The Transfiguration

17 And ^(A)six days later Jesus *brought with Him ^(B)Peter and James and John his brother, and *led them up on a high mountain by themselves. ² And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light. ³ And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. ⁴ And Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, ^(C)I will make three ^[a]booths here, one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” ⁵ While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, ^(D)a voice out of the cloud said, “^(E)This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!” ⁶ And when the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. ⁷ And Jesus came to them and touched them and said, “Get up, and ^(F)do not be afraid.” ⁸ And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus Himself alone.

^9 (G)And as they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, “^(H)Tell the vision to no one until ^(I)the Son of Man has ^(J)risen from the dead.” ¹⁰ And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Why then do the scribes say that ^(K)Elijah must come first?” ¹¹ And He answered and said, “Elijah is coming and will restore all things; ¹² but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did ^[b]to him whatever they wished. So also ^(L)the Son of Man is going to suffer ^[c]at their hands.” ¹³ Then the disciples understood that He had spoken to them about John the Baptist.

Jesus Casts Out a Demon

^14 (M)And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to Jesus, falling on his knees before Him and saying, ¹⁵ “^[d]Lord, have mercy on my son, for he has ^[e](N)seizures and suffers terribly; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. ¹⁶ And I brought him to Your disciples, and they could not cure him.” ¹⁷ And Jesus answered and said, “O you unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.” ¹⁸ And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured ^[f]at once.

¹⁹ Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁰ And He *said to them, “Because of your little faith; for truly I say to you, ^(O)if you have faith ^[g]the size of ^(P)a mustard seed, you will say to ^(Q)this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and ^(R)nothing will be impossible to you. ^21 [h][^(S)But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”]

^22 (T)And while they were gathering together in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is going to be ^[i]delivered into the hands of men; ²³ and ^(U)they will kill Him, and He will be raised on the third day.” And they were deeply grieved.

The Temple Tax

²⁴ Now when they came to Capernaum, those who collected ^(V)the ^[j]two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay ^(W)the ^[k]two-drachma tax?” ²⁵ He *said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect ^(X)tolls or ^(Y)taxes, from their sons or from strangers?” ²⁶ And when Peter said, “From strangers,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are ^[l]exempt. ²⁷ However, so that we do not ^[m](Z)offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a ^[n]stater. Take that and give it to them for Me and you.”

^2 (A)And six days later, Jesus *took with Him ^(B)Peter and James and John, and *brought them up on a high mountain alone by themselves. And He was transfigured before them; ³ and ^(C)His garments were shining intensely white, as no launderer on earth can whiten them. ⁴ And Elijah appeared to them along with Moses and they were conversing with Jesus. ⁵ And Peter answered and *said to Jesus, “^(D)Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; ^(E)let us make three ^[a]booths, one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” ⁶ For he did not know what to answer; for they became terrified. ⁷ Then a cloud ^[b]formed, overshadowing them, and ^(F)a voice ^[c]came out of the cloud, “^(G)This is My beloved Son, ^[d]listen to Him!” ⁸ And all at once when they looked around, they saw no one with them anymore, except Jesus alone.

^9 (H)And as they were coming down from the mountain, He ^(I)gave them orders not to recount to anyone what they had seen, ^[e]until the Son of Man rose from the dead. ¹⁰ And they ^[f]seized upon ^[g]that statement, arguing with one another ^[h]what rising from the dead meant. ¹¹ And they began asking Him, saying, “Why is it that the scribes say that ^(J)Elijah must come first?” ¹² And He said to them, “Elijah does first come and restore all things. And yet how is it written of ^(K)the Son of Man that ^(L)He will suffer many things and be treated with contempt? ¹³ But I say to you that Elijah has ^[i]indeed come, and they did to him whatever they wished, just as it is written of him.”

I Believe, Help My Unbelief

^14 (M)And when they came back to the disciples, they saw a large crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them. ¹⁵ And immediately, when the entire crowd saw Him, they were ^(N)amazed. And as they ran up, they were greeting Him. ¹⁶ And He asked them, “What are you arguing with them?” ¹⁷ And one of the crowd answered Him, “Teacher, I brought You my son, possessed with a spirit which makes him mute; ¹⁸ and ^[j]whenever it seizes him, it ^[k]slams him to the ground and he foams at the mouth, and grinds his teeth and ^[l]becomes rigid. I told Your disciples to cast it out, and they could not do it.” ¹⁹ And He *answered them and *said, “O unbelieving generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him to Me!” ²⁰ And they brought ^[m]the boy to Him. When he saw Him, immediately the spirit threw him into a convulsion, and falling to the ground, he began rolling around, foaming at the mouth. ²¹ And He asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. ²² And it has often thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!” ²³ And Jesus said to him, “‘If You can?’ ^(O)All things are possible to him who believes.” ²⁴ Immediately the boy’s father cried out and was saying, “I do believe; help my unbelief.” ²⁵ Now when Jesus saw that ^(P)a crowd was ^[n]rapidly gathering, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You mute and deaf spirit, ^[o]I command you, come out of him and do not enter him ^[p]again.” ²⁶ And after crying out and throwing him into terrible convulsions, it came out; and the boy became so much like a corpse that most of them said, “He is dead!” ²⁷ But Jesus took him by the hand and raised him; and he stood up. ²⁸ And when He came ^(Q)into the house, His disciples began questioning Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁹ And He said to them, “This kind cannot come out by anything but prayer.”

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

^30 (R)From there they went out and were going through Galilee, and He was not wanting anyone to know about it. ³¹ For He was teaching His disciples and telling them, “^(S)The Son of Man is to be ^[q]delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill Him; and when He has been killed, He will rise again three days later.” ³² But ^(T)they ^[r]did not understand this statement, and they were afraid to ask Him.

