The Lord Helps His Troubled People

A Psalm of David ^(A)when he fled from Absalom his son.

The Safety of the Faithful

To the ^[b]Chief Musician. With stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.

Satan Tempts Jesus^(A)

4 Then ^(B)Jesus was led up by ^(C)the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ² And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. ³ Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

⁴ But He answered and said, “It is written, ^(D)‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”

⁵ Then the devil took Him up ^(E)into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, ⁶ and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written:

and,

⁷ Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ^(H)‘You shall not ^[a]tempt the Lord your God.’ ”

⁸ Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and ^(I)showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. ⁹ And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”

¹⁰ Then Jesus said to him, ^[b]“Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ^(J)‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”

¹¹ Then the devil ^(K)left Him, and behold, ^(L)angels came and ministered to Him.

Jesus Begins His Galilean Ministry^(M)

^12 (N)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:

^17 (Q)From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ^(R)“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven ^[c]is at hand.”

Four Fishermen Called as Disciples^(S)

^18 (T)And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon ^(U)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 ^(V)I will make you fishers of men.” ^20 (W)They immediately left their nets and followed Him.

^21 (X)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^(Y)

²³ And Jesus went about all Galilee, ^(Z)teaching in their synagogues, preaching ^(AA)the gospel of the kingdom, ^(AB)and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. ²⁴ Then ^[d]His fame went throughout all Syria; and they ^(AC)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 (AD)Great multitudes followed Him—from Galilee, and from ^[e]Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.

The Beatitudes^(AE)

5 And seeing the multitudes, ^(AF)He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. ² Then He opened His mouth and ^(AG)taught them, saying:

^11 (AR)Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of ^(AS)evil against you falsely for My sake. ^12 (AT)Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for ^(AU)so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Believers Are Salt and Light^(AV)

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth; ^(AW)but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.

^14 (AX)“You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Nor do they ^(AY)light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. ¹⁶ Let your light so shine before men, ^(AZ)that they may see your good works and ^(BA)glorify your Father in heaven.

Christ Fulfills the Law

^17 (BB)“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. ¹⁸ For assuredly, I say to you, ^(BC)till heaven and earth pass away, one ^[g]jot or one ^[h]tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. ^19 (BD)Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰ For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds ^(BE)the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

Murder Begins in the Heart^(BF)

²¹ “You have heard that it was said to those ^[i]of old, ^(BG)‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ ²² But I say to you that ^(BH)whoever is angry with his brother ^[j]without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ^(BI)‘Raca!’^[k] shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ^[l]‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of ^[m]hell fire. ²³ Therefore ^(BJ)if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, ^24 (BK)leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. ^25 (BL)Agree with your adversary quickly, ^(BM)while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. ²⁶ Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny.

Adultery in the Heart

²⁷ “You have heard that it was said ^[n]to those of old, ^(BN)‘You shall not commit adultery.’ ²⁸ But I say to you that whoever ^(BO)looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. ^29 (BP)If your right eye causes you to ^[o]sin, ^(BQ)pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. ³⁰ And if your right hand causes you to ^[p]sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.

Marriage Is Sacred and Binding^(BR)

³¹ “Furthermore it has been said, ^(BS)‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ ³² But I say to you that ^(BT)whoever divorces his wife for any reason except ^[q]sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.

Jesus Forbids Oaths

³³ “Again you have heard that ^(BU)it was said to those of ^[r]old, ^(BV)‘You shall not swear falsely, but ^(BW)shall perform your oaths to the Lord.’ ³⁴ But I say to you, ^(BX)do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is ^(BY)God’s throne; ³⁵ nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of ^(BZ)the great King. ³⁶ Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. ^37 (CA)But let ^[s]your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.

Go the Second Mile^(CB)

³⁸ “You have heard that it was said, ^(CC)‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ ^39 (CD)But I tell you not to resist an evil person. ^(CE)But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. ⁴⁰ If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. ⁴¹ And whoever ^(CF)compels you to go one mile, go with him two. ⁴² Give to him who asks you, and ^(CG)from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.

Love Your Enemies^(CH)

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ^(CI)‘You shall love your neighbor ^(CJ)and hate your enemy.’ ^44 [t]But I say to you, ^(CK)love your enemies, bless those who curse you, ^(CL)do good to those who hate you, and pray ^(CM)for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, ⁴⁵ that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for ^(CN)He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. ^46 (CO)For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? ⁴⁷ And if you greet your ^[u]brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the ^[v]tax collectors do so? ^48 (CP)Therefore you shall be perfect, just ^(CQ)as your Father in heaven is perfect.