Jesus, God’s Chosen Servant

¹⁵ But Jesus knew what they were planning. So he left that area, and many people followed him. He healed all the sick among them,

Crowds Follow Jesus

⁷ Jesus went out to the lake with his disciples, and a large crowd followed him. They came from all over Galilee, Judea, ⁸ Jerusalem, Idumea, from east of the Jordan River, and even from as far north as Tyre and Sidon. The news about his miracles had spread far and wide, and vast numbers of people came to see him.

⁹ Jesus instructed his disciples to have a boat ready so the crowd would not crush him. ¹⁰ He had healed many people that day, so all the sick people eagerly pushed forward to touch him. ¹¹ And whenever those possessed by evil^[a] spirits caught sight of him, the spirits would throw them to the ground in front of him shrieking, “You are the Son of God!” ¹² But Jesus sternly commanded the spirits not to reveal who he was.

² Large crowds followed him there, and he healed their sick.

²³ When you are persecuted in one town, flee to the next. I tell you the truth, the Son of Man^[a] will return before you have reached all the towns of Israel.

⁵⁴ As a result, Jesus stopped his public ministry among the people and left Jerusalem. He went to a place near the wilderness, to the village of Ephraim, and stayed there with his disciples.