Red Letter Gospel

According to Matthew

Chapter 1

These are the ancestors of Jesus Christ, a descendant of King David and of Abraham:

2Abraham was the father of Isaac; Isaac was the father of Jacob; Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers.

3Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah (Tamar was their mother); Perez was the father of Hezron; Hezron was the father of Aram;

4Aram was the father of Amminadab; Amminadab was the father of Nahshon; Nahshon was the father of Salmon;

5Salmon was the father of Boaz (Rahab was his mother); Boaz was the father of Obed (Ruth was his mother); Obed was the father of Jesse;

6Jesse was the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon (his mother was the widow of Uriah);

7Solomon was the father of Rehoboam; Rehoboam was the father of Abijah; Abijah was the father of Asa;

8Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat; Jehoshaphat was the father of Joram; Joram was the father of Uzziah;

9Uzziah was the father of Jotham; Jotham was the father Ahaz; Ahaz was the father of Hezekiah;

10Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh; Manasseh was the father of Amos; Amos was the father of Josiah;

11Josiah was the father of Jechoniah and his brothers (born at the time of the exile to Babylon).

12After the exile:

Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel; Shealtiel was the father of Zerubbabel;

13Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud; Abiud was the father of Eliakim; Eliakim was the father of Azor;

14Azor was the father of Zadok; Zadok was the father of Achim; Achim was the father of Eliud;

15Eliud was the father of Eleazar; Eleazar was the father of Matthan; Matthan was the father of Jacob;

16Jacob was the father of Joseph (who was the husband of Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ the Messiah).

17These are fourteen of the generations from Abraham to King David; and fourteen from King David's time to the exile; and fourteen from the exile to Christ.

18These are the facts concerning the birth of Jesus Christ: His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But while she was still a virgin she became pregnant by the Holy Spirit. 19Then Joseph, her fiancé, being a man of stern principle, decided to break the engagement but to do it quietly, as he didn't want to publicly disgrace her.

20As he lay awake considering this, he fell into a dream, and saw an angel standing beside him. "Joseph, son of David," the angel said, "don't hesitate to take Mary as your wife! For the child within her has been conceived by the Holy Spirit. 21And she will have a Son, and you shall name him Jesus (meaning 'Savior'), for he will save his people from their sins. 22This will fulfill God's message through his prophets--

23 'Listen! The virgin shall conceive a child! She shall give birth to a Son, and he shall be called "Emmanuel" (meaning "God is with us").'"

24When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel commanded, and brought Mary home to be his wife, 25but she remained a virgin until her Son was born; and Joseph named him "Jesus."

Chapter 2

Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem, in Judea, during the reign of King Herod.

At about that time some astrologers from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, 2"Where is the newborn King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in far-off eastern lands, and have come to worship him."

3King Herod was deeply disturbed by their question, and all Jerusalem was filled with rumors. 4He called a meeting of the Jewish religious leaders.

"Did the prophets tell us where the Messiah would be born?" he asked.

5"Yes, in Bethlehem," they said, "for this is what the prophet Micah Micah 5:2 wrote:

6'O little town of Bethlehem, you are not just an unimportant Judean village, for a Governor shall rise from you to rule my people Israel.'"

7Then Herod sent a private message to the astrologers, asking them to come to see him; at this meeting he found out from them the exact time when they first saw the star. Then he told them, 8"Go to Bethlehem and search for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him too!"

9After this interview the astrologers started out again. And look! The star appeared to them again, standing over Bethlehem. 10Their joy knew no bounds!

11Entering the house where the baby and Mary his mother were, they threw themselves down before him, worshipping. Then they opened their presents and gave him gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12But when they returned to their own land, they didn't go through Jerusalem to report to Herod, for God had warned them in a dream to go home another way.

13After they were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up and flee to Egypt with the baby and his mother," the angel said, "and stay there until I tell you to return, for King Herod is going to try to kill the child." 14That same night he left for Egypt with Mary and the baby, 15and stayed there until King Herod's death. This fulfilled the prophet's prediction,

"I have called my Son from Egypt." Hosea 11:1

16Herod was furious when he learned that the astrologers had disobeyed him. Sending soldiers to Bethlehem, he ordered them to kill every baby boy two years old and under, both in the town and on the nearby farms, for the astrologers had told him the star first appeared to them two years before. 17This brutal action of Herod's fulfilled the prophecy of Jeremiah, Jeremiah 31:15

18"Screams of anguish come from Ramah,

Weeping unrestrained;

Rachel weeping for her children,

Uncomforted--

For they are dead."

19When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and told him, 20"Get up and take the baby and his mother back to Israel, for those who were trying to kill the child are dead."

21So he returned immediately to Israel with Jesus and his mother. 22But on the way he was frightened to learn that the new king was Herod's son, Archelaus. Then, in another dream, he was warned not to go to Judea, so they went to Galilee instead, 23and lived in Nazareth. This fulfilled the prediction of the prophets concerning the Messiah,

"He shall be called a Nazarene."

Chapter 3

While they were living in Nazareth, John the Baptist began preaching out in the Judean wilderness. His constant theme was, 2"Turn from your sins . . . turn to God . . . for the Kingdom of Heaven is coming soon." 3Isaiah the prophet had told about John's ministry centuries before! He had written,

"I hear Isaiah 40:3 a shout from the wilderness, 'Prepare a road for the Lord--straighten out the path where he will walk.'"

4John's clothing was woven from camel's hair and he wore a leather belt; his food was locusts and wild honey. 5People from Jerusalem and from all over the Jordan Valley, and, in fact, from every section of Judea went out to the wilderness to hear him preach, 6and when they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River.

7But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to be baptized, he denounced them.

"You sons of snakes!" he warned. "Who said that you could escape the coming wrath of God? 8Before being baptized, prove that you have turned from sin by doing worthy deeds. 9Don't try to get by as you are, thinking, 'We are safe for we are Jews--descendants of Abraham.' That proves nothing. God can change these stones here into Jews!

10"And even now the axe of God's judgment is poised to chop down every unproductive tree. They will be chopped and burned.

11"With water I baptize those who repent of their sins; but someone else is coming, far greater than I am, so great that I am not worthy to carry his shoes! He shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 12He will separate the chaff from the grain, burning the chaff with never-ending fire, and storing away the grain."

13Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized there by John. 14John didn't want to do it.

"This isn't proper," he said. "I am the one who needs to be baptized by you."

15But Jesus said, "Please do it, for I must do all that is right." So then John baptized him.

16After his baptism, as soon as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God coming down in the form of a dove. 17And a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, and I am wonderfully pleased with him."

Chapter 4

Then Jesus was led out into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit, to be tempted there by Satan. 2For forty days and forty nights he ate nothing and became very hungry. 3Then Satan tempted him to get food by changing stones into loaves of bread.

"It will prove you are the Son of God," he said.

4But Jesus told him, "No! For the Scriptures tell us that bread won't feed men's souls: obedience to every word of God is what we need."

5Then Satan took him to Jerusalem to the roof of the Temple. 6"Jump off," he said, "and prove you are the Son of God; for the Scriptures declare, 'God will send his angels to keep you from harm,' . . . they will prevent you from smashing on the rocks below."

7Jesus retorted, "It also says not to put the Lord your God to a foolish test!"

8Next Satan took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him the nations of the world and all their glory. 9"I'll give it all to you," he said, "if you will only kneel and worship me."

10 "Get out of here, Satan," Jesus told him. "The Scriptures say, 'Worship only the Lord God. Obey only him.'"

11Then Satan went away, and angels came and cared for Jesus.

12,13When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he left Judea and returned home to Nazareth in Galilee; but soon he moved to Capernaum, beside the Lake of Galilee, close to Zebulun and Naphtali. 14This fulfilled Isaiah's prophecy:

15,16"The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, beside the Lake, and the countryside beyond the Jordan River, and Upper Galilee where so many foreigners live--there the people who sat in darkness have seen a great Light; they sat in the land of death, and the Light broke through upon them." Isaiah 9:1,2

17From then on, Jesus began to preach, "Turn from sin, and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven in near."

18One day as he was walking along the beach beside the Lake of Galilee, he saw two brothers--Simon, also called Peter, and Andrew--out in a boat fishing with a net, for they were commercial fishermen.

19Jesus called out, "Come along with me and I will show you how to fish for the souls of men!" 20And they left their nets at once and went with him.

21A little farther up the beach he saw two other brothers, James and John, sitting in a boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets; and he called to them to come too. 22At once they stopped their work and, leaving their father behind, went with him.

23Jesus traveled all through Galilee teaching in the Jewish synagogues, everywhere preaching the Good News about the Kingdom of Heaven. And he healed every kind of sickness and disease. 24The report of his miracles spread far beyond the borders of Galilee so that sick folk were soon coming to be healed from as far away as Syria. And whatever their illness and pain, or if they were possessed by demons, or were insane, or paralyzed--he healed them all. 25Enormous crowds followed him wherever he went--people from Galilee, and the Ten Cities, and Jerusalem, and from all over Judea, and even from across the Jordan River.

Chapter 5

One day as the crowds were gathering, he went up the hillside with his disciples and sat down and taught them there.

3 "Humble men are very fortunate!" he told them, "for the Kingdom of Heaven is given to them. 4Those who mourn are fortunate! for they shall be comforted. 5The meek and lowly are fortunate! for the whole wide world belongs to them.

6"Happy are those who long to be just and good, for they shall be completely satisfied. 7Happy are the kind and merciful, for they shall be shown mercy. 8Happy are those whose hearts are pure, for they shall see God. 9Happy are those who strive for peace--they shall be called the sons of God. 10Happy are those who are persecuted because they are good, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

11"When you are reviled and persecuted and lied about because you are my followers--wonderful! 12Be happy about it! Be very glad! for a tremendous reward awaits you up in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted too.

13"You are the world's seasoning, to make it tolerable. If you lose your flavor, what will happen to world? And you yourselves will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. 14You are the world's light--a city on a hill, glowing in the night for all to see. 15,16Don't hide your light! Let it shine for all; let your good deeds glow for all to see, so that they will praise your heavenly Father.

17"Don't misunderstand why I have come--it isn't to cancel the laws of Moses and the warnings of the prophets. No, I came to fulfill them, and to make them all come true. 18With all the earnestness I have I say: Every law in the Book will continue until its purpose is achieved. 19And so if anyone breaks the least commandment, and teaches others to, he shall be the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But those who teach God's laws and obey them shall be great in the Kingdom of Heaven.

20"But I warn you--unless your goodness is greater than that of the Pharisees and other Jewish leaders, you can't get into the Kingdom of Heaven at all!

