Matthew:1-21.
Seeker Overlay ON
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The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ ,
the son of David ,
the son of Abraham .
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Abraham was the father of Isaac ,
and Isaac the father of Jacob ,
and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers ,
*
and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar ,
and Perez the father of Hezron ,
and Hezron the father of Ram ,
*
and Ram the father of Ammin '
adab ,
and Ammin '
adab the father of Nahshon ,
and Nahshon the father of Salmon ,
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and Salmon the father of Bo '
az by Rahab ,
and Bo '
az the father of Obed by Ruth ,
and Obed the father of Jesse ,
*
and Jesse the father of David the king .
And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uri '
ah ,
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and Solomon the father of Rehobo '
am ,
and Rehobo '
am the father of Abi '
jah ,
and Abi '
jah the father of Asa ,
*
and Asa the father of Jehosh '
aphat ,
and Jehosh '
aphat the father of Joram ,
and Joram the father of Uzzi '
ah ,
*
and Uzzi '
ah the father of Jotham ,
and Jotham the father of Ahaz ,
and Ahaz the father of Hezeki '
ah ,
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and Hezeki '
ah the father of Manas '
seh ,
and Manas '
seh the father of Amos ,
and Amos the father of Josi '
ah ,
*
and Josi '
ah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers ,
at the time of the deportation to Babylon .
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And after the deportation to Babylon :
Jechoni '
ah was the father of She-al '
ti-el ,
and She-al '
ti-el the father of Zerub '
babel ,
*
and Zerub '
babel the father of Abi '
ud ,
and Abi '
ud the father of Eli '
akim ,
and Eli '
akim the father of Azor ,
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and Azor the father of Zadok ,
and Zadok the father of Achim ,
and Achim the father of Eli '
ud ,
*
and Eli '
ud the father of Elea '
zar ,
and Elea '
zar the father of Matthan ,
and Matthan the father of Jacob ,
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and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary ,
of whom Jesus was born ,
who is called Christ .
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So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations ,
and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations ,
and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations .
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Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way .
When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph ,
before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit ;
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and her husband Joseph ,
being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame ,
resolved to divorce her quietly .
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But as he considered this ,
behold ,
an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream ,
saying , "
Joseph ,
son of David ,
do not fear to take Mary your wife ,
for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit ;
*
she will bear a son ,
and you shall call his name Jesus ,
for he will save his people from their sins ."
*
All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet :
* "
Behold ,
a virgin shall conceive and bear a son ,
and his name shall be called Emmanuel " (
which means ,
God with us ).
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When Joseph woke from sleep ,
he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him ;
he took his wife ,
*
but knew her not until she had borne a son ;
and he called his name Jesus .
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Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king ,
behold ,
wise men from the East came to Jerusalem ,
saying ,
* "
Where is he who has been born king of the Jews ?
For we have seen his star in the East ,
and have come to worship him ."
*
When Herod the king heard this ,
he was troubled ,
and all Jerusalem with him ;
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and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people ,
he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born .
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They told him , "
In Bethlehem of Judea ;
for so it is written by the prophet :
* `
And you ,
O Bethlehem ,
in the land of Judah ,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah ;
for from you shall come a ruler who will govern my people Israel .'"
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Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star appeared ;
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and he sent them to Bethlehem ,
saying , "
Go and search diligently for the child ,
and when you have found him bring me word ,
that I too may come and worship him ."
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When they had heard the king they went their way ;
and lo ,
the star which they had seen in the East went before them ,
till it came to rest over the place where the child was .
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When they saw the star ,
they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy ;
*
and going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother ,
and they fell down and worshiped him .
Then ,
opening their treasures ,
they offered him gifts ,
gold and frankincense and myrrh .
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And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod ,
they departed to their own country by another way .
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Now when they had departed ,
behold ,
an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said , "
Rise ,
take the child and his mother ,
and flee to Egypt ,
and remain there till I tell you ;
for Herod is about to search for the child ,
to destroy him ."
*
And he rose and took the child and his mother by night ,
and departed to Egypt ,
*
and remained there until the death of Herod .
This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet , "
Out of Egypt have I called my son ."
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Then Herod ,
when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men ,
was in a furious rage ,
and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under ,
according to the time which he had ascertained from the wise men .
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Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah :
* "
A voice was heard in Ramah ,
wailing and loud lamentation ,
Rachel weeping for her children ;
she refused to be consoled ,
because they were no more ."
*
But when Herod died ,
behold ,
an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt ,
saying ,
* "
Rise ,
take the child and his mother ,
and go to the land of Israel ,
for those who sought the child '
s life are dead ."
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And he rose and took the child and his mother ,
and went to the land of Israel .
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But when he heard that Archelaus reigned over Judea in place of his father Herod ,
he was afraid to go there ,
and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee .
*
And he went and dwelt in a city called Nazareth ,
that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled , "
He shall be called a Nazarene ."
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In those days came John the Baptist ,
preaching in the wilderness of Judea ,
* "
Repent ,
for the kingdom of heaven is at hand ."
*
For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said , "
The voice of one crying in the wilderness :
Prepare the way of the Lord ,
make his paths straight ."
*
Now John wore a garment of camel '
s hair ,
and a leather girdle around his waist ;
and his food was locusts and wild honey .
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Then went out to him Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan ,
*
and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan ,
confessing their sins .
*
But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sad '
ducees coming for baptism ,
he said to them , "
You brood of vipers !
Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come ?
*
Bear fruit that befits repentance ,
*
and do not presume to say to yourselves , `
We have Abraham as our father ';
for I tell you ,
God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham .
*
Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees ;
every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire .
* "
I baptize you with water for repentance ,
but he who is coming after me is mightier than I ,
whose sandals I am not worthy to carry ;
he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire .
*
His winnowing fork is in his hand ,
and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the granary ,
but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire ."
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Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John ,
to be baptized by him .
*
John would have prevented him ,
saying , "
I need to be baptized by you ,
and do you come to me ?"
*
But Jesus answered him , "
Let it be so now ;
for thus it is fitting for us to fulfil all righteousness ."
Then he consented .
*
And when Jesus was baptized ,
he went up immediately from the water ,
and behold ,
the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove ,
and alighting on him ;
*
and lo ,
a voice from heaven ,
saying , "
This is my beloved Son ,
with whom I am well pleased ."
*
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil .
*
And he fasted forty days and forty nights ,
and afterward he was hungry .
*
And the tempter came and said to him , "
If you are the Son of God ,
command these stones to become loaves of bread ."
*
But he answered , "
It is written , `
Man shall not live by bread alone ,
but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God .'"
*
Then the devil took him to the holy city ,
and set him on the pinnacle of the temple ,
*
and said to him , "
If you are the Son of God ,
throw yourself down ;
for it is written , `
He will give his angels charge of you ,'
and `
On their hands they will bear you up ,
lest you strike your foot against a stone .'"
*
Jesus said to him , "
Again it is written , `
You shall not tempt the Lord your God .'"
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Again ,
the devil took him to a very high mountain ,
and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them ;
*
and he said to him , "
All these I will give you ,
if you will fall down and worship me ."
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Then Jesus said to him , "
Begone ,
Satan !
for it is written , `
You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve .'"
*
Then the devil left him ,
and behold ,
angels came and ministered to him .
*
Now when he heard that John had been arrested ,
he withdrew into Galilee ;
*
and leaving Nazareth he went and dwelt in Caper '
na-um by the sea ,
in the territory of Zeb '
ulun and Naph '
tali ,
*
that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled :
* "
The land of Zeb '
ulun and the land of Naph '
tali ,
toward the sea ,
across the Jordan ,
Galilee of the Gentiles --
*
the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light ,
and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned ."
*
From that time Jesus began to preach ,
saying , "
Repent ,
for the kingdom of heaven is at hand ."
*
As he walked by the Sea of Galilee ,
he saw two brothers ,
Simon who is called Peter and Andrew his brother ,
casting a net into the sea ;
for they were fishermen .
*
And he said to them , "
Follow me ,
and I will make you fishers of men ."
