Read the Gospels in 40 Days
7 Now there gathered together to [Jesus] the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem,
2 For they had seen that some of His disciples ate with [a]common hands, that is, unwashed [with hands defiled and unhallowed, because they had not given them a [b]ceremonial washing]—
3 For the Pharisees and all of the Jews do not eat unless [merely for ceremonial reasons] they wash their hands [diligently [c]up to the elbow] with clenched fist, adhering [carefully and faithfully] to the tradition of [practices and customs handed down to them by] their forefathers [to be observed].
4 And [when they come] from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they purify themselves; and there are many other traditions [oral, man-made laws handed down to them, which they observe faithfully and diligently, such as], the washing of cups and wooden pitchers and widemouthed jugs and utensils of copper and [d]beds—
5 And the Pharisees and scribes kept asking [Jesus], Why do Your disciples not order their way of living according to the tradition handed down by the forefathers [to be observed], but eat with hands unwashed and ceremonially not purified?
6 But He said to them, Excellently and truly [[e]so that there will be no room for blame] did Isaiah prophesy of you, the pretenders and hypocrites, as it stands written: These people [constantly] honor Me with their lips, but their hearts hold off and are far distant from Me.
7 In vain (fruitlessly and without profit) do they worship Me, ordering and teaching [to be obeyed] as doctrines the commandments and precepts of men.(A)
8 You disregard and give up and ask to depart from you the commandment of God and cling to the tradition of men [keeping it carefully and faithfully].
9 And He said to them, You have a fine way of rejecting [thus thwarting and nullifying and doing away with] the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition (your own human regulations)!
10 For Moses said, Honor (revere with tenderness of feeling and deference) your father and your mother, and, He who curses or reviles or speaks evil of or abuses or treats improperly his father or mother, let him surely die.(B)
11 But [as for you] you say, A man is exempt if he tells [his] father or [his] mother, What you would otherwise have gained from me [everything I have that would have been of use to you] is Corban, that is, is a gift [already given as an offering to God],
12 Then you no longer are permitting him to do anything for [his] father or mother [but are letting him off from helping them].
13 Thus you are nullifying and making void and of no effect [the authority of] the Word of God through your tradition, which you [in turn] hand on. And many things of this kind you are doing.
14 And He called the people to [Him] again and said to them, Listen to Me, all of you, and understand [what I say].
15 There is not [even] one thing outside a man which by going into him can pollute and defile him; but the things which come out of a man are what defile him and make him unhallowed and unclean.
16 [f]If any man has ears to hear, let him be listening [and let him [g]perceive and comprehend by hearing].
17 And when He had left the crowd and had gone into the house, His disciples began asking Him about the parable.
18 And He said to them, Then are you also unintelligent and dull and without understanding? Do you not discern and see that whatever goes into a man from the outside cannot make him unhallowed or unclean,
19 Since it does not reach and enter his heart but [only his] digestive tract, and so passes on [into the place designed to receive waste]? Thus He was making and declaring all foods [ceremonially] clean [that is, [h]abolishing the ceremonial distinctions of the Levitical Law].
20 And He said, What comes out of a man is what makes a man unclean and renders [him] unhallowed.
21 For from within, [that is] out of the hearts of men, come base and wicked thoughts, sexual immorality, stealing, murder, adultery,
22 Coveting (a greedy desire to have more wealth), dangerous and destructive wickedness, deceit; [i]unrestrained (indecent) conduct; an evil eye (envy), slander (evil speaking, malicious misrepresentation, abusiveness), pride ([j]the sin of an uplifted heart against God and man), foolishness (folly, lack of sense, recklessness, thoughtlessness).
23 All these evil [purposes and desires] come from within, and they make the man unclean and render him unhallowed.
24 And Jesus arose and went away from there to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And He went into a house and did not want anyone to know [that He was there]; but it was not possible for Him to be hidden [from public notice].
25 Instead, at once, a woman whose little daughter had (was under the control of) an unclean spirit heard about Him and came and flung herself down at His feet.