21"Under the laws of Moses the rule was, 'If you murder, you must die.' 22But I have added to that rule, and tell you that if you are only angry, even in your own home, you are in danger of judgment! If you call your friend an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse him, you are in danger of the fires of hell.

23"So if you are standing before the altar in the Temple, offering a sacrifice to God, and suddenly remember that a friend has something against you, 24leave your sacrifice there beside the altar and go and apologize and be reconciled to him, and then come and offer your sacrifice to God. 25Come to terms quickly with your enemy before it is too late and he drags you into court and you are thrown into a debtor's cell, 26for you will stay there until you have paid the last penny.

27"The laws of Moses said, 'You shall not commit adultery.' 28But I say: Anyone who even looks at a woman with lust in his eye has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29So if your eye--even if it is your best eye!--causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. Better for part of you to be destroyed than for all of you to be cast into hell. 30And if your hand--even your right hand--causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. Better that than find yourself in hell.

31"The law of Moses says, 'If anyone wants to be rid of his wife, he can divorce her merely by giving her a letter of dismissal.' 32But I say that a man who divorces his wife, except for fornication, causes her to commit adultery if she marries again. And he who marries her commits adultery.

33"Again, the law of Moses says, 'You shall not break your vows to God, but must fulfill them all.' 34But I say: Don't make any vows! And even to say, 'By heavens!' is a sacred vow to God, for the heavens are God's throne. 35And if you say 'By the earth!' it is a sacred vow, for the earth is his footstool. And don't swear 'By Jerusalem!' for Jerusalem is the capital of the great King. 36Don't even swear 'By my head!' for you can't turn one hair white or black. 37Say just a simple 'Yes, I will' or 'No, I won't.' Your word is enough. To strengthen your promise with a vow shows that something is wrong.

38"The law of Moses says, 'If a man gouges out another's eye, he must pay with his own eye. If a tooth gets knocked out, knock out the tooth of the one who did it.' 39But I say: Don't resist violence! If you are slapped on one cheek, turn the other too. 40If you are ordered to court, and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat too. 41If the military demand that you carry their gear for a mile, carry it two. 42Give to those who ask, and don't turn away from those who want to borrow.

43"There is a saying, 'Love your friends and hate your enemies.' 44But I say: Love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! 45In that way you will be acting as true sons of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust too. 46If you love only those who love you, what good is that? Even scoundrels do that much. 47If you are friendly only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even the heathen do that. 48But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.

Chapter 6

"Take care! don't do your good deeds publicly, to be admired, for then you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. 2When you give a gift to a beggar, don't shout about it as the hypocrites do--blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you in all earnestness, they have received all the reward they will ever get. 3But when you do a kindness to someone, do it secretly--don't tell your left hand what your right hand is doing. 4And your Father who knows all secrets will reward you.

5"And now about prayer. When you pray, don't be like the hypocrites who pretend piety by praying publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. Truly, that is all the reward they will ever get. 6But when you pray, go away by yourself, all alone, and shut the door behind you and pray to your Father secretly, and your Father, who knows your secrets, will reward you.

7,8"Don't recite the same prayer over and over as the heathen do, who think prayers are answered only by repeating them again and again. Remember, your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!

9"Pray along these lines: 'Our Father in heaven, we honor your holy name. 10We ask that your kingdom will come now. May your will be done here on earth, just as it is in heaven. 11Give us our food again today, as usual, 12and forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us. 13Don't bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the Evil One. Amen.' 14,15Your heavenly Father will forgive you if you forgive those who sin against you; but if you refuse to forgive them, he will not forgive you.

16"And now about fasting. When you fast, declining your food for a spiritual purpose, don't do it publicly, as the hypocrites do, who try to look wan and disheveled so people will feel sorry for them. Truly, that is the only reward they will ever get. 17But when you fast, put on festive clothing, 18so that no one will suspect you are hungry, except your Father who knows every secret. And he will reward you.

19"Don't store up treasures here on earth where they can erode away or may be stolen. 20Store them in heaven where they will never lose their value, and are safe from thieves. 21If your profits are in heaven your heart will be there too.

22"If your eye is pure, there will be sunshine in your soul. 23But if your eye is clouded with evil thoughts and desires, you are in deep spiritual darkness. And oh, how deep that darkness can be!

24"You cannot serve two masters: God and money. For you will hate one and love the other, or else the other way around.

25"So my counsel is: Don't worry about things--food, drink, and clothes. For you already have life and a body--and they are far more important than what to eat and wear. 26Look at the birds! They don't worry about what to eat--they don't need to sow or reap or store up food--for your heavenly Father feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than they are. 27Will all your worries add a single moment to your life?

28"And why worry about your clothes? Look at the field lilies! They don't worry about theirs. 29Yet King Solomon in all his glory was not clothed as beautifully as they. 30And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, won't he more surely care for you, O men of little faith?

31,32"So don't worry at all about having enough food and clothing. Why be like the heathen? For they take pride in all these things and are deeply concerned about them. But your heavenly Father already knows perfectly well that you need them, 33and he will give them to you if you give him first place in your life and live as he wants you to.

34"So don't be anxious about tomorrow. God will take care of your tomorrow too. Live one day at a time.

Chapter 7

"Don't criticize, and then you won't be criticized. 2For others will treat you as you treat them. 3And why worry about a speck in the eye of a brother when you have a board in your own? 4Should you say, 'Friend, let me help you get that speck out of your eye,' when you can't even see because of the board in your own? 5Hypocrite! First get rid of the board. Then you can see to help your brother.

6"Don't give holy things to depraved men. Don't give pearls to swine! They will trample the pearls and turn and attack you.

7"Ask, and you will be given what you ask for. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened. 8For everyone who asks, receives. Anyone who seeks, finds. If only you will knock, the door will open. 9If a child asks his father for a loaf of bread, will he be given a stone instead? 10If he asks for a fish, will he be given a poisonous snake? Of course not! 11And if you hard-hearted, sinful men know how to give good gifts to your children, won't your Father in heaven even more certainly give good gifts to those who ask him for them?

12"Do for others what you want them to do for you. This is the teaching of the laws of Moses in a nutshell.

13"Heaven can be entered only through the narrow gate! The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide enough for all the multitudes who choose its easy way. 14But the Gateway to Life is small, and the road is narrow, and only a few ever find it.

15"Beware of false teachers who come disguised as harmless sheep, but are wolves and will tear you apart. 16You can detect them by the way they act, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit. You need never confuse grapevines with thorn bushes or figs with thistles. 17Different kinds of fruit trees can quickly be identified by examining their fruit. 18A variety that produces delicious fruit never produces an inedible kind. And a tree producing an inedible kind can't produce what is good. 19So the trees having the inedible fruit are chopped down and thrown on the fire. 20Yes, the way to identify a tree or a person is by the kind of fruit produced.

21"Not all who sound religious are really godly people. They may refer to me as 'Lord,' but still won't get to heaven. For the decisive question is whether they obey my Father in heaven. 22At the Judgment many will tell me, 'Lord, Lord, we told others about you and used your name to cast out demons and to do many other great miracles.' 23But I will reply, 'You have never been mine. Go away, for your deeds are evil.'

24"All who listen to my instructions and follow them are wise, like a man who builds his house on solid rock. 25Though the rain comes in torrents, and the floods rise and the storm winds beat against his house, it won't collapse, for it is built on rock.

26"But those who hear my instructions and ignore them are foolish, like a man who builds his house on sand. 27For when the rains and floods come, and storm winds beat against his house, it will fall with a mighty crash." 28The crowds were amazed at Jesus' sermons, 29for he taught as one who had great authority, and not as their Jewish leaders.

Chapter 8

Large crowds followed Jesus as he came down the hillside. 2 Look! A leper is approaching. He kneels before him, worshiping. "Sir," the leper pleads, "if you want to, you can heal me."

3 Jesus touches the man. "I want to," he says; "be healed." And instantly the leprosy disappears.

4 Then Jesus says to him, "Don't stop to talk to anyone; go right over to the priest to be examined; and take with you the offering required by Moses' law for lepers who are healed--a public testimony of your cure."

5,6When Jesus arrived in Capernaum, a Roman army captain came and pled with him to come to his home and heal his servant boy who was in bed paralyzed and racked with pain.

7 "Yes," Jesus said, "I will come and heal him."

8,9Then the officer said, "Sir, I am not worthy to have you in my home; [and it isn't necessary for you to come]. If you will only stand here and say, 'Be healed,' my servant will get well! I know, because I am under the authority of my superior officers and I have authority over my soldiers, and I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my slave boy, 'Do this or that,' and he does it. And I know you have authority to tell his sickness to go--and it will go!"

10Jesus stood there amazed! Turning to the crowd he said, "I haven't seen faith like this in all the land of Israel! 11And I tell you this, that many Gentiles [like this Roman officer], shall come from all over the world and sit down in the Kingdom of Heaven with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 12And many an Israelite--those for whom the Kingdom was prepared--shall be cast into outer darkness, into the place of weeping and torment."

13Then Jesus said to the Roman officer, "Go on home. What you have believed has happened!" And the boy was healed that same hour!

14When Jesus arrived at Peter's house, Peter's mother-in-law was in bed with a high fever. 15But when Jesus touched her hand, the fever left her; and she got up and prepared a meal for them!

16That evening several demon-possessed people were brought to Jesus; and when he spoke a single word, all the demons fled; and all the sick were healed. 17This fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, "He took our sicknesses and bore our diseases." Isaiah 53:4

18When Jesus noticed how large the crowd was growing, he instructed his disciples to get ready to cross to the other side of the lake.

19Just then one of the Jewish religious teachers said to him, "Teacher, I will follow you no matter where you go!"

20But Jesus said, "Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but I, the Messiah, have no home of my own--no place to lay my head."

21Another of his disciples said, "Sir, when my father is dead, then I will follow you."

22But Jesus told him, "Follow me now! Let those who are spiritually dead care for their own dead."

23The he got into a boat and started across the lake with his disciples. 24Suddenly a terrible storm came up, with waves higher than the boat. But Jesus was asleep.

25The disciples went to him and wakened him, shouting, "Lord, save us! We're sinking!"

26But Jesus answered, "O you men of little faith! Why are you so frightened?" Then he stood up and rebuked the wind and waves, and the storm subsided and all was calm. 27The disciples just sat there, awed! "Who is this," they asked themselves, "that even the winds and the sea obey him?"

28When they arrived on the other side of the lake, in the country of the Gadarenes, two men with demons in them met him. They lived in a cemetery and were so dangerous that no one could go through that area.

29They began screaming at him, "What do you want with us, O Son of God? You have no right to torment us yet."

30A herd of pigs was feeding in the distance, 31so the demons begged, "If you cast us out, send us into that herd of pigs."

