Beginning
Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man(A)
9 After getting into a boat, Jesus[a] crossed to the other side and came to his own city. 2 All at once some people[b] brought him a paralyzed man lying on a stretcher. When Jesus saw their faith, he told the paralyzed man, “Be courageous, son! Your sins are forgiven.”
3 Then some of the scribes told themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!”
4 But Jesus, knowing[c] what they were thinking, replied, “Why do you have such evil thoughts in your hearts? 5 Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 6 But so you will know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins…” he told the paralyzed man, “Get up, pick up your stretcher, and go home!”
7 So the man[d] got up and went home. 8 When the crowds saw this, they became frightened[e] and glorified God for giving such authority to humans.
Jesus Calls Matthew(B)
9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s desk and told him, “Follow me.” So he got up and followed him.
10 While he was having dinner at Matthew’s[f] home, many tax collectors and sinners arrived and began eating with Jesus and his disciples. 11 The Pharisees saw this and asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
12 When Jesus[g] heard that, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a physician, but sick people do. 13 Go and learn what this means: ‘I want mercy and not sacrifice,’[h] because I did not come to call righteous people, but sinners.”
A Question about Fasting(C)
14 Then John’s disciples came to Jesus[i] and asked, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast often,[j] but your disciples don’t fast?”
15 Jesus asked them, “The wedding guests[k] can’t mourn as long as the groom is with them, can they? But the time will come when the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.”
The Unshrunk Cloth(D)
16 “No one patches an old garment with a piece of unshrunk cloth, because the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results. 17 Nor do people[l] pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will spill out, and the skins will be ruined. Instead, they pour new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.”
Jesus Heals a Woman and Resurrects a Girl(E)
18 While Jesus[m] was telling them these things, an official came up and fell down before him. “My daughter has just died,” he said. “But come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.” 19 So Jesus got up and followed him, along with his disciples.
20 Just then a woman who had been suffering from chronic bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the tassel of his garment, 21 because she had been saying to herself, “If I just touch his robe, I will get well.”
22 When Jesus turned and saw her, he said, “Be courageous, daughter! Your faith has made you well.” And from that very hour the woman was well.
23 When Jesus came to the official’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, 24 he said, “Go away! The young lady hasn’t died, but is sleeping.” But they ridiculed him with laughter. 25 When the crowd had been driven outside, he went in, took her by the hand, and the young lady got up. 26 The news of this spread throughout that land.
Jesus Heals Two Blind Men
27 As Jesus was traveling on from there, two blind men followed him, shouting, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” 28 When he had gone into the house, the blind men came to him.
Jesus asked them, “Do you believe I can do this?”
They told him, “Yes, Lord!”[n]
29 Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith, let it be done for you!” 30 And their eyes were opened. Then Jesus sternly told them, “See to it that nobody knows about this.” 31 But they went out and spread the news about him throughout that region.
Jesus Heals a Man who Couldn’t Talk
32 As the men[o] were going out, a man who couldn’t talk because he was demon-possessed was brought to him. 33 As soon as the demon had been driven out, the man[p] began to speak. The crowds were amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel!”
34 But the Pharisees kept saying, “He drives out demons by the ruler of demons.”[q]
The Compassion of Jesus
35 Then Jesus began traveling throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every illness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he was deeply moved with compassion for them, because they were troubled and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
37 Then he told his disciples, “The harvest is vast, but the workers are few. 38 So ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”
Jesus Appoints Twelve Apostles(F)
10 Then Jesus[r] called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority over unclean spirits, so that they could drive them out and heal every disease and every illness. 2 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;[s] 4 Simon the Cananaean[t] and Judas Iscariot, who later[u] betrayed Jesus.[v]
Jesus Sends Out the Twelve Disciples(G)
5 These were the Twelve whom Jesus sent out after he had given them these[w] instructions: “Don’t turn on to the road that leads to the unbelievers,[x] and don’t enter Samaritan towns. 6 Instead, go to the lost sheep of the nation[y] of Israel. 7 As you go, make this announcement: ‘The kingdom from[z] heaven is near!’ 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons.
You have received without payment,
so give without payment.
9 Don’t take any gold, silver, or copper in your moneybags, 10 or a traveling bag for the trip, or an extra shirt,[aa] or sandals, or a walking stick, because a worker deserves his food.
11 “Whatever town or village you enter, find out who is receptive[ab] in it and stay there until you leave. 12 As you enter the house, greet its occupants.[ac] 13 If the household is receptive,[ad] let your blessing of peace come on it. But if it isn’t receptive,[ae] let your blessing of peace return to you. 14 If no one welcomes you or listens to your words, as you leave that house or town, shake its dust off your feet. 15 I tell all of you[af] with certainty, it will be more bearable for the region of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town!”
Future Persecutions(H)
16 “Pay attention, now! I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. So be as cunning as serpents and as innocent as doves. 17 Watch out for people who will hand you over to the local councils and whip you in their synagogues. 18 You will be brought before governors and kings because of me, to testify to them and to unbelievers.[ag] 19 When they hand you over, don’t worry about how you are to speak[ah] or what you are to say, because in that hour what you are to say will be given to you. 20 It won’t be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through[ai] you.
21 “Brother will hand brother over for execution, and a father his child. Children will rebel against parents and have them put to death. 22 You will be hated by everyone because of my name. But the person who endures to the end will be saved. 23 So when they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, because I tell all of you[aj] with certainty that you will not have gone through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, and a slave is not above his master. 25 It is enough for a disciple to be like his teacher and a slave to be like his master. If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul,[ak] how much more will they do the same to[al] those of his household!”
Fear God(I)
26 “So never be afraid of them, because there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed, and nothing secret that will not be made known. 27 What I tell you in darkness you must speak in the daylight, and what is whispered[am] in your ear you must shout from the housetops. 28 Stop being[an] afraid of those who kill the body but can’t kill the soul. Instead, be afraid of the one who can destroy both body and soul in hell.[ao]
29 “Two sparrows are sold for a penny, aren’t they? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father’s permission.[ap] 30 Indeed, even the hairs on your head have all been counted! 31 So stop being[aq] afraid. You are worth more than a bunch of sparrows.”
Acknowledging the Messiah(J)
32 “Therefore, everyone who acknowledges me before people I, too, will acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever denies me before people I, too, will deny before my Father in heaven.”
Not Peace, but Division(K)
34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword![ar] 35 I came to turn
‘a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
36 A person’s enemies will include members of his own family.’[as]
The Cost of Discipleship(L)
37 “The one who loves his father or mother more than me isn’t worthy of me, and the one who loves a son or daughter more than me isn’t worthy of me. 38 The one who doesn’t take up his cross and follow me isn’t worthy of me. 39 The one who finds his life will lose it, and the one who loses his life because of me will find it.”
Rewards(M)
40 “The one who receives you receives me, and the one who receives me receives the one who sent me. 41 The one who receives a prophet as[at] a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and the one who receives a righteous person as[au] a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. 42 I tell all of you[av] with certainty, whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is[aw] a disciple will never lose his reward.”
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