Beginning
The Mission of the Seventy
10 After this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them two by two ahead of Him into every city and place where He Himself was about to come. 2 He said to them, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. 3 Go your ways. Listen, I am sending you out as lambs among wolves. 4 Carry no purse, no bag, no shoes, and greet no one on the road.
5 “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace be to this house.’ 6 If a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him; but if not, it will return upon you. 7 Remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they give, for the laborer is worthy of his hire. Do not go from house to house.
8 “When you enter a city and they receive you, eat what is set before you. 9 Heal the sick who are there and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 But when you enter a city and they do not receive you, go your way out into their streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your city which clings to us, we wipe off against you. Yet be sure of this, that the kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 12 But I say to you, it will be more tolerable on that Day for Sodom than for that city.
Unrepentant Cities(A)
13 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which have been done for you, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14 But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be thrust down to hell.
16 “He who listens to you listens to Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me.”
The Return of the Seventy
17 The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us through Your name.”
18 He said to them, “I saw Satan as lightning fall from heaven. 19 Look, I give you authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy. And nothing shall by any means hurt you. 20 Nevertheless do not rejoice that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
The Rejoicing of Jesus(B)
21 At that time Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for it was Your good pleasure.
22 “All things have been handed over to Me by My Father. And no one knows who the Son is but the Father, and who the Father is but the Son and he to whom the Son desires to reveal Him.”
23 Then He turned to His disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see what you see. 24 For I tell you, many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it.”
The Good Samaritan
25 Now, a lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? How do you read?”
27 He answered, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind’[a] and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’[b]”
28 He said to him, “You have answered correctly. Do this, and you will live.”
29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30 Jesus answered, “A man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing and wounded him and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 By chance a priest came down that way. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to that place, looked at him and passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion on him, 34 and went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine. Then he set him on his own donkey and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 The next day when he departed, he took out two denarii[c] and gave them to the innkeeper and said to him, ‘Take care of him. I will repay you whatever else you spend when I return.’
36 “Now which of these three do you think was a neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”
37 He said, “The one who showed mercy on him.”
Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
Visiting Martha and Mary
38 As they went, He entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and listened to His teaching. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she came to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Then tell her to help me.”
41 Jesus answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things. 42 But one thing is needed. And Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken from her.”
Teaching About Prayer(C)
11 He was praying in a certain place, and when He ceased, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”
2 He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Our Father, who is in heaven,
hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come;
Your will be done
on earth, as it is in heaven.
3 Give us each day our daily bread.
4 And forgive us our sins,
for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.”
5 Then He said to them, “Which of you has a friend and shall go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, 6 for a friend of mine on his journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give you anything’? 8 I say to you, though he will not rise and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as much as he needs.
9 “And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
11 “If a son asks for bread from any of you who is a father, will you give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will you give him a serpent instead of a fish? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will you offer him a scorpion? 13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”
Jesus and Beelzebub(D)
14 He was casting out a demon, and it was mute. When the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke, and the crowd marveled. 15 But some of them said, “He casts out demons through Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.” 16 Others, testing Him, asked Him for a sign from heaven.
17 But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is made desolate. And a house divided against itself falls. 18 If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons through Beelzebub. 19 Now if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. 20 But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, no doubt the kingdom of God has come upon you.
21 “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are peacefully kept. 22 But when a stronger man than he attacks and overpowers him, he seizes all the armor in which the man trusted and divides his spoils.
23 “He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.
The Return of the Unclean Spirit(E)
24 “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, it goes through dry places seeking rest. Finding none, it says, ‘I will return to my house, from which I came.’ 25 When it comes, it finds it swept and furnished. 26 Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that man is worse than the first.”
True Blessedness
27 As He spoke these things, a woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the woman who gave You birth and nursed You.”
28 But He said, “Indeed, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”
The Demand for a Sign(F)
29 When the crowds pressed upon Him, He began to say, “This is an evil generation. It looks for a sign, but no sign will be given it except the sign of Jonah the prophet. 30 For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. 31 The Queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon. And now one greater than Solomon is here. 32 The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and will condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah. And now one greater than Jonah is here.
The Light of the Body(G)
33 “No one, when he has lit a candle, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a candlestick, that those who come in may see the light. 34 The eye is the lamp of the body. Therefore when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness. 35 Take heed therefore lest the light which is in you is darkness. 36 If your whole body, then, is full of light, no part being dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the shining candle gives you light.”
The Denouncing of the Pharisees and Lawyers(H)
37 As He spoke, a Pharisee asked Him to dine with him. So He went in and sat down to eat. 38 When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner.
39 Then the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and the dish. But inside you are full of extortion and wickedness. 40 You fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside also? 41 But give alms from what is within. And then all things are clean to you.
42 “Woe to you, Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb and pass over justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.
43 “Woe to you, Pharisees! For you love the prominent seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.
44 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like unseen graves, and the men who walk over them are not aware of them.”
45 One of the lawyers answered, “Teacher, by saying these things You insult us also.”
46 He said, “Woe to you also, you lawyers! For you load men with burdens difficult to carry, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.
47 “Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. 48 So you are witnesses and entirely approve the deeds of your fathers, because they killed them, and you build their tombs. 49 Therefore also the wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,’ 50 that the blood of all the prophets, shed since the beginning of the world, may be required from this generation, 51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it shall be required from this generation.
52 “Woe to you, lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering.”
53 As He said these things to them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to incite Him vehemently and angrily draw Him out concerning many things, 54 lying in wait for Him and seeking to catch something out of His mouth, that they might accuse Him.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.