32 "All right," Jesus told them. "Begone."

And they came out of the men and entered the pigs, and the whole herd rushed over a cliff and drowned in the water below. 33The herdsmen fled to the nearest city with the story of what had happened, 34and the entire population came rushing out to see Jesus, and begged him to go away and leave them alone.

Chapter 9

So Jesus climbed into a boat and went across the lake to Capernaum, his home town.

2Soon some men brought him a paralyzed boy on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the sick boy, "Cheer up, son! For I have forgiven your sins!"

3"Blasphemy! This man is saying he is God!" exclaimed some of the religious leaders to themselves.

4Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked them, "Why are thinking such evil thoughts? 5,6I, the Messiah, have the authority on earth to forgive sins. But talk is cheap--anybody could say that. So I'll prove it to you by healing this man." Then, turning to the paralyzed man, he commanded, "Pick up your stretcher and go on home, for you are healed."

7And the boy jumped up and left!

8A chill of fear swept through the crowd as they saw this happen right before their eyes. How they praised God for giving such authority to a man!

9As Jesus was going on down the road, he saw a tax collector, Matthew, sitting at a tax collection booth. "Come and be my disciple," Jesus said to him, and Matthew jumped up and went along with him.

10Later, as Jesus and his disciples were eating dinner [at Matthew's house], there were many notorious swindlers there as guests!

11The Pharisees were indignant. "Why does your teacher associate with me like that?"

12 "Because people who are well don't need a doctor! It's the sick people who do!" was Jesus' reply. 13Then he added, "Now go away and learn the meaning of this verse of Scripture,

'It isn't your sacrifices and your gifts I want--I want you to be merciful.' Hosea 6:6

For I have come to urge sinners, not the self-righteous, back to God."

14One day the disciples of John the Baptist came to Jesus and asked him, "Why don't your disciples fast as we do and as the Pharisees do?"

15"Should the bridegroom's friends mourn and go without food while he is with them?" Jesus asked. "But the time is coming when I will be taken from them. Time enough then for them to refuse to eat.

16 "And who would patch an old garment with unshrunk cloth? For the patch would tear away and make the hole worse. 17And who would use old wineskins to store new wine? For the old skins would burst with the pressure, and the wine would be spilled and the skins ruined. Only new wineskins are used to store new wine. That way both are preserved."

18As he was saying this, the rabbi of the local synagogue came and worshiped him. "My little daughter has just died," he said, "but you can bring her back to life again if you will only come and touch her."

19As Jesus and the disciples were going to the rabbi's home, 20a woman who had been sick for twelve years with internal bleeding came up behind him and touched a tassel of his robe, 21for she thought, "If I only touch him, I will be healed."

22Jesus turned around and spoke to her. "Daughter," he said, "all is well! Your faith has healed you." And the woman was well from that moment.

23When Jesus arrived at the rabbi's home and saw the noisy crowds and heard the funeral music, 24he said, "Get them out, for the little girl isn't dead; she is only sleeping!" Then how they all scoffed and sneered at him!

25When the crowd was finally outside, Jesus went in where the little girl was lying and took her by the hand, and she jumped up and was all right again! 26The report of this wonderful miracle swept the entire countryside.

27As Jesus was leaving her home, two blind men followed along behind, shouting, "O Son of King David, have mercy on us."

28They went right into the house where he was staying, and Jesus asked them, "Do you believe I can make you see?"

"Yes, Lord," they told him, "we do."

29Then he touched their eyes and said, "Because of your faith it will happen."

30And suddenly they could see! Jesus sternly warned them not to tell anyone about it, 31but instead they spread his fame all over the town.

32Leaving that place, Jesus met a man who couldn't speak because a demon was inside him. 33So Jesus cast out the demon, and instantly the man could talk. How the crowds marveled! "Never in all our lives have we seen anything like this," they exclaimed.

34But the Pharisees said, "The reason he can cast out demons is that he is demon-possessed himself--possessed by Satan, the demon king!"

35Jesus traveled around through all the cities and villages of that area, teaching in the Jewish synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And wherever he went he healed people of every sort of illness. 36And what pity he felt for the crowds that came, because their problems were so great and they didn't know what to do or where to go for help. They were like sheep without a shepherd.

37"The harvest is so great, and the workers are so few," he told his disciples. 38 "So pray to the one in charge of the harvesting, and ask him to recruit more workers for his harvest fields."

Chapter 10

Jesus called his twelve disciples to him, and gave them authority to cast out evil spirits and to heal every kind of sickness and disease.

2,3,4Here are the names of his twelve disciples:

Simon (also called Peter),

Andrew (Peter's brother),

James (Zebedee's son),

John (James' brother),

Philip,

Bartholomew,

Thomas,

Matthew (the tax collector),

James (Alphaeus' son),

Thaddaeus,

Simon (a member of "The Zealots," a subversive political party),

Judas Iscariot (the one who betrayed him).

5Jesus sent them out with these instructions: "Don't go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans, 6but only to the people of Israel--God's lost sheep. 7Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near. 8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure the lepers, and cast out demons. Give as freely as you have received!

9"Don't take any money with you; 10don't even carry a duffle bag with extra clothes and shoes, or even a walking stick; for those you help should feed and care for you. 11Whenever you enter a city or village, search for a godly man and stay in his home until you leave for the next town. 12When you ask permission to stay, be friendly, 13and if it turns out to be a godly home, give it your blessing; if not, keep the blessing. 14Any city or home that doesn't welcome you--shake off the dust of that place from your feet as you leave. 15Truly, the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will be better off at Judgment Day than they.

16"I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. Be as wary as serpents and harmless as doves. 17But beware! For you will be arrested and tried, and whipped in the synagogues. 18Yes, and you must stand trial before governors and kings for my sake. This will give you the opportunity to tell them about me, yes, to witness to the world.

19"When you are arrested, don't worry about what to say at your trial, for you will be given the right words at the right time. 20For it won't be you doing the talking--it will be the Spirit of your heavenly Father speaking through you!

21"Brother shall betray brother to death, and fathers shall betray their own children. And children shall rise against their parents and cause their deaths. 22Everyone shall hate you because you belong to me. But all of you who endure to the end shall be saved.

23"When you are persecuted in one city, flee to the next! I will return before you have reached them all! 24A student is not greater than his teacher. A servant is not above his master. 25The student shares his teacher's fate. The servant shares his master's! And since I, the master of the household, have been called 'Satan,' how much more will you! 26But don't be afraid of those who threaten you. For the time is coming when the truth will be revealed: their secret plots will become public information.

27"What I tell you now in the gloom, shout abroad when daybreak comes. What I whisper in your ears, proclaim from the housetops!

28"Don't be afraid of those who can kill only your bodies--but can't touch your souls! Fear only God who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29Not one sparrow (What do they cost? Two for a penny?) can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. 30And the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31So don't worry! You are more valuable to him than many sparrows.

32"If anyone publicly acknowledges me as his friend, I will openly acknowledge him as my friend before my father in heaven. 33But if anyone publicly denies me, I will openly deny him before my Father in heaven.

34"Don't imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! No, rather, a sword. 35I 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-- 36a man's worst enemies will be right in his own home! 37If you love your father and mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. 38If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine.

39"If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give it up for me, you will save it.

40"Those who welcome you are welcoming me. And when they welcome me they are welcoming God who sent me. 41If you welcome a prophet because he is a man of God, you will be given the same reward a prophet gets. And if you welcome good and godly men because of their godliness, you will be given a reward like theirs.

42"And if, as my representatives, you give even a cup of cold water to a little child, you will surely be rewarded."

Chapter 11

When Jesus had finished giving these instructions to his twelve disciples, he went off preaching in the cities where they were scheduled to go.

2John the Baptist, who was now in prison, heard all about all the miracles the Messiah was doing, so he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, 3"Are you really the one we are waiting for, or shall we keep on looking?"

4 Jesus told them, "Go back to John and tell him about the miracles you've seen me do-- 5the blind people I've healed, and the lame people now walking without help, and the cured lepers, and the deaf who hear, and the dead raised to life; and tell him about my preaching the Good News to the poor. 6Then give him this message, 'Blessed are those who don't doubt me.'"

7When John's disciples had gone, Jesus began talking about him to the crowds. "When you went out into the barren wilderness to see John, what did you expect him to be like? Grass blowing in the wind? 8Or were you expecting to see a man dressed as a prince in a palace? 9Or a prophet of God? Yes, and he is more than just a prophet. 10For John is the man mentioned in the Scriptures--a messenger to precede me, to announce my coming, and prepare people to receive me.

11"Truly, of all men ever born, none shines more brightly than John the Baptist. And yet, even the lesser lights in the Kingdom of Heaven will be greater than he is! 12And from the time John the Baptist began preaching and baptizing until now, ardent multitudes have been crowding toward the Kingdom of Heaven, 13for all the laws and prophets looked forward [to the Messiah]. Then John appeared, 14and if you are willing to understand what I mean, he is Elijah, the one the prophets said would come [at the time the Kingdom begins]. 15If ever you were willing to listen, listen now!

16"What shall I say about this nation? These people are like children playing, who say to their little friends, 17'We played wedding and you weren't happy, so we played funeral but you weren't sad.' 18For John the Baptist doesn't even drink wine and often goes without food, and you say, 'He's crazy.' 19And I, the Messiah, feast and drink, and you complain that I am 'a glutton and a drinking man, and hang around with the worst sort of sinners!' But brilliant men like you can justify your every inconsistency!"

20Then he began to pour out his denunciations against the cities where he had done most of his miracles, because they hadn't turned to God.

21"Woe to you, Chorazin, and woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did in your streets had been done in wicked Tyre and Sidon their people would have repented long ago in shame and humility. 22Truly, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on the Judgment Day than you! 23And Capernaum, though highly honored, shall go down to hell! For if the marvelous miracles I did in you had been done in Sodom, it would still be here today. 24Truly, Sodom will be better off at the Judgment Day than you."

25And Jesus prayed this prayer: "O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding the truth from those who think themselves so wise, and for revealing it to little children. 26Yes Father, for it pleased you to do it this way! . . .

27"Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father. Only the Father knows the Son, and the Father is known only by the Son and by those to whom the Son reveals him. 28Come to me and I will give you rest--all of you who work so hard beneath a heavy yoke. 29, 30Wear my yoke--for it fits perfectly--and let me teach you; for I am gentle and humble, and you shall find rest for your souls; for I give you only light burdens."

Chapter 12

About that time, Jesus was walking one day through some grainfields with his disciples. It was on the Sabbath, the Jewish day of worship, and his disciples were hungry; so they began breaking off heads of wheat and eating the grain.

2But some Pharisees saw them do it and protested, "Your disciples are breaking the law. They are harvesting on the Sabbath."

