Bible in 90 Days Plan

¹Then he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a pit for the wine press, and built a watchtower; then he leased it to tenants and went to another country.

²When the season came, he sent a slave to the tenants to collect from them his share of the produce of the vineyard.

³But they seized him, and beat him, and sent him away empty-handed.

⁴And again he sent another slave to them; this one they beat over the head and insulted.

⁵Then he sent another, and that one they killed. And so it was with many others; some they beat, and others they killed.

⁶He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

⁷But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’

⁸So they seized him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.

⁹What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others.

¹⁰Have you not read this scripture: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone;

¹¹this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’?”

¹²When they realized that he had told this parable against them, they wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowd. So they left him and went away.

¹³Then they sent to him some Pharisees and some Herodians to trap him in what he said.

¹⁴And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality, but teach the way of God in accordance with truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?

¹⁵Should we pay them, or should we not?” But knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why are you putting me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me see it.”

¹⁶And they brought one. Then he said to them, “Whose head is this, and whose title?” They answered, “The emperor’s.”

¹⁷Jesus said to them, “Give to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at him.

¹⁸Some Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him a question, saying,

¹⁹“Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no child, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother.

²⁰There were seven brothers; the first married and, when he died, left no children;

²¹and the second married the widow and died, leaving no children; and the third likewise;

²²none of the seven left children. Last of all the woman herself died.

²³In the resurrection whose wife will she be? For the seven had married her.”

²⁴Jesus said to them, “Is not this the reason you are wrong, that you know neither the scriptures nor the power of God?

²⁵For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.

²⁶And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the story about the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?

²⁷He is God not of the dead, but of the living; you are quite wrong.”

²⁸One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the first of all?”

²⁹Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one;

³⁰you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’

³¹The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

³²Then the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that ‘he is one, and besides him there is no other’;

³³and ‘to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength,’ and ‘to love one’s neighbor as oneself,’ — this is much more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

³⁴When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” After that no one dared to ask him any question.

³⁵While Jesus was teaching in the temple, he said, “How can the scribes say that the Messiah is the son of David?

³⁶David himself, by the Holy Spirit, declared, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet.”’

³⁷David himself calls him Lord; so how can he be his son?” And the large crowd was listening to him with delight.

³⁸As he taught, he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces,

³⁹and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets!

⁴⁰They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”

⁴¹He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums.

⁴²A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny.

⁴³Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury.

⁴⁴For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

¹As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!”

²Then Jesus asked him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.”

³When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately,

⁴“Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?”

⁵Then Jesus began to say to them, “Beware that no one leads you astray.

⁶Many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray.

⁷When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come.

⁸For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the beginning of the birth pangs.

⁹“As for yourselves, beware; for they will hand you over to councils; and you will be beaten in synagogues; and you will stand before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them.

¹⁰And the good news must first be proclaimed to all nations.

¹¹When they bring you to trial and hand you over, do not worry beforehand about what you are to say; but say whatever is given you at that time, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.

¹²Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death;

¹³and you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

¹⁴“But when you see the desolating sacrilege set up where it ought not to be (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains;

¹⁵the one on the housetop must not go down or enter the house to take anything away;

¹⁶the one in the field must not turn back to get a coat.

¹⁷Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days!

¹⁸Pray that it may not be in winter.

¹⁹For in those days there will be suffering, such as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, no, and never will be.

²⁰And if the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he has cut short those days.

²¹And if anyone says to you at that time, ‘Look! Here is the Messiah!’ or ‘Look! There he is!’ — do not believe it.

²²False messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, the elect.

²³But be alert; I have already told you everything.

²⁴“But in those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light,

²⁵and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.

²⁶Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory.

²⁷Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.

²⁸“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near.

²⁹So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates.

³⁰Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place.

³¹Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

³²“But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

³³Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come.

³⁴It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch.

³⁵Therefore, keep awake — for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn,

³⁶or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly.

³⁷And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.”

¹It was two days before the Passover and the festival of Unleavened Bread. The chief priests and the scribes were looking for a way to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him;

²for they said, “Not during the festival, or there may be a riot among the people.”

³While he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at the table, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very costly ointment of nard, and she broke open the jar and poured the ointment on his head.

⁴But some were there who said to one another in anger, “Why was the ointment wasted in this way?

⁵For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii, and the money given to the poor.” And they scolded her.

⁶But Jesus said, “Let her alone; why do you trouble her? She has performed a good service for me.