*
Immediately they left their nets and followed him .
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And going on from there he saw two other brothers ,
James the son of Zeb '
edee and John his brother ,
in the boat with Zeb '
edee their father ,
mending their nets ,
and he called them .
*
Immediately they left the boat and their father ,
and followed him .
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And he went about all Galilee ,
teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every infirmity among the people .
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So his fame spread throughout all Syria ,
and they brought him all the sick ,
those afflicted with various diseases and pains ,
demoniacs ,
epileptics ,
and paralytics ,
and he healed them .
*
And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decap '
olis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan .
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Seeing the crowds ,
he went up on the mountain ,
and when he sat down his disciples came to him .
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And he opened his mouth and taught them ,
saying :
* "
Blessed are the poor in spirit ,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven .
* "
Blessed are those who mourn ,
for they shall be comforted .
* "
Blessed are the meek ,
for they shall inherit the earth .
* "
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness ,
for they shall be satisfied .
* "
Blessed are the merciful ,
for they shall obtain mercy .
* "
Blessed are the pure in heart ,
for they shall see God .
* "
Blessed are the peacemakers ,
for they shall be called sons of God .
* "
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness '
sake ,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven .
* "
Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account .
*
Rejoice and be glad ,
for your reward is great in heaven ,
for so men persecuted the prophets who were before you .
* "
You are the salt of the earth ;
but if salt has lost its taste ,
how shall its saltness be restored ?
It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trodden under foot by men .
* "
You are the light of the world .
A city set on a hill cannot be hid .
*
Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel ,
but on a stand ,
and it gives light to all in the house .
*
Let your light so shine before men ,
that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven .
* "
Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets ;
I have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them .
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For truly ,
I say to you ,
till heaven and earth pass away ,
not an iota ,
not a dot ,
will pass from the law until all is accomplished .
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Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so ,
shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven ;
but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven .
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For I tell you ,
unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees ,
you will never enter the kingdom of heaven .
* "
You have heard that it was said to the men of old , `
You shall not kill ;
and whoever kills shall be liable to judgment .'
*
But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment ;
whoever insults his brother shall be liable to the council ,
and whoever says , `
You fool !'
shall be liable to the hell of fire .
*
So if you are offering your gift at the altar ,
and there remember that your brother has something against you ,
*
leave your gift there before the altar and go ;
first be reconciled to your brother ,
and then come and offer your gift .
*
Make friends quickly with your accuser ,
while you are going with him to court ,
lest your accuser hand you over to the judge ,
and the judge to the guard ,
and you be put in prison ;
*
truly ,
I say to you ,
you will never get out till you have paid the last penny .
* "
You have heard that it was said , `
You shall not commit adultery .'
*
But I say to you that every one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart .
*
If your right eye causes you to sin ,
pluck it out and throw it away ;
it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell .
*
And if your right hand causes you to sin ,
cut it off and throw it away ;
it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell .
* "
It was also said , `
Whoever divorces his wife ,
let him give her a certificate of divorce .'
*
But I say to you that every one who divorces his wife ,
except on the ground of unchastity ,
makes her an adulteress ;
and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery .
* "
Again you have heard that it was said to the men of old , `
You shall not swear falsely ,
but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn .'
*
But I say to you ,
Do not swear at all ,
either by heaven ,
for it is the throne of God ,
*
or by the earth ,
for it is his footstool ,
or by Jerusalem ,
for it is the city of the great King .
*
And do not swear by your head ,
for you cannot make one hair white or black .
*
Let what you say be simply `
Yes '
or `
No ';
anything more than this comes from evil .
* "
You have heard that it was said , `
An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth .'
*
But I say to you ,
Do not resist one who is evil .
But if any one strikes you on the right cheek ,
turn to him the other also ;
*
and if any one would sue you and take your coat ,
let him have your cloak as well ;
*
and if any one forces you to go one mile ,
go with him two miles .
*
Give to him who begs from you ,
and do not refuse him who would borrow from you .
* "
You have heard that it was said , `
You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy .'
*
But I say to you ,
Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you ,
*
so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven ;
for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good ,
and sends rain on the just and on the unjust .
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For if you love those who love you ,
what reward have you ?
Do not even the tax collectors do the same ?
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And if you salute only your brethren ,
what more are you doing than others ?
Do not even the Gentiles do the same ?
*
You ,
therefore ,
must be perfect ,
as your heavenly Father is perfect .
* "
Beware of practicing your piety before men in order to be seen by them ;
for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven .
* "
Thus ,
when you give alms ,
sound no trumpet before you ,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets ,
that they may be praised by men .
Truly ,
I say to you ,
they have received their reward .
*
But when you give alms ,
do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing ,
*
so that your alms may be in secret ;
and your Father who sees in secret will reward you .
* "
And when you pray ,
you must not be like the hypocrites ;
for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners ,
that they may be seen by men .
Truly ,
I say to you ,
they have received their reward .
*
But when you pray ,
go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret ;
and your Father who sees in secret will reward you .
* "
And in praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do ;
for they think that they will be heard for their many words .
*
Do not be like them ,
for your Father knows what you need before you ask him .
*
Pray then like this :
Our Father who art in heaven ,
Hallowed be thy name .
*
Thy kingdom come .
Thy will be done ,
On earth as it is in heaven .
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Give us this day our daily bread ;
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And forgive us our debts ,
As we also have forgiven our debtors ;
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And lead us not into temptation ,
But deliver us from evil .
*
For if you forgive men their trespasses ,
your heavenly Father also will forgive you ;
*
but if you do not forgive men their trespasses ,
neither will your Father forgive your trespasses .
* "
And when you fast ,
do not look dismal ,
like the hypocrites ,
for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by men .
Truly ,
I say to you ,
they have received their reward .
*
But when you fast ,
anoint your head and wash your face ,
*
that your fasting may not be seen by men but by your Father who is in secret ;
and your Father who sees in secret will reward you .
* "
Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth ,
where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal ,
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but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven ,
where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal .
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For where your treasure is ,
there will your heart be also .
* "
The eye is the lamp of the body .
So ,
if your eye is sound ,
your whole body will be full of light ;
*
but if your eye is not sound ,
your whole body will be full of darkness .
If then the light in you is darkness ,
how great is the darkness !
* "
No one can serve two masters ;
for either he will hate the one and love the other ,
or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other .
You cannot serve God and mammon .
* "
Therefore I tell you ,
do not be anxious about your life ,
what you shall eat or what you shall drink ,
nor about your body ,
what you shall put on .
Is not life more than food ,
and the body more than clothing ?
*
Look at the birds of the air :
they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns ,
and yet your heavenly Father feeds them .
Are you not of more value than they ?
*
And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life ?
*
And why are you anxious about clothing ?
Consider the lilies of the field ,
how they grow ;
they neither toil nor spin ;
*
yet I tell you ,
even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these .
*
But if God so clothes the grass of the field ,
which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven ,
will he not much more clothe you ,
O men of little faith ?
*
Therefore do not be anxious ,
saying , `
What shall we eat ?'
or `
What shall we drink ?'
or `
What shall we wear ?'
*
For the Gentiles seek all these things ;
and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all .
*
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness ,
and all these things shall be yours as well .
* "
Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow ,
for tomorrow will be anxious for itself .
Let the day '
s own trouble be sufficient for the day .
* "
Judge not ,
that you be not judged .
*
For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged ,
and the measure you give will be the measure you get .
*
Why do you see the speck that is in your brother '
s eye ,
but do not notice the log that is in your own eye ?
*
Or how can you say to your brother , `
Let me take the speck out of your eye ,'
when there is 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 brother '
s eye .
* "
Do not give dogs what is holy ;
and do not throw your pearls before swine ,
lest they trample them under foot and turn to attack you .
* "
Ask ,
and it will be given you ;
seek ,
and you will find ;
knock ,
and it will be opened to you .
*
For every one who asks receives ,
and he who seeks finds ,
and to him who knocks it will be opened .
*
Or what man of you ,
if his son asks him for bread ,
will give him a stone ?