3But Jesus said to them, "Haven't you ever read what King David did when he and his friends were hungry? 4He went into the Temple and they ate the special bread permitted to the priests alone. That was breaking the law too. 5And haven't you ever read in the law of Moses how the priests on duty in the Temple may work on the Sabbath? 6And truly, one is here who is greater than the Temple! 7But if you had known the meaning of this Scripture verse, 'I want you to be merciful more than I want your offerings,' you would not have condemned those who aren't guilty! 8For I, the Messiah, am master even of the Sabbath."

9Then he went over to the synagogue, 10and noticed there a man with a deformed hand. The Pharisees asked Jesus, "Is it legal to work by healing on the Sabbath day?" (They were, of course, hoping he would say "Yes," so they could arrest him!) 11This was his answer: "If you had just one sheep, and it fell into a well on the Sabbath, would you work to rescue it that day? Of course you would. 12And how much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Yes, it is right to do good on the Sabbath." 13Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your arm." And as he did, his hand became normal, just like the other one!

14Then the Pharisees called a meeting to plot Jesus' arrest and death. 15But he knew what they were planning, and left the synagogue, with many following him. He healed all the sick among them, 16but he cautioned them against spreading the news about his miracles. 17This fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah concerning him:

18"Look at my Servant.

See my Chosen One.

He is my Beloved, in whom my soul delights.

I will put my Spirit upon him,

And he will judge the nations.

19He does not fight nor shout;

He does not raise his voice!

20He does not crush the weak,

Or quench the smallest hope;

He will end all conflict with his final victory,

21And his name shall be the hope

Of all the world." Isaiah 42:1-4

22Then a demon-possessed man--he was both blind and unable to talk--was brought to Jesus, and Jesus healed him so that he could both speak and see. 23The crowd was amazed. "Maybe Jesus is the Messiah!" they exclaimed.

24But when the Pharisees heard about the miracle they said, "He can cast out demons because he is Satan, king of devils."

25Jesus knew their thoughts and replied, "A divided kingdom ends in ruin. A city or home divided against itself cannot stand. 26And if Satan is casting out Satan, he is fighting himself, and destroying his own kingdom. 27And if, as you claim, I am casting out demons by invoking the powers of Satan, then what power do your own people use when they cast them out? Let them answer your accusation! 28But if I am casting out demons by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you. 29One cannot rob Satan's kingdom without first binding Satan. Only then can his demons be cast out! 30Anyone who isn't helping me is harming me.

31,32"Even blasphemy against me or any other sin can be forgiven--all except one: speaking against the Holy Spirit shall never be forgiven, either in this world or in the world to come.

33"A tree is identified by its fruit. A tree from a select variety produces good fruit; poor varieties don't. 34You brood of snakes! How could evil men like you speak what is good and right? For a man's heart determines his speech. 35A good man's speech reveals the rich treasures within him. An evil hearted man is filled with venom, and his speech reveals it. 36And I tell you this, that you must give account on Judgment Day for every idle word you speak. 37Your words now reflect your fate then: either you will be justified by them or you will be condemned."

38One day some of the Jewish leaders, including some Pharisees, came to Jesus asking him to show them a miracle.

39,40But Jesus replied, "Only an evil, faithless nation would ask for further proof; and none will be given except what happened to Jonah the prophet! For as Jonah was in the great fish for three days and three nights, so I, the Messiah, shall be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights. 41The men of Nineveh shall arise against this nation at the judgment and condemn you. For when Jonah preached to them, they repented and turned to God from all their evil ways. And now a greater than Jonah is here--and you refuse to believe him. 42The Queen of Sheba shall rise against this nation in the judgment, and condemn it; for she came from a distant land to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and now a greater than Solomon is here--and you refuse to believe him.

43,44,45"This evil nation is like a man possessed by a demon. For if the demon leaves, it goes into the deserts for a while, seeking rest but finding none. Then it says, 'I will return to the man I came from.' So it returns and finds the man's heart clean but empty! Then the demon finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and all enter the man and live in him. And so he is worse off than before."

46,47As Jesus was speaking in a crowded house his mother and brothers were outside, wanting to talk with him. When someone told him they were there, 48he remarked, "Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?" 49He pointed to his disciples. "Look!" he said, "these are my mother and brothers." 50Then he added, "Anyone who obeys my Father in heaven is my brother, sister and mother!"

Chapter 13

Later that same day, Jesus left the house and went down to the shore, 2,3where an immense crowd soon gathered. He got into a boat and taught from it while the people listened on the beach. He used many illustrations such as this one in his sermon:

"A farmer was sowing grain in his fields. 4As he scattered the seed across the ground, some fell beside a path, and the birds came and ate it. 5And some fell on rocky soil where there was little depth of earth; the plants sprang up quickly enough in the shallow soil, 6but the hot sun soon scorched them and they withered and died, for they had so little root. 7Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns choked out the tender blades. 8But some fell on good soil, and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as he had planted. 9If you have ears, listen!"

10His disciples came and asked him, "Why do you always use these hard-to-understand illustrations?"

11Then he explained to them that only they were permitted to understand about the Kingdom of Heaven, and others were not.

12,13"For to him who has will more be given," he told them, "and he will have great plenty; but from him who has not, even the little he has will be taken away. That is why I use these illustrations, so people will hear and see but not understand.

14"This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah:

'They hear, but don't understand;

they look, but don't see!

15For their hearts are fat and heavy, and their ears are dull, and they have closed their eyes in sleep,

16so they won't see and hear and understand and turn to God again, and let me heal them.'

But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear. 17Many a prophet and godly man has longed to see what you have seen, and hear what you have heard, but couldn't.

18"Now here is the explanation of the story I told about the farmer planting grain: 19The hard path where some of the seeds fell represents the heart of a person who hears the Good News about the Kingdom and doesn't understand it; then Satan comes and snatches away the seeds from his heart. 20The shallow, rocky soil represents the heart of a man who hears the message and receives it with real joy, 21but he doesn't have much depth in his life, and the seeds don't root very deeply, and after a while when trouble comes, or persecution begins because of his beliefs, his enthusiasm fades, and he drops out. 22The ground covered with thistles represents a man who hears the message, but the cares of this life and his longing for money choke out God's Word, and he does less and less for God. 23The good ground represents the heart of a man who listens to the message and understands it and goes out and brings thirty, sixty, or even a hundred others into the Kingdom."

24Here is another illustration Jesus used: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer sowing good seed in his field; 25but one night as he slept, his enemy came and sowed thistles among the wheat. 26When the crop began to grow, the thistles grew too.

27"The farmer's men came and told him, 'Sir, the field where you planted that choice seed is full of thistles!'

28"'An enemy has done it,' he exclaimed.

"'Shall we pull out the thistles?' they asked.

29"'No,' he replied. 'You'll hurt the wheat if you do. 30Let both grow together until the harvest, and I will tell the reapers to sort out the thistles and burn them, and put the wheat in the barn.'" 31,32Here is another of his illustrations: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a tiny mustard seed planted in a field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but becomes the largest of plants, and grows into a tree where birds can come and find shelter."

33He also used this example:

"The Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a woman making bread. She takes a measure of flour and mixes in the yeast until it permeates every part of the dough."

34,35Jesus constantly used these illustrations when speaking to the crowds. In fact, because the prophets said that he would use so many, he never spoke to them without at least one illustration. For it had been prophesied, "I will talk in parables; I will explain mysteries hidden since the beginning of time." Psalm 78:2 36Then, leaving the crowds outside, he went into the house. His disciples asked him to explain to them the illustration of the thistles and the wheat.

37"All right," he said, "I am the farmer who sows the choice seed. 38The field is the world, and the seed represents the people of the Kingdom; the thistles are the people belonging to Satan. 39The enemy who sowed the thistles among the wheat is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world, and the reapers are the angels.

40"Just as in this story the thistles are separated and burned, so shall it be at the end of the world: 41I will send my angels and they will separate out of the Kingdom every temptation and all who are evil, 42and throw them into the furnace and burn them. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43Then the godly shall shine as the sun in their Father's Kingdom. Let those with ears, listen!

44"The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure a man discovered in a field. In his excitement, he sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field--and get the treasure, too!

45"Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a pearl merchant on the lookout for choice pearls. 46He discovered a real bargain--a pearl of great value--and sold everything he owned to purchase it!

47,48"Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by a fisherman--he casts a net into the water and gathers in fish of every kind, valuable and worthless. When the net is full, he drags it up onto the beach and sits down and sorts out the edible ones into crates and throws the others away. 49That is the way it will be at the end of the world--the angels will come and separate the wicked people from the godly, 50casting the wicked into the fire; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 51Do you understand?"

"Yes," they said, "we do."

52Then he added, "Those experts in Jewish law who are now my disciples have double treasures--from the Old Testament as well as from the New!"

53,54When Jesus had finished giving these illustrations, he returned to his home town, Nazareth in Galilee, and taught there in the synagogue and astonished everyone with his wisdom and his miracles.

55"How is this possible?" the people exclaimed. "He's just a carpenter's son, and we know Mary his mother and his brothers--James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas. 56And his sisters--they all live here. How can he be so great?" 57And they became angry with him!

Then Jesus told them, "A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own country, and among his own people!" 58And so he did only a few great miracles there, because of their unbelief.

Chapter 14

When King Herod heard about Jesus, 2he said to his men, "This must be John the Baptist, come back to life again. That is why he can do these miracles." 3For Herod had arrested John and chained him in prison at the demand of his wife Herodias, his brother Philip's ex-wife, 4because John had told him it was wrong for him to marry her. 5He would have killed John but was afraid of a riot, for all the people believed John was a prophet.

6But at a birthday party for Herod, Herodias' daughter performed a dance that greatly pleased him, 7so he vowed to give her anything she wanted. 8Consequently, at her mother's urging, the girl asked for John the Baptist's head on a tray.

9The king was grieved, but because of his oath, and because he didn't want to back down in front of his guests, he issued the necessary orders.

10So John was beheaded in the prison, 11and his head was brought on a tray and given to the girl, who took it to her mother.

12Then John's disciples came for his body and buried it, and came to tell Jesus what had happened.

13As soon as Jesus heard the news, he went off by himself in a boat to a remote area to be alone. But the crowds saw where he was headed, and followed by land from many villages.

14So when Jesus came out of the wilderness, a vast crowd was waiting for him and he pitied them and healed their sick.

15That evening the disciples came to him and said, "It is already past time for supper, and there is nothing to eat here in the desert; send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy some food."

16But Jesus replied, "That isn't necessary--you feed them!"

17"What!" they exclaimed. "We have exactly five small loaves of bread and two fish!"

18 "Bring them here," he said.

