Chronological
Jesus and Beelzebub(A)
22 Then one possessed with a demon was brought to Him, blind and mute, and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. 23 All the people were amazed and said, “Is He not the Son of David?”
24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “This Man does not cast out demons, except by Beelzebub the ruler of the demons.”
25 Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation. And every city or house divided against itself will not stand. 26 If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. Then how will his kingdom stand? 27 And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore, they shall be your judges. 28 But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
29 “Or else how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.
30 “He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad. 31 Therefore I say to you, all kinds of sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven men. 32 Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, neither in this world, nor in the world to come.
A Tree and Its Fruit(B)
33 “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree corrupt and its fruit corrupt. For the tree is known by its fruit. 34 O generation of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things. And an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. 36 But I say to you that for every idle word that men speak, they will give an account on the Day of Judgment. 37 For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”
The Demand for a Sign(C)
38 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from You.”
39 But He answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish,[a] so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and will condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah.[b] And now One greater than Jonah is here. 42 The Queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and will condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon. And now One greater than Solomon is here.
The Return of the Unclean Spirit(D)
43 “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through dry places seeking rest, but finds none. 44 Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds it empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then it goes and brings with itself seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it be also with this evil generation.”
The Mother and Brothers of Jesus(E)
46 While He was still speaking to the people, right then His mother and His brothers stood outside asking to speak with Him. 47 Then one said to Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside asking to speak with You.”
48 But He answered the man who told him, “Who is My mother, and who are My brothers?” 49 He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven is My brother, and sister, and mother.”
Teaching About Prayer(A)
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(B)
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(C)
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(D)
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(E)
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(F)
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.