Matthew 8
International Children’s Bible
Jesus Heals a Sick Man
8 When Jesus came down from the hill, great crowds followed him. 2 Then a man sick with a harmful skin disease came to Jesus. The man bowed down before him and said, “Lord, you have the power to heal me if you want.”
3 Jesus touched the man and said, “I want to heal you. Be healed!” And immediately the man was healed from his skin disease. 4 Then Jesus said to him, “Don’t tell anyone about what happened. But go and show yourself to the priest.[a] And offer the gift that Moses commanded[b] for people who are made well. This will show people that you are healed.”
Jesus Heals a Soldier’s Servant
5 Jesus went to the city of Capernaum. When he entered the city, an army officer came to Jesus and begged for help. 6 The officer said, “Lord, my servant is at home in bed. He can’t move his body and is in much pain.”
7 Jesus said to the officer, “I will go and heal him.”
8 The officer answered, “Lord, I am not good enough for you to come into my house. All you need to do is command that my servant be healed, and he will be healed. 9 I myself am a man under the authority of other men. And I have soldiers under my command. I tell one soldier, ‘Go,’ and he goes. I tell another soldier, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and my servant obeys me.
10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. He said to those who were with him, “I tell you the truth. This man has more faith than any other person I have found, even in Israel. 11 Many people will come from the east and from the west. They will sit and eat with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 And those people who should have the kingdom will be thrown outside into the darkness. In that place people will cry and grind their teeth with pain.”
13 Then Jesus said to the officer, “Go home. Your servant will be healed just as you believed he would.” And at that same time his servant was healed.
Jesus Heals Many People
14 Jesus went to Peter’s house. There Jesus saw that Peter’s mother-in-law was in bed with a high fever. 15 Jesus touched her hand, and the fever left her. Then she stood up and began to serve Jesus.
16 That evening people brought to Jesus many who had demons. Jesus spoke and the demons left them. Jesus healed all the sick. 17 He did these things to make come true what Isaiah the prophet said:
“He took our suffering on him.
And he felt our pain for us.” Isaiah 53:4
People Want to Follow Jesus
18 When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he told his followers to go to the other side of the lake. 19 Then a teacher of the law came to Jesus and said, “Teacher, I will follow you any place you go.”
20 Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes to live in. The birds have nests to live in. But the Son of Man has no place where he can rest his head.”
21 Another man, one of Jesus’ followers, said to Jesus, “Lord, let me go and bury my father first.”
22 But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and let the people who are dead bury their own dead.”
Jesus Stops a Storm
23 Jesus got into a boat, and his followers went with him. 24 A very bad storm arose on the lake. The waves covered the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The followers went to Jesus and woke him. They said, “Lord, save us! We will drown!”
26 Jesus answered, “Why are you afraid? You don’t have enough faith.” Then Jesus got up and gave a command to the wind and the sea. The wind stopped, and the sea became very calm.
27 The men were amazed. They said, “What kind of man is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”
Jesus Heals Two Men with Demons
28 Jesus arrived at the other side of the lake in the country of the Gadarene[c] people. There, two men came to Jesus. They had demons in them. These men lived in the burial caves. They were so dangerous that people could not use the road by those caves. 29 The two men came to Jesus and shouted, “What do you want with us, Son of God? Did you come here to punish us before the right time?”
30 Near that place there was a large herd of pigs feeding. 31 The demons begged Jesus, “If you make us leave these men, please send us into that herd of pigs.”
32 Jesus said to them, “Go!” So the demons left the men and went into the pigs. Then the whole herd of pigs ran down the hill into the lake and were drowned. 33 The men who were caring for the pigs ran away and went into town. They told about all of this and what had happened to the men who had demons. 34 Then the whole town went out to see Jesus. When they saw him, they begged him to leave their area.
Footnotes
- 8:4 show . . . priest The law of Moses said a priest must say when a Jew who had a harmful skin disease was well.
- 8:4 Moses commanded Read about this in Leviticus 14:1–32.
- 8:28 Gadarene From Gadara, an area southeast of Lake Galilee. The exact location is uncertain and some Greek copies read “Gergesene”; others read “Gerasene.”
Matthew 8
International Standard Version
Jesus Cleanses a Leper(A)
8 When Jesus[a] came down from the hillside, large crowds followed him. 2 Suddenly, a leper[b] came up to him, fell down before him, and said, “Sir,[c] if you want to, you can make me clean.”[d]
3 So Jesus[e] reached out his hand, touched him, and said, “I do want to. Be clean!” And instantly his leprosy was made clean. 4 Then Jesus told him, “See to it that you don’t speak to anyone. Instead, go and show yourself to the priest, and then offer the sacrifice that Moses commanded[f] as proof to the authorities.”[g]
Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Servant(B)
5 When Jesus[h] returned to Capernaum, a centurion[i] came up to him and begged him repeatedly, 6 “Sir,[j] my servant is lying at home paralyzed and in terrible pain.”