19Then he told the people to sit down on the grass; and he took the five loaves and two fish, looked up into the sky and asked God's blessing on the meal, then broke the loaves apart and gave them to the disciples to place before the people. 20And everyone ate until full! And when the scraps were picked up afterwards, there were twelve basketfuls left over! 21(About 5,000 men were in the crowd that day, besides all the women and children.) 22Immediately after this, Jesus told his disciples to get into their boat and cross to the other side of the lake while he stayed to get the people started home.

23,24Then afterwards he went up into the hills to pray. Night fell, and out on the lake the disciples were in trouble. For the wind had risen and they were fighting heavy seas.

25About four o'clock in the morning Jesus came to them, walking on the water! 26They screamed in terror, for they thought he was a ghost.

27But Jesus immediately spoke to them, reassuring them. "Don't be afraid!" he said.

28Then Peter called to him: "Sir, if it is really you, tell me to come over to you, walking on the water."

29"All right," the Lord said, "come along!"

So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. 30But when he looked around at the high waves, he was terrified and began to sink. "Save me, Lord!" he shouted.

31Instantly Jesus reached out his hand and rescued him. "O man of little faith," Jesus said. "Why did you doubt me?" 32And when they had climbed back into the boat, the wind stopped.

33The others sat there, awestruck. "You really are the Son of God!" they exclaimed.

34They landed at Gennesaret. 35The news of their arrival spread quickly throughout the city, and soon people were rushing around, telling everyone to bring in their sick to be healed. 36The sick begged him to let them touch even the tassel of his robe, and all who did were healed.

Chapter 15

Some Pharisees and other Jewish leaders now arrived from Jerusalem to interview Jesus.

2"Why do your disciples disobey the ancient Jewish traditions?" they demanded. "For they ignore our ritual of ceremonial handwashing before they eat." 3He replied, "And why do your traditions violate the direct commandments of God? 4For instance, God's law is 'Honor your father and mother; anyone who reviles his parents must die.' 5,6But you say, 'Even if your parents are in need, you may give their support money to the church instead.' And so, by your man-made rule, you nullify the direct command of God to honor and care for your parents. 7You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, 8'These people say they honor me, but their hearts are far away. 9Their worship is worthless, for they teach their man-made laws instead of those from God.'" Isaiah 29:13

10Then Jesus called to the crowds and said, "Listen to what I say and try to understand. 11You aren't made unholy by eating non-kosher food! It is what you say and think that makes you unclean."

12Then the disciples came and told him, "You offended the Pharisees by that remark."

13,14Jesus replied, "Every plant not planted by my Father shall be rooted up, so ignore them. They are blind guides leading the blind, and both will fall into a ditch."

15Then Peter asked Jesus to explain what he meant when he said that people are not defiled by non-kosher food.

16 "Don't you understand?" Jesus asked him. 17"Don't you see that anything you eat passes through the digestive tract and out again? 18But evil words come from an evil heart, and defile the man who says them. 19For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, lying and slander. 20These are what defile; but there is no spiritual defilement from eating without first going through the ritual of ceremonial handwashing!"

21Jesus then left that part of the country and walked the fifty miles to Tyre and Sidon.

22A woman from Canaan who was living there came to him, pleading, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, King David's Son! For my daughter has a demon within her, and it torments her constantly."

23But Jesus gave her no reply--not even a word. Then his disciples urged him to send her away. "Tell her to get going," they said, "for she is bothering us with all her begging."

24Then he said to the woman, "I was sent to help the Jews--the lost sheep of Israel--not the Gentiles."

25But she came and worshiped him and pled again, "Sir, help me!"

26 "It doesn't seem right to take bread from the children and throw it to the dogs," he said.

27"Yes, it is!" she replied, "for even the puppies beneath the table are permitted to eat the crumbs that fall."

28 "Woman," Jesus told her, "your faith is large, and your request is granted." And her daughter was healed right then.

29Jesus now returned to the Sea of Galilee, and climbed a hill and sat there. 30And a vast crowd brought him their lame, blind, maimed, and those who couldn't speak, and many others, and laid them before Jesus, and he healed them all. 31What a spectacle it was! Those who hadn't been able to say a word before were talking excitedly, and those with missing arms and legs had new ones; the crippled were walking and jumping around, and those who had been blind were gazing about them! The crowds just marveled, and praised the God of Israel.

32Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I pity these people--they've been here with me for three days now, and have nothing left to eat; I don't want to send them away hungry or they will faint along the road."

33The disciples replied, "And where would we get enough here in the desert for all this mob to eat?"

34Jesus asked them, "How much food do you have?" And they replied, "Seven loaves of bread and a few small fish!"

35Then Jesus told all of the people to sit down on the ground, 36and he took the seven loaves and the fish, and gave thanks to God for them, and divided them into pieces, and gave them to the disciples who presented them to the crowd. 37,38And everyone ate until full--4,000 men besides the women and children! And afterwards, when the scraps were picked up, there were seven basketfuls left over!

39Then Jesus sent the people home and got into the boat and crossed to Magadan.

Chapter 16

One day the Pharisees and Sadducees came to test Jesus' claim of being the Messiah by asking him to show them some great demonstrations in the skies.

2,3He replied, "You are good at reading the weather signs of the skies--red sky tonight means fair weather tomorrow; red sky in the morning means foul weather all day--but you can't read the obvious sings of the times! 4This evil, unbelieving nation is asking for some strange sign in the heavens, but no further proof will be given except the miracle that happened to Jonah." Then Jesus walked out on them.

5Arriving across the lake, the disciples discovered they had forgotten to bring any food.

6 "Watch out!" Jesus warned them; "beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees."

7They thought he was saying this because they had forgotten to bring bread.

8Jesus knew what they were thinking and told them, "O men of little faith! Why are you so worried about having no food? 9Won't you ever understand? Don't you remember at all the 5,000 I fed with five loaves, and the basketfuls left over? 10Don't you remember the 4,000 I fed, and all that was left? 11How could you even think I was talking about food? But again I say, 'Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.'"

12Then at last they understood that by "yeast" he meant the wrong teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

13When Jesus came to Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who are the people saying I am?"

14"Well," they replied, "some say John the Baptist; some, Elijah; some, Jeremiah or one of the other prophets."

15Then he asked them, "Who do you think I am?"

16Simon Peter answered, "The Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God."

17"God has blessed you, Simon, son of Johah," Jesus said, "for my Father in heaven has personally revealed this to you--this is not from any human source. 18You are Peter, a stone; and upon this rock I will build my church; and all the powers of hell shall not prevail against it. 19And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven; whatever doors you lock on earth shall be locked in heaven; and whatever doors you open on earth shall be open in heaven!"

20Then he warned the disciples against telling others that he was the Messiah.

21From then on Jesus began to speak plainly to his disciples about going to Jerusalem, and what would happen to him there--that he would suffer at the hands of the Jewish leaders, that he would be killed, and that three days later he would be raised to life again.

22But Peter took him aside to remonstrate with him. "Heaven forbid, sir," he said. "This is not going to happen to you!"

23Jesus turned on Peter and said, "Get away from me, you Satan! You are a dangerous trap to me. You are thinking merely from a human point of view, and not from God's."

24Then Jesus said to the disciples, "If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For anyone who keeps his life for himself shall lose it; and anyone who loses his life for me shall find it again. 26What profit is there if you gain the whole world--and lose eternal life? What can be compared with the value of eternal life? 27For I, the Son of Mankind, shall come with my angels in the glory of my Father and judge each person according to his deeds. 28And some of you standing right here now will certainly live to see me coming in my Kingdom."

Chapter 17

Six days later Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother John to the top of a high and lonely hill, 2and as they watched, his appearance changed so that his face shone like the sun and his clothing became dazzling white.

3Suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared and were talking with him. 4Peter blurted out, "Sir, it's wonderful that we can be here! If you want me to, I'll make three shelters, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah."

5But even as he said it, a bright cloud came over them, and a voice from the cloud said, " This is my beloved Son, and I am wonderfully pleased with him. Obey him."

6At this the disciples fell face downward to the ground, terribly frightened. 7Jesus came over and touched them. "Get up," he said, "don't be afraid."

8And when they looked, only Jesus was with them.

9As they were going down the mountain, Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone what they had seen until after he had risen from the dead.

10His disciples asked, "Why do the Jewish leaders insist Elijah must return before the Messiah comes?"

11Jesus replied, "They are right. Elijah must come and set everything in order. 12And, in fact, he has already come, but he wasn't recognized, and was badly mistreated by many. And I, the Messiah, shall also suffer at their hands."

13Then the disciples realized he was speaking of John the Baptist.

14When they arrived at the bottom of the hill, a huge crowd was waiting for them. A man came and knelt before Jesus and said, 15"Sir, have mercy on my son, for he is mentally deranged, and in great trouble, for he often falls into the fire or into the water; 16so I brought him to your disciples, but they couldn't cure him."

17Jesus replied, "Oh, you stubborn, faithless people! How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to me." 18Then Jesus rebuked the demon in the boy and it left him, and from that moment the boy was well.

19Afterwards the disciples asked Jesus privately, "Why couldn't we cast that demon out?"

20"Because of your little faith," Jesus told them. "For if you had faith even as small as a tiny mustard seed you could say to this mountain, 'Move!' and it would go far away. Nothing would be impossible. 21But this kind of demon won't leave unless you have prayed and gone without food."

22,23One day while they were still in Galilee, Jesus told them, "I am going to be betrayed into the power of those who will kill me, and on the third day afterwards I will be brought back to life again." And the disciples' hearts were filled with sorrow and dread.

24On their arrival in Capernaum, the Temple tax collectors came to Peter and asked him, "Doesn't your master pay taxes?"

25"Of course he does," Peter replied.

Then he went into the house to talk to Jesus about it, but before he had a chance to speak, Jesus asked him, "What do you think, Peter? Do kings levy assessments against their own people, or against conquered foreigners?"

26,27"Against the foreigners," Peter replied.

"Well, then," Jesus said, "the citizens are free! However, we don't want to offend them, so go down to the shore and throw in a line, and open the mouth of the first fish you catch. You will find a coin to cover the taxes for both of us; take it and pay them."

Chapter 18

About that time the disciples came to Jesus to ask which of them would be greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven!

2Jesus called a small child over to him and set the little fellow down among them, 3and said, "Unless you turn to God from your sins and become as little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. 4Therefore anyone who humbles himself as this little child, is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. 5And any of you who welcomes a little child like this because you are mine, is welcoming me and caring for me. 6But if any of you causes one of these little ones who trusts in me to lose his faith, it would be better for you to have a rock tied to your neck and be thrown into the sea.

