Mark 7:21-11:25

English Standard Version

²¹ For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, ^(A)murder, adultery, ²² coveting, wickedness, deceit, ^(B)sensuality, ^(C)envy, ^(D)slander, ^(E)pride, ^(F)foolishness. ^23 (G)All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

The Syrophoenician Woman's Faith

²⁴ And from there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon.^[a] And he entered a house and did not want anyone to know, yet he could not be hidden. ²⁵ But immediately a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit heard of him and came and fell down at his feet. ^26 (H)Now the woman was a ^(I)Gentile, ^(J)a Syrophoenician by birth. And she begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. ²⁷ And he said to her, “Let the children be ^(K)fed first, for it is not right to take the children's bread and ^(L)throw it to the dogs.” ²⁸ But she answered him, “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children's ^(M)crumbs.” ²⁹ And he said to her, “For this statement you may ^(N)go your way; the demon has left your daughter.” ³⁰ And she went home and found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.

Jesus Heals a Deaf Man

^31 (O)Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to ^(P)the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the ^(Q)Decapolis. ³² And they brought to him ^(R)a man who was deaf and ^(S)had a speech impediment, and they begged him to ^(T)lay his hand on him. ³³ And ^(U)taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and ^(V)after spitting touched his tongue. ³⁴ And ^(W)looking up to heaven, ^(X)he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” ^35 (Y)And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. ³⁶ And ^(Z)Jesus^[b] charged them to tell no one. But ^(AA)the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. ³⁷ And they were ^(AB)astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

8 ^(AC)In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, he called his disciples to him and said to them, ^2 (AD)“I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. ³ And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away.” ⁴ And his disciples answered him, “How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?” ⁵ And he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, ^(AE)“Seven.” ⁶ And he directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves, and ^(AF)having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd. ⁷ And they had a few small fish. And ^(AG)having blessed them, he said that these also should be set before them. ⁸ And ^(AH)they ate and were satisfied. And they took up the broken pieces left over, ^(AI)seven baskets full. ⁹ And there were about four thousand people. And he sent them away. ¹⁰ And immediately he got into ^(AJ)the boat with his disciples and went to the district of ^(AK)Dalmanutha.^[c]

The Pharisees Demand a Sign

^11 (AL)The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, ^(AM)seeking from him ^(AN)a sign from heaven ^(AO)to test him. ¹² And ^(AP)he sighed deeply ^(AQ)in his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.” ¹³ And ^(AR)he left them, got into the boat again, and went to the other side.

The Leaven of the Pharisees and Herod

¹⁴ Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. ¹⁵ And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; ^(AS)beware of ^(AT)the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of ^(AU)Herod.”^{[d] 16} And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. ¹⁷ And ^(AV)Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? ^(AW)Do you not yet perceive ^(AX)or understand? ^(AY)Are your hearts hardened? ^18 (AZ)Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? ¹⁹ When I broke ^(BA)the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” ²⁰ “And ^(BB)the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” ²¹ And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

Jesus Heals a Blind Man at Bethsaida

²² And they came ^(BC)to Bethsaida. And some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him. ²³ And ^(BD)he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when ^(BE)he had ^(BF)spit on his eyes and ^(BG)laid his hands on him, he asked him, “Do you see anything?” ²⁴ And he looked up and said, “I see people, but they look like trees, walking.” ²⁵ Then Jesus^[e] laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. ²⁶ And he sent him to his home, saying, ^(BH)“Do not even enter the village.”

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

^27 (BI)And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” ²⁸ And they told him, ^(BJ)“John the Baptist; and others say, ^(BK)Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” ²⁹ And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, ^(BL)“You are ^(BM)the Christ.” ^30 (BN)And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him.

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

^31 (BO)And he began to teach them that ^(BP)the Son of Man must ^(BQ)suffer many things and ^(BR)be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and ^(BS)after three days rise again. ³² And he said this ^(BT)plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. ³³ But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, ^(BU)“Get behind me, Satan! For you ^(BV)are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

³⁴ And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him ^(BW)deny himself and ^(BX)take up his cross and follow me. ³⁵ For ^(BY)whoever would save his life^[f] will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake ^(BZ)and the gospel's will save it. ^36 (CA)For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? ³⁷ For ^(CB)what can a man give in return for his soul? ³⁸ For ^(CC)whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this ^(CD)adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed ^(CE)when he comes in the glory of his Father with ^(CF)the holy angels.”

9 And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not ^(CG)taste death ^(CH)until they see the kingdom of God after it has come ^(CI)with power.”