7 Jesus[k] told him, “I will come and heal him.”
8 The centurion replied, “Sir,[l] I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed, 9 because I, too, am a man under authority and I have soldiers under me. I say to one of them[m] ‘Go’ and he goes, to another ‘Come’ and he comes, and to my servant ‘Do this’ and he does it.”
10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and told those who were following him, “I tell all of you[n] with certainty, not even[o] in Israel have I found this kind of faith! 11 I tell all of you,[p] many will come from east and west and will feast with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom from[q] heaven. 12 But the unfaithful heirs[r] of that kingdom will be thrown into the darkness outside. In that place there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”[s]
13 “Go,” Jesus told the centurion, “and it will be done for you, just as you have believed.” And his servant was healed that very hour.
Jesus Heals Many People(C)
14 When Jesus went into Peter’s house, he saw Peter’s[t] mother-in-law lying in bed, sick with a fever. 15 He touched her hand, and the fever left her. Then she got up and began serving him.
16 When evening came, people[u] brought to him many who were possessed by demons. He drove out the spirits by speaking a command[v] and healed everyone who was sick. 17 This was to fulfill what was declared by the prophet Isaiah when he said,
“It was he who took our illnesses away
and removed our diseases.”[w]
The Would-be Followers of Jesus(D)
18 When Jesus saw the large crowds around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side of the Sea of Galilee.[x] 19 Just then, a scribe came up and told him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”
20 Jesus told him,
21 Then another of his disciples told him, “Lord,[aa] first let me go and bury my father.”
22 But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”
Jesus Calms the Sea(E)
23 When Jesus[ab] got into the boat, his disciples went with him. 24 Suddenly, a violent storm came up on the sea, so that the boat began to be swamped by the waves. Yet Jesus[ac] kept sleeping. 25 They[ad] went to him and woke him up. “Lord!” they cried, “Save us! We’re going to die!”
26 He asked them, “Why are you afraid, you who have little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.
27 The men were amazed. “What kind of man is this?” they asked. “Even the winds and the sea obey him!”
Jesus Heals Two Demon-Possessed Men(F)
28 When Jesus[ae] arrived on the other side in the region of the Gerasenes,[af] two demon-possessed men met him as they were coming out of the tombs. They were so violent that no one could travel on that road. 29 Suddenly, they screamed, “What do you want with us, Son of God? Did you come here to torture us before the proper time?”
30 Now a large herd of pigs was grazing some distance away from them. 31 So the demons began to plead with Jesus,[ag] saying, “If you drive us out, send us into that herd of pigs.”
32 He told them, “Go,” and they came out and went into the pigs. Suddenly, the whole herd rushed down a steep slope into the sea and drowned in the water.
33 Now when those who had been taking care of the pigs ran away, they came into the city and reported everything, especially what had happened to the demon-possessed men. 34 Then the whole city went out to meet Jesus, and as soon as they saw him, they begged him to leave their region.
Footnotes
- Matthew 8:1 Lit. he
- Matthew 8:2 I.e. a man with a serious skin disease
- Matthew 8:2 Or Lord
- Matthew 8:2 I.e. restored to health and qualified to participate in worship
- Matthew 8:3 Lit. He
- Matthew 8:4 Cf. Lev 14:3-32
- Matthew 8:4 Lit. to them
- Matthew 8:5 Lit. he
- Matthew 8:5 I.e. a commander of about 100 soldiers
- Matthew 8:6 Or Lord
- Matthew 8:7 Lit. He
- Matthew 8:8 Or Lord
- Matthew 8:9 The Gk. lacks of them
- Matthew 8:10 The Gk. pronoun you is pl.
- Matthew 8:10 Other mss. read in no one
- Matthew 8:11 The Gk. pronoun you is pl.
- Matthew 8:11 Lit. of
- Matthew 8:12 Lit. the sons
- Matthew 8:12 I.e. extreme pain
- Matthew 8:14 Lit. his
- Matthew 8:16 Lit. they
- Matthew 8:16 Lit. spirits with a word
- Matthew 8:17 Cf. Isa 53:4
- Matthew 8:18 The Gk. lacks of the Sea of Galilee
- Matthew 8:20 Lit. birds in the sky
- Matthew 8:20 Lit. no place to lay his head
- Matthew 8:21 Or Sir
- Matthew 8:23 Lit. he
- Matthew 8:24 Lit. he
- Matthew 8:25 Other mss. read The disciples
- Matthew 8:28 Lit. he
- Matthew 8:28 Other mss. read Gergesenes; still other mss. read Gadarenes
- Matthew 8:31 Lit. him
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