*
Or if he asks for a fish ,
will give him a serpent ?
*
If you then ,
who are evil ,
know how to give good gifts to your children ,
how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him !
*
So whatever you wish that men would do to you ,
do so to them ;
for this is the law and the prophets .
* "
Enter by the narrow gate ;
for the gate is wide and the way is easy ,
that leads to destruction ,
and those who enter by it are many .
*
For the gate is narrow and the way is hard ,
that leads to life ,
and those who find it are few .
* "
Beware of false prophets ,
who come to you in sheep '
s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves .
*
You will know them by their fruits .
Are grapes gathered from thorns ,
or figs from thistles ?
*
So ,
every sound tree bears good fruit ,
but the bad tree bears evil fruit .
*
A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit ,
nor can a bad tree bear good fruit .
*
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire .
*
Thus you will know them by their fruits .
* "
Not every one who says to me , `
Lord ,
Lord ,'
shall enter the kingdom of heaven ,
but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven .
*
On that day many will say to me , `
Lord ,
Lord ,
did we not prophesy in your name ,
and cast out demons in your name ,
and do many mighty works in your name ?'
*
And then will I declare to them , `
I never knew you ;
depart from me ,
you evildoers .'
* "
Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock ;
*
and the rain fell ,
and the floods came ,
and the winds blew and beat upon that house ,
but it did not fall ,
because it had been founded on the rock .
*
And every one who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand ;
*
and the rain fell ,
and the floods came ,
and the winds blew and beat against that house ,
and it fell ;
and great was the fall of it ."
*
And when Jesus finished these sayings ,
the crowds were astonished at his teaching ,
*
for he taught them as one who had authority ,
and not as their scribes .
*
When he came down from the mountain ,
great crowds followed him ;
*
and behold ,
a leper came to him and knelt before him ,
saying , "
Lord ,
if you will ,
you can make me clean ."
*
And he stretched out his hand and touched him ,
saying , "
I will ;
be clean ."
And immediately his leprosy was cleansed .
*
And Jesus said to him , "
See that you say nothing to any one ;
but go ,
show yourself to the priest ,
and offer the gift that Moses commanded ,
for a proof to the people ."
*
As he entered Caper '
na-um ,
a centurion came forward to him ,
beseeching him
*
and saying , "
Lord ,
my servant is lying paralyzed at home ,
in terrible distress ."
*
And he said to him , "
I will come and heal him ."
*
But the centurion answered him , "
Lord ,
I am not worthy to have you come under my roof ;
but only say the word ,
and my servant will be healed .
*
For I am a man 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 he does it ."
*
When Jesus heard him ,
he marveled ,
and said to those who followed him , "
Truly ,
I say to you ,
not even in Israel have I found such faith .
*
I tell you ,
many will come from east and west and sit at table with Abraham ,
Isaac ,
and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven ,
*
while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness ;
there men will weep and gnash their teeth ."
*
And to the centurion Jesus said , "
Go ;
be it done for you as you have believed ."
And the servant was healed at that very moment .
*
And when Jesus entered Peter '
s house ,
he saw his mother-in-law lying sick with a fever ;
*
he touched her hand ,
and the fever left her ,
and she rose and served him .
*
That evening they brought to him many who were possessed with demons ;
and he cast out the spirits with a word ,
and healed all who were sick .
*
This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah , "
He took our infirmities and bore our diseases ."
*
Now when Jesus saw great crowds around him ,
he gave orders to go over to the other side .
*
And a scribe came up and said to him , "
Teacher ,
I will follow you wherever you go ."
*
And Jesus said to him , "
Foxes have holes ,
and birds of the air have nests ;
but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head ."
*
Another of the disciples said to him , "
Lord ,
let me first go and bury my father ."
*
But Jesus said to him , "
Follow me ,
and leave the dead to bury their own dead ."
*
And when he got into the boat ,
his disciples followed him .
*
And behold ,
there arose a great storm on the sea ,
so that the boat was being swamped by the waves ;
but he was asleep .
*
And they went and woke him ,
saying , "
Save ,
Lord ;
we are perishing ."
*
And he said to them , "
Why are you afraid ,
O men of little faith ?"
Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea ;
and there was a great calm .
*
And the men marveled ,
saying , "
What sort of man is this ,
that even winds and sea obey him ?"
*
And when he came to the other side ,
to the country of the Gadarenes ,
two demoniacs met him ,
coming out of the tombs ,
so fierce that no one could pass that way .
*
And behold ,
they cried out , "
What have you to do with us ,
O Son of God ?
Have you come here to torment us before the time ?"
*
Now a herd of many swine was feeding at some distance from them .
*
And the demons begged him , "
If you cast us out ,
send us away into the herd of swine ."
*
And he said to them , "
Go ."
So they came out and went into the swine ;
and behold ,
the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea ,
and perished in the waters .
*
The herdsmen fled ,
and going into the city they told everything ,
and what had happened to the demoniacs .
*
And behold ,
all the city came out to meet Jesus ;
and when they saw him ,
they begged him to leave their neighborhood .
*
And getting into a boat he crossed over and came to his own city .
*
And behold ,
they brought to him a paralytic ,
lying on his bed ;
and when Jesus saw their faith he said to the paralytic , "
Take heart ,
my son ;
your sins are forgiven ."
*
And behold ,
some of the scribes said to themselves , "
This man is blaspheming ."
*
But Jesus ,
knowing their thoughts ,
said , "
Why do you think evil in your hearts ?
*
For which is easier ,
to say , `
Your sins are forgiven ,'
or to say , `
Rise and walk '?
*
But that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins "--
he then said to the paralytic --"
Rise ,
take up your bed and go home ."
*
And he rose and went home .
*
When the crowds saw it ,
they were afraid ,
and they glorified God ,
who had given such authority to men .
*
As Jesus passed on from there ,
he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax office ;
and he said to him , "
Follow me ."
And he rose and followed him .
*
And as he sat at table in the house ,
behold ,
many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples .
*
And when the Pharisees saw this ,
they said to his disciples , "
Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners ?"
*
But when he heard it ,
he said , "
Those who are well have no need of a physician ,
but those who are sick .
*
Go and learn what this means , `
I desire mercy ,
and not sacrifice .'
For I came not to call the righteous ,
but sinners ."
*
Then the disciples of John came to him ,
saying , "
Why do we and the Pharisees fast ,
but your disciples do not fast ?"
*
And Jesus said to them , "
Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them ?
The days will come ,
when the bridegroom is taken away from them ,
and then they will fast .
*
And no one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment ,
for the patch tears away from the garment ,
and a worse tear is made .
*
Neither is new wine put into old wineskins ;
if it is ,
the skins burst ,
and the wine is spilled ,
and the skins are destroyed ;
but new wine is put into fresh wineskins ,
and so both are preserved ."
*
While he was thus speaking to them ,
behold ,
a ruler came in and knelt before him ,
saying , "
My daughter has just died ;
but come and lay your hand on her ,
and she will live ."
*
And Jesus rose and followed him ,
with his disciples .
*
And behold ,
a woman who had suffered from a hemorrhage for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment ;
*
for she said to herself , "
If I only touch his garment ,
I shall be made well ."
*
Jesus turned ,
and seeing her he said , "
Take heart ,
daughter ;
your faith has made you well ."
And instantly the woman was made well .
*
And when Jesus came to the ruler '
s house ,
and saw the flute players ,
and the crowd making a tumult ,
*
he said , "
Depart ;
for the girl is not dead but sleeping ."
And they laughed at him .
*
But when the crowd had been put outside ,
he went in and took her by the hand ,
and the girl arose .
*
And the report of this went through all that district .
*
And as Jesus passed on from there ,
two blind men followed him ,
crying aloud , "
Have mercy on us ,
Son of David ."
*
When he entered the house ,
the blind men came to him ;
and Jesus said to them , "
Do you believe that I am able to do this ?"
They said to him , "
Yes ,
Lord ."
*
Then he touched their eyes ,
saying , "
According to your faith be it done to you ."
*
And their eyes were opened .
And Jesus sternly charged them , "
See that no one knows it ."
