Chronological
12 About that time, Jesus was walking through the grain fields on a Sabbath day. His disciples were hungry. They began to pick some of the grain and to eat it.
2 The Pharisees saw them. They said to Jesus, `Look! Your disciples are doing what is not right on the Sabbath day.'
3 But Jesus said to them, `Have you not read what David did? He and his men who were with him were hungry.
4 He went into God's house. Some bread was there for God. David's men ate it. David did not have the right to eat it, nor the men who were with him. Only the priests have the right to eat it. But David took the bread and ate it. He also gave some of it to the men who were with him.
5 `Have you never read in the books of the law that the priests in the temple break the Sabbath law on the Sabbath day? They are not punished for it.
6 I tell you, there is someone here who is greater than the temple.
7 `You do not know what this means, "I want you to be kind; I do not want a sacrifice." If you knew, then you would not have said what they did was wrong. What they did was not wrong.
8 The Son of Man rules over the Sabbath day.'
9 Jesus left that place and went into the meeting house.
10 There was a man whose hand was thin and weak. The people asked Jesus, `Is it right to heal a man on the Sabbath day?' They wanted to find something wrong about Jesus.
11 Jesus said to them, `If one of you had a sheep and it fell into a hole on the Sabbath day, would you not take hold of it and pull it out?
12 A man is worth much more than a sheep. So it is right to do good things on the Sabbath day.'
13 Then he said to the man, `Hold out your hand.' The man held out his hand and it was made well like the other hand.
14 Then the Pharisees went out and planned together how to kill Jesus.
15 Jesus knew about their plan, so he went away from there. Many people followed him and he healed them all.
16 He told them not to tell where he was.
17 So what Isaiah the prophet of God said, came true.
18 He said, `This is my servant. I have chosen him. I love him. I am very pleased with him. I will put my Spirit on him. He will judge the people who are not Jews.
19 He will not fight or shout. No one will hear his voice in the streets.
20 He will not break a stick that is already bent. He will not put out a light that burns only a little. What is right will win, because he will make it win.
21 Those who are not Jews will believe in him.'
3 Jesus went into the meeting house again. A man was there whose right hand was thin and weak.
2 The Pharisees watched Jesus to see if he would heal the man on the Sabbath day. They wanted to find something wrong about Jesus.
3 He spoke to the man whose hand was thin and weak. He said, `Stand here.'
4 Then he spoke to the Pharisees. He said, `Is it right to do good things on the Sabbath day or to do wrong things? Is it right to heal people so they will live, or to let them die?' But the Pharisees said nothing.
5 Jesus was angry as he looked at them. And he was sad that their hearts were so hard. Then he said to the man, `Hold out your hand.' The man did so, and it was made well like the other hand.
6 The Pharisees went out. Right away they and the servants of King Herod planned together how to kill Jesus.
8 Jesus and his disciples went away to the sea of Galilee. Many people went with Jesus. They came from Galilee, Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and from the other side of the Jordan River. And many more people came also, a great many from around the cities of Tyre and Sidon. They also had heard about the great works that Jesus had done.
9 Jesus saw that the crowd was very big. He told the disciples to have a small boat ready for him so that he would have more room.
10 He did this because he healed many people. All who were sick tried to touch him.
11 When the bad spirits saw Jesus, they bowed down before him. They shouted, `You are God's Son!'
12 He told them they must not tell anyone who he was.
13 Then Jesus went up on the hill. He wanted some of the people to come with him. So he called them and they came.
14 He chose twelve disciples to stay with him. He wanted to send them out to other places to tell people God's word.
15 He gave them power to heal people and to drive bad spirits out of people.
16 One of the twelve was Simon, whom Jesus called Peter.
17 He also chose James and his brother John, the sons of Zebedee, whom he named Boanerges, which means "Men of Thunder."
19 He also chose Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon of Canan, and Judas Iscariot, the one who gave Jesus over to people who hated him. Then Jesus and his disciples went home.
20 So many people came again that they could not even eat.
21 When Jesus' family heard about this, they came to take him away. They said, `He is crazy.'
22 The scribes who came from Jerusalem also talked about Jesus. They said, `Beelzebub, the chief of bad spirits, is in this man. He drives out bad spirits by the help of Beelzebub.'
23 Jesus called the people and talked to them in stories. He asked, `How can Satan drive out Satan?
24 If one part of a country fights against another part of the country, that country cannot be strong.
25 If one part of a family fights against the other part of the family, it cannot stand.
26 If Satan fights against himself and the bad spirits fight against each other, he cannot stand. It will be the end of him.
27 If anyone wants to go into a strong man's house and steal his things, he must first tie the strong man. Then he can steal his things.
28 `I tell you the truth. All wrong things that people do and say about anyone will be forgiven.
29 But people who say wrong things against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. A person who does that will be punished for ever.'
30 Jesus said all this because the scribes said, `A bad spirit is in him.'
31 Jesus' mother and brothers came to him. They stood outside. They sent someone to him.
32 Many people were sitting around him. They said, `See, your mother and your brothers are outside. They want you.'
33 Jesus asked them, `Who are my mother and my brothers?'
34 Then he looked at the people who sat around him. He said, `These people are my mother and my brothers!
35 Anyone who obeys God is my brother, my sister, and my mother.'
6 Jesus was walking through the grain fields on a Sabbath day. His disciples picked some of the grain as they went along. They cleaned it by rubbing it in their hands, and ate it.