26 Now the woman was a Greek (Gentile), a Syrophoenician by nationality. And she kept begging Him to drive the demon out of her little daughter.
27 And He said to her, First let the children be fed, for it is not becoming or proper or right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the [little house] dogs.
28 But she answered Him, Yes, Lord, yet even the small pups under the table eat the little children’s scraps of food.
29 And He said to her, Because of this saying, you may go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter [permanently].
30 And she went home and found the child thrown on the couch, and the demon departed.
31 Soon after this, Jesus, coming back from the region of Tyre, passed through Sidon on to the Sea of Galilee, through the region of Decapolis [the ten cities].
32 And they brought to Him a man who was deaf and had difficulty in speaking, and they begged Jesus to place His hand upon him.
33 And taking him aside from the crowd [privately], He thrust His fingers into the man’s ears and spat and touched his tongue;
34 And looking up to heaven, He sighed as He said, Ephphatha, which means, Be opened!
35 And his ears were opened, his tongue was loosed, and he began to speak distinctly and as he should.
36 And Jesus [[k]in His own interest] admonished and ordered them sternly and expressly to tell no one; but the more He commanded them, the more zealously they proclaimed it.
37 And they were overwhelmingly astonished, saying, He has done everything excellently (commendably and nobly)! He even makes the deaf to hear and the dumb to speak!
8 In those days when [again] an immense crowd had gathered and they had nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and told them,
2 I have pity and sympathy for the people and My heart goes out to them, for they have been with Me now three days and have nothing [left] to eat;
3 And if I send them away to their homes hungry, they will be feeble through exhaustion and faint along the road; and some of them have come a long way.
4 And His disciples replied to Him, How can anyone fill and satisfy [these people] with loaves of bread here in [this] desolate and uninhabited region?
5 And He asked them, How many loaves have you? They said, Seven.
6 And He commanded the multitude to recline upon the ground, and He [then] took the seven loaves [of bread] and, having given thanks, He broke them and kept on giving them to His disciples to put before [the people], and they placed them before the crowd.
7 And they had a few small fish; and when He had [l]praised God and given thanks and asked Him to bless them [to their use], He ordered that these also should be set before [them].
8 And they ate and were satisfied; and they took up seven [[m]large provision] baskets full of the broken pieces left over.
9 And there were about 4,000 people. And He dismissed them,
10 And at once He got into the boat with His disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha (or Magdala).
11 The Pharisees came and began to argue with and question Him, demanding from Him a sign (an attesting miracle from heaven) [maliciously] to test Him.
12 And He groaned and sighed deeply in His spirit and said, Why does this generation demand a sign? Positively I say to you, no sign shall be given this generation.
13 And He went away and left them and, getting into the boat again, He departed to the other side.
14 Now they had [[n]completely] forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat.
15 And Jesus [repeatedly and expressly] charged and admonished them, saying, Look out; keep on your guard and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod [o]and the Herodians.
16 And they discussed it and reasoned with one another, It is because we have no bread.
17 And being aware [of it], Jesus said to them, Why are you reasoning and saying it is because you have no bread? Do you not yet discern or understand? Are your hearts in [a settled state of] hardness?(C)
18 Having eyes, do you not see [with them], and having ears, do you not hear and perceive and understand the sense of what is said? And do you not remember?
19 When I broke the five loaves for the 5,000, how many [[p]small hand] baskets full of broken pieces did you take up? They said to Him, Twelve.
20 And [when I broke] the seven loaves for the 4,000, how many [[q]large provision] baskets full of broken pieces did you take up? And they said to Him, Seven.
21 And He [r]kept repeating, Do you not yet understand?
22 And they came to Bethsaida. And [people] brought to Him a blind man and begged Him to touch him.
23 And He [s]caught the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village; and when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands upon him, He asked him, Do you [[t]possibly] see anything?
24 And he looked up and said, I see people, but [they look] like trees, walking.
25 Then He put His hands on his eyes again; and the man looked intently [that is, fixed his eyes on definite objects], and he was restored and saw everything distinctly [even what was [u]at a distance].