*
But they went away and spread his fame through all that district .
*
As they were going away ,
behold ,
a dumb demoniac was brought to him .
*
And when the demon had been cast out ,
the dumb man spoke ;
and the crowds marveled ,
saying , "
Never was anything like this seen in Israel ."
*
But the Pharisees said , "
He casts out demons by the prince of demons ."
*
And Jesus went about all the cities and villages ,
teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom ,
and healing every disease and every infirmity .
*
When he saw the crowds ,
he had compassion for them ,
because they were harassed and helpless ,
like sheep without a shepherd .
*
Then he said to his disciples , "
The harvest is plentiful ,
but the laborers are few ;
*
pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest ."
*
And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits ,
to cast them out ,
and to heal every disease and every infirmity .
*
The names of the twelve apostles are these :
first ,
Simon ,
who is called Peter ,
and Andrew his brother ;
James the son of Zeb '
edee ,
and John his brother ;
*
Philip and Bartholomew ;
Thomas and Matthew the tax collector ;
James the son of Alphaeus ,
and Thaddaeus ;
*
Simon the Cananaean ,
and Judas Iscariot ,
who betrayed him .
*
These twelve Jesus sent out ,
charging them , "
Go nowhere among the Gentiles ,
and enter no town of the Samaritans ,
*
but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel .
*
And preach as you go ,
saying , `
The kingdom of heaven is at hand .'
*
Heal the sick ,
raise the dead ,
cleanse lepers ,
cast out demons .
You received without paying ,
give without pay .
*
Take no gold ,
nor silver ,
nor copper in your belts ,
*
no bag for your journey ,
nor two tunics ,
nor sandals ,
nor a staff ;
for the laborer deserves his food .
*
And whatever town or village you enter ,
find out who is worthy in it ,
and stay with him until you depart .
*
As you enter the house ,
salute it .
*
And if the house is worthy ,
let your peace come upon it ;
but if it is not worthy ,
let your peace return to you .
*
And if any one will not receive you or listen to your words ,
shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town .
*
Truly ,
I say to you ,
it shall be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomor '
rah than for that town .
* "
Behold ,
I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves ;
so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves .
*
Beware of men ;
for they will deliver you up to councils ,
and flog you in their synagogues ,
*
and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake ,
to bear testimony before them and the Gentiles .
*
When they deliver you up ,
do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say ;
for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour ;
*
for it is not you who speak ,
but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you .
*
Brother will deliver up brother to death ,
and the father his child ,
and children will rise against parents and have them put to death ;
*
and you will be hated by all for my name '
s sake .
But he who endures to the end will be saved .
*
When they persecute you in one town ,
flee to the next ;
for truly ,
I say to you ,
you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel ,
before the Son of man comes .
* "
A disciple is not above his teacher ,
nor a servant above his master ;
*
it is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher ,
and the servant like his master .
If they have called the master of the house Be-el '
zebul ,
how much more will they malign those of his household .
* "
So have no fear of them ;
for nothing is covered that will not be revealed ,
or hidden that will not be known .
*
What I tell you in the dark ,
utter in the light ;
and what you hear whispered ,
proclaim upon the housetops .
*
And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul ;
rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell .
*
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny ?
And not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father '
s will .
*
But even the hairs of your head are all numbered .
*
Fear not ,
therefore ;
you are of more value than many sparrows .
*
So every one who acknowledges me before men ,
I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven ;
*
but whoever denies me before men ,
I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven .
* "
Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth ;
I have not come to bring peace ,
but a sword .
*
For I have come to set a man against his father ,
and a daughter against her mother ,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law ;
*
and a man '
s foes will be those of his own household .
*
He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me ;
and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me ;
*
and he who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me .
*
He who finds his life will lose it ,
and he who loses his life for my sake will find it .
* "
He who receives you receives me ,
and he who receives me receives him who sent me .
*
He who receives a prophet because he is a prophet shall receive a prophet '
s reward ,
and he who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man shall receive a righteous man '
s reward .
*
And whoever gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple ,
truly ,
I say to you ,
he shall not lose his reward ."
*
And when Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples ,
he went on from there to teach and preach in their cities .
*
Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ ,
he sent word by his disciples
*
and said to him , "
Are you he who is to come ,
or shall we look for another ?"
*
And Jesus answered them , "
Go and tell John what you hear and see :
*
the blind receive their sight and the lame walk ,
lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear ,
and the dead are raised up ,
and the poor have good news preached to them .
*
And blessed is he who takes no offense at me ."
*
As they went away ,
Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John : "
What did you go out into the wilderness to behold ?
A reed shaken by the wind ?
*
Why then did you go out ?
To see a man clothed in soft raiment ?
Behold ,
those who wear soft raiment are in kings '
houses .
*
Why then did you go out ?
To see a prophet ?
Yes ,
I tell you ,
and more than a prophet .
*
This is he of whom it is written , `
Behold ,
I send my messenger before thy face ,
who shall prepare thy way before thee .'
*
Truly ,
I say to you ,
among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist ;
yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he .
*
From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence ,
and men of violence take it by force .
*
For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John ;
*
and if you are willing to accept it ,
he is Eli '
jah who is to come .
*
He who has ears to hear ,
let him hear .
* "
But to what shall I compare this generation ?
It is like children sitting in the market places and calling to their playmates ,
* `
We piped to you ,
and you did not dance ;
we wailed ,
and you did not mourn .'
*
For John came neither eating nor drinking ,
and they say , `
He has a demon ';
*
the Son of man came eating and drinking ,
and they say , `
Behold ,
a glutton and a drunkard ,
a friend of tax collectors and sinners !'
Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds ."
*
Then he began to upbraid the cities where most of his mighty works had been done ,
because they did not repent .
* "
Woe to you ,
Chora '
zin !
woe to you ,
Beth-sa '
ida !
for if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon ,
they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes .
*
But I tell you ,
it shall be more tolerable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you .
*
And you ,
Caper '
na-um ,
will you be exalted to heaven ?
You shall be brought down to Hades .
For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom ,
it would have remained until this day .
*
But I tell you that it shall be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you ."
*
At that time Jesus declared , "
I thank thee ,
Father ,
Lord of heaven and earth ,
that thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes ;
*
yea ,
Father ,
for such was thy gracious will .
*
All things have been delivered to me by my Father ;
and no one knows the Son except the Father ,
and no one knows the Father except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him .
*
Come to me ,
all who labor and are heavy laden ,
and I will give you rest .
*
Take my yoke upon you ,
and learn from me ;
for I am gentle and lowly in heart ,
and you will find rest for your souls .
*
For my yoke is easy ,
and my burden is light ."
*
At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the sabbath ;
his disciples were hungry ,
and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat .
*
But when the Pharisees saw it ,
they said to him , "
Look ,
your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the sabbath ."
*
He said to them , "
Have you not read what David did ,
when he was hungry ,
and those who were with him :
*
how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence ,
which it was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him ,
but only for the priests ?
*
Or have you not read in the law how on the sabbath the priests in the temple profane the sabbath ,
and are guiltless ?
*
I tell you ,
something greater than the temple is here .
*
And if you had known what this means , `
I desire mercy ,
and not sacrifice ,'
you would not have condemned the guiltless .
*
For the Son of man is lord of the sabbath ."
*
And he went on from there ,
and entered their synagogue .
*
And behold ,
there was a man with a withered hand .
And they asked him , "
Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath ?"
so that they might accuse him .
*
He said to them , "
What man of you ,
if he has one sheep and it falls into a pit on the sabbath ,
will not lay hold of it and lift it out ?
*
Of how much more value is a man than a sheep !
So it is lawful to do good on the sabbath ."
*
Then he said to the man , "
Stretch out your hand ."
And the man stretched it out ,
and it was restored ,
whole like the other .
*
But the Pharisees went out and took counsel against him ,
how to destroy him .
*
Jesus ,
aware of this ,
withdrew from there .
And many followed him ,
and he healed them all ,
*
and ordered them not to make him known .
*
This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah :
* "
Behold ,
my servant whom I have chosen ,
my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased .
