Mark 6
New King James Version
Jesus Rejected at Nazareth(A)
6 Then (B)He went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him. 2 And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were (C)astonished, saying, (D)“Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! 3 Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and (E)brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?” So they (F)were offended at Him.
4 But Jesus said to them, (G)“A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.” 5 (H)Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And (I)He marveled because of their unbelief. (J)Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.
Sending Out the Twelve(K)
7 (L)And He called the twelve to Himself, and began to send them out (M)two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits. 8 He commanded them to take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bag, no bread, no copper in their money belts— 9 but (N)to wear sandals, and not to put on two tunics.
10 (O)Also He said to them, “In whatever place you enter a house, stay there till you depart from that place. 11 (P)And [a]whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, (Q)shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. [b]Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!”
12 So they went out and preached that people should repent. 13 And they cast out many demons, (R)and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.
John the Baptist Beheaded(S)
14 (T)Now King Herod heard of Him, for His name had become well known. And he said, “John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore (U)these powers are at work in him.”
15 (V)Others said, “It is Elijah.”
And others said, “It is [c]the Prophet, (W)or like one of the prophets.”
16 (X)But when Herod heard, he said, “This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!” 17 For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife; for he had married her. 18 Because John had said to Herod, (Y)“It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”
19 Therefore Herodias [d]held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not; 20 for Herod (Z)feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him. And when he heard him, he [e]did many things, and heard him gladly.
21 (AA)Then an opportune day came when Herod (AB)on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee. 22 And when Herodias’ daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.” 23 He also swore to her, (AC)“Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”
24 So she went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask?”
And she said, “The head of John the Baptist!”
25 Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”
26 (AD)And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her. 27 Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in prison, 28 brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When his disciples heard of it, they came and (AE)took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.
Feeding the Five Thousand(AF)
30 (AG)Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught. 31 (AH)And He said to them, “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” For (AI)there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat. 32 (AJ)So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.
33 But [f]the multitudes saw them departing, and many (AK)knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to Him. 34 (AL)And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like (AM)sheep not having a shepherd. So (AN)He began to teach them many things. 35 (AO)When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, “This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late. 36 Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves [g]bread; for they have nothing to eat.”
37 But He answered and said to them, “You give them something to eat.”
And they said to Him, (AP)“Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?”
38 But He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”
And when they found out they said, (AQ)“Five, and two fish.”
39 Then He (AR)commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties. 41 And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He (AS)looked up to heaven, (AT)blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all. 42 So they all ate and were filled. 43 And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish. 44 Now those who had eaten the loaves were [h]about five thousand men.
Jesus Walks on the Sea(AU)
45 (AV)Immediately He [i]made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away. 46 And when He had sent them away, He (AW)departed to the mountain to pray. 47 Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea; and He was alone on the land. 48 Then He saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them. Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and (AX)would have passed them by. 49 And when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed it was a (AY)ghost, and cried out; 50 for they all saw Him and were troubled. But immediately He talked with them and said to them, (AZ)“Be[j] of good cheer! It is I; do not be (BA)afraid.” 51 Then He went up into the boat to them, and the wind (BB)ceased. And they were greatly (BC)amazed in themselves beyond measure, and marveled. 52 For (BD)they had not understood about the loaves, because their (BE)heart was hardened.
Many Touch Him and Are Made Well(BF)
53 (BG)When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret and anchored there. 54 And when they came out of the boat, immediately [k]the people recognized Him, 55 ran through that whole surrounding region, and began to carry about on beds those who were sick to wherever they heard He was. 56 Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that (BH)they might just touch the (BI)hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well.
Footnotes
- Mark 6:11 NU whatever place
- Mark 6:11 NU omits the rest of v. 11.
- Mark 6:15 NU, M a prophet, like one
- Mark 6:19 held a grudge
- Mark 6:20 NU was very perplexed, yet
- Mark 6:33 NU, M they
- Mark 6:36 NU something to eat and omits the rest of v. 36.
- Mark 6:44 NU, M omit about
- Mark 6:45 invited, strongly urged
- Mark 6:50 Take courage
- Mark 6:54 Lit. they
Mark 6
International Standard Version
Jesus is Rejected at Nazareth(A)
6 Jesus[a] left that place and went back to his hometown,[b] and his disciples followed him. 2 When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were utterly amazed. “Where did this man get all these things?” they asked. “What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What great miracles are being done by his hands! 3 This is the builder,[c] the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon, isn’t it? His sisters are here with us, aren’t they?” And they were offended by him.
4 Jesus had been telling them, “A prophet is without honor only in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his own home.” 5 He couldn’t perform a miracle there except to lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6 He was amazed at their unbelief. Then he went around to the villages and continued teaching.
Jesus Sends Out the Twelve(B)
7 He called the Twelve and began to send them out two by two, giving them authority over unclean spirits. 8 He instructed them to take nothing along on the trip except a walking stick—no bread, no traveling bag, nothing in their moneybag. 9 They could wear sandals but not take along an extra shirt.[d] 10 He told them repeatedly, “Whenever you go into a home, stay there until you leave that place. 11 If any place will not welcome you and the people[e] refuse to listen to you, when you leave, shake its dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” 12 So they went and preached that people[f] should repent. 13 They also kept driving out many demons and anointing with oil many who were sick, and healing them.
The Death of John the Baptist(C)
14 King Herod heard about this, because Jesus’[g] name had become well-known. He was[h] saying, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead! That’s why he is able to do these miracles.”
