from around ^(AX)Tyre and Sidon. When the great crowd heard all that he was doing, they came to him. ⁹ And he told his disciples to ^(AY)have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they ^(AZ)crush him, ¹⁰ for ^(BA)he had healed many, so that all who had ^(BB)diseases pressed around him ^(BC)to touch him. ^11 (BD)And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they ^(BE)fell down before him and cried out, “You are ^(BF)the Son of God.” ¹² And ^(BG)he strictly ordered them not to make him known.

The Twelve Apostles

^13 (BH)And he went up on the mountain and called to him those ^(BI)whom he desired, and they came to him. ^14 (BJ)And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach ^15 (BK)and have authority to cast out demons. ¹⁶ He appointed the twelve: ^(BL)Simon (to whom ^(BM)he gave the name Peter); ^17 (BN)James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); ¹⁸ Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and ^(BO)Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot,^{[f] 19} and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

²⁰ Then he went ^(BP)home, and the crowd gathered again, ^(BQ)so that they could not even eat. ^21 (BR)And when ^(BS)his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He ^(BT)is out of his mind.”

Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit

²² And ^(BU)the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, ^(BV)“He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.” ^23 (BW)And he called them to him and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? ²⁴ If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. ²⁵ And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. ²⁶ And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. ²⁷ But ^(BX)no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. ^(BY)Then indeed he may plunder his house.

^28 (BZ)“Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, ²⁹ but whoever ^(CA)blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”— ³⁰ for they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

Jesus' Mother and Brothers

^31 (CB)And his mother and his ^(CC)brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. ³² And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers^[g] are outside, seeking you.” ³³ And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” ³⁴ And ^(CD)looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! ^35 (CE)For whoever ^(CF)does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”

The Lord Promises Peace

33 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still ^(A)shut up in the court of the guard: ² “Thus says ^(B)the Lord who made the earth,^[a] the Lord who formed it to establish it—^(C)the Lord is his name: ^3 (D)Call to me and I will answer you, ^(E)and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. ⁴ For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city and the houses of the kings of Judah that were torn down to make a defense against ^(F)the siege mounds and against the sword: ⁵ They are coming in ^(G)to fight against the Chaldeans and to fill them^[b] with the dead bodies of men whom I shall strike down ^(H)in my anger and my wrath, ^(I)for I have hidden my face from this city because of all their evil. ^6 (J)Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them and reveal to them abundance of prosperity and security. ^7 (K)I will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel, ^(L)and rebuild them as they were ^(M)at first. ^8 (N)I will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, ^(O)and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me. ^9 (P)And this city^[c] shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them. They shall ^(Q)fear and tremble because of all the good and all the prosperity I provide for it.

¹⁰ “Thus says the Lord: In this place ^(R)of which you say, ‘It is a waste without man or beast,’ in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man or inhabitant or beast, there shall be heard again ^11 (S)the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voices of those who sing, as they bring ^(T)thank offerings to the house of the Lord:

^(V)For I will restore the fortunes of the land as at first, says the Lord.

¹² “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ^(W)In this place that is waste, without man or beast, and in all of its cities, there shall again be ^(X)habitations of shepherds ^(Y)resting their flocks. ^13 (Z)In the cities of the hill country, ^(AA)in the cities of the Shephelah, ^(AB)and in the cities of the Negeb, in the land of Benjamin, ^(AC)the places about Jerusalem, ^(AD)and in the cities of Judah, ^(AE)flocks shall again pass under the hands ^(AF)of the one who counts them, says the Lord.

The Lord's Eternal Covenant with David

^14 (AG)“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when ^(AH)I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. ¹⁵ In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous ^(AI)Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. ¹⁶ In those days Judah will be saved, ^(AJ)and Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this is the name by which it will be called: ^(AK)‘The Lord is our righteousness.’

¹⁷ “For thus says the Lord: ^(AL)David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel, ^18 (AM)and the Levitical priests shall never lack a man in my presence to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings, and to make sacrifices forever.”

