Matthew 17:14-21
International Children’s Bible
Jesus Heals a Sick Boy
14 Jesus and his followers went back to the crowd. A man came to Jesus and bowed before him. 15 The man said, “Lord, please help my son. He has epilepsy[a] and is suffering very much. He often falls into the fire or into the water. 16 I brought him to your followers, but they could not cure him.”
17 Jesus answered, “You people have no faith. Your lives are all wrong. How long must I stay with you? How long must I continue to be patient with you? Bring the boy here.” 18 Jesus gave a strong command to the demon inside the boy. Then the demon came out, and the boy was healed.
19 The followers came to Jesus when he was alone. They said, “Why couldn’t we force the demon out?”
20 Jesus answered, “You were not able to drive out the demon because your faith is too small. I tell you the truth. If your faith is as big as a mustard seed,[b] you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there.’ And the mountain will move. All things will be possible for you. 21 [That kind of spirit comes out only if you use prayer and give up eating.]”[c]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 17:15 epilepsy A disease that causes a person sometimes to lose control of his body, and maybe faint, shake strongly, or not be able to move.
- 17:20 mustard seed This seed is very small, but the plant grows taller than a man.
- 17:21 That . . . eating. Some Greek copies do not contain the bracketed text.
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