26 And He sent him away to his house, telling [him], Do not [even] enter the village [v]or tell anyone there.
27 And Jesus went on with His disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way He asked His disciples, Who do people say that I am?
28 And they answered [Him], John the Baptist; and others [say], Elijah; but others, one of the prophets.
29 And He asked them, But who do you yourselves say that I am? Peter replied to Him, You are the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).
30 And He charged them sharply to tell no one about Him.
31 And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must of necessity suffer many things and be tested and disapproved and rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be put to death, and after three days rise again [[w]from death].
32 And He said this freely (frankly, plainly, and explicitly, making it unmistakable). And Peter took Him [x]by the hand and led Him aside and then [facing Him] began to rebuke Him.
33 But turning around [His back to Peter] and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, Get behind Me, Satan! For you do not have a mind [y]intent on promoting what God wills, but what pleases men [you are not on God’s side, but that of men].
34 And Jesus called [to Him] the throng with His disciples and said to them, If anyone intends to come after Me, let him deny himself [forget, ignore, disown, and [z]lose sight of himself and his own interests] and take up his cross, and [[aa]joining Me as a disciple and siding with My party] follow [ab]with Me [continually, cleaving steadfastly to Me].
35 For whoever wants to save his [[ac]higher, spiritual, eternal] life, will lose it [the [ad]lower, natural, temporal life [ae]which is lived only on earth]; and whoever gives up his life [which is lived only on earth] for My sake and the Gospel’s will save it [his [af]higher, spiritual life [ag]in the eternal kingdom of God].
36 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his life [[ah]in the eternal kingdom of God]?
37 For what can a man give as an exchange ([ai]a compensation, a ransom, in return) for his [blessed] life [[aj]in the eternal kingdom of God]?
38 For whoever [ak]is ashamed [here and now] of Me and My words in this adulterous (unfaithful) and [preeminently] sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when He comes in the glory (splendor and majesty) of His Father with the holy angels.
9 And Jesus said to them, Truly and solemnly I say to you, there are some standing here who will in no way taste death before they see the kingdom of God come in [its] power.
2 Six days after this, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John and led them up on a high mountain apart by themselves. And He was transfigured before them and became resplendent with divine brightness.
3 And His garments became glistening, intensely white, as no fuller (cloth dresser, launderer) on earth could bleach them.
4 And Elijah appeared [there] to them, accompanied by Moses, and they were [al]holding [a protracted] conversation with Jesus.
5 And [am]Peter took up the conversation, saying, Master, it is good and suitable and beautiful for us to be here. Let us make three booths (tents)—one for You and one for Moses and one for Elijah.
6 For he did not [really] know what to say, for they were in a violent fright ([an]aghast with dread).
7 And a cloud threw a shadow upon them, and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is My Son, the [[ao]most dearworthy] Beloved One. Be [ap]constantly listening to and obeying Him!
8 And looking around, they suddenly no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus only.
9 And as they were coming back down the mountain, He admonished and [aq]expressly ordered them to tell no one what they had seen until the Son of Man should rise from among the dead.
10 So they carefully and faithfully kept the matter to themselves, questioning and disputing with one another about what rising from among the dead meant.
11 And they asked Him, Why do the scribes say that it is necessary for Elijah to come first?(D)
12 And He said to them, Elijah, it is true, does come first to restore all things and [ar]set them to rights. And how is it written of the Son of Man that He will suffer many things and be utterly despised and be treated with contempt and rejected?(E)
13 But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and [people] did to him whatever they desired, as it is written of him.
14 And when they came to the [nine] disciples, they saw a great crowd around them and scribes questioning and disputing with them.
15 And immediately all the crowd, when they saw Jesus [[as]returning from the holy mount, His face and person yet glistening], they were greatly amazed and ran up to Him [and] greeted Him.
16 And He asked them, About what are you questioning and discussing with them?
17 And one of the throng replied to Him, Teacher, I brought my son to You, for he has a dumb spirit.
18 And wherever it lays hold of him [so as to make him its own], it dashes him down and convulses him, and he foams [at the mouth] and grinds his teeth, and he [[at]falls into a motionless stupor and] is wasting away. And I asked Your disciples to drive it out, and they were not able [to do it].