^33 (U)And they came to Capernaum; and when He ^[s]was in ^(V)the house, He began to question them, “What were you discussing on the way?” ³⁴ But they kept silent, for on the way ^(W)they had discussed with one another which of them was the greatest. ³⁵ And sitting down, He called the twelve and *said to them, “^(X)If anyone wants to be first, ^[t]he shall be last of all and servant of all.” ³⁶ And taking a child, He set him ^[u]before them. And taking him in His arms, He said to them, ³⁷ “^(Y)Whoever receives ^[v]one child like this in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me does not receive Me, but Him who sent Me.”

Warnings About Discipleship

^38 (Z)John said to Him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and ^(AA)we tried to hinder him because he was not following us.” ³⁹ But Jesus said, “Do not hinder him, for there is no one who will perform a miracle in My name, and be able soon afterward to speak evil of Me. ^40 (AB)For he who is not against us is ^[w]for us. ⁴¹ For ^(AC)whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name because you are of Christ, truly I say to you, he will not lose his reward.

⁴² “^(AD)And whoever causes one of these ^[x]little ones who believe to stumble, it ^[y]would be better for him if, with a heavy millstone hung around his neck, he ^[z]had been cast into the sea. ^43 (AE)And if your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into ^[aa](AF)hell, into the ^(AG)unquenchable fire, ^44 [ab][and where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.] ⁴⁵ And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame, than, having your two feet, to be cast into ^[ac](AH)hell, ^46 [ad][and where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.] ^47 (AI)And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into ^[ae](AJ)hell, ^48 (AK)where their worm does not die, and ^(AL)the fire is not quenched.

⁴⁹ “For everyone will be salted with fire. ⁵⁰ Salt is good; but ^(AM)if the salt becomes unsalty, with what will you ^[af]make it salty again? ^(AN)Have salt in yourselves, and ^(AO)be at peace with one another.”

The Transfiguration

^28 (A)Now it happened some eight days after these words, that taking along ^(B)Peter and John and James, He ^(C)went up on the mountain ^(D)to pray. ²⁹ And it happened that while He was ^(E)praying, the appearance of His face ^(F)became different, and His clothing became white and ^[a]gleaming. ³⁰ And behold, two men were talking with Him, and they were Moses and Elijah, ³¹ who, appearing in ^[b]glory, were speaking of His ^[c](G)departure which He was about to fulfill at Jerusalem. ³² Now Peter and his companions ^(H)had been overcome with sleep, but when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him. ³³ And it happened that as they were leaving Him, Peter said to Jesus, “^(I)Master, it is good for us to be here; ^(J)let us make three ^[d]booths: one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—^(K)not realizing what he was saying. ³⁴ While he was saying this, a cloud ^[e]formed and began to overshadow them; and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. ³⁵ Then ^(L)a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “^(M)This is My Son, My Chosen One; listen to Him!” ³⁶ And when the voice ^[f]had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And ^(N)they kept silent, and reported to no one in those days any of the things which they had seen.

Jesus Casts Out a Demon

^37 (O)Now it happened on the next day, that when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met Him. ³⁸ And behold, a man from the crowd shouted, saying, “Teacher, I beg You to look at my son, for he is my ^[g]only one, ³⁹ and behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly screams, and it throws him into a convulsion with foaming at the mouth, and only with difficulty does it leave him, mauling him as it leaves. ⁴⁰ And I begged Your disciples to cast it out, and they could not.” ⁴¹ And Jesus answered and said, “You unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.” ⁴² Now while he was still approaching, the demon ^[h]slammed him to the ground and threw him into a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the boy and gave him back to his father. ⁴³ And they were all astonished at the ^(P)majesty of God.

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

^(Q)But while everyone was marveling at all that He was doing, He said to His disciples, ⁴⁴ “Put these words into your ears; ^(R)for the Son of Man is going to be ^[i]delivered into the hands of men.” ⁴⁵ But ^(S)they ^[j]did not understand this statement, and it was concealed from them so that they would not perceive it, and they were afraid to ask Him about this statement.

Who Is the Greatest?

^46 (T)Now an argument ^[k]started among them as to which of them might be the greatest. ⁴⁷ But Jesus, ^(U)knowing ^[l]what they were thinking in their heart, took a child and stood him by His side, ⁴⁸ and said to them, “^(V)Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; ^(W)for the one who is least among all of you, this is the one who is great.”

^49 (X)And John answered and said, “^(Y)Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to hinder him because he does not follow along with us.” ⁵⁰ But Jesus said to him, “Do not hinder him, ^(Z)for he who is not against you is ^[m]for you.”

⁵¹ Now it happened that when the days for ^(AA)Him to be taken up were soon to be fulfilled, He set His face ^(AB)to go to Jerusalem; ⁵² and He sent messengers on ahead of Him, and they went and entered a village of the ^(AC)Samaritans to ^[n]make arrangements for Him. ⁵³ But they did not receive Him, ^(AD)because ^[o]He was journeying with His face toward Jerusalem. ⁵⁴ And when His disciples ^(AE)James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to ^(AF)command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” ⁵⁵ But He turned and rebuked them, ^[p][and said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are of, ⁵⁶ for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”] And they went on to another village.

The Cost of Following Jesus

^57 (AG)And as they were going along the road, ^(AH)someone said to Him, “I will follow You wherever You go.” ⁵⁸ And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the ^[q]air have ^[r]nests, but ^(AI)the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” ⁵⁹ And He said to another, “^(AJ)Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.” ⁶⁰ But He said to him, “Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and ^(AK)proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.” ⁶¹ Another also said, “I will follow You, Lord, but ^(AL)first permit me to say farewell to those at home.” ⁶² But Jesus said to him, “^(AM)No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”