The Transfiguration

^2 (CJ)And after six days Jesus took with him ^(CK)Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was ^(CL)transfigured before them, ³ and ^(CM)his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one^[g] on earth could bleach them. ⁴ And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. ⁵ And Peter said to Jesus, ^(CN)“Rabbi,^[h] it is good that we are here. Let us make three ^(CO)tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” ⁶ For ^(CP)he did not know what to say, for they were terrified. ⁷ And ^(CQ)a cloud overshadowed them, and ^(CR)a voice came out of the cloud, ^(CS)“This is my beloved Son;^{[i] (CT)}listen to him.” ⁸ And suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone with them but Jesus only.

^9 (CU)And as they were coming down the mountain, ^(CV)he charged them to tell no one what they had seen, ^(CW)until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. ^10 (CX)So they kept the matter to themselves, ^(CY)questioning what this rising from the dead might mean. ¹¹ And they asked him, “Why do the scribes say ^(CZ)that first Elijah must come?” ¹² And he said to them, “Elijah does come first ^(DA)to restore all things. And ^(DB)how is it written of the Son of Man that he should ^(DC)suffer many things and ^(DD)be treated with contempt? ¹³ But I tell you that Elijah has come, and ^(DE)they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written of him.”

Jesus Heals a Boy with an Unclean Spirit

^14 (DF)And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them. ¹⁵ And immediately all the crowd, when they saw him, ^(DG)were greatly amazed and ran up to him and greeted him. ¹⁶ And he asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?” ¹⁷ And someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has ^(DH)a spirit that makes him mute. ¹⁸ And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and ^(DI)they were not able.” ¹⁹ And he answered them, “O ^(DJ)faithless generation, ^(DK)how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” ²⁰ And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it ^(DL)convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. ²¹ And Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. ²² And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But ^(DM)if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” ²³ And Jesus said to him, ^(DN)“‘If you can’! ^(DO)All things are possible for one who believes.” ²⁴ Immediately the father of the child cried out^[j] and said, “I believe; ^(DP)help my unbelief!” ²⁵ And when Jesus saw that ^(DQ)a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, ^(DR)“You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” ²⁶ And after crying out and ^(DS)convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, “He is dead.” ²⁷ But Jesus ^(DT)took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. ²⁸ And when he had ^(DU)entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁹ And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”^[k]

Jesus Again Foretells Death, Resurrection

^30 (DV)They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he did not want anyone to know, ³¹ for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, ^(DW)after three days he will rise.” ^32 (DX)But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask him.

Who Is the Greatest?

³³ And ^(DY)they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house ^(DZ)he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” ³⁴ But they kept silent, for on the way ^(EA)they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. ³⁵ And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, ^(EB)“If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” ³⁶ And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and ^(EC)taking him in his arms, he said to them, ^37 (ED)“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and ^(EE)whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.”

Anyone Not Against Us Is for Us

^38 (EF)John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone ^(EG)casting out demons in your name,^[l] and ^(EH)we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” ³⁹ But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. ^40 (EI)For the one who is not against us is for us. ⁴¹ For truly, I say to you, ^(EJ)whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.

Temptations to Sin

^42 (EK)“Whoever causes one of ^(EL)these little ones who believe in me to sin,^{[m] (EM)}it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. ^43 (EN)And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to ^(EO)hell,^[n] to ^(EP)the unquenchable fire.^{[o] 45 (EQ)}And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into ^(ER)hell. ^47 (ES)And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into ^(ET)hell, ⁴⁸ ‘where ^(EU)their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’ ⁴⁹ For everyone will be salted with fire.^{[p] 50 (EV)}Salt is good, ^(EW)but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? ^(EX)Have salt in yourselves, and ^(EY)be at peace with one another.”

Teaching About Divorce

10 ^(EZ)And he left there and went ^(FA)to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan, and crowds gathered to him again. And again, as was his custom, he taught them.

² And Pharisees came up and in order ^(FB)to test him asked, ^(FC)“Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” ³ He answered them, “What did Moses command you?” ⁴ They said, ^(FD)“Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and to send her away.” ⁵ And Jesus said to them, “Because of your ^(FE)hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment. ⁶ But ^(FF)from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them ^(FG)male and female.’ ^7 (FH)‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife,^{[q] 8} and ^(FI)the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. ^9 (FJ)What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

¹⁰ And in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. ¹¹ And he said to them, ^(FK)“Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her, ¹² and ^(FL)if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

Let the Children Come to Me

^13 (FM)And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples ^(FN)rebuked them. ¹⁴ But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, ^(FO)“Let the children come to me; ^(FP)do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. ^15 (FQ)Truly, I say to you, whoever does not ^(FR)receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” ¹⁶ And ^(FS)he took them in his arms and blessed them, ^(FT)laying his hands on them.

