Beginning
Plucking Grain on the Sabbath(A)
6 On the second Sabbath after the first, He went through the grain fields, and His disciples plucked and ate the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. 2 Some of the Pharisees said to them, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?”
3 Jesus answered them, “Have you not read what David did when he and those who were with him were hungry? 4 He went into the house of God, and took and ate the ritual bread, and also gave it to those who were with him. This was not lawful, but for the priests only to eat.” 5 Then He said to them, “The Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”
The Man With a Withered Hand(B)
6 On another Sabbath, when He entered the synagogue and taught, there was a man whose right hand had withered. 7 The scribes and the Pharisees watched Him to see whether He would heal on the Sabbath, so that they might find an accusation against Him. 8 But He knew their thoughts, and He said to the man who had the withered hand, “Rise and stand in front.” So he rose and stood in front.
9 Then Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?”
10 Then looking around at them all, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. 11 But they were filled with madness and discussed with each other what they might do to Jesus.
The Choosing of the Twelve Apostles(C)
12 In these days He went out to the mountain to pray and continued all night in prayer to God. 13 When it was day, He called for His disciples, and of them He chose twelve, whom He named apostles: 14 Simon, whom He named Peter, and Andrew his brother, and James and John, and Philip and Bartholomew, 15 and Matthew and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot, 16 and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
Ministering to a Great Crowd(D)
17 He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great crowd of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, 18 including those who were vexed by unclean spirits. And they were healed. 19 The whole crowd tried to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all.
Blessings and Woes(E)
20 He lifted up His eyes on His disciples, and said:
“Blessed are you poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
21 Blessed are you who hunger now,
for you shall be filled.
Blessed are you who weep now,
for you shall laugh.
22 Blessed are you when men hate you,
and when they separate you from their company and insult you,
and cast out your name as evil,
on account of the Son of Man.
23 “Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for indeed, your reward is great in heaven. For in like manner their fathers treated the prophets.
24 “But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
25 Woe to you who are filled,
for you shall hunger.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you shall mourn and weep.
26 Woe to you, when all men speak well of you,
for so their fathers spoke of the false prophets.
Love for Enemies(F)
27 “But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. 29 To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer also the other. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic as well. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you. And of him who takes away your goods, do not ask for them back. 31 Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.
32 “For if you love those who love you, what thanks do you receive? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what thanks do you receive? For even sinners do the same. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what thanks do you receive? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much in return. 35 But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return. Then your reward will be great, and you will be the sons of the Highest. For He is kind to the unthankful and the evil. 36 Be therefore merciful, even as your Father is merciful.
Judging Others(G)
37 “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you shall be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you: Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will men give unto you. For with the measure you use, it will be measured unto you.”
39 He spoke a parable to them: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch? 40 The disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is trained will be like his teacher.
41 “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not see the beam that is in your own eye? 42 How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the beam that is in your own eye? You hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother’s eye.
A Tree and Its Fruit(H)
43 “A good tree does not bear corrupt fruit, nor does a corrupt tree bear good fruit. 44 Each tree is known by its own fruit. Men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a wild bush. 45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bears what is good, and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bears what is evil. For of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
The Two Housebuilders(I)
46 “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I say? 47 Whoever comes to Me and hears My words and does them, I will show whom he is like: 48 He is like a man who built a house, and dug deep, and laid the foundation on rock. When the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, but could not shake it, for it was founded on rock. 49 But he who hears and does not obey is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently. Immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.”
The Healing of a Centurion’s Servant(J)
7 When He had completed all His words in the hearing of the people, He entered Capernaum. 2 Now a centurion’s[a] servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die. 3 When he heard of Jesus, he sent the elders of the Jews to Him, asking Him to come and heal his servant. 4 When they came to Jesus, they asked Him earnestly, saying, “You should do this for him for he is worthy, 5 for he loves our nation, and he has built us a synagogue.” 6 So Jesus went with them.
When He was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying, “Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy to have You come under my roof. 7 Likewise, I did not think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8 For I myself am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me. I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
9 When Jesus heard these words, He marveled at him, and turned and said to the people who followed Him, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” 10 Then those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.
The Raising of the Widow’s Son
11 The following day He went into a city called Nain, and many of His disciples and a large crowd went with Him. 12 When He came near the gate of the city, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her. 13 When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”
14 Then He came and touched the coffin, and those who carried it stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” 15 He who was dead sat up and began to speak. And He gave him to his mother.
16 Fear came on everyone. And they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has risen up among us!” and “God has visited His people!” 17 This rumor of Him went throughout all Judea and the surrounding region.
The Messengers From John the Baptist(K)
18 The disciples of John told him of all these things. 19 John, calling for two of his disciples, sent them to Jesus, saying, “Are You the One who is coming, or shall we look for another?”
20 When the men had come to Him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, ‘Are You the One who is coming, or shall we look for another?’ ”
21 In that same hour He cured many of their infirmities and afflictions and evil spirits. And to many who were blind He gave sight. 22 So Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the gospel is preached to the poor. 23 Blessed is he who does not fall away on account of Me.”
24 When the messengers of John had departed, He began to speak to the crowd concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 25 If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? Now those who are splendidly clothed and live luxuriously are in royal palaces. 26 What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and much more than a prophet. 27 This is he of whom it is written:
‘Look, I am sending My messenger before Your face,
who shall prepare Your way before You.’[b]
28 I say to you, among those who are born of women there is no greater prophet than John the Baptist. Yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”
29 All the people who heard Him, including the tax collectors, justified God, having been baptized with the baptism of John. 30 But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God for themselves, not having been baptized by John.
31 Then the Lord said, “To what then shall I compare the men of this generation, and what are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the marketplace, calling to each other, saying:
‘We played the flute for you,
and you did not dance;
we mourned to you,
and you did not weep.’
33 For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine. But you say, ‘He has a demon.’ 34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking. But you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ 35 But wisdom is justified by all her children.”
A Sinful Woman Forgiven
36 One of the Pharisees asked Him to eat with him. So He went to the Pharisee’s house and sat down for supper. 37 There, a woman of the city who was a sinner, when she learned that Jesus was sitting for supper in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment, 38 and stood behind Him at His feet, weeping, and began to wash His feet with tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head, and kissed His feet, and anointed them with the ointment.
39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw it, he said to himself, “If this Man were a prophet, He would have known who and what kind of woman she is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner.”
40 Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”
He said, “Teacher, say it.”
41 “A creditor had two debtors. The one owed five hundred denarii,[c] and the other fifty. 42 When they had no money to pay, he freely forgave them both. Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?”
43 Simon answered, “I suppose he whom he forgave more.”
He said to him, “You have judged rightly.”
44 Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house. You gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. 45 You gave Me no kiss, but this woman, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet. 46 You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with ointment. 47 Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little loves little.”
48 Then He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
49 Those who sat at supper with Him began to say to themselves, “Who is He who even forgives sins?”
50 He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.