I will put my Spirit upon him ,
and he shall proclaim justice to the Gentiles .
*
He will not wrangle or cry aloud ,
nor will any one hear his voice in the streets ;
*
he will not break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick ,
till he brings justice to victory ;
*
and in his name will the Gentiles hope ."
*
Then a blind and dumb demoniac was brought to him ,
and he healed him ,
so that the dumb man spoke and saw .
*
And all the people were amazed ,
and said , "
Can this be the Son of David ?"
*
But when the Pharisees heard it they said , "
It is only by Be-el '
zebul ,
the prince of demons ,
that this man casts out demons ."
*
Knowing their thoughts ,
he said to them , "
Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste ,
and no city or house divided against itself will stand ;
*
and if Satan casts out Satan ,
he is divided against himself ;
how then will his kingdom stand ?
*
And if I cast out demons by Be-el '
zebul ,
by whom do your sons cast them out ?
Therefore they shall be your judges .
*
But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons ,
then the kingdom of God has come upon you .
*
Or how can one enter a strong man '
s house and plunder his goods ,
unless he first binds the strong man ?
Then indeed he may plunder his house .
*
He who is not with me is against me ,
and he who does not gather with me scatters .
*
Therefore I tell you ,
every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men ,
but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven .
*
And whoever says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven ;
but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven ,
either in this age or in the age to come .
* "
Either make the tree good ,
and its fruit good ;
or make the tree bad ,
and its fruit bad ;
for the tree is known by its fruit .
*
You brood of vipers !
how can you speak good ,
when you are evil ?
For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks .
*
The good man out of his good treasure brings forth good ,
and the evil man out of his evil treasure brings forth evil .
*
I tell you ,
on the day of judgment men will render account for every careless word they utter ;
*
for by your words you will be justified ,
and by your words you will be condemned ."
*
Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him , "
Teacher ,
we wish to see a sign from you ."
*
But he answered them , "
An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign ;
but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah .
*
For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale ,
so will the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth .
*
The men of Nin '
eveh will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it ;
for they repented at the preaching of Jonah ,
and behold ,
something greater than Jonah is here .
*
The queen of the South will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it ;
for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon ,
and behold ,
something greater than Solomon is here .
* "
When the unclean spirit has gone out of a man ,
he passes through waterless places seeking rest ,
but he finds none .
*
Then he says , `
I will return to my house from which I came .'
And when he comes he finds it empty ,
swept ,
and put in order .
*
Then he goes and brings with him seven other spirits more evil than himself ,
and they enter and dwell there ;
and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first .
So shall it be also with this evil generation ."
*
While he was still speaking to the people ,
behold ,
his mother and his brothers stood outside ,
asking to speak to him .
*
But he replied to the man who told him , "
Who is my mother ,
and who are my brothers ?"
*
And stretching out his hand toward his disciples ,
he said , "
Here are my mother and my brothers !
*
For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother ,
and sister ,
and mother ."
*
That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea .
*
And great crowds gathered about him ,
so that he got into a boat and sat there ;
and the whole crowd stood on the beach .
*
And he told them many things in parables ,
saying : "
A sower went out to sow .
*
And as he sowed ,
some seeds fell along the path ,
and the birds came and devoured them .
*
Other seeds fell on rocky ground ,
where they had not much soil ,
and immediately they sprang up ,
since they had no depth of soil ,
*
but when the sun rose they were scorched ;
and since they had no root they withered away .
*
Other seeds fell upon thorns ,
and the thorns grew up and choked them .
*
Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain ,
some a hundredfold ,
some sixty ,
some thirty .
*
He who has ears ,
let him hear ."
*
Then the disciples came and said to him , "
Why do you speak to them in parables ?"
*
And he answered them , "
To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven ,
but to them it has not been given .
*
For to him who has will more be given ,
and he will have abundance ;
but from him who has not ,
even what he has will be taken away .
*
This is why I speak to them in parables ,
because seeing they do not see ,
and hearing they do not hear ,
nor do they understand .
*
With them indeed is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah which says : `
You shall indeed hear but never understand ,
and you shall indeed see but never perceive .
*
For this people '
s heart has grown dull ,
and their ears are heavy of hearing ,
and their eyes they have closed ,
lest they should perceive with their eyes ,
and hear with their ears ,
and understand with their heart ,
and turn for me to heal them .'
*
But blessed are your eyes ,
for they see ,
and your ears ,
for they hear .
*
Truly ,
I say to you ,
many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see ,
and did not see it ,
and to hear what you hear ,
and did not hear it .
* "
Hear then the parable of the sower .
*
When any one hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it ,
the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in his heart ;
this is what was sown along the path .
*
As for what was sown on rocky ground ,
this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy ;
*
yet he has no root in himself ,
but endures for a while ,
and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word ,
immediately he falls away .
*
As for what was sown among thorns ,
this is he who hears the word ,
but the cares of the world and the delight in riches choke the word ,
and it proves unfruitful .
*
As for what was sown on good soil ,
this is he who hears the word and understands it ;
he indeed bears fruit ,
and yields ,
in one case a hundredfold ,
in another sixty ,
and in another thirty ."
*
Another parable he put before them ,
saying , "
The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field ;
*
but while men were sleeping ,
his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat ,
and went away .
*
So when the plants came up and bore grain ,
then the weeds appeared also .
*
And the servants of the householder came and said to him , `
Sir ,
did you not sow good seed in your field ?
How then has it weeds ?'
*
He said to them , `
An enemy has done this .'
The servants said to him , `
Then do you want us to go and gather them ?'
*
But he said , `
No ;
lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them .
*
Let both grow together until the harvest ;
and at harvest time I will tell the reapers ,
Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned ,
but gather the wheat into my barn .'"
*
Another parable he put before them ,
saying , "
The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field ;
*
it is the smallest of all seeds ,
but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree ,
so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches ."
*
He told them another parable . "
The kingdom of heaven is like leaven which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour ,
till it was all leavened ."
*
All this Jesus said to the crowds in parables ;
indeed he said nothing to them without a parable .
*
This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet : "
I will open my mouth in parables ,
I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world ."
*
Then he left the crowds and went into the house .
And his disciples came to him ,
saying , "
Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field ."
*
He answered , "
He who sows the good seed is the Son of man ;
*
the field is the world ,
and the good seed means the sons of the kingdom ;
the weeds are the sons of the evil one ,
*
and the enemy who sowed them is the devil ;
the harvest is the close of the age ,
and the reapers are angels .
*
Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire ,
so will it be at the close of the age .
*
The Son of man will send his angels ,
and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers ,
*
and throw them into the furnace of fire ;
there men will weep and gnash their teeth .
*
Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father .
He who has ears ,
let him hear .
* "
The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field ,
which a man found and covered up ;
then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field .
* "
Again ,
the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls ,
*
who ,
on finding one pearl of great value ,
went and sold all that he had and bought it .
* "
Again ,
the kingdom of heaven is like a net which was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind ;
*
when it was full ,
men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into vessels but threw away the bad .
*
So it will be at the close of the age .
The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous ,
*
and throw them into the furnace of fire ;
there men will weep and gnash their teeth .
* "
Have you understood all this ?"
They said to him , "
Yes ."
*
And he said to them , "
Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old ."
*
And when Jesus had finished these parables ,
he went away from there ,
*
and coming to his own country he taught them in their synagogue ,
so that they were astonished ,
and said , "
Where did this man get this wisdom and these mighty works ?
*
Is not this the carpenter '
s son ?
Is not his mother called Mary ?
And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas ?
*
And are not all his sisters with us ?
Where then did this man get all this ?"
*
And they took offense at him .
But Jesus said to them , "
A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house ."
*
And he did not do many mighty works there ,
because of their unbelief .
*
At that time Herod the tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus ;
*
and he said to his servants , "
This is John the Baptist ,
he has been raised from the dead ;
that is why these powers are at work in him ."
*
For Herod had seized John and bound him and put him in prison ,
for the sake of Hero '
di-as ,
his brother Philip '
s wife ;
*
because John said to him , "
It is not lawful for you to have her ."
