You Must Be Ready

^35 (A)“Stay dressed for action^[a] and ^(B)keep your lamps burning, ³⁶ and be like men who are ^(C)waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and ^(D)knocks. ^37 (E)Blessed are those servants^[b] whom the master finds ^(F)awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, ^(G)he will dress himself for service and ^(H)have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them. ³⁸ If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants! ^39 (I)But know this, that if the master of the house had known at what hour ^(J)the thief was coming, he^[c] would not have left his house to be broken into. ⁴⁰ You also must be ^(K)ready, for ^(L)the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”

⁴¹ Peter said, “Lord, ^(M)are you telling this parable for us or for all?” ⁴² And the Lord said, “Who then is ^(N)the faithful and ^(O)wise ^(P)manager, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time? ^43 (Q)Blessed is that servant^[d] whom his master will find so doing when he comes. ⁴⁴ Truly, I say to you, ^(R)he will set him over all his possessions. ⁴⁵ But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master ^(S)is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and ^(T)get drunk, ⁴⁶ the master of that servant will come ^(U)on a day when he does not expect him and ^(V)at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and put him with the unfaithful. ^47 (W)And that servant who ^(X)knew his master's will but ^(Y)did not get ready ^(Z)or act according to his will, will receive a ^(AA)severe beating. ^48 (AB)But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, ^(AC)will receive a light beating. ^(AD)Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.

Not Peace, but Division

^49 (AE)“I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled! ^50 (AF)I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how ^(AG)great is my distress until it is accomplished! ^51 (AH)Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? ^(AI)No, I tell you, but rather division. ⁵² For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. ⁵³ They will be divided, ^(AJ)father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

Interpreting the Time

⁵⁴ He also said to the crowds, ^(AK)“When you see ^(AL)a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. ⁵⁵ And ^(AM)when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be ^(AN)scorching heat,’ and it happens. ⁵⁶ You hypocrites! ^(AO)You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

Settle with Your Accuser

⁵⁷ “And why ^(AP)do you not judge ^(AQ)for yourselves what is right? ^58 (AR)As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison. ⁵⁹ I tell you, ^(AS)you will never get out until you have paid the very last ^(AT)penny.”^[e]

Repent or Perish

13 There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood ^(AU)Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. ² And he answered them, ^(AV)“Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? ³ No, I tell you; but unless you ^(AW)repent, you will all likewise perish. ⁴ Or those eighteen on whom the tower in ^(AX)Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? ⁵ No, I tell you; but unless you ^(AY)repent, you will all likewise perish.”

The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree

⁶ And he told this parable: “A man had ^(AZ)a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. ⁷ And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. ^(BA)Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’ ⁸ And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. ⁹ Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’”

A Woman with a Disabling Spirit

¹⁰ Now ^(BB)he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. ¹¹ And behold, there was a woman who had had ^(BC)a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. ¹² When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.” ¹³ And he ^(BD)laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she ^(BE)glorified God. ¹⁴ But ^(BF)the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus ^(BG)had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, ^(BH)“There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” ¹⁵ Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! ^(BI)Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it? ¹⁶ And ought not this woman, ^(BJ)a daughter of Abraham whom ^(BK)Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?” ¹⁷ As he said these things, ^(BL)all his adversaries were put to shame, and ^(BM)all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him.

The Mustard Seed and the Leaven

^18 (BN)He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? ¹⁹ It is like ^(BO)a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.”

²⁰ And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? ^21 (BP)It is like leaven that a woman took and hid in ^(BQ)three measures of flour, until it was ^(BR)all leavened.”

Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind

9 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. ² And his disciples asked him, ^(A)“Rabbi, ^(B)who sinned, ^(C)this man or ^(D)his parents, that he was born blind?” ³ Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but ^(E)that the works of God might be displayed in him. ⁴ We must ^(F)work the works of him who sent me ^(G)while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. ⁵ As long as I am in the world, ^(H)I am the light of the world.” ⁶ Having said these things, ^(I)he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. ^(J)Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud ⁷ and said to him, “Go, wash in ^(K)the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and ^(L)came back seeing.

⁸ The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, ^(M)“Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” ⁹ Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” ¹⁰ So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” ¹¹ He answered, ^(N)“The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.” ¹² They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”

¹³ They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. ^14 (O)Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. ^15 (P)So the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, “He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” ¹⁶ Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not ^(Q)from God, ^(R)for he does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, ^(S)“How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And ^(T)there was a division among them. ¹⁷ So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, ^(U)“He is a prophet.”

^18 (V)The Jews^[a] did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight ¹⁹ and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” ²⁰ His parents answered, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. ²¹ But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.” ²² (His parents said these things ^(W)because they feared the Jews, for ^(X)the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should ^(Y)confess Jesus^[b] to be Christ, ^(Z)he was to be put out of the synagogue.) ²³ Therefore his parents said, ^(AA)“He is of age; ask him.”

²⁴ So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, ^(AB)“Give glory to God. We know that ^(AC)this man is a sinner.” ²⁵ He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I ^(AD)was blind, now I see.” ²⁶ They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” ²⁷ He answered them, ^(AE)“I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” ²⁸ And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but ^(AF)we are disciples of Moses. ²⁹ We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, ^(AG)we do not know where he comes from.” ³⁰ The man answered, “Why, this is ^(AH)an amazing thing! ^(AI)You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. ³¹ We know that ^(AJ)God does not listen to sinners, but ^(AK)if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. ³² Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. ^33 (AL)If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” ³⁴ They answered him, ^(AM)“You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they ^(AN)cast him out.

³⁵ Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe in ^(AO)the Son of Man?”^{[c] 36} He answered, ^(AP)“And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” ³⁷ Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and ^(AQ)it is he who is speaking to you.” ³⁸ He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. ³⁹ Jesus said, ^(AR)“For judgment I came into this world, ^(AS)that those who do not see may see, and ^(AT)those who see may become blind.” ⁴⁰ Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, ^(AU)“Are we also blind?” ⁴¹ Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, ^(AV)you would have no guilt;^[d] but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.