19 And He answered them, O unbelieving generation [without any faith]! How long [au]shall I [have to do] with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to Me.
20 So they brought [the boy] to Him, and when the spirit saw Him, at once it completely convulsed the boy, and he fell to the ground and kept rolling about, foaming [at the mouth].
21 And [Jesus] asked his father, How long has he had this? And he answered, From the time he was a little boy.
22 And it has often thrown him both into fire and into water, intending to kill him. But if You can do anything, do have pity on us and help us.
23 And Jesus said, [You say to Me], If You can do anything? [Why,] all things can be (are possible) to him who believes!
24 At once the father of the boy gave [an [av]eager, [aw]piercing, inarticulate] cry with tears, and he said, Lord, I believe! [Constantly] help my [ax]weakness of faith!
25 But when Jesus noticed that a crowd [of people] came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, You dumb and deaf spirit, I charge you to come out of him and never go into him again.
26 And after giving a [hoarse, clamoring, fear-stricken] shriek of anguish and convulsing him terribly, it came out; and the boy lay [pale and motionless] like a corpse, so that many of them said, He is dead.
27 But Jesus took [[ay]a strong grip of] his hand and began lifting him up, and he stood.
28 And when He had gone indoors, His disciples asked Him privately, Why could not we drive it out?
29 And He replied to them, This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer [az]and fasting.
30 They went on from there and passed along through Galilee. And He did not wish to have anyone know it,
31 For He was [engaged for the time being in] teaching His disciples. He said to them, The Son of Man is being delivered into the hands of men, and they will put Him to death; and when He has been killed, after three days He will rise [[ba]from death].
32 But they did not comprehend what He was saying, and they were afraid to ask Him [what this statement meant].
33 And they arrived at Capernaum; and when [they were] in the house, He asked them, What were you discussing and arguing about on the road?
34 But they kept still, for on the road they had discussed and disputed with one another as to who was the greatest.
35 And He sat down and called the Twelve [apostles], and He said to them, If anyone desires to be first, he must be last of all, and servant of all.
36 And He took a little child and put him in the center of their group; and taking him in [His] arms, He said to them,
37 Whoever in My name and for My sake accepts and receives and welcomes one such child also accepts and receives and welcomes Me; and whoever so receives Me receives not only Me but Him Who sent Me.
38 John said to Him, Teacher, we saw a man who does not follow along with us driving out demons in Your name, and we forbade him to do it, because he [bb]is not one of our band [of Your disciples].
39 But Jesus said, Do not restrain or hinder or forbid him; for no one who does a mighty work in My name will soon afterward be able to speak evil of Me.
40 For he who is not against us is for us.(F)
41 For I tell you truly, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to and bear the name of Christ will by no means fail to get his reward.
42 And whoever causes one of these little ones (these believers) who [bc]acknowledge and cleave to Me to stumble and sin, it would be better (more profitable and wholesome) for him if a [huge] millstone were hung about his neck, and he were thrown into the sea.
43 And if your hand puts a stumbling block before you and causes you to sin, cut it off! It is more profitable and wholesome for you to go into life [[bd]that is really worthwhile] maimed than with two hands to go to hell (Gehenna), into the fire that cannot be put out.[be]
45 And if your foot is a cause of stumbling and sin to you, cut it off! It is more profitable and wholesome for you to enter into life [that is really worthwhile] crippled than, having two feet, to be cast into hell (Gehenna)[bf].
47 And if your eye causes you to stumble and sin, pluck it out! It is more profitable and wholesome for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell (Gehenna),
48 Where their worm [[bg]which preys on the inhabitants and is a symbol of the wounds inflicted on the man himself by his sins] does not die, and the fire is not put out.(G)
49 For everyone shall be salted with fire.
50 Salt is good (beneficial), but if salt has lost its saltness, how will you restore [the saltness to] it? Have salt within yourselves, and be at peace and live in harmony with one another.
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