Read the Gospels in 40 Days
Repent or Perish
13 Now at the same time some had come to tell him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. 2 And he answered and[a] said to them, “Do you think that these Galileans were sinners worse than all the Galileans, because they suffered these things? 3 No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish as well! 4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them—do you think that they were sinners worse than all the people who live in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you, but unless you repent, you will all perish as well!”
The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree
6 And he told this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any.[b] 7 So he said to the gardener, ‘Behold, for three years[c] I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree and did not find any.[d] Cut it down![e] Why should it even exhaust the soil?’ 8 But he answered and[f] said to him, ‘Sir, leave it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put manure on it.[g] 9 And if indeed it produces fruit in the coming year, so much the better,[h] but if not, you can cut it down.’”
A Woman with a Disabling Spirit Healed
10 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11 And behold, a woman was there[i] who had a spirit that had disabled her[j] for eighteen years, and she was bent over and not able to straighten herself up completely.[k] 12 And when he[l] saw her, Jesus summoned her[m] and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability!” 13 And he placed his[n] hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and glorified God. 14 But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, answered and[o] said to the crowd, “There are six days on which it is necessary to work. Therefore come and[p] be healed on them, and not on the day of the Sabbath!” 15 But the Lord answered and said to him, “Hypocrites! Does not each one of you untie his ox or his[q] donkey from the feeding trough on the Sabbath and lead it[r] away to water it?[s] 16 And this woman, who is a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan bound eighteen[t] long years—is it not necessary that she be released from this bond on the day of the Sabbath?” 17 And when[u] he said these things, all those who opposed him were humiliated, and the whole crowd was rejoicing at all the splendid things that were being done by him.
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
18 Therefore he said, “What is the kingdom of God like, and to what shall I compare it? 19 It is like a mustard seed that a man took and[v] sowed in his own garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky nested in its branches.”
The Parable of the Yeast
20 And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? 21 It is like yeast that a woman took and[w] hid in[x] three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.”
The Narrow Door
22 And he was going throughout towns and villages, teaching and making his journey toward Jerusalem. 23 And someone said to him, “Lord, are there only[y] a few who are saved?” And he said to them, 24 “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able to, 25 when once the master of the house has gotten up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock on the door, saying, ‘Lord, open the door[z] for us!’ And he will answer and[aa] say to you, ‘I do not know where you are from!’ 26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets!’ 27 And he will reply, saying to you, ‘I do not know where you are from! Go away from me, all you evildoers!’[ab] 28 In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but yourselves thrown outside! 29 And they will come from east and west, and from north and south, and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God. 30 And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
The Lament over Jerusalem
31 At that same hour some Pharisees came up and[ac] said to him, “Go out and depart from here, because Herod wants to kill you!” 32 And he said to them, “Go and[ad] tell that fox, ‘Behold, I am expelling demons and performing healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will complete my work.’[ae] 33 Nevertheless, it is necessary for me to be on the way today and tomorrow and on the next day, because it is not possible for a prophet to perish outside Jerusalem.
34 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How many times I wanted to gather your children together the way[af] a hen gathers[ag] her own brood under her[ah] wings, and you were not willing! 35 Behold, your house has been left to you! And I tell you, you will never see me until the time[ai] will come when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’”[aj]
A Man Suffering from Edema Healed
14 And it happened that when he came to the house of a certain one of the leaders of the Pharisees on a Sabbath to eat a meal,[ak] they were watching him closely. 2 And behold, a certain man was in front of him, suffering from edema. 3 And Jesus answered and[al] said to the legal experts and Pharisees, saying, “Is it permitted to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” 4 But they remained silent. And he took hold of him[am] and[an] healed him, and sent him[ao] away. 5 And he said to them, “Who among you, if your[ap] son or your ox falls into a well[aq] on the day of the Sabbath, will not immediately pull him out?” 6 And they were not able to make a reply to these things.
The Parable of the Guests at the Wedding Feast
7 Now he told a parable to those who had been invited when he[ar] noticed how they were choosing for themselves the places of honor, saying to them, 8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast,[as] do not recline at the table in the place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you has been invited by him, 9 and the one who invited you both[at] will come and[au] say to you, ‘Give the place to this person,’ and then with shame you will begin to take the last place. 10 But when you are invited, go and[av] recline at the table in the last place, so that when the one who invited you comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then it will be an honor to you in the presence of all those who are reclining at the table with you. 11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
The Parable of the Great Banquet
12 And he also said to the one who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or wealthy neighbors, lest they also invite you in return, and repayment come to you. 13 But whenever you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed, because they are not able to repay you. For it will be paid back to you at the resurrection of the righteous.”
15 Now when[aw] one of those reclining at the table with him heard these things, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone who[ax] will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” 16 But he said to him, “A certain man was giving a large banquet and invited many. 17 And he sent his slave at the hour of the banquet to say to those who have been invited, ‘Come, because now it is ready!’ 18 And they all alike[ay] began to excuse themselves. The first said to him, ‘I have purchased a field, and I must[az] go out to look at it. I ask you, consider me excused.’ 19 And another said, ‘I have purchased five yoke of oxen, and I am going to examine them. I ask you, consider me excused.’ 20 And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and for this reason I am not able to come.’ 21 And the slave came and[ba] reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and[bb] said to his slave, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the city and bring in here the poor and crippled and blind and lame!’ 22 And the slave said, ‘Sir, what you ordered has been done, and there is still room.’ 23 And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges and press them[bc] to come in, so that my house will be filled! 24 For I say to you that none of those persons who were invited will taste my banquet!’”
The Cost of Discipleship
25 Now large crowds were going along with him, and he turned around and[bd] said to them, 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, and furthermore, even his own life, he cannot be[be] my disciple. 27 Whoever does not carry his own cross and follow[bf] me cannot be[bg] my disciple. 28 For which of you, wanting to build a tower, does not first sit down and[bh] calculate the cost to see if he has enough[bi] to complete it?[bj] 29 Otherwise[bk] after[bl] he has laid the foundation and is not able to finish it,[bm] all who see it[bn] will begin to ridicule him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish!’ 31 Or what king, going out to engage another king in battle, does not sit down first and[bo] deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand. 32 But if not, while[bp] the other is still far away, he sends an ambassador and[bq] asks for terms of[br] peace. 33 In the same way, therefore, every one of you who does not renounce all his own possessions cannot be[bs] my disciple.
34 “Now salt is good, but if salt becomes tasteless, with what will it be made salty? 35 It is usable neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; they throw it out. The one who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
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