⁷For you always have the poor with you, and you can show kindness to them whenever you wish; but you will not always have me.

⁸She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for its burial.

⁹Truly I tell you, wherever the good news is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her.”

¹⁰Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them.

¹¹When they heard it, they were greatly pleased, and promised to give him money. So he began to look for an opportunity to betray him.

¹²On the first day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb is sacrificed, his disciples said to him, “Where do you want us to go and make the preparations for you to eat the Passover?”

¹³So he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you; follow him,

¹⁴and wherever he enters, say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks, Where is my guest room where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’

¹⁵He will show you a large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us there.”

¹⁶So the disciples set out and went to the city, and found everything as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover meal.

¹⁷When it was evening, he came with the twelve.

¹⁸And when they had taken their places and were eating, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me.”

¹⁹They began to be distressed and to say to him one after another, “Surely, not I?”

²⁰He said to them, “It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the bowl with me.

²¹For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that one by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that one not to have been born.”

²²While they were eating, he took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it, gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.”

²³Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them, and all of them drank from it.

²⁴He said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.

²⁵Truly I tell you, I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

²⁶When they had sung the hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

²⁷And Jesus said to them, “You will all become deserters; for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’

²⁸But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.”

²⁹Peter said to him, “Even though all become deserters, I will not.”

³⁰Jesus said to him, “Truly I tell you, this day, this very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times.”

³¹But he said vehemently, “Even though I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And all of them said the same.

³²They went to a place called Gethsemane; and he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.”

³³He took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be distressed and agitated.

³⁴And he said to them, “I am deeply grieved, even to death; remain here, and keep awake.”

³⁵And going a little farther, he threw himself on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.

³⁶He said, “Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want.”

³⁷He came and found them sleeping; and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep awake one hour?

³⁸Keep awake and pray that you may not come into the time of trial; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

³⁹And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words.

⁴⁰And once more he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy; and they did not know what to say to him.

⁴¹He came a third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? Enough! The hour has come; the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

⁴²Get up, let us be going. See, my betrayer is at hand.”

⁴³Immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, arrived; and with him there was a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders.

⁴⁴Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away under guard.”

⁴⁵So when he came, he went up to him at once and said, “Rabbi!” and kissed him.

⁴⁶Then they laid hands on him and arrested him.

⁴⁷But one of those who stood near drew his sword and struck the slave of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

⁴⁸Then Jesus said to them, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest me as though I were a bandit?

⁴⁹Day after day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not arrest me. But let the scriptures be fulfilled.”

⁵⁰All of them deserted him and fled.

⁵¹A certain young man was following him, wearing nothing but a linen cloth. They caught hold of him,

⁵²but he left the linen cloth and ran off naked.

⁵³They took Jesus to the high priest; and all the chief priests, the elders, and the scribes were assembled.

⁵⁴Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest; and he was sitting with the guards, warming himself at the fire.

⁵⁵Now the chief priests and the whole council were looking for testimony against Jesus to put him to death; but they found none.

⁵⁶For many gave false testimony against him, and their testimony did not agree.

⁵⁷Some stood up and gave false testimony against him, saying,

⁵⁸“We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.’”

⁵⁹But even on this point their testimony did not agree.

⁶⁰Then the high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, “Have you no answer? What is it that they testify against you?”

⁶¹But he was silent and did not answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”

⁶²Jesus said, “I am; and ‘you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power,’ and ‘coming with the clouds of heaven.’”

⁶³Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “Why do we still need witnesses?

⁶⁴You have heard his blasphemy! What is your decision?” All of them condemned him as deserving death.

⁶⁵Some began to spit on him, to blindfold him, and to strike him, saying to him, “Prophesy!” The guards also took him over and beat him.

⁶⁶While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant-girls of the high priest came by.

⁶⁷When she saw Peter warming himself, she stared at him and said, “You also were with Jesus, the man from Nazareth.”

⁶⁸But he denied it, saying, “I do not know or understand what you are talking about.” And he went out into the forecourt. Then the cock crowed.

⁶⁹And the servant-girl, on seeing him, began again to say to the bystanders, “This man is one of them.”

⁷⁰But again he denied it. Then after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter, “Certainly you are one of them; for you are a Galilean.”

⁷¹But he began to curse, and he swore an oath, “I do not know this man you are talking about.”

⁷²At that moment the cock crowed for the second time. Then Peter remembered that Jesus had said to him, “Before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept.

