New Testament in a Year

6 Soon afterwards he left that section of the country and returned with his disciples to Nazareth, his hometown. ^2-3 The next Sabbath he went to the synagogue to teach, and the people were astonished at his wisdom and his miracles because he was just a local man like themselves.

“He’s no better than we are,” they said. “He’s just a carpenter, Mary’s boy, and a brother of James and Joseph, Judas and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” And they were offended!

⁴ Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his hometown and among his relatives and by his own family.” ⁵ And because of their unbelief he couldn’t do any mighty miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. ⁶ And he could hardly accept the fact that they wouldn’t believe in him.

Then he went out among the villages, teaching.

⁷ And he called his twelve disciples together and sent them out two by two, with power to cast out demons. ^8-9 He told them to take nothing with them except their walking sticks—no food, no knapsack, no money, not even an extra pair of shoes or a change of clothes.

¹⁰ “Stay at one home in each village—don’t shift around from house to house while you are there,” he said. ¹¹ “And whenever a village won’t accept you or listen to you, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave; it is a sign that you have abandoned it to its fate.”

¹² So the disciples went out, telling everyone they met to turn from sin. ¹³ And they cast out many demons and healed many sick people, anointing them with olive oil.

¹⁴ King Herod soon heard about Jesus, for his miracles were talked about everywhere. The king thought Jesus was John the Baptist come back to life again. So the people were saying, “No wonder he can do such miracles.” ¹⁵ Others thought Jesus was Elijah the ancient prophet, now returned to life again; still others claimed he was a new prophet like the great ones of the past.

¹⁶ “No,” Herod said, “it is John, the man I beheaded. He has come back from the dead.”

^17-18 For Herod had sent soldiers to arrest and imprison John because he kept saying it was wrong for the king to marry Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. ¹⁹ Herodias wanted John killed in revenge, but without Herod’s approval she was powerless. ²⁰ And Herod respected John, knowing that he was a good and holy man, and so he kept him under his protection. Herod was disturbed whenever he talked with John, but even so he liked to listen to him.

²¹ Herodias’s chance finally came. It was Herod’s birthday and he gave a stag party for his palace aides, army officers, and the leading citizens of Galilee. ^22-23 Then Herodias’s daughter came in and danced before them and greatly pleased them all.

“Ask me for anything you like,” the king vowed, “even half of my kingdom, and I will give it to you!”

²⁴ She went out and consulted her mother, who told her, “Ask for John the Baptist’s head!”

²⁵ So she hurried back to the king and told him, “I want the head of John the Baptist—right now—on a tray!”

²⁶ Then the king was sorry, but he was embarrassed to break his oath in front of his guests. ²⁷ So he sent one of his bodyguards to the prison to cut off John’s head and bring it to him. The soldier killed John in the prison, ²⁸ and brought back his head on a tray, and gave it to the girl and she took it to her mother.

²⁹ When John’s disciples heard what had happened, they came for his body and buried it in a tomb.