2 Some of the Pharisees said, `Why do your disciples do what is not right on the Sabbath day?"
3 Jesus answered them, `Have you not read what David did? He and his men were hungry.
4 He went into God's house. Some bread was there for God. But David took the bread and ate it. He also gave some of it to the men who were with him. Only the priests have the right to eat that bread.'
5 Jesus said to them, `The Son of Man rules over the Sabbath day.'
6 On another Sabbath day, Jesus went into the meeting house and taught. A man was there whose right hand was thin and weak.
7 The scribes and Pharisees watched Jesus to see if he would heal the man on the Sabbath day. They wanted to find something wrong about Jesus.
8 But Jesus knew what they were thinking. He spoke to the man whose hand was thin and weak. He said, `Come and stand here in front' The man stood up.
9 Jesus said to them, `I ask you, is it right to do good things on the Sabbath day, or to do wrong things? Is it right to heal people so that they will live, or to let them die?'
10 He looked around at them all. Then he said to the man, `Hold out your hand.' The man did so and it was made well like the other hand.
11 The Pharisees were very angry and they talked together about what they could do to Jesus.
12 About that time Jesus went out of the city on the hill to talk with God. He talked with God all night.
13 In the morning he called his disciples to him. He chose twelve of them and called them apostles [special messengers].
14-16 hey were Simon, whom Jesus called Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the freedom fighter, Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, the one who gave Jesus over to people who hated him.
17 Then Jesus came down the hill with them and stood on the flat ground. Many people came. There were many of his disciples. And there were many people from all parts of Judea, and from Jerusalem, and from the seaside of Tyre and Sidon. They came to hear him and to be healed because they were sick.
18 Some were troubled by bad spirits, and they were healed.
19 All the people wanted to touch Jesus. Power came from him and he healed them all.
20 Jesus looked at his disciples and said, `God will make happy you who are poor. The kingdom of God is for you.
21 `God will make happy you who are hungry now. You will be filled. `God will make happy you who cry now. You will laugh.
22 `God will make you happy when people hate you, when they will not let you belong to their group, when they say wrong things about you and make your name bad. God blesses you when it is for the sake of the Son of Man.
23 Be very happy on that day and dance for joy. God will be good to you in heaven. The fathers of these people did the same things to the prophets of God long ago.
24 `But you who are rich will have trouble. You have already had your good times.
25 `You who have all you want now will have trouble! You will be hungry. `You who laugh now will have trouble. You will be sad and cry.
26 `When all the people praise you, you will have trouble! The fathers of these people did the same things to those who were not true prophets of God.'
27 `But I say to you who hear, love your enemies. Do good things to those who hate you.
28 Bless those who use bad words about you. Ask God to do good to those who trouble you.
29 `If someone hits you on one side of your face, turn the other side also. `If someone takes your coat, let him have your shirt also.
30 `Give to every one who begs you for something.
31 `Do to other people what you want them to do to you.
32 If you love those who love you, what good is there in that? Even bad people love those who love them.
33 If you do good things to those who do good things to you, what good is there in that? Bad people do the same.
34 If you lend to those who will give to you, what good is there in that? Even bad people lend to bad people, if they think they will get the same from them.
35 `Love your enemies. Do good things. Lend to people and do not look to get anything back. You will be paid well. You will be sons of the Highest One. He is kind to those who do not thank him and to those who are bad.
36 So be kind like your Father.'
37 `Do not judge others and you will not be judged. Do not punish others, and you will not be punished. Let others go free and God will let you go free.
38 Give to people and they will give to you. They will fill your cup, press it down, shake it, and let it run over. That is what they will give to you. How much you give to others is how much God will give to you.'
39 Jesus also told the people a story. He said, `A blind man cannot lead a blind man. They will both fall into a hole.
40 The one who learns is not better than his teacher. But every one who learns will be like his teacher when his teacher has finished teaching him.
41 `Why do you look at the small piece of dust in your brother's eye? And you do not see the big stick in your own eye.
42 How can you say to your brother, "Brother, let me take the dust out of your eye"? But you do not see the stick in your own eye. You are not true to yourselves! First take the stick out of your own eye. Then you will be able to see to take the dust out of your brother's eye.'
43 `A good tree does not have bad fruit. And also, a bad tree does not have good fruit.
44 Every kind of tree is known by its fruit. People do not pick fruit like figs from thorn trees. And they do not pick grapes from bramble bushes.
45 A good man has stored up good things in his heart, so he says good things. A bad man has stored up wrong things in his heart, so he will say wrong things. The mouth will say what is in the heart.'
46 `Why do you call me "Lord, Lord," but you do not do what I tell you?
47 `A person comes to me. He hears what I say and obeys me. I will show you who he is like.
48 He is like a man who built a house. He dug down deep in the ground and made it stand on a rock. The water in the river came up high. The water beat hard against the house. But the house did not move, because it was built on a rock.
49 A man hears what I say but does not obey me. He is like a man who built his house on top of the ground. He did not dig down deep. The water beat hard against it and it fell with a loud noise!'
© 1969, 1971, 1996, 1998 by SOON Educational Publications