*
And though he wanted to put him to death ,
he feared the people ,
because they held him to be a prophet .
*
But when Herod '
s birthday came ,
the daughter of Hero '
di-as danced before the company ,
and pleased Herod ,
*
so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask .
*
Prompted by her mother ,
she said , "
Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter ."
*
And the king was sorry ;
but because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given ;
*
he sent and had John beheaded in the prison ,
*
and his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl ,
and she brought it to her mother .
*
And his disciples came and took the body and buried it ;
and they went and told Jesus .
*
Now when Jesus heard this ,
he withdrew from there in a boat to a lonely place apart .
But when the crowds heard it ,
they followed him on foot from the towns .
*
As he went ashore he saw a great throng ;
and he had compassion on them ,
and healed their sick .
*
When it was evening ,
the disciples came to him and said , "
This is a lonely place ,
and the day is now over ;
send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves ."
*
Jesus said , "
They need not go away ;
you give them something to eat ."
*
They said to him , "
We have only five loaves here and two fish ."
*
And he said , "
Bring them here to me ."
*
Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass ;
and taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven ,
and blessed ,
and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples ,
and the disciples gave them to the crowds .
*
And they all ate and were satisfied .
And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over .
*
And those who ate were about five thousand men ,
besides women and children .
*
Then he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side ,
while he dismissed the crowds .
*
And after he had dismissed the crowds ,
he went up on the mountain by himself to pray .
When evening came ,
he was there alone ,
*
but the boat by this time was many furlongs distant from the land ,
beaten by the waves ;
for the wind was against them .
*
And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them ,
walking on the sea .
*
But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea ,
they were terrified ,
saying , "
It is a ghost !"
And they cried out for fear .
*
But immediately he spoke to them ,
saying , "
Take heart ,
it is I ;
have no fear ."
*
And Peter answered him , "
Lord ,
if it is you ,
bid me come to you on the water ."
*
He said , "
Come ."
So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus ;
*
but when he saw the wind ,
he was afraid ,
and beginning to sink he cried out , "
Lord ,
save me ."
*
Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him ,
saying to him , "
O man of little faith ,
why did you doubt ?"
*
And when they got into the boat ,
the wind ceased .
*
And those in the boat worshiped him ,
saying , "
Truly you are the Son of God ."
*
And when they had crossed over ,
they came to land at Gennesaret .
*
And when the men of that place recognized him ,
they sent round to all that region and brought to him all that were sick ,
*
and besought him that they might only touch the fringe of his garment ;
and as many as touched it were made well .
*
Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said ,
* "
Why do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders ?
For they do not wash their hands when they eat ."
*
He answered them , "
And why do you transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition ?
*
For God commanded , `
Honor your father and your mother ,'
and , `
He who speaks evil of father or mother ,
let him surely die .'
*
But you say , `
If any one tells his father or his mother ,
What you would have gained from me is given to God ,
he need not honor his father .'
*
So ,
for the sake of your tradition ,
you have made void the word of God .
*
You hypocrites !
Well did Isaiah prophesy of you ,
when he said :
* `
This people honors me with their lips ,
but their heart is far from me ;
*
in vain do they worship me ,
teaching as doctrines the precepts of men .'"
*
And he called the people to him and said to them , "
Hear and understand :
*
not what goes into the mouth defiles a man ,
but what comes out of the mouth ,
this defiles a man ."
*
Then the disciples came and said to him , "
Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying ?"
*
He answered , "
Every plant which my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up .
*
Let them alone ;
they are blind guides .
And if a blind man leads a blind man ,
both will fall into a pit ."
*
But Peter said to him , "
Explain the parable to us ."
*
And he said , "
Are you also still without understanding ?
*
Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach ,
and so passes on ?
*
But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart ,
and this defiles a man .
*
For out of the heart come evil thoughts ,
murder ,
adultery ,
fornication ,
theft ,
false witness ,
slander .
*
These are what defile a man ;
but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man ."
*
And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon .
*
And behold ,
a Canaanite woman from that region came out and cried , "
Have mercy on me ,
O Lord ,
Son of David ;
my daughter is severely possessed by a demon ."
*
But he did not answer her a word .
And his disciples came and begged him ,
saying , "
Send her away ,
for she is crying after us ."
*
He answered , "
I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel ."
*
But she came and knelt before him ,
saying , "
Lord ,
help me ."
*
And he answered , "
It is not fair to take the children '
s bread and throw it to the dogs ."
*
She said , "
Yes ,
Lord ,
yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters '
table ."
*
Then Jesus answered her , "
O woman ,
great is your faith !
Be it done for you as you desire ."
And her daughter was healed instantly .
*
And Jesus went on from there and passed along the Sea of Galilee .
And he went up on the mountain ,
and sat down there .
*
And great crowds came to him ,
bringing with them the lame ,
the maimed ,
the blind ,
the dumb ,
and many others ,
and they put them at his feet ,
and he healed them ,
*
so that the throng wondered ,
when they saw the dumb speaking ,
the maimed whole ,
the lame walking ,
and the blind seeing ;
and they glorified the God of Israel .
*
Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said , "
I have compassion on the crowd ,
because they have been with me now three days ,
and have nothing to eat ;
and I am unwilling to send them away hungry ,
lest they faint on the way ."
*
And the disciples said to him , "
Where are we to get bread enough in the desert to feed so great a crowd ?"
*
And Jesus said to them , "
How many loaves have you ?"
They said , "
Seven ,
and a few small fish ."
*
And commanding the crowd to sit down on the ground ,
*
he took the seven loaves and the fish ,
and having given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples ,
and the disciples gave them to the crowds .
*
And they all ate and were satisfied ;
and they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces left over .
*
Those who ate were four thousand men ,
besides women and children .
*
And sending away the crowds ,
he got into the boat and went to the region of Mag '
adan .
*
And the Pharisees and Sad '
ducees came ,
and to test him they asked him to show them a sign from heaven .
*
He answered them , "
When it is evening ,
you say , `
It will be fair weather ;
for the sky is red .'
*
And in the morning , `
It will be stormy today ,
for the sky is red and threatening .'
You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky ,
but you cannot interpret the signs of the times .
*
An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign ,
but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Jonah ."
So he left them and departed .
*
When the disciples reached the other side ,
they had forgotten to bring any bread .
*
Jesus said to them , "
Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sad '
ducees ."
*
And they discussed it among themselves ,
saying , "
We brought no bread ."
*
But Jesus ,
aware of this ,
said , "
O men of little faith ,
why do you discuss among yourselves the fact that you have no bread ?
*
Do you not yet perceive ?
Do you not remember the five loaves of the five thousand ,
and how many baskets you gathered ?
*
Or the seven loaves of the four thousand ,
and how many baskets you gathered ?
*
How is it that you fail to perceive that I did not speak about bread ?
Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sad '
ducees ."
*
Then they understood that he did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread ,
but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sad '
ducees .
*
Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesare '
a Philip '
pi ,
he asked his disciples , "
Who do men say that the Son of man is ?"
*
And they said , "
Some say John the Baptist ,
others say Eli '
jah ,
and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets ."
*
He said to them , "
But who do you say that I am ?"
*
Simon Peter replied , "
You are the Christ ,
the Son of the living God ."
*
And Jesus answered him , "
Blessed are you ,
Simon Bar-Jona !
For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you ,
but my Father who is in heaven .
*
And I tell you ,
you are Peter ,
and on this rock I will build my church ,
and the powers of death shall not prevail against it .
*
I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven ,
and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven ,
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven ."
*
Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ .
*
From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes ,
and be killed ,
and on the third day be raised .
*
And Peter took him and began to rebuke him ,
saying , "
God forbid ,
Lord !
This shall never happen to you ."
*
But he turned and said to Peter , "
Get behind me ,
Satan !
You are a hindrance to me ;
for you are not on the side of God ,
but of men ."
*
Then Jesus told his disciples , "
If any man would come after me ,
let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me .
*
For whoever would save his life will lose it ,
and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it .
*
For what will it profit a man ,
if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life ?