¹As soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council. They bound Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate.

²Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” He answered him, “You say so.”

³Then the chief priests accused him of many things.

⁴Pilate asked him again, “Have you no answer? See how many charges they bring against you.”

⁵But Jesus made no further reply, so that Pilate was amazed.

⁶Now at the festival he used to release a prisoner for them, anyone for whom they asked.

⁷Now a man called Barabbas was in prison with the rebels who had committed murder during the insurrection.

⁸So the crowd came and began to ask Pilate to do for them according to his custom.

⁹Then he answered them, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?”

¹⁰For he realized that it was out of jealousy that the chief priests had handed him over.

¹¹But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release Barabbas for them instead.

¹²Pilate spoke to them again, “Then what do you wish me to do with the man you call the King of the Jews?”

¹³They shouted back, “Crucify him!”

¹⁴Pilate asked them, “Why, what evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Crucify him!”

¹⁵So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas for them; and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.

¹⁶Then the soldiers led him into the courtyard of the palace (that is, the governor’s headquarters); and they called together the whole cohort.

¹⁷And they clothed him in a purple cloak; and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on him.

¹⁸And they began saluting him, “Hail, King of the Jews!”

¹⁹They struck his head with a reed, spat upon him, and knelt down in homage to him.

²⁰After mocking him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.

²¹They compelled a passer-by, who was coming in from the country, to carry his cross; it was Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus.

²²Then they brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means the place of a skull).

²³And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh; but he did not take it.

²⁴And they crucified him, and divided his clothes among them, casting lots to decide what each should take.

²⁵It was nine o’clock in the morning when they crucified him.

²⁶The inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.”

²⁷And with him they crucified two bandits, one on his right and one on his left.

²⁸

²⁹Those who passed by derided him, shaking their heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days,

³⁰save yourself, and come down from the cross!”

³¹In the same way the chief priests, along with the scribes, were also mocking him among themselves and saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself.

³²Let the Messiah, the King of Israel, come down from the cross now, so that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also taunted him.

³³When it was noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon.

³⁴At three o’clock Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

³⁵When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “Listen, he is calling for Elijah.”

³⁶And someone ran, filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.”

³⁷Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.

³⁸And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.

³⁹Now when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”

⁴⁰There were also women looking on from a distance; among them were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome.

⁴¹These used to follow him and provided for him when he was in Galilee; and there were many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem.

⁴²When evening had come, and since it was the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath,

⁴³Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.

⁴⁴Then Pilate wondered if he were already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he had been dead for some time.

⁴⁵When he learned from the centurion that he was dead, he granted the body to Joseph.

⁴⁶Then Joseph bought a linen cloth, and taking down the body, wrapped it in the linen cloth, and laid it in a tomb that had been hewn out of the rock. He then rolled a stone against the door of the tomb.

⁴⁷Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where the body was laid.

¹When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him.

²And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb.

³They had been saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?”

⁴When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back.

⁵As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.

⁶But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him.

⁷But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.”

⁸So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. THE SHORTER ENDING OF MARK [[And all that had been commanded them they told briefly to those around Peter. And afterward Jesus himself sent out through them, from east to west, the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation.]]

⁹[[Now after he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons.

¹⁰She went out and told those who had been with him, while they were mourning and weeping.

¹¹But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.

¹²After this he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country.

¹³And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them.

¹⁴Later he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were sitting at the table; and he upbraided them for their lack of faith and stubbornness, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen.

¹⁵And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation.

¹⁶The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; but the one who does not believe will be condemned.

¹⁷And these signs will accompany those who believe: by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

¹⁸they will pick up snakes in their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

¹⁹So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.

²⁰And they went out and proclaimed the good news everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it.]]

¹Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us,

²just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word,

³I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,

⁴so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed.

⁵In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

⁶Both of them were righteous before God, living blamelessly according to all the commandments and regulations of the Lord.

⁷But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were getting on in years.

⁸Once when he was serving as priest before God and his section was on duty,

⁹he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and offer incense.

¹⁰Now at the time of the incense offering, the whole assembly of the people was praying outside.

¹¹Then there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.

¹²When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified; and fear overwhelmed him.

¹³But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John.

¹⁴You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,

¹⁵for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must never drink wine or strong drink; even before his birth he will be filled with the Holy Spirit.

¹⁶He will turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God.