7"Woe upon the world for all its evils. Temptation to do wrong is inevitable, but woe to the man who does the tempting. 8So if your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. Better to enter heaven crippled than to be in hell with both of your hands and feet. 9And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. Better to enter heaven with one eye than to be in hell with two.

10"Beware that you don't look down upon a single one of these little children. For I tell you that in heaven their angels have constant access to my Father. 11And I, the Messiah, came to save the lost.

12"If a man has a hundred sheep, and one wanders away and is lost, what will he do? Won't he leave the ninety-nine others and go out into the hills to search for the lost one? 13And if he finds it, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine others safe at home! 14Just so, it is not my Father's will that even one of these little ones should perish.

15"If a brother sins against you, go to him privately and confront him with his fault. If he listens and confesses it, you have won back a brother. 16But if not, then take one or two others with you and go back to him again, proving everything you say by these witnesses. 17If he still refuses to listen, then take your case to the church, and if the church's verdict favors you, but he won't accept it, then the church should excommunicate him. 18And I tell you this--whatever you bind on earth is bound in heaven, and whatever you free on earth will be freed in heaven.

19"I also tell you this--if two of you agree down here on earth concerning anything you ask for, my Father in heaven will do it for you. 20For where two or three gather together because they are mine, I will be right there among them."

21Then Peter came to him and asked, "Sir, how often should I forgive a brother who sins against me? Seven times?"

22"No!" Jesus replied, "seventy times seven!"

23"The Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date. 24In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him $10,000,000! 25He couldn't pay, so the king ordered him sold for the debt, also his wife and children and everything he had.

26"But the man fell down before the king, his face in the dust, and said, 'Oh, sir, be patient with me and I will pay it all.'

27"Then the king was filled with pity for him and released him and forgave his debt.

28"But when the man left the king, he went to a man who owed him $2,000 and grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.

29"Then man fell down before him and begged him to give him a little time. 'Be patient and I will pay it,' he pled.

30"But his creditor wouldn't wait. He had the man arrested and jailed until the debt would be paid in full.

31"Then the man's friends went to the king and told him what had happened. 32And the king called before him the man he had forgiven and said, 'You evil-hearted wretch! Here I forgave you all that tremendous debt, just because you asked me to-- 33shouldn't you have mercy on others, just as I had mercy on you?"

34"Then the angry king sent the man to the torture chamber until he had paid every last penny due. 35So shall my heavenly Father do to you if you refuse to truly forgive your brothers."

Chapter 19

After Jesus had finished this address, he left Galilee and circled back to Judea from across the Jordan River. 2Vast crowds followed him, and he healed their sick. 3Some Pharisees came to interview him, and tried to trap him into saying something that would ruin him.

"Do you permit divorce?" they asked.

4"Don't you read the Scriptures?" he replied. "In them it is written that at the beginning God created man and woman, 5,6and that a man should leave his father and mother, and be forever united to his wife. The two shall become one--no longer two, but one! And no man may divorce what God has joined together."

7"Then, why," they asked, "did Moses say a man may divorce his wife by merely writing her a letter of dismissal?"

8Jesus replied, "Moses did that in recognition of your hard and evil hearts, but it was not what God had originally intended. 9And I tell you this, that anyone who divorces his wife, except for fornication, and marries another, commits adultery."

10Jesus' disciples then said to him, "If that is how it is, it is better not to marry!"

11"Not everyone can accept this statement," Jesus said. "Only those whom God helps. 12Some are born without the ability to marry, and some are disabled by men, and some refuse to marry for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven. Let anyone who can, accept my statement."

13Little children were brought for Jesus to lay his hands on them and pray. But the disciples scolded those who brought them. "Don't bother him," they said.

14But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and don't prevent them. For of such is the Kingdom of Heaven." 15And he put his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left.

16Someone came to Jesus with this question: "Good master, what must I do to have eternal life?"

17"When you call me good you are calling me God," Jesus replied, "for God alone is truly good. But to answer your question, you can get to heaven if you keep the commandments."

18"Which ones?" the man asked.

And Jesus replied, "Don't kill, don't commit adultery, don't steal, don't lie, 19honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself!"

20"I've always obeyed every one of them," the youth replied. "What else must I do?"

21Jesus told him, "If you want to be perfect, go and sell everything you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." 22But when the young man heard this, he went away sadly, for he was very rich.

23Then Jesus said to his disciples, "It is almost impossible for a rich man to get into the Kingdom of Heaven. 24I say it again--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!"

25This remark confounded the disciples. "Then who in the world can be saved?" they asked.

26Jesus looked at them intently and said, "Humanly speaking, no one. But with God, everything is possible."

27Then Peter said to him, "We left everything to follow you. What will we get out of it?"

28And Jesus replied, "When I, the Messiah, shall sit upon my glorious throne in the Kingdom, you my disciples shall certainly sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29And anyone who gives up his home, brothers, sisters, father, mother, wife, children, or property, to follow me, shall receive a hundred times as much in return, and shall have eternal life. 30But many who are first now will be last then; and some who are last now will be first then."

Chapter 20

Here is another illustration of the Kingdom of Heaven. "The owner of an estate went out early one morning to hire workers for his harvest field. 2He agreed to pay them $20 a day and sent them out to work.

3"A couple of hours later he was passing a hiring hall and saw some men standing around waiting for jobs, 4so he sent them also into his fields, telling them he would pay them whatever was right at the end of the day. 5At noon and again around three o'clock in the afternoon he did the same thing.

6"At five o'clock that evening he was in town again and saw some more men standing around and asked them, 'Why haven't you been working today?'

7"'Because no one hired us.' they replied.

"'Then go on out and join the others in my fields,' he told them.

8"That evening he told the paymaster to call the men in and pay them, beginning with the last men first. 9When the men hired at five o'clock were paid, each received $20. 10So when the men hired earlier came to get theirs, they assumed they would receive much more. But they, too, were paid $20.

11,12"They protested. 'Those fellows worked only one hour, and yet you've paid them just as much as those of us who worked all day in the scorching heat.'

13"'Friend,' he answered one of them, 'I did you no wrong! Didn't you agree to work all day for $20? 14Take it and go. It is my desire to pay all the same; 15is it against the law to give away my money if I want to? Should you be angry because I am kind?' 16And so it is that the last shall be first, and the first, last."

17As Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, 18and talked to them about what would happen to him when they arrived.

"I will be betrayed to the chief priests and other Jewish leaders, and they will condemn me to die. 19And they will hand me over to the Roman government, and I will be mocked and crucified, and the third day I will rise to life again."

20Then the mother of James and John, the sons of Zebedee, brought them to Jesus and respectfully asked a favor.

21 "What is your request?" he asked. She replied, "In your Kingdom, will you let my two sons sit on two thrones next to yours?"

22But Jesus told her, "You don't know what you are asking!" Then he turned to James and John and asked them, "Are you able to drink from the terrible cup I am about to drink from?"

"Yes," they replied, "we are able!"

23"You shall indeed drink from it," he told them. "But I have no right to say who will sit on the thrones next to mine. Those places are reserved for the persons my Father selects."

24The other ten disciples were indignant when they heard what James and John had asked for.

25But Jesus called them together and said, "Among the heathen, kings are tyrants and each minor official lords it over those beneath him. 26But among you it is quite different. Anyone wanting to be a leader among you must be your servant. 27And if you want to be right at the top, you must serve like a slave. 28Your attitude must be like my own, for I, the Messiah, did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give my life as a ransom for many."

29As Jesus and the disciples left the city of Jericho, a vast crowd surged along behind.

30Two blind men were sitting beside the road and when they heard that Jesus was coming that way, they began shouting, "Sir, King David's Son, have mercy on us!"

31The crowd told them to be quiet, but they only yelled the louder.

32,33When Jesus came to the place where they were he stopped in the road and called, "What do you want me to do for you?"

"Sir," they said, "we want to see!"

34Jesus was moved with pity for them and touched their eyes. And instantly they could see, and followed him.

Chapter 21

As Jesus and the disciples approached Jerusalem, and were near the town of Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of them into the village ahead.

2"Just as you enter," he said, "you will see a donkey tied there, with its colt beside it. Untie them and bring them here. 3If anyone asks you what you are doing, just say, 'The Master needs them,' and there will be no trouble."

4This was done to fulfill the ancient prophecy, 5"Tell Jerusalem her King is coming to her, riding humbly on a donkey's colt!"

6The two disciples did as Jesus said, 7and brought the animals to him and threw their garments over the colt for him to ride on. 8And some in the crowd threw down their coats along the road ahead of him, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them out before him.

9Then the crowds surged on ahead and pressed along behind, shouting, "God bless King David's Son!" . . . "God's Man is here! . . . Bless him, Lord!" . . . "Praise God in highest heaven!"

10The entire city of Jerusalem was stirred as he entered. "Who is this?" they asked.

11And the crowds replied, "It's Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth up in Galilee."

12Jesus went into the Temple, drove out the merchants, and knocked over the money-changers' tables and the stalls of those selling doves.

13"The Scriptures say my Temple is a place of prayer," he declared, "but you have turned it into a den of thieves."

14And now the blind and crippled came to him and he healed them there in the Temple. 15But when the chief priests and other Jewish leaders saw these wonderful miracles, and heard even the little children in the Temple shouting, "God bless the Son of David," they were disturbed and indignant and asked him, "Do you hear what these children are saying?"

16"Yes," Jesus replied. "Didn't you ever read the Scriptures? For they say, 'Even little babies shall praise him!'"

17Then he returned to Bethany, where he stayed overnight.

18In the morning, as he was returning to Jerusalem, he was hungry, 19and noticed a fig tree beside the road. He went over to see if there were any figs, but there were only leaves. Then he said to it, "Never bear fruit again!" And soon the fig tree withered up.

20The disciples were utterly amazed and asked, "How did the fig tree wither so quickly?"

21Then Jesus told them, "Truly, if you have faith, and don't doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this Mount of Olives, 'Move over into the ocean,' and it will. 22You can get anything-- anything you ask for in prayer--if you believe."

23When he had returned to the Temple and was teaching, the chief priests and other Jewish leaders came up to him and demanded to know by whose authority he had thrown out the merchants the day before.

24"I'll tell you if you answer one question first," Jesus replied. 25"Was John the Baptist sent from God, or not?"

They talked it over among themselves. "If we say, 'From God,'" they said, "then he will ask why we didn't believe what John said. 26And if we deny that God sent him, we'll be mobbed, for the crowd all think he was a prophet." 27So they finally replied, "We don't know!"

And Jesus said, "Then I won't answer your question either."

25"But what do you think about this? A man with two sons told the older boy, 'Son, go out and work on the farm today.' 29'I won't,' he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. 30Then the father told the youngest, 'You go!' and he said, 'Yes, sir, I will.' But he didn't. 31Which of the two was obeying his father?"