15 Others were saying, “He is Elijah.”
Still others were saying, “He is a prophet like one of the other[i] prophets.”
16 But when Herod heard about it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised,” 17 because Herod himself had sent men who arrested[j] John, bound him with chains, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, whom Herod[k] had married.
18 John had been telling Herod, “It’s not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” 19 So Herodias bore a grudge against John[l] and wanted to kill him. But she couldn’t do it 20 because Herod was afraid of John. He knew that John[m] was a righteous and holy man, and so he protected him. Whenever he listened to John,[n] he did much of what he said.[o] In fact, he liked listening to him.
21 An opportunity came during Herod’s birthday celebration, when he gave a banquet for his top officials, military officers, and the most important people of Galilee. 22 When the daughter of Herodias[p] came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. So the king told the girl, “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you.” 23 He swore with an oath to her, “I’ll give you anything you ask for, up to half of my kingdom.”
24 So she went out and asked her mother, “What should I ask for?”
Her mother[q] replied, “The head of John the Baptist.”
25 Immediately the girl[r] hurried back to the king with her request, “I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”
26 The king was deeply saddened, yet because of his oaths and his guests he was reluctant to refuse her. 27 So without delay the king sent a soldier and ordered him to bring John’s[s] head. The soldier[t] went and beheaded him in prison. 28 Then he brought John’s[u] head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When John’s[v] disciples heard about this, they came and carried off his body and laid it in a tomb.
Jesus Feeds More than Five Thousand People(D)
30 The apostles gathered around Jesus and told him everything they had done and taught. 31 He told them, “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest for a while,” because so many people were coming and going[w] that they didn’t even have time to eat. 32 So they went away in a boat to a deserted place by themselves. 33 But when many people saw them leave and recognized them, they hurried on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. 34 When he got out of the boat,[x] he saw a large crowd. He had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd, and he began to teach them many things.
35 When it was quite late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a deserted place, and it’s already late. 36 Send the crowds[y] away so that they can go to the neighboring farms and villages and buy themselves something to eat.”
37 But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.”
They asked him, “Should we go and buy 200 denarii[z] worth of bread and give it to them to eat?”
38 He asked them, “How many loaves of bread do you have? Go and see.”
They found out and told him, “Five loaves[aa] and two fish.”
39 Then he ordered them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. 41 Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and blessed them. Then he broke the loaves in pieces and kept giving them to his disciples to set before the people.[ab] He also divided the two fish among them all. 42 All of them ate and were filled. 43 Then the disciples[ac] picked up twelve baskets full of leftover bread and fish. 44 There were 5,000 men who had eaten the loaves.
Jesus Walks on the Sea(E)
45 Jesus[ad] immediately had his disciples get into a boat and cross to Bethsaida ahead of him, while he sent the crowd away. 46 After saying goodbye to them, he went up on a hillside to pray. 47 When evening had come, the boat was in the middle of the sea, while he was alone on the land. 48 He saw that his disciples[ae] were straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Shortly before dawn[af] he came to them, walking on the sea. He intended to go up right beside them, 49 but when they saw him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and began to scream. 50 All of them saw him and were terrified. Immediately he told them, “Have courage! It’s me. Stop being afraid!”
51 Then he got into the boat with them, and the wind stopped blowing. The disciples[ag] were utterly astounded, 52 because they didn’t understand the significance of the loaves. Instead, their hearts were hardened.
Jesus Heals the Sick in Gennesaret(F)
53 When they had crossed over, they came ashore at Gennesaret and anchored the boat. 54 As soon as they got out of the boat, the people recognized Jesus.[ah] 55 They ran all over the countryside and began carrying the sick on their mats to any place where they heard he was. 56 Wherever he went, whether into villages, towns, or farms, people[ai] would place their sick in the marketplaces and beg him to let them touch even the tassel of his garment, and everyone who touched it was healed.
Footnotes
- Mark 6:1 Lit. He
- Mark 6:1 I.e. Nazareth
- Mark 6:3 Or carpenter
- Mark 6:9 Lit. along two shirts
- Mark 6:11 Lit. they
- Mark 6:12 Lit. they
- Mark 6:14 Lit. his
- Mark 6:14 Other mss. read They were
- Mark 6:15 The Gk. lacks other
- Mark 6:17 Lit. sent and arrested
- Mark 6:17 Lit. he
- Mark 6:19 Lit. him
- Mark 6:20 Lit. he
- Mark 6:20 Lit. him
- Mark 6:20 Lit. did many things; other mss. read he became very disturbed
- Mark 6:22 Other mss. read his daughter by Herodias
- Mark 6:24 Lit. She
- Mark 6:25 Lit. she
- Mark 6:27 Lit. his
- Mark 6:27 Lit. He
- Mark 6:28 Lit. his
- Mark 6:29 Lit. his
- Mark 6:31 The Gk. lacks and going
- Mark 6:34 The Gk. lacks of the boat
- Mark 6:36 Lit. them
- Mark 6:37 The denarius was the usual day’s wage for a laborer.
- Mark 6:38 The Gk. lacks loaves
- Mark 6:41 Lit. before them
- Mark 6:43 Lit. they
- Mark 6:45 Lit. He
- Mark 6:48 Lit. that they
- Mark 6:48 Lit. In the fourth watch of the night
- Mark 6:51 Lit. They
- Mark 6:54 Lit. him
- Mark 6:56 Lit. they
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.

