Beginning
Lord of the Sabbath
6 Jesus[a] was going through the grain fields on[b] a Sabbath,[c] and his disciples picked some heads of wheat,[d] rubbed them in their hands, and ate them.[e] 2 But some of the Pharisees[f] said, “Why are you[g] doing what is against the law[h] on the Sabbath?” 3 Jesus[i] answered them,[j] “Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry— 4 how he entered the house of God, took[k] and ate the sacred bread,[l] which is not lawful[m] for any to eat but the priests alone, and[n] gave it to his companions?”[o] 5 Then[p] he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord[q] of the Sabbath.”
Healing a Withered Hand
6 On[r] another Sabbath, Jesus[s] entered the synagogue[t] and was teaching. Now[u] a man was there whose right hand was withered.[v] 7 The experts in the law[w] and the Pharisees[x] watched[y] Jesus[z] closely to see if he would heal on the Sabbath,[aa] so that they could find a reason to accuse him. 8 But[ab] he knew[ac] their thoughts,[ad] and said to the man who had the withered hand, “Get up and stand here.”[ae] So[af] he rose and stood there. 9 Then[ag] Jesus said to them, “I ask you,[ah] is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do evil, to save a life or to destroy it?” 10 After[ai] looking around[aj] at them all, he said to the man,[ak] “Stretch out your hand.” The man[al] did so, and his hand was restored.[am] 11 But they were filled with mindless rage[an] and began debating with one another what they would do[ao] to Jesus.
Choosing the Twelve Apostles
12 Now[ap] it was during this time that Jesus[aq] went out to the mountain[ar] to pray, and he spent all night[as] in prayer to God.[at] 13 When[au] morning came, he called his disciples and chose twelve of them, whom he also named apostles:[av] 14 Simon[aw] (whom he named Peter), and his brother Andrew; and James, John, Philip, Bartholomew,[ax] 15 Matthew, Thomas,[ay] James the son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot,[az] 16 Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot,[ba] who became a traitor.
The Sermon on the Plain
17 Then[bb] he came down with them and stood on a level place.[bc] And a large number[bd] of his disciples had gathered[be] along with[bf] a vast multitude from all over Judea, from[bg] Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon.[bh] They came to hear him and to be healed[bi] of their diseases, 18 and those who suffered from[bj] unclean[bk] spirits were cured. 19 The[bl] whole crowd was trying to touch him, because power[bm] was coming out from him and healing them all.
20 Then[bn] he looked up[bo] at his disciples and said:
“Blessed[bp] are you who are poor,[bq] for the kingdom of God belongs[br] to you.
21 “Blessed are you who hunger[bs] now, for you will be satisfied.[bt]
“Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.[bu]
22 “Blessed are you when people[bv] hate you, and when they exclude you and insult you and reject you as evil[bw] on account of the Son of Man! 23 Rejoice in that day, and jump for joy, because[bx] your reward is great in heaven. For their ancestors[by] did the same things to the prophets.[bz]
24 “But woe[ca] to you who are rich, for you have received[cb] your comfort[cc] already.
25 “Woe to you who are well satisfied with food[cd] now, for you will be hungry.
“Woe to you[ce] who laugh[cf] now, for you will mourn and weep.
26 “Woe to you[cg] when all people[ch] speak well of you, for their ancestors[ci] did the same things to the false prophets.
27 “But I say to you who are listening: Love your enemies,[cj] do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat[ck] you. 29 To the person who strikes you on the cheek,[cl] offer the other as well,[cm] and from the person who takes away your coat,[cn] do not withhold your tunic[co] either.[cp] 30 Give to everyone who asks you,[cq] and do not ask for your possessions[cr] back[cs] from the person who takes them away. 31 Treat others[ct] in the same way that you would want them to treat you.[cu]
32 “If[cv] you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners[cw] love those who love them.[cx] 33 And[cy] if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even[cz] sinners[da] do the same. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you hope to be repaid,[db] what credit is that to you? Even sinners[dc] lend to sinners, so that they may be repaid in full.[dd] 35 But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back.[de] Then[df] your reward will be great, and you will be sons[dg] of the Most High,[dh] because he is kind to ungrateful and evil people.[di] 36 Be merciful,[dj] just as your Father is merciful.
Do Not Judge Others
37 “Do[dk] not judge,[dl] and you will not be judged;[dm] do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; forgive,[dn] and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you: A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over,[do] will be poured[dp] into your lap. For the measure you use will be the measure you receive.”[dq]
39 He also told them a parable: “Someone who is blind cannot lead another who is blind, can he?[dr] Won’t they both fall[ds] into a pit? 40 A disciple[dt] is not greater than[du] his teacher, but everyone when fully trained will be like his teacher. 41 Why[dv] do you see the speck[dw] in your brother’s eye, but fail to see[dx] the beam of wood[dy] in your own? 42 How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove the speck from your eye,’ while you yourself don’t see the beam in your own? You hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
43 “For[dz] no good tree bears bad[ea] fruit, nor again[eb] does a bad tree bear good fruit, 44 for each tree is known[ec] by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered[ed] from thorns, nor are grapes picked[ee] from brambles.[ef] 45 The good person out of the good treasury of his[eg] heart[eh] produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasury[ei] produces evil, for his mouth speaks[ej] from what fills[ek] his heart.