¹⁷With the spirit and power of Elijah he will go before him, to turn the hearts of parents to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

¹⁸Zechariah said to the angel, “How will I know that this is so? For I am an old man, and my wife is getting on in years.”

¹⁹The angel replied, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.

²⁰But now, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time, you will become mute, unable to speak, until the day these things occur.”

²¹Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah, and wondered at his delay in the sanctuary.

²²When he did come out, he could not speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He kept motioning to them and remained unable to speak.

²³When his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

²⁴After those days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she remained in seclusion. She said,

²⁵“This is what the Lord has done for me when he looked favorably on me and took away the disgrace I have endured among my people.”

²⁶In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,

²⁷to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.

²⁸And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”

²⁹But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.

³⁰The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.

³¹And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus.

³²He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David.

³³He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

³⁴Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”

³⁵The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God.

³⁶And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren.

³⁷For nothing will be impossible with God.”

³⁸Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

³⁹In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country,

⁴⁰where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.

⁴¹When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit

⁴²and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.

⁴³And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me?

⁴⁴For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy.

⁴⁵And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”

⁴⁶And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord,

⁴⁷and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

⁴⁸for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

⁴⁹for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.

⁵⁰His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.

⁵¹He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.

⁵²He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly;

⁵³he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.

⁵⁴He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy,

⁵⁵according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”

⁵⁶And Mary remained with her about three months and then returned to her home.

⁵⁷Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son.

⁵⁸Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.

⁵⁹On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father.

⁶⁰But his mother said, “No; he is to be called John.”

⁶¹They said to her, “None of your relatives has this name.”

⁶²Then they began motioning to his father to find out what name he wanted to give him.

⁶³He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And all of them were amazed.

⁶⁴Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began to speak, praising God.

⁶⁵Fear came over all their neighbors, and all these things were talked about throughout the entire hill country of Judea.

⁶⁶All who heard them pondered them and said, “What then will this child become?” For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him.

⁶⁷Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:

⁶⁸“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them.

⁶⁹He has raised up a mighty savior for us in the house of his servant David,

⁷⁰as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,

⁷¹that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.

⁷²Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and has remembered his holy covenant,

⁷³the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham, to grant us

⁷⁴that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies, might serve him without fear,

⁷⁵in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

⁷⁶And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,

⁷⁷to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins.

⁷⁸By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us,

⁷⁹to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

⁸⁰The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel.

¹In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered.

²This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria.

³All went to their own towns to be registered.

⁴Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David.

⁵He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child.

⁶While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child.

⁷And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

⁸In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.

⁹Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

¹⁰But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see — I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people:

¹¹to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.

¹²This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.”

¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,

¹⁴“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!”

¹⁵When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.”

¹⁶So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.

¹⁷When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child;

¹⁸and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them.

¹⁹But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.

²⁰The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

²¹After eight days had passed, it was time to circumcise the child; and he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

²²When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord

²³(as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord”),

²⁴and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”

²⁵Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him.

²⁶It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah.

²⁷Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law,

²⁸Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying,

²⁹“Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word;

³⁰for my eyes have seen your salvation,

³¹which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,

³²a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.”

³³And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him.

³⁴Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed

³⁵so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed — and a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

³⁶There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage,

³⁷then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day.

³⁸At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.

³⁹When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.

⁴⁰The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.

⁴¹Now every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover.

⁴²And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival.

⁴³When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it.

⁴⁴Assuming that he was in the group of travelers, they went a day’s journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends.

⁴⁵When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him.

⁴⁶After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.

⁴⁷And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.

⁴⁸When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, “Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.”

⁴⁹He said to them, “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”

⁵⁰But they did not understand what he said to them.

⁵¹Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart.

⁵²And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.

¹In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene,

²during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness.

³He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins,

⁴as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

⁵Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth;

⁶and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”

⁷John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

⁸Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham.

⁹Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰And the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?”

¹¹In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.”

¹²Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?”

¹³He said to them, “Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.”

¹⁴Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what should we do?” He said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.”

¹⁵As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah,

¹⁶John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

¹⁷His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

¹⁸So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.

¹⁹But Herod the ruler, who had been rebuked by him because of Herodias, his brother’s wife, and because of all the evil things that Herod had done,

²⁰added to them all by shutting up John in prison.