The Rich Young Man

^17 (FU)And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and ^(FV)knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to ^(FW)inherit eternal life?” ¹⁸ And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. ¹⁹ You know the commandments: ^(FX)‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” ²⁰ And he said to him, “Teacher, ^(FY)all these I have kept from my youth.” ²¹ And Jesus, ^(FZ)looking at him, ^(GA)loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, ^(GB)sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have ^(GC)treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” ^22 (GD)Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

²³ And Jesus ^(GE)looked around and said to his disciples, ^(GF)“How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter ^(GG)the kingdom of God!” ²⁴ And the disciples ^(GH)were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, ^(GI)“Children, ^(GJ)how difficult it is^[r] to enter ^(GK)the kingdom of God! ²⁵ It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter ^(GL)the kingdom of God.” ²⁶ And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him,^[s] “Then who can be saved?” ²⁷ Jesus ^(GM)looked at them and said, ^(GN)“With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” ²⁸ Peter began to say to him, “See, ^(GO)we have left everything and followed you.” ²⁹ Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, ^(GP)there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and ^(GQ)for the gospel, ³⁰ who will not receive a hundredfold ^(GR)now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, ^(GS)with persecutions, and in ^(GT)the age to come eternal life. ³¹ But ^(GU)many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

Jesus Foretells His Death a Third Time

^32 (GV)And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and ^(GW)Jesus was walking ahead of them. And ^(GX)they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, ³³ saying, “See, ^(GY)we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will ^(GZ)condemn him to death and ^(HA)deliver him over to the Gentiles. ³⁴ And they will ^(HB)mock him and ^(HC)spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And ^(HD)after three days he will rise.”

The Request of James and John

^35 (HE)And James and John, ^(HF)the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us ^(HG)whatever we ask of you.” ³⁶ And he said to them, ^(HH)“What do you want me to do for you?” ³⁷ And they said to him, “Grant us ^(HI)to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, ^(HJ)in your glory.” ³⁸ Jesus said to them, ^(HK)“You do not know what you are asking. Are you able ^(HL)to drink the cup that I drink, or ^(HM)to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” ³⁹ And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, ^(HN)“The cup that I drink ^(HO)you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, ^(HP)you will be baptized, ⁴⁰ but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, ^(HQ)but it is for those for whom it has been ^(HR)prepared.” ⁴¹ And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John. ^42 (HS)And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles ^(HT)lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. ⁴³ But ^(HU)it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,^{[t] 44} and whoever would be first among you must be ^(HV)slave^[u] of all. ⁴⁵ For even the Son of Man came not to be served but ^(HW)to serve, and ^(HX)to give his life as a ransom for ^(HY)many.”

Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus

^46 (HZ)And they came to Jericho. And ^(IA)as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, ^(IB)a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. ⁴⁷ And when he heard that it was ^(IC)Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” ⁴⁸ And many ^(ID)rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” ⁴⁹ And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, ^(IE)“Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” ⁵⁰ And throwing off his ^(IF)cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. ⁵¹ And Jesus said to him, ^(IG)“What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, ^(IH)“Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” ⁵² And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; ^(II)your faith has ^(IJ)made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.

The Triumphal Entry

11 ^(IK)Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to ^(IL)Bethphage and Bethany, at ^(IM)the Mount of Olives, Jesus^[v] sent ^(IN)two of his disciples ² and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, ^(IO)on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. ³ If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’” ⁴ And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. ⁵ And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” ⁶ And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. ⁷ And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. ⁸ And many ^(IP)spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. ⁹ And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, ^(IQ)“Hosanna! ^(IR)Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! ¹⁰ Blessed is ^(IS)the coming ^(IT)kingdom of ^(IU)our father ^(IV)David! ^(IW)Hosanna ^(IX)in the highest!”

^11 (IY)And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, ^(IZ)he went out to Bethany with the twelve.

Jesus Curses the Fig Tree

^12 (JA)On the following day, when they came from Bethany, ^(JB)he was hungry. ^13 (JC)And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for ^(JD)it was not the season for figs. ¹⁴ And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

^15 (JE)And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of ^(JF)the money-changers and the seats of those who sold ^(JG)pigeons. ¹⁶ And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. ¹⁷ And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ^(JH)‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But ^(JI)you have made it a den of robbers.” ¹⁸ And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and ^(JJ)were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because ^(JK)all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. ^19 (JL)And when evening came they^[w] went out of the city.

The Lesson from the Withered Fig Tree

^20 (JM)As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. ²¹ And Peter remembered and said to him, ^(JN)“Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” ²² And Jesus answered them, “Have ^(JO)faith in God. ^23 (JP)Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ^(JQ)‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not ^(JR)doubt in his heart, but ^(JS)believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. ²⁴ Therefore I tell you, ^(JT)whatever you ask in prayer, ^(JU)believe that you ^(JV)have received^[x] it, and it will be yours. ²⁵ And whenever ^(JW)you stand praying, ^(JX)forgive, ^(JY)if you have anything against anyone, so that ^(JZ)your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”^[y]