46 “Why[el] do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’[em] and don’t do what I tell you?[en]
47 “Everyone who comes to me and listens to my words and puts them into practice[eo]—I will show you what he is like: 48 He is like a man[ep] building a house, who dug down deep,[eq] and laid the foundation on bedrock. When[er] a flood came, the river[es] burst against that house but[et] could not shake it, because it had been well built.[eu] 49 But the person who hears and does not put my words into practice[ev] is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When[ew] the river burst against that house,[ex] it collapsed immediately, and was utterly destroyed!”[ey]
Healing the Centurion’s Slave
7 After Jesus[ez] had finished teaching all this to the people,[fa] he entered Capernaum.[fb] 2 A centurion[fc] there[fd] had a slave[fe] who was highly regarded,[ff] but who was sick and at the point of death. 3 When the centurion[fg] heard[fh] about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders[fi] to him, asking him to come[fj] and heal his slave. 4 When[fk] they came[fl] to Jesus, they urged[fm] him earnestly,[fn] “He is worthy[fo] to have you do this for him, 5 because he loves our nation,[fp] and even[fq] built our synagogue.”[fr] 6 So[fs] Jesus went with them. When[ft] he was not far from the house, the centurion[fu] sent friends to say to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself,[fv] for I am not worthy[fw] to have you come under my roof! 7 That is why[fx] I did not presume[fy] to come to you. Instead, say the word, and my servant must be healed.[fz] 8 For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me.[ga] I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes,[gb] and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.”[gc] 9 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed[gd] at him. He turned and said to the crowd that followed him, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith!”[ge] 10 So[gf] when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave[gg] well.
Raising a Widow’s Son
11 Soon[gh] afterward[gi] Jesus[gj] went to a town[gk] called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him. 12 As he approached the town gate, a man[gl] who had died was being carried out,[gm] the only son of his mother (who[gn] was a widow[go]), and a large crowd from the town[gp] was with her. 13 When[gq] the Lord saw her, he had compassion[gr] for her and said to her, “Do not weep.”[gs] 14 Then[gt] he came up[gu] and touched[gv] the bier,[gw] and those who carried it stood still. He[gx] said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” 15 So[gy] the dead man[gz] sat up and began to speak, and Jesus[ha] gave him back[hb] to his mother. 16 Fear[hc] seized them all, and they began to glorify[hd] God, saying, “A great prophet[he] has appeared[hf] among us!” and “God has come to help[hg] his people!” 17 This[hh] report[hi] about Jesus[hj] circulated[hk] throughout[hl] Judea and all the surrounding country.
Jesus and John the Baptist
18 John’s[hm] disciples informed him about all these things. So[hn] John called[ho] two of his disciples 19 and sent them to Jesus[hp] to ask,[hq] “Are you the one who is to come,[hr] or should we look for another?” 20 When[hs] the men came to Jesus,[ht] they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask,[hu] ‘Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?’”[hv] 21 At that very time[hw] Jesus[hx] cured many people of diseases, sicknesses,[hy] and evil spirits, and granted[hz] sight to many who were blind. 22 So[ia] he answered them,[ib] “Go tell[ic] John what you have seen and heard:[id] The blind see, the lame walk, lepers[ie] are cleansed, the[if] deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news proclaimed to them. 23 Blessed is anyone[ig] who takes no offense at me.”
24 When[ih] John’s messengers had gone, Jesus[ii] began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness[ij] to see? A reed shaken by the wind?[ik] 25 What[il] did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing?[im] Look, those who wear soft clothing and live in luxury[in] are in the royal palaces![io] 26 What did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more[ip] than a prophet. 27 This is the one about whom it is written, ‘Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,[iq] who will prepare your way before you.’[ir] 28 I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater[is] than John.[it] Yet the one who is least[iu] in the kingdom of God[iv] is greater than he is.” 29 (Now[iw] all the people who heard this, even the tax collectors,[ix] acknowledged[iy] God’s justice, because they had been baptized[iz] with John’s baptism. 30 However, the Pharisees[ja] and the experts in religious law[jb] rejected God’s purpose[jc] for themselves, because they had not been baptized[jd] by John.[je])[jf]
31 “To what then should I compare the people[jg] of this generation, and what are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the marketplace[jh] and calling out to one another,[ji]
‘We played the flute for you, yet you did not dance;[jj]
we wailed in mourning,[jk] yet you did not weep.’
33 For John the Baptist has come[jl] eating no bread and drinking no wine,[jm] and you say, ‘He has a demon!’[jn] 34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him,[jo] a glutton and a drunk, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’[jp] 35 But wisdom is vindicated[jq] by all her children.”[jr]
Jesus’ Anointing
36 Now one of the Pharisees[js] asked Jesus[jt] to have dinner with him, so[ju] he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table.[jv] 37 Then[jw] when a woman of that town, who was a sinner, learned that Jesus[jx] was dining[jy] at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar[jz] of perfumed oil.[ka] 38 As[kb] she stood[kc] behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. She[kd] wiped them with her hair,[ke] kissed[kf] them,[kg] and anointed[kh] them with the perfumed oil. 39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this,[ki] he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet,[kj] he would know who and what kind of woman[kk] this is who is touching him, that she is a sinner.” 40 So[kl] Jesus answered him,[km] “Simon, I have something to say to you.” He replied,[kn] “Say it, Teacher.” 41 “A certain creditor[ko] had two debtors; one owed him[kp] 500 silver coins,[kq] and the other fifty. 42 When they could not pay, he canceled[kr] the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon answered,[ks] “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.”[kt] Jesus[ku] said to him, “You have judged rightly.” 44 Then,[kv] turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house. You gave me no water for my feet,[kw] but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss of greeting,[kx] but from the time I entered she has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet[ky] with perfumed oil. 47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which were many, are forgiven, thus she loved much;[kz] but the one who is forgiven little loves little.” 48 Then[la] Jesus[lb] said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”[lc] 49 But[ld] those who were at the table[le] with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” 50 He[lf] said to the woman, “Your faith[lg] has saved you;[lh] go in peace.”
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