²¹Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened,

²²and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

²³Jesus was about thirty years old when he began his work. He was the son (as was thought) of Joseph son of Heli,

²⁴son of Matthat, son of Levi, son of Melchi, son of Jannai, son of Joseph,

²⁵son of Mattathias, son of Amos, son of Nahum, son of Esli, son of Naggai,

²⁶son of Maath, son of Mattathias, son of Semein, son of Josech, son of Joda,

²⁷son of Joanan, son of Rhesa, son of Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, son of Neri,

²⁸son of Melchi, son of Addi, son of Cosam, son of Elmadam, son of Er,

²⁹son of Joshua, son of Eliezer, son of Jorim, son of Matthat, son of Levi,

³⁰son of Simeon, son of Judah, son of Joseph, son of Jonam, son of Eliakim,

³¹son of Melea, son of Menna, son of Mattatha, son of Nathan, son of David,

³²son of Jesse, son of Obed, son of Boaz, son of Sala, son of Nahshon,

³³son of Amminadab, son of Admin, son of Arni, son of Hezron, son of Perez, son of Judah,

³⁴son of Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham, son of Terah, son of Nahor,

³⁵son of Serug, son of Reu, son of Peleg, son of Eber, son of Shelah,

³⁶son of Cainan, son of Arphaxad, son of Shem, son of Noah, son of Lamech,

³⁷son of Methuselah, son of Enoch, son of Jared, son of Mahalaleel, son of Cainan,

³⁸son of Enos, son of Seth, son of Adam, son of God.

¹Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness,

²where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished.

³The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.”

⁴Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’”

⁵Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.

⁶And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please.

⁷If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.”

⁸Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”

⁹Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here,

¹⁰for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,’

¹¹and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”

¹²Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

¹³When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

¹⁴Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country.

¹⁵He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.

¹⁶When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read,

¹⁷and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:

¹⁸“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free,

¹⁹to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

²⁰And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.

²¹Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

²²All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?”

²³He said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Doctor, cure yourself!’ And you will say, ‘Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.’”

²⁴And he said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown.

²⁵But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land;

²⁶yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon.

²⁷There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”

²⁸When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage.

²⁹They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff.

³⁰But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.

³¹He went down to Capernaum, a city in Galilee, and was teaching them on the sabbath.

³²They were astounded at his teaching, because he spoke with authority.

³³In the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice,

³⁴“Let us alone! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.”

³⁵But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” When the demon had thrown him down before them, he came out of him without having done him any harm.

³⁶They were all amazed and kept saying to one another, “What kind of utterance is this? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and out they come!”

³⁷And a report about him began to reach every place in the region.

³⁸After leaving the synagogue he entered Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked him about her.

³⁹Then he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. Immediately she got up and began to serve them.

⁴⁰As the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various kinds of diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on each of them and cured them.

⁴¹Demons also came out of many, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Messiah.

⁴²At daybreak he departed and went into a deserted place. And the crowds were looking for him; and when they reached him, they wanted to prevent him from leaving them.

⁴³But he said to them, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose.”

⁴⁴So he continued proclaiming the message in the synagogues of Judea.

¹Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God,

²he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets.

³He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.

⁴When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”

⁵Simon answered, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.”

⁶When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break.

⁷So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink.

⁸But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!”

⁹For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken;

¹⁰and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.”

¹¹When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.

¹²Once, when he was in one of the cities, there was a man covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he bowed with his face to the ground and begged him, “Lord, if you choose, you can make me clean.”

¹³Then Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him, and said, “I do choose. Be made clean.” Immediately the leprosy left him.

¹⁴And he ordered him to tell no one. “Go,” he said, “and show yourself to the priest, and, as Moses commanded, make an offering for your cleansing, for a testimony to them.”

¹⁵But now more than ever the word about Jesus spread abroad; many crowds would gather to hear him and to be cured of their diseases.

¹⁶But he would withdraw to deserted places and pray.

¹⁷One day, while he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting near by (they had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem); and the power of the Lord was with him to heal.

¹⁸Just then some men came, carrying a paralyzed man on a bed. They were trying to bring him in and lay him before Jesus;

¹⁹but finding no way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the middle of the crowd in front of Jesus.

²⁰When he saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven you.”

²¹Then the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, “Who is this who is speaking blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

²²When Jesus perceived their questionings, he answered them, “Why do you raise such questions in your hearts?

²³Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Stand up and walk’?

²⁴But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” — he said to the one who was paralyzed — “I say to you, stand up and take your bed and go to your home.”

²⁵Immediately he stood up before them, took what he had been lying on, and went to his home, glorifying God.

²⁶Amazement seized all of them, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen strange things today.”