Or what shall a man give in return for his life ?
*
For the Son of man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father ,
and then he will repay every man for what he has done .
*
Truly ,
I say to you ,
there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom ."
*
And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John his brother ,
and led them up a high mountain apart .
*
And he was transfigured before them ,
and his face shone like the sun ,
and his garments became white as light .
*
And behold ,
there appeared to them Moses and Eli '
jah ,
talking with him .
*
And Peter said to Jesus , "
Lord ,
it is well that we are here ;
if you wish ,
I will make three booths here ,
one for you and one for Moses and one for Eli '
jah ."
*
He was still speaking ,
when lo ,
a bright cloud overshadowed them ,
and a voice from the cloud said , "
This is my beloved Son ,
with whom I am well pleased ;
listen to him ."
*
When the disciples heard this ,
they fell on their faces ,
and were filled with awe .
*
But Jesus came and touched them ,
saying , "
Rise ,
and have no fear ."
*
And when they lifted up their eyes ,
they saw no one but Jesus only .
*
And as they were coming down the mountain ,
Jesus commanded them , "
Tell no one the vision ,
until the Son of man is raised from the dead ."
*
And the disciples asked him , "
Then why do the scribes say that first Eli '
jah must come ?"
*
He replied , "
Eli '
jah does come ,
and he is to restore all things ;
*
but I tell you that Eli '
jah has already come ,
and they did not know him ,
but did to him whatever they pleased .
So also the Son of man will suffer at their hands ."
*
Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist .
*
And when they came to the crowd ,
a man came up to him and kneeling before him said ,
* "
Lord ,
have mercy on my son ,
for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly ;
for often he falls into the fire ,
and often into the water .
*
And I brought him to your disciples ,
and they could not heal him ."
*
And Jesus answered , "
O faithless and perverse generation ,
how long am I to be with you ?
How long am I to bear with you ?
Bring him here to me ."
*
And Jesus rebuked him ,
and the demon came out of him ,
and the boy was cured instantly .
*
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said , "
Why could we not cast it out ?"
*
He said to them , "
Because of your little faith .
For truly ,
I say to you ,
if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed ,
you will say to this mountain , `
Move from here to there ,'
and it will move ;
and nothing will be impossible to you ."
*
As they were gathering in Galilee ,
Jesus said to them , "
The Son of man is to be delivered into the hands of men ,
*
and they will kill him ,
and he will be raised on the third day ."
And they were greatly distressed .
*
When they came to Caper '
na-um ,
the collectors of the half-shekel tax went up to Peter and said , "
Does not your teacher pay the tax ?"
*
He said , "
Yes ."
And when he came home ,
Jesus spoke to him first ,
saying , "
What do you think ,
Simon ?
From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute ?
From their sons or from others ?"
*
And when he said , "
From others ,"
Jesus said to him , "
Then the sons are free .
*
However ,
not to give offense to them ,
go to the sea and cast a hook ,
and take the first fish that comes up ,
and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel ;
take that and give it to them for me and for yourself ."
*
At that time the disciples came to Jesus ,
saying , "
Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven ?"
*
And calling to him a child ,
he put him in the midst of them ,
*
and said , "
Truly ,
I say to you ,
unless you turn and become like children ,
you will never enter the kingdom of heaven .
*
Whoever humbles himself like this child ,
he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven .
* "
Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me ;
*
but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin ,
it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened round his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea .
* "
Woe to the world for temptations to sin !
For it is necessary that temptations come ,
but woe to the man by whom the temptation comes !
*
And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin ,
cut it off and throw it away ;
it is better for you to enter life maimed or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire .
*
And if your eye causes you to sin ,
pluck it out and throw it away ;
it is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire .
* "
See that you do not despise one of these little ones ;
for I tell you that in heaven their angels always behold the face of my Father who is in heaven .
*
What do you think ?
If a man has a hundred sheep ,
and one of them has gone astray ,
does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray ?
*
And if he finds it ,
truly ,
I say to you ,
he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray .
*
So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish .
* "
If your brother sins against you ,
go and tell him his fault ,
between you and him alone .
If he listens to you ,
you have gained your brother .
*
But if he does not listen ,
take one or two others along with you ,
that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses .
*
If he refuses to listen to them ,
tell it to the church ;
and if he refuses to listen even to the church ,
let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector .
*
Truly ,
I say to you ,
whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven ,
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven .
*
Again I say to you ,
if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask ,
it will be done for them by my Father in heaven .
*
For where two or three are gathered in my name ,
there am I in the midst of them ."
*
Then Peter came up and said to him , "
Lord ,
how often shall my brother sin against me ,
and I forgive him ?
As many as seven times ?"
*
Jesus said to him , "
I do not say to you seven times ,
but seventy times seven .
* "
Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants .
*
When he began the reckoning ,
one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents ;
*
and as he could not pay ,
his lord ordered him to be sold ,
with his wife and children and all that he had ,
and payment to be made .
*
So the servant fell on his knees ,
imploring him , `
Lord ,
have patience with me ,
and I will pay you everything .'
*
And out of pity for him the lord of that servant released him and forgave him the debt .
*
But that same servant ,
as he went out ,
came upon one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii ;
and seizing him by the throat he said , `
Pay what you owe .'
*
So his fellow servant fell down and besought him , `
Have patience with me ,
and I will pay you .'
*
He refused and went and put him in prison till he should pay the debt .
*
When his fellow servants saw what had taken place ,
they were greatly distressed ,
and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place .
*
Then his lord summoned him and said to him , `
You wicked servant !
I forgave you all that debt because you besought me ;
*
and should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant ,
as I had mercy on you ?'
*
And in anger his lord delivered him to the jailers ,
till he should pay all his debt .
*
So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you ,
if you do not forgive your brother from your heart ."
*
Now when Jesus had finished these sayings ,
he went away from Galilee and entered the region of Judea beyond the Jordan ;
*
and large crowds followed him ,
and he healed them there .
*
And Pharisees came up to him and tested him by asking , "
Is it lawful to divorce one '
s wife for any cause ?"
*
He answered , "
Have you not read that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female ,
*
and said , `
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife ,
and the two shall become one flesh '?
*
So they are no longer two but one flesh .
What therefore God has joined together ,
let not man put asunder ."
*
They said to him , "
Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate of divorce ,
and to put her away ?"
*
He said to them , "
For your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives ,
but from the beginning it was not so .
*
And I say to you :
whoever divorces his wife ,
except for unchastity ,
and marries another ,
commits adultery ."
*
The disciples said to him , "
If such is the case of a man with his wife ,
it is not expedient to marry ."
*
But he said to them , "
Not all men can receive this saying ,
but only those to whom it is given .
*
For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth ,
and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men ,
and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven .
He who is able to receive this ,
let him receive it ."
*
Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray .
The disciples rebuked the people ;
*
but Jesus said , "
Let the children come to me ,
and do not hinder them ;
for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven ."
*
And he laid his hands on them and went away .
*
And behold ,
one came up to him ,
saying , "
Teacher ,
what good deed must I do ,
to have eternal life ?"
*
And he said to him , "
Why do you ask me about what is good ?
One there is who is good .
If you would enter life ,
keep the commandments ."
*
He said to him , "
Which ?"
And Jesus said , "
You shall not kill ,
You shall not commit adultery ,
You shall not steal ,
You shall not bear false witness ,
*
Honor your father and mother ,
and ,
You shall love your neighbor as yourself ."
*
The young man said to him , "
All these I have observed ;
what do I still lack ?"
*
Jesus said to him , "
If you would be perfect ,
go ,
sell what you possess and give to the poor ,
and you will have treasure in heaven ;
and come ,
follow me ."
*
When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful ;
for he had great possessions .
*
And Jesus said to his disciples , "
Truly ,
I say to you ,
it will be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven .
*
Again I tell you ,
it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God ."
*
When the disciples heard this they were greatly astonished ,
saying , "
Who then can be saved ?"
*
But Jesus looked at them and said to them , "
With men this is impossible ,
but with God all things are possible ."