They replied, "The first, of course."

Then Jesus explained his meaning: "Surely evil men and prostitutes will get into the Kingdom before you do. 32For John the Baptist told you to repent and turn to God, and you wouldn't, while very evil men and prostitutes did. And even when you saw this happening, you refused to repent, and so you couldn't believe."

33"Now listen to this story: A certain landowner planted a vineyard with a hedge around it, and built a platform for the watchman, then leased the vineyard to some farmers on a sharecrop basis, and went away to live in another country.

34"At the time of the grape harvest he sent his agents to the farmers to collect his share. 35But the farmers attacked his men, beat one, killed one and stoned another.

36"Then he sent a larger group of his men to collect for him, but the results were the same. 37Finally the owner sent his son, thinking they would surely respect him.

38"But when these farmers saw the son coming they said among themselves, 'Here comes the heir to this estate; come on, let's kill him and get it for ourselves!' 39So they dragged him out of the vineyard and killed him.

40"When the owner returns, what do you think he will do to those farmers?"

41The Jewish leaders replied, "He will put the wicked men to a horrible death, and lease the vineyard to others who will pay him promptly."

42Then Jesus asked them, "Didn't you ever read in the Scriptures: 'The stone rejected by the builders has been made the honored cornerstone; how remarkable! what an amazing thing the Lord has done'?

43"What I mean is that the Kingdom of God shall be taken away from you, and given to a nation that will give God his share of the crop. 44All who stumble on this rock of truth shall be broken, but those it falls on will be scattered as dust."

45When the chief priests and other Jewish leaders realized that Jesus was talking about them--that they were the farmers in his story-- 46they wanted to get rid of him, but were afraid to try because of the crowds, for they accepted Jesus as a prophet.

Chapter 22

Jesus told several other stories to show what the Kingdom of Heaven is like.

"For instance," he said, "it can be illustrated by the story of a king who prepared a great wedding dinner for his son. 3Many guests were invited, and when the banquet was ready he sent messengers to notify everyone that it was time to come. But all refused! 4So he sent other servants to tell them, 'Everything is ready and the roast is in the oven. Hurry!'

5"But the guests he had invited merely laughed and went on about their business, one to his farm, another to his store; 6others beat up his messengers and treated them shamefully, even killing some of them.

7"Then the angry king sent out his army and destroyed the murderers and burned their city. 8And he said to his servants, 'The wedding feast is ready, and the guests I invited aren't worthy of the honor. 9Now go out to the street corners and invite everyone you see.'

10"So the servants did, and brought in all they could find, good and bad alike; and the banquet hall was filled with guests. 11But when the king came in to meet the guests he noticed a man who wasn't wearing the wedding robe [provided for him].

12"'Friend,' he asked, 'how does it happen that you are here without a wedding robe?' And the man had no reply.

13"Then the king said to his aides, 'Bind him hand and foot and throw him out into the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14For many are called, but few are chosen."

15Then the Pharisees met together to try to think of some way to trap Jesus into saying something for which they could arrest him. 16They decided to send some of their men along with the Herodians to ask him this question: "Sir, we know you are very honest and teach the truth regardless of the consequences, without fear or favor. 17Now tell us, is it right to pay taxes to the Roman government or not?"

18But Jesus saw what they were after. "You hypocrites!" he exclaimed. "Who are you trying to fool with your trick questions? 19Here, show me a coin." And they handed him a penny.

20"Whose picture is stamped on it?" he asked them. "And whose name is this beneath the picture?"

21"Caesar's," they replied.

"Well, then," he said, "give it to Caesar if it is his, and give God everything that belongs to God."

22His reply surprised and baffled them and they went away.

23But that same day some of the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection after death, came to him and asked, 24"Sir, Moses said that if a man died without children, his brother should marry the widow and their children would get all the dead man's property. 25Well, we had among us a family of seven brothers. The first of these men married and then died, without children, so his widow became the second brother's wife. 26This brother also died without children, and the wife was passed to the next brother, and so on until she had been the wife of each of them. 27And then she also died. 28So whose wife will she be in the resurrection? For she was the wife of all seven of them!"

29But Jesus said, "Your error is caused by your ignorance of the Scriptures and of God's power! 30For in the resurrection there is no marriage; everyone is as the angels in heaven. 31But now, as to whether there is a resurrection of the dead--don't you ever read the Scriptures? Don't you realize that God was speaking directly to you when he said, 32'I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob'? So God is not the God of the dead, but of the living."

33The crowds were profoundly impressed by his answers-- 34,35but not the Pharisees! When they heard that he had routed the Sadducees with his reply, they thought up a fresh question of their own to ask him.

One of them, a lawyer, spoke up: 36"Sir, which is the most important command in the laws of Moses?"

37Jesus replied, "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.' 38,39This is the first and greatest commandment. The second most important is similar: 'Love your neighbor as much as you love yourself.' 40All the other commandments and all the demands of the prophets stem from these two laws and are fulfilled if you obey them. Keep only these and you will find that you are obeying all the others."

41Then, surrounded by the Pharisees, he asked them a question: 42 "What about the Messiah? Whose son is he?" "The son of David," they replied.

43"Then why does David, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, call him 'Lord'?" Jesus asked. "For David said,

44'God said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies beneath your feet.'

45Since David called him 'Lord,' how can he be merely his son?"

46They had no answer. And after that no one dared ask him any more questions.

Chapter 23

Then Jesus said to the crowds, and to his disciples, 2 "You would think these Jewish leaders and these Pharisees were Moses, the way they keep making up so many laws! 3And of course you should obey their every whim! It may be all right to do what they say, but above anything else, don't follow their example. For they don't do what they tell you to do. 4They load you with impossible demands that they themselves don't even try to keep.

5"Everything they do is done for show. They act holy by wearing on their arms little prayer boxes with Scripture verses inside, and by lengthening the memorial fringes of their robes. 6And how they love to sit at the head table at banquets, and in the reserved pews in the synagogue! 7How they enjoy the deference paid them on the streets, and to be called 'Rabbi' and 'Master'! 8Don't ever let anyone call you that. For only God is your Rabbi and all of you are on the same level, as brothers. 9And don't address anyone here on earth as 'Father,' for only God in heaven should be addressed like that. 10And don't be called 'Master,' for only one is your master, even the Messiah.

11"The more lowly your service to others, the greater you are. To be the greatest, be a servant. 12But those who think themselves great shall be disappointed and humbled; and those who humble themselves shall be exalted.

13,14"Woe to you. Pharisees, and you other religious leaders. Hypocrites! For you won't let others enter the Kingdom of Heaven, and won't go in yourselves. And you pretend to be holy, with all your long, public prayers in the streets, while you are evicting widows from their homes. Hypocrites! 15Yes, woe upon you hypocrites. For you go to all lengths to make one convert, and then turn him into twice the son of hell you are yourselves. 16Blind guides! Woe upon you! For your rule is that to swear 'By God's Temple' means nothing--you can break that oath, but to swear 'By the gold in the Temple' is binding! 17Blind fools! Which is greater, the gold, or the Temple that sanctifies the gold? 18And you say that to take an oath 'By the altar' can be broken, but to swear 'By the gifts on the altar' is binding! 19Blind! For which is greater, the gift on the altar, or the altar itself that sanctifies the gift? 20When you swear 'By the altar' you are swearing by it and everything on it, 21and when you swear 'By the Temple' you are swearing by it, and by God who lives in it. 22And when you swear 'By heavens' you are swearing by the Throne of God and by God himself.

23"Yes, woe upon you, Pharisees, and you other religious leaders--hypocrites! For you tithe down to the last mint leaf in your garden, but ignore the important things--justice and mercy and faith. Yes, you should tithe, but you shouldn't leave the more important things undone. 24Blind guides! You strain out a gnat and swallow a camel.

25"Woe to you, Pharisees, and you religious leaders--hypocrites! You are so careful to polish the outside of the cup, but the inside is foul with extortion and greed. 26Blind Pharisees! First cleanse the inside of the cup, and then the whole cup will be clean.

27"Woe to you, Pharisees, and you religious leaders! You are like beautiful mausoleums--full of dead men's bones, and of foulness and corruption. 28You try to look like saintly men, but underneath those pious robes of yours are hearts besmirched with every sort of hypocrisy and sin.

29,30"Yes, woe to you, Pharisees, and you religious leaders--hypocrites! For you build monuments to the prophets killed by your fathers and lay flowers on the graves of the godly men they destroyed, and say, 'We certainly would never have acted as our fathers did.'

31"In saying that, you are accusing yourselves of being the sons of wicked men. 32And you are following in their steps, filling up the full measure of their evil. 33Snakes! Sons of vipers! How shall you escape the judgment of hell?

34"I will send you prophets, and wise men, and inspired writers, and you will kill some by crucifixion, and rip open the backs of others with whips in your synagogues, and hound them from city to city, 35so that you will become guilty of all the blood of murdered godly men from righteous Abel to Zechariah (son of Barachiah), slain by you in the Temple between the altar and the sanctuary. 36Yes, all the accumulated judgment of the centuries shall break upon the heads of this very generation.

37"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets, and stones all those God sends to her! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn't let me. 38And now your house is left to you, desolate. 39For I tell you this, you will never see me again until you are ready to welcome the one sent to you from God.

Chapter 24

As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples came along and wanted to take him on a tour of the various Temple buildings.

2But he told them, "All these buildings will be knocked down, with not one stone left on top of another!"

3"When will this happen?" the disciples asked him later, as he sat on the slopes of the Mount of Olives. "What events will signal your return, and the end of the world?"

4Jesus told them, "Don't let anyone fool you. 5For many will come claiming to be the Messiah, and will lead many astray. 6When you hear of wars beginning, this does not signal my return; these must come, but the end is not yet. 7The nations and kingdoms of the earth will rise against each other and there will be famines and earthquakes in many places. 8But all this will be only the beginning of the horrors to come.

9"Then you will be tortured and killed and hated all over the world because you are mine, 10and many of you shall fall back into sin and betray and hate each other. 11And many false prophets will appear and lead many astray. 12Sin will be rampant everywhere and will cool the love of many. 13But those enduring to the end shall be saved.

14"And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it, and then, finally, the end will come.

15"So, when you see the horrible thing (told about by Daniel Daniel 9:27,11:31,12:11 the prophet) standing in a holy place (Let the reader take note.), 16 then those in Judea must flee into the Judean hills. 17Those on their porches must not even go inside to pack before they flee. 18Those in the fields should not return to their homes for their clothes.

19"And woe to pregnant women and to those with babies in those days. 20And pray that your flight will not be in winter, or on the Sabbath. 21For there will be persecution such as the world has never before seen in all its history, and will never see again.