²⁷After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, “Follow me.”

²⁸And he got up, left everything, and followed him.

²⁹Then Levi gave a great banquet for him in his house; and there was a large crowd of tax collectors and others sitting at the table with them.

³⁰The Pharisees and their scribes were complaining to his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”

³¹Jesus answered, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick;

³²I have come to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

³³Then they said to him, “John’s disciples, like the disciples of the Pharisees, frequently fast and pray, but your disciples eat and drink.”

³⁴Jesus said to them, “You cannot make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them, can you?

³⁵The days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.”

³⁶He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and sews it on an old garment; otherwise the new will be torn, and the piece from the new will not match the old.

³⁷And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed.

³⁸But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins.

³⁹And no one after drinking old wine desires new wine, but says, ‘The old is good.’”

¹One sabbath while Jesus was going through the grainfields, his disciples plucked some heads of grain, rubbed them in their hands, and ate them.

²But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?”

³Jesus answered, “Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry?

⁴He entered the house of God and took and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and gave some to his companions?”

⁵Then he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.”

⁶On another sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught, and there was a man there whose right hand was withered.

⁷The scribes and the Pharisees watched him to see whether he would cure on the sabbath, so that they might find an accusation against him.

⁸Even though he knew what they were thinking, he said to the man who had the withered hand, “Come and stand here.” He got up and stood there.

⁹Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the sabbath, to save life or to destroy it?”

¹⁰After looking around at all of them, he said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so, and his hand was restored.

¹¹But they were filled with fury and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.

¹²Now during those days he went out to the mountain to pray; and he spent the night in prayer to God.

¹³And when day came, he called his disciples and chose twelve of them, whom he also named apostles:

¹⁴Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, and James, and John, and Philip, and Bartholomew,

¹⁵and Matthew, and Thomas, and James son of Alphaeus, and Simon, who was called the Zealot,

¹⁶and Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

¹⁷He came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon.

¹⁸They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured.

¹⁹And all in the crowd were trying to touch him, for power came out from him and healed all of them.

²⁰Then he looked up at his disciples and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.

²¹“Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. “Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.

²²“Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man.

²³Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.

²⁴“But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.

²⁵“Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. “Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep.

²⁶“Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.

²⁷“But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,

²⁸bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.

²⁹If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt.

³⁰Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again.

³¹Do to others as you would have them do to you.

³²“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.

³³If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.

³⁴If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again.

³⁵But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.

³⁶Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

³⁷“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven;

³⁸give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.”

³⁹He also told them a parable: “Can a blind person guide a blind person? Will not both fall into a pit?

⁴⁰A disciple is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully qualified will be like the teacher.

⁴¹Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye?

⁴²Or how can you say to your neighbor, ‘Friend, let me take out the speck in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.

⁴³“No good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit;

⁴⁴for each tree is known by its own fruit. Figs are not gathered from thorns, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush.

⁴⁵The good person out of the good treasure of the heart produces good, and the evil person out of evil treasure produces evil; for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks.

⁴⁶“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I tell you?

⁴⁷I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them.

⁴⁸That one is like a man building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when a flood arose, the river burst against that house but could not shake it, because it had been well built.

⁴⁹But the one who hears and does not act is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against it, immediately it fell, and great was the ruin of that house.”

¹After Jesus had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum.

²A centurion there had a slave whom he valued highly, and who was ill and close to death.

³When he heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to him, asking him to come and heal his slave.

⁴When they came to Jesus, they appealed to him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy of having you do this for him,

⁵for he loves our people, and it is he who built our synagogue for us.”

⁶And Jesus went with them, but when he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to say to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof;

⁷therefore I did not presume to come to you. But only speak the word, and let my servant be healed.

⁸For I also am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and the slave does it.”

⁹When Jesus heard this he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, he said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”

¹⁰When those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.

¹¹Soon afterwards he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him.

¹²As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother’s only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd from the town.

¹³When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, “Do not weep.”

¹⁴Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, rise!”

¹⁵The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.

¹⁶Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has risen among us!” and “God has looked favorably on his people!”

¹⁷This word about him spread throughout Judea and all the surrounding country.

¹⁸The disciples of John reported all these things to him. So John summoned two of his disciples

¹⁹and sent them to the Lord to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?”

²⁰When the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?’”

²¹Jesus had just then cured many people of diseases, plagues, and evil spirits, and had given sight to many who were blind.

²²And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news brought to them.