*
Then Peter said in reply , "
Lo ,
we have left everything and followed you .
What then shall we have ?"
*
Jesus said to them , "
Truly ,
I say to you ,
in the new world ,
when the Son of man shall sit on his glorious throne ,
you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones ,
judging the twelve tribes of Israel .
*
And every one who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands ,
for my name '
s sake ,
will receive a hundredfold ,
and inherit eternal life .
*
But many that are first will be last ,
and the last first .
* "
For the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard .
*
After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day ,
he sent them into his vineyard .
*
And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the market place ;
*
and to them he said , `
You go into the vineyard too ,
and whatever is right I will give you .'
So they went .
*
Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour ,
he did the same .
*
And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing ;
and he said to them , `
Why do you stand here idle all day ?'
*
They said to him , `
Because no one has hired us .'
He said to them , `
You go into the vineyard too .'
*
And when evening came ,
the owner of the vineyard said to his steward , `
Call the laborers and pay them their wages ,
beginning with the last ,
up to the first .'
*
And when those hired about the eleventh hour came ,
each of them received a denarius .
*
Now when the first came ,
they thought they would receive more ;
but each of them also received a denarius .
*
And on receiving it they grumbled at the householder ,
*
saying , `
These last worked only one hour ,
and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat .'
*
But he replied to one of them , `
Friend ,
I am doing you no wrong ;
did you not agree with me for a denarius ?
*
Take what belongs to you ,
and go ;
I choose to give to this last as I give to you .
*
Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me ?
Or do you begrudge my generosity ?'
*
So the last will be first ,
and the first last ."
*
And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem ,
he took the twelve disciples aside ,
and on the way he said to them ,
* "
Behold ,
we are going up to Jerusalem ;
and the Son of man will be delivered to the chief priests and scribes ,
and they will condemn him to death ,
*
and deliver him to the Gentiles to be mocked and scourged and crucified ,
and he will be raised on the third day ."
*
Then the mother of the sons of Zeb '
edee came up to him ,
with her sons ,
and kneeling before him she asked him for something .
*
And he said to her , "
What do you want ?"
She said to him , "
Command that these two sons of mine may sit ,
one at your right hand and one at your left ,
in your kingdom ."
*
But Jesus answered , "
You do not know what you are asking .
Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink ?"
They said to him , "
We are able ."
*
He said to them , "
You will drink my cup ,
but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant ,
but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father ."
*
And when the ten heard it ,
they were indignant at the two brothers .
*
But Jesus called them to him and said , "
You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them ,
and their great men exercise authority over them .
*
It shall not be so among you ;
but whoever would be great among you must be your servant ,
*
and whoever would be first among you must be your slave ;
*
even as the Son of man came not to be served but to serve ,
and to give his life as a ransom for many ."
*
And as they went out of Jericho ,
a great crowd followed him .
*
And behold ,
two blind men sitting by the roadside ,
when they heard that Jesus was passing by ,
cried out , "
Have mercy on us ,
Son of David !"
*
The crowd rebuked them ,
telling them to be silent ;
but they cried out the more , "
Lord ,
have mercy on us ,
Son of David !"
*
And Jesus stopped and called them ,
saying , "
What do you want me to do for you ?"
*
They said to him , "
Lord ,
let our eyes be opened ."
*
And Jesus in pity touched their eyes ,
and immediately they received their sight and followed him .
*
And when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Beth '
phage ,
to the Mount of Olives ,
then Jesus sent two disciples ,
*
saying to them , "
Go into the village opposite you ,
and immediately you will find an ass tied ,
and a colt with her ;
untie them and bring them to me .
*
If any one says anything to you ,
you shall say , `
The Lord has need of them ,'
and he will send them immediately ."
*
This took place to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet ,
saying ,
* "
Tell the daughter of Zion ,
Behold ,
your king is coming to you ,
humble ,
and mounted on an ass ,
and on a colt ,
the foal of an ass ."
*
The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them ;
*
they brought the ass and the colt ,
and put their garments on them ,
and he sat thereon .
*
Most of the crowd spread their garments on the road ,
and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road .
*
And the crowds that went before him and that followed him shouted , "
Hosanna to the Son of David !
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord !
Hosanna in the highest !"
*
And when he entered Jerusalem ,
all the city was stirred ,
saying , "
Who is this ?"
*
And the crowds said , "
This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth of Galilee ."
*
And Jesus entered the temple of God and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple ,
and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons .
*
He said to them , "
It is written , `
My house shall be called a house of prayer ';
but you make it a den of robbers ."
*
And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple ,
and he healed them .
*
But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did ,
and the children crying out in the temple , "
Hosanna to the Son of David !"
they were indignant ;
*
and they said to him , "
Do you hear what these are saying ?"
And Jesus said to them , "
Yes ;
have you never read , `
Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast brought perfect praise '?"
*
And leaving them ,
he went out of the city to Bethany and lodged there .
*
In the morning ,
as he was returning to the city ,
he was hungry .
*
And seeing a fig tree by the wayside he went to it ,
and found nothing on it but leaves only .
And he said to it , "
May no fruit ever come from you again !"
And the fig tree withered at once .
*
When the disciples saw it they marveled ,
saying , "
How did the fig tree wither at once ?"
*
And Jesus answered them , "
Truly ,
I say to you ,
if you have faith and never doubt ,
you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree ,
but even if you say to this mountain , `
Be taken up and cast into the sea ,'
it will be done .
*
And whatever you ask in prayer ,
you will receive ,
if you have faith ."
*
And when he entered the temple ,
the chief priests and the elders of the people came up to him as he was teaching ,
and said , "
By what authority are you doing these things ,
and who gave you this authority ?"
*
Jesus answered them , "
I also will ask you a question ;
and if you tell me the answer ,
then I also will tell you by what authority I do these things .
*
The baptism of John ,
whence was it ?
From heaven or from men ?"
And they argued with one another , "
If we say , `
From heaven ,'
he will say to us , `
Why then did you not believe him ?'
*
But if we say , `
From men ,'
we are afraid of the multitude ;
for all hold that John was a prophet ."
*
So they answered Jesus , "
We do not know ."
And he said to them , "
Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things .
* "
What do you think ?
A man had two sons ;
and he went to the first and said , `
Son ,
go and work in the vineyard today .'
*
And he answered , `
I will not ';
but afterward he repented and went .
*
And he went to the second and said the same ;
and he answered , `
I go ,
sir ,'
but did not go .
*
Which of the two did the will of his father ?"
They said , "
The first ."
Jesus said to them , "
Truly ,
I say to you ,
the tax collectors and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you .
*
For John came to you in the way of righteousness ,
and you did not believe him ,
but the tax collectors and the harlots believed him ;
and even when you saw it ,
you did not afterward repent and believe him .
* "
Hear another parable .
There was a householder who planted a vineyard ,
and set a hedge around it ,
and dug a wine press in it ,
and built a tower ,
and let it out to tenants ,
and went into another country .
*
When the season of fruit drew near ,
he sent his servants to the tenants ,
to get his fruit ;
*
and the tenants took his servants and beat one ,
killed another ,
and stoned another .
*
Again he sent other servants ,
more than the first ;
and they did the same to them .
*
Afterward he sent his son to them ,
saying , `
They will respect my son .'
*
But when the tenants saw the son ,
they said to themselves , `
This is the heir ;
come ,
let us kill him and have his inheritance .'
*
And they took him and cast him out of the vineyard ,
and killed him .
*
When therefore the owner of the vineyard comes ,
what will he do to those tenants ?"
*
They said to him , "
He will put those wretches to a miserable death ,
and let out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their seasons ."
*
Jesus said to them , "
Have you never read in the scriptures : `
The very stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner ;
this was the Lord '
s doing ,
and it is marvelous in our eyes '?
*
Therefore I tell you ,
the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a nation producing the fruits of it ."
*
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables ,
they perceived that he was speaking about them .
*
But when they tried to arrest him ,
they feared the multitudes ,
because they held him to be a prophet .
*
And again Jesus spoke to them in parables ,
saying ,
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