Matthew 4:12-25
King James Version
12 Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee;
13 And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim:
14 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
15 The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles;
16 The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
18 And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.
19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
20 And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.
21 And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.
22 And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him.
23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.
24 And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them.
25 And there followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from Judaea, and from beyond Jordan.
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Matthew 4:12-25
New King James Version
Jesus Begins His Galilean Ministry(A)
12 (B)Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. 13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:
15 “The(C) land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles:
16 (D)The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light,
And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death
Light has dawned.”
17 (E)From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, (F)“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven [a]is at hand.”
Four Fishermen Called as Disciples(G)
18 (H)And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon (I)called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 19 Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and (J)I will make you fishers of men.” 20 (K)They immediately left their nets and followed Him.
21 (L)Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.
Jesus Heals a Great Multitude(M)
23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, (N)teaching in their synagogues, preaching (O)the gospel of the kingdom, (P)and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. 24 Then [b]His fame went throughout all Syria; and they (Q)brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them. 25 (R)Great multitudes followed Him—from Galilee, and from [c]Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Matthew 4:17 has drawn near
- Matthew 4:24 Lit. the report of Him
- Matthew 4:25 Lit. Ten Cities
Matthew 4:12-25
English Standard Version
Jesus Begins His Ministry
12 Now when he heard that (A)John had been arrested, (B)he withdrew into Galilee. 13 And leaving (C)Nazareth he went and lived in (D)Capernaum by (E)the sea, in the territory of (F)Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 (G)so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
15 (H)“The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
16 (I)the people dwelling in darkness
have seen a great light,
and for those dwelling in the region and (J)shadow of death,
on them a light has dawned.”
17 (K)From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, (L)“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”[a]
Jesus Calls the First Disciples
18 (M)While walking by (N)the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you (O)fishers of men.”[b] 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Jesus Ministers to Great Crowds
23 (P)And he went throughout all Galilee, (Q)teaching in their synagogues and (R)proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and (S)healing every disease and every affliction among the people. 24 So his fame spread throughout all (T)Syria, and (U)they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and (V)pains, (W)those oppressed by demons, (X)those having seizures, and (Y)paralytics, and he healed them. 25 (Z)And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the (AA)Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Matthew 4:17 Or the kingdom of heaven has come near
- Matthew 4:19 The Greek word anthropoi refers here to both men and women
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.