¹⁹ The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ^20 (AN)“Thus says the Lord: ^(AO)If you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, ^(AP)so that day and night will not come at their appointed time, ^21 (AQ)then also my covenant with David my servant may be broken, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne, and my covenant with the Levitical priests my ministers. ²² As ^(AR)the host of heaven cannot be numbered and ^(AS)the sands of the sea cannot be measured, so I will multiply the offspring of David my servant, and the Levitical priests who minister to me.”

²³ The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ²⁴ “Have you not observed that these people are saying, ‘The Lord has rejected the two clans that he chose’? Thus they have despised my people so that they are no longer a nation in their sight. ²⁵ Thus says the Lord: ^(AT)If I have not established my covenant with day and night and the fixed order of heaven and earth, ²⁶ then I will reject the offspring of Jacob and David my servant and will not choose one of his offspring to rule over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ^(AU)For I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy on them.”

Zedekiah to Die in Babylon

34 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, when ^(AV)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army ^(AW)and all the kingdoms of the earth under his dominion and all the peoples were fighting against Jerusalem and all of its cities: ² “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Go and speak to ^(AX)Zedekiah king of Judah and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: ^(AY)Behold, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire. ^3 (AZ)You shall not escape from his hand but shall surely be captured and delivered into his hand. ^(BA)You shall see the king of Babylon eye to eye and speak with him face to face. And you shall go to Babylon.’ ⁴ Yet hear the word of the Lord, O Zedekiah king of Judah! ^(BB)Thus says the Lord concerning you: ^(BC)‘You shall not die by the sword. ⁵ You shall die in peace. ^(BD)And as spices were burned for your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so people shall ^(BE)burn spices for you ^(BF)and lament for you, saying, “Alas, lord!”’ For I have spoken the word, declares the Lord.”

⁶ Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke all these words to Zedekiah king of Judah, in Jerusalem, ⁷ when the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and against all the cities of Judah that were left, ^(BG)Lachish and ^(BH)Azekah, ^(BI)for these were the only ^(BJ)fortified cities of Judah that remained.

⁸ The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after King Zedekiah ^(BK)had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem ^(BL)to make a proclamation of liberty to them, ^9 (BM)that everyone should set free his Hebrew slaves, male and female, ^(BN)so that no one should enslave a Jew, his brother. ¹⁰ And they obeyed, all the officials and all the people who had entered into the covenant that everyone would set free his slave, male or female, so that they would not be enslaved again. They obeyed and set them free. ¹¹ But afterward they turned around and took back the male and female slaves ^(BO)they had set free, and brought them into subjection as slaves. ¹² The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ¹³ “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I myself made a covenant with your fathers when ^(BP)I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, saying, ^14 (BQ)‘At the end of seven years each of you must set free the fellow Hebrew who has been sold to you and has served you six years; ^(BR)you must set him free from your service.’ But ^(BS)your fathers did not listen to me or incline their ears to me. ¹⁵ You recently repented and did what was right in my eyes ^(BT)by proclaiming liberty, each to his neighbor, and ^(BU)you made a covenant before me in the ^(BV)house that is called by my name, ¹⁶ but then you turned around ^(BW)and profaned my name when each of you took back his male and female slaves, ^(BX)whom you had set free according to their desire, and you brought them into subjection to be your slaves.

¹⁷ “Therefore, thus says the Lord: You have not obeyed me ^(BY)by proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother and to his neighbor; ^(BZ)behold, I proclaim to you liberty ^(CA)to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, declares the Lord. ^(CB)I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. ¹⁸ And the men who transgressed my covenant and did not keep the terms of ^(CC)the covenant that they made before me, I will make them like^{[d] (CD)}the calf that they cut in two and passed between its parts— ¹⁹ the officials of Judah, the officials of Jerusalem, ^(CE)the eunuchs, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf. ²⁰ And I will give them into the hand of their enemies ^(CF)and into the hand of those who seek their lives. ^(CG)Their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth. ²¹ And ^(CH)Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials I will give into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their lives, into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon ^(CI)which has withdrawn from you. ²² Behold, ^(CJ)I will command, declares the Lord, and will ^(CK)bring them back to this city. ^(CL)And they will fight against it and take it and burn it with fire. ^(CM)I will make the cities of Judah a desolation ^(CN)without inhabitant.”

Zophar Speaks: The Wicked Will Suffer

20 Then ^(A)Zophar the Naamathite answered and said: