Read the Gospels in 40 Days
I. The Preparation for the Public Ministry of Jesus[a]
Chapter 1
1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ [the Son of God].[b]
The Preaching of John the Baptist. 2 (A)As it is written in Isaiah the prophet:[c](B)
“Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you;
he will prepare your way.
3 (C)A voice of one crying out in the desert:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths.’”
4 John [the] Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 People of the whole Judean countryside and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins. 6 John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist.[d] He fed on locusts and wild honey. 7 And this is what he proclaimed: “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals. 8 [e](D)I have baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the holy Spirit.”
The Baptism of Jesus. 9 (E)It happened in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized in the Jordan by John. 10 On coming up out of the water he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him.[f] 11 (F)And a voice came from the heavens, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”
The Temptation of Jesus.[g] 12 At once the Spirit drove him out into the desert,(G) 13 and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him.
II. The Mystery of Jesus
The Beginning of the Galilean Ministry. 14 (H)After John had been arrested,[h] Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: 15 (I)“This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”
The Call of the First Disciples.[i] 16 (J)As he passed by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea; they were fishermen. 17 Jesus said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 18 Then they abandoned their nets and followed him. 19 He walked along a little farther and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They too were in a boat mending their nets. 20 Then he called them. So they left their father Zebedee in the boat along with the hired men and followed him.
The Cure of a Demoniac. 21 [j](K)Then they came to Capernaum, and on the sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught. 22 (L)The people were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes. 23 [k]In their synagogue was a man with an unclean spirit; 24 [l]he cried out, “What have you to do with us,[m] Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!” 25 Jesus rebuked him and said, “Quiet! Come out of him!” 26 The unclean spirit convulsed him and with a loud cry came out of him. 27 All were amazed and asked one another, “What is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.” 28 His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.
The Cure of Simon’s Mother-in-Law. 29 (M)On leaving the synagogue he entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John. 30 Simon’s mother-in-law lay sick with a fever. They immediately told him about her. 31 He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up. Then the fever left her and she waited on them.
Other Healings. 32 When it was evening, after sunset, they brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons. 33 The whole town was gathered at the door. 34 He cured many who were sick with various diseases, and he drove out many demons, not permitting them to speak because they knew him.
Jesus Leaves Capernaum. 35 (N)Rising very early before dawn, he left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and those who were with him pursued him 37 and on finding him said, “Everyone is looking for you.” 38 He told them, “Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also. For this purpose have I come.” 39 So he went into their synagogues, preaching and driving out demons throughout the whole of Galilee.
The Cleansing of a Leper. 40 (O)A leper[n] came to him [and kneeling down] begged him and said, “If you wish, you can make me clean.” 41 Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched him, and said to him, “I do will it. Be made clean.”(P) 42 The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean.(Q) 43 Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once. 44 Then he said to him, “See that you tell no one anything, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.”(R) 45 The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter. He spread the report abroad so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly. He remained outside in deserted places, and people kept coming to him from everywhere.
Chapter 2
The Healing of a Paralytic. 1 [o]When Jesus returned to Capernaum(S) after some days, it became known that he was at home.[p] 2 Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them, not even around the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. 4 Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd, they opened up the roof above him. After they had broken through, they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying. 5 [q]When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Child, your sins are forgiven.” 6 [r]Now some of the scribes were sitting there asking themselves, 7 “Why does this man speak that way?[s] He is blaspheming. Who but God alone can forgive sins?”(T) 8 Jesus immediately knew in his mind what they were thinking to themselves, so he said, “Why are you thinking such things in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, pick up your mat and walk’? 10 [t]But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth”— 11 he said to the paralytic, “I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home.” 12 He rose, picked up his mat at once, and went away in the sight of everyone. They were all astounded and glorified God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this.”
The Call of Levi. 13 [u](U)Once again he went out along the sea. All the crowd came to him and he taught them. 14 (V)As he passed by,[v] he saw Levi, son of Alphaeus, sitting at the customs post. He said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. 15 While he was at table in his house,[w] many tax collectors and sinners sat with Jesus and his disciples; for there were many who followed him. 16 [x]Some scribes who were Pharisees saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors and said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 17 Jesus heard this and said to them [that], “Those who are well do not need a physician,[y] but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”
The Question About Fasting.[z] 18 The disciples of John and of the Pharisees were accustomed to fast.(W) People came to him and objected, “Why do the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Can the wedding guests fast[aa] while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast. 20 But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast on that day. 21 No one sews a piece of unshrunken cloth on an old cloak. If he does, its fullness pulls away, the new from the old, and the tear gets worse. 22 Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the skins are ruined. Rather, new wine is poured into fresh wineskins.”
The Disciples and the Sabbath.[ab] 23 As he was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath, his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain.(X) 24 At this the Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?”(Y) 25 He said to them, “Have you never read what David did[ac] when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry? 26 How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat, and shared it with his companions?”(Z) 27 Then he said to them, “The sabbath was made for man,[ad] not man for the sabbath.(AA) 28 [ae]That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”
Chapter 3
A Man with a Withered Hand. 1 [af]Again he entered the synagogue.(AB) There was a man there who had a withered hand. 2 They watched him closely to see if he would cure him on the sabbath so that they might accuse him. 3 He said to the man with the withered hand, “Come up here before us.” 4 Then he said to them, “Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?” But they remained silent. 5 Looking around at them with anger and grieved at their hardness of heart, he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out and his hand was restored.(AC) 6 [ag]The Pharisees went out and immediately took counsel with the Herodians against him to put him to death.
The Mercy of Jesus. 7 [ah]Jesus withdrew toward the sea with his disciples.(AD) A large number of people [followed] from Galilee and from Judea. 8 Hearing what he was doing, a large number of people came to him also from Jerusalem, from Idumea, from beyond the Jordan, and from the neighborhood of Tyre and Sidon. 9 He told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, so that they would not crush him. 10 He had cured many and, as a result, those who had diseases were pressing upon him to touch him.(AE) 11 [ai]And whenever unclean spirits saw him they would fall down before him and shout, “You are the Son of God.”(AF) 12 He warned them sternly not to make him known.
The Mission of the Twelve. 13 (AG)He went up the mountain[aj] and summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him. 14 (AH)He appointed twelve [whom he also named apostles] that they might be with him[ak] and he might send them forth to preach 15 and to have authority to drive out demons: 16 [al][he appointed the twelve:] Simon, whom he named Peter; 17 James, son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James, whom he named Boanerges, that is, sons of thunder;(AI) 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus; Thaddeus, Simon the Cananean, 19 and Judas Iscariot who betrayed him.
Blasphemy of the Scribes. 20 [am]He came home.[an] Again [the] crowd gathered, making it impossible for them even to eat.(AJ) 21 When his relatives heard of this they set out to seize him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”(AK) 22 The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,”[ao] and “By the prince of demons he drives out demons.”(AL)
Jesus and Beelzebul. 23 Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables, “How can Satan drive out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand; that is the end of him. 27 But no one can enter a strong man’s house to plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can plunder his house. 28 Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies that people utter will be forgiven them.(AM) 29 But whoever blasphemes against the holy Spirit[ap] will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin.” 30 For they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”
Jesus and His Family. 31 (AN)His mother and his brothers arrived. Standing outside they sent word to him and called him. 32 A crowd seated around him told him, “Your mother and your brothers[aq] [and your sisters] are outside asking for you.” 33 But he said to them in reply, “Who are my mother and [my] brothers?” 34 And looking around at those seated in the circle he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. 35 [For] whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.