²³And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”

²⁴When John’s messengers had gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind?

²⁵What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who put on fine clothing and live in luxury are in royal palaces.

²⁶What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.

²⁷This is the one about whom it is written, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’

²⁸I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater than John; yet the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”

²⁹(And all the people who heard this, including the tax collectors, acknowledged the justice of God, because they had been baptized with John’s baptism.

³⁰But by refusing to be baptized by him, the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God’s purpose for themselves.)

³¹“To what then will I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like?

³²They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.’

³³For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon’;

³⁴the Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’

³⁵Nevertheless, wisdom is vindicated by all her children.”

³⁶One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table.

³⁷And a woman in the city, who was a sinner, having learned that he was eating in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment.

³⁸She stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to bathe his feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair. Then she continued kissing his feet and anointing them with the ointment.

³⁹Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him — that she is a sinner.”

⁴⁰Jesus spoke up and said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” “Teacher,” he replied, “speak.”

⁴¹“A certain creditor had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.

⁴²When they could not pay, he canceled the debts for both of them. Now which of them will love him more?”

⁴³Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the greater debt.” And Jesus said to him, “You have judged rightly.”

⁴⁴Then turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has bathed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair.

⁴⁵You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not stopped kissing my feet.

⁴⁶You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.

⁴⁷Therefore, I tell you, her sins, which were many, have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.”

⁴⁸Then he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

⁴⁹But those who were at the table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

⁵⁰And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

¹Soon afterwards he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him,

²as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,

³and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their resources.

⁴When a great crowd gathered and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable:

⁵“A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up.

⁶Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture.

⁷Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it.

⁸Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold.” As he said this, he called out, “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!”

⁹Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant.

¹⁰He said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to others I speak in parables, so that ‘looking they may not perceive, and listening they may not understand.’

¹¹“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.

¹²The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.

¹³The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe only for a while and in a time of testing fall away.

¹⁴As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear; but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.

¹⁵But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance.

¹⁶“No one after lighting a lamp hides it under a jar, or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light.

¹⁷For nothing is hidden that will not be disclosed, nor is anything secret that will not become known and come to light.

¹⁸Then pay attention to how you listen; for to those who have, more will be given; and from those who do not have, even what they seem to have will be taken away.”

¹⁹Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd.

²⁰And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.”

²¹But he said to them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”

²²One day he got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side of the lake.” So they put out,

²³and while they were sailing he fell asleep. A windstorm swept down on the lake, and the boat was filling with water, and they were in danger.

²⁴They went to him and woke him up, shouting, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And he woke up and rebuked the wind and the raging waves; they ceased, and there was a calm.

²⁵He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were afraid and amazed, and said to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?”

²⁶Then they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee.

²⁷As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs.

²⁸When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me” —

²⁹for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.)

³⁰Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” He said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him.

³¹They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss.

³²Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission.

³³Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

³⁴When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country.

³⁵Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.

³⁶Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed.

³⁷Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned.

³⁸The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying,

³⁹“Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him.

⁴⁰Now when Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed him, for they were all waiting for him.

⁴¹Just then there came a man named Jairus, a leader of the synagogue. He fell at Jesus’ feet and begged him to come to his house,

⁴²for he had an only daughter, about twelve years old, who was dying. As he went, the crowds pressed in on him.

⁴³Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years; and though she had spent all she had on physicians, no one could cure her.

⁴⁴She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his clothes, and immediately her hemorrhage stopped.

⁴⁵Then Jesus asked, “Who touched me?” When all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the crowds surround you and press in on you.”

⁴⁶But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; for I noticed that power had gone out from me.”

⁴⁷When the woman saw that she could not remain hidden, she came trembling; and falling down before him, she declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed.

⁴⁸He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.”

⁴⁹While he was still speaking, someone came from the leader’s house to say, “Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the teacher any longer.”

⁵⁰When Jesus heard this, he replied, “Do not fear. Only believe, and she will be saved.”

⁵¹When he came to the house, he did not allow anyone to enter with him, except Peter, John, and James, and the child’s father and mother.

⁵²They were all weeping and wailing for her; but he said, “Do not weep; for she is not dead but sleeping.”

⁵³And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead.

⁵⁴But he took her by the hand and called out, “Child, get up!”

⁵⁵Her spirit returned, and she got up at once. Then he directed them to give her something to eat.

⁵⁶Her parents were astounded; but he ordered them to tell no one what had happened.