22"In fact, unless those days are shortened, all mankind will perish. But they will be shortened for the sake of God's chosen people.

23"Then if anyone tells you, 'The Messiah has arrived at such and such a place, or has appeared here or there,' don't believe it. 24For false Christs shall arise, and false prophets, and will do wonderful miracles, so that if it were possible, even God's chosen ones would be deceived. 25See, I have warned you.

26"So if someone tells you the Messiah has returned and is out in the desert, don't bother to go and look. Or, that he is hiding at a certain place, don't believe it! 27For as the lightning flashes across the sky from east to west, so shall my coming be, when I, the Messiah, return. 28And wherever the carcass is, there the vultures will gather.

29"Immediately after the persecution of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give light, and the stars will seem to fall from the heavens, and the powers overshadowing the earth will be convulsed. Ephesians 6:12

30"And then at last the signal of my coming will appear in the heavens and there will be deep mourning all around the earth. And the nations of the world will see me arrive in the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. 31And I shall send forth my angels with the sound of a mighty trumpet blast, and they shall gather my chosen ones from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.

32"Now learn a lesson from the fig tree. When her branch is tender and the leaves begin to sprout, you know that summer is almost here. 33Just so, when you see all these things beginning to happen, you can know that my return is near, even at the doors. 34Then at last this age will come to its close.

35"Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words remain forever. 36But no one knows the date and hour when the end will be--not even the angels. No, nor even God's Son. Only the Father knows.

37,38"The world will be at ease--banquets and parties and weddings--just as it was in Noah's time before the sudden coming of the flood; 39people wouldn't believe what was going to happen until the flood actually arrived and took them all away. So shall my coming be.

40"Two men will be working together in the fields, and one will be taken, the other left. 41Two women will be going about their household tasks; one will be taken, the other left.

42"So be prepared, for you don't know what day your Lord is coming.

43"Just as a man can prevent trouble from thieves by keeping watch for them, 44so you can avoid trouble by always being ready for my unannounced return.

45"Are you a wise and faithful servant of the Lord? Have I given you the task of managing my household, to feed my children day by day? 46Blessings on you if I return and find you faithfully doing your work. 47I will put such faithful ones in charge of everything I own!

48"But if you are evil and say to yourself, 'My Lord won't be coming for a while,' 49and begin oppressing your fellow servants, partying and getting drunk, 50your Lord will arrive unannounced and unexpected, 51and severely whip you and send you off to the judgment of the hypocrites; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Chapter 25

"The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2,3,4But only five of them were wise enough to fill their lamps with oil, while the other five were foolish and forgot.

5,6"So, when the bridegroom was delayed, they lay down to rest until midnight, when they were roused by the shout, 'The bridegroom is coming! Come out and welcome him!

7,8"All the girls jumped up and trimmed their lamps. Then the five who hadn't any oil begged the others to share with them, for their lamps were going out.

9"But the others replied, 'We haven't enough. Go instead to the shops and buy some for yourselves.'

10"But while they were gone, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked.

11"Later, when the other five returned, they stood outside, calling, 'Sir, open the door for us!'

12"But he called back, 'Go away! It is too late!'

13"So stay awake and be prepared, for you do not know the date or moment of my return.

14"Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going into another country, who called together his servants and loaned them money to invest for him while he was gone.

15"He gave $5,000 to one, $2,000 to another, and $1,000 to the last--dividing it in proportion to their abilities--and then left on his trip. 16The man who received the $5,000 began immediately to buy and sell with it and soon earned another $5,000. 17The man with $2,000 went right to work, too, and earned another $2,000.

18"But the man who received the $1,000 dug a hole in the ground and hid the money for safekeeping.

19"After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to him to account for his money. 20The man to whom he had entrusted the $5,000 brought him $10,000.

21"His master praised him for good work. 'You have been faithful in handling this small amount,' he told him, 'so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Begin the joyous tasks I have assigned to you.'

22"Next came the man who had received the $2,000, with the report, 'Sir, you gave me $2,000 to use, and I have doubled it.'

23"'Good work,' his master said. 'You are a good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over this small amount, so now I will give you much more.'

24,25"Then the man with the $1,000 came and said, 'Sir, I knew you were a hard man, and I was afraid you would rob me of what I earned, so I hid your money in the earth and here it is!'

26"But his master replied, 'Wicked man! Lazy slave! Since you knew I would demand your profit, 27you should at least have put my money into the bank so I could have some interest. 28Take the money from this man and give it to the man with the $10,000. 29For the man who uses well what he is given shall be given more, and he shall have abundance. But from the man who is unfaithful, even what little responsibility he has shall be taken from him. 30And throw the useless servant out into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'

31"But when I, the Messiah, shall come in my glory, and all the angels with me, then I shall sit upon my throne of glory. 32And all the nations shall be gathered before me. And I will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, 33and place the sheep at my right hand, and the goats at my left.

34"Then I, the King, shall say to those at my right, 'Come blessed of my Father, into the Kingdom prepared for you from the founding of the world. 35For I was hungry and you fed me; I was thirsty and you gave me water; I was a stranger and you invited me into your homes; 36naked and you clothed me; sick and in prison, and you visited me.'

37"Then these righteous ones will reply, 'Sir, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you anything to drink? 38Or a stranger, and help you? Or naked, and clothe you? 39When did we ever see you sick, or in prison, and visit you?'

40"And I, the King, will tell them, 'When you did it to these my brothers you were doing it to me!' 41Then I will turn to those on my left and say, 'Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42For I was hungry and you wouldn't feed me; thirsty, and you wouldn't give me anything to drink; 43a stranger, and you refused me hospitality; naked, and you wouldn't clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn't visit me.'

44"Then they will reply, 'Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?'

45"And I will answer, 'When you refused to help the least of these my brothers, you were refusing help to me.'

46"And they shall go away into eternal punishment; but the righteous into everlasting life."

Chapter 26

When Jesus had finished his talk with his disciples, he told them,

2"As you know, the Passover celebration begins in two days, and I shall be betrayed and crucified."

3At that very moment the chief priests and other Jewish officials were meeting at the residence of Caiaphas the High Priest, 4to discuss ways of capturing Jesus quickly, and killing him. 5"But not during the Passover celebration," they agreed, "for there would be a riot."

6Jesus now proceeded to Bethany, to the home of Simon the leper. 7While he was eating, a woman came in with a bottle of very expensive perfume, and poured it over his head.

7,8The disciples were indignant. "What a waste of good money," they said. "Why, she could have sold it for a fortune and given it to the poor."

10Jesus knew what they were thinking, and said, "Why are you criticizing her? For she has done a good thing to me. 11You will always have the poor among you, but you won't always have me. 12She has poured this perfume on me to prepare my body for burial. 13And she will always be remembered for this deed. The story of what she has done will be told throughout the whole world, wherever the Good News is preached."

14Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve apostles, went to the chief priests, 15and asked, "How much will you pay me to get Jesus into your hands?" And they gave him thirty silver coins. 16From that time on, Judas watched for an opportunity to betray Jesus to them.

17On the first day of the Passover ceremonies, when bread made with yeast was purged from every Jewish home, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Where shall we plan to eat the Passover?"

18He replied, "Go into the city and see Mr. So-and-So, and tell him, 'Our Master says, my time has come, and I will eat the Passover meal with my disciples at your house.'" 19So the disciples did as he told them, and prepared the supper there.

20,21That evening as he sat eating with the Twelve, he said, "One of you will betray me."

22Sorrow chilled their hearts, and each one asked, "Am I the one?"

23He replied, "It is the one I served first. 24For I must die just as was prophesied, but woe to the man by whom I am betrayed. Far better for that one if he had never been born."

25Judas, too, had asked him, "Rabbi, am I the one?" And Jesus had told him, "Yes."

26As they were eating, Jesus took a small loaf of bread and blessed it and broke it apart and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take it and eat it, for this is my body."

27And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks for it and gave it to them and said, "Each one drink from it, 28for this is my blood, sealing the New Covenant. It is poured out to forgive the sins of multitudes. 29Mark my words--I will not drink this wine again until the day I drink it new with you in my Father's Kingdom."

30And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

31Then Jesus said to them, "Tonight you will all desert me. For it is written in the Scriptures Zechariah 13:7 that God will smite the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered. 29But after I have been brought back to life again I will go to Galilee, and meet you there."

33Peter declared, "If everyone else deserts you, I won't."

34Jesus told him, "The truth is that this very night, before the cock crows at dawn, you will deny me three times!"

35"I would die first!" Peter insisted. And all the other disciples said the same thing.

36Then Jesus brought them to a garden grove, Gethsemane, and told them to sit down and wait while he went on ahead to pray. 37He took Peter with him and Zebedee's two sons James and John, and began to be filled with anguish and despair.

38Then he told them, "My soul is crushed with horror and sadness to the point of death . . . stay here . . . stay awake with me."

39He went forward a little, and fell face downward on the ground, and prayed, "My Father! If it is possible, let this cup be taken away from me. But I want your will, not mine."

40Then he returned to the three disciples, and found them asleep. "Peter," he called, "couldn't you even stay awake with me one hour? 41Keep alert and pray. Otherwise temptation will overpower you. For the spirit indeed is willing, but how weak the body is!"

42Again he left them and prayed, "My Father! If this cup cannot go away until I drink it all, your will be done."

43He returned to them again and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy, 44so he went back to prayer the third time, saying the same things again.

45Then he came to the disciples and said, "Sleep on now and take your rest . . . but no! The time has come! I am betrayed into the hands of evil men! 46Up! Let's be going! Look! Here comes the man who is betraying me!"

47At that very moment while he was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived with a great crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent by the Jewish leaders. 48Judas had told them to arrest the man he greeted, for that would be the one they were after. 49So now Judas came straight to Jesus and said, "Hello, Master!" and embraced him in friendly fashion.

50Jesus said, "My friend, go ahead and do what you have come for." Then the others grabbed him.

51One of the men with Jesus pulled out a sword and slashed off the ear of the High Priest's servant.

52"Put away your sword," Jesus told him. "Those using swords will get killed. 53Don't you realized that could ask my Father for thousands of angels to protect us, and he would send them instantly? 54But if I did, how would the Scriptures be fulfilled that describe what is happening now?" 55Then Jesus spoke to the crowd. "Am I some dangerous criminal," he asked, "that you had to arm yourselves with swords and clubs before you could arrest me? I was with you teaching daily in the Temple and you didn't stop me then. 56But this is all happening to fulfill the words of the prophets as recorded in the Scriptures."

At that point, all the disciples deserted him and fled.

57Then the mob led him to the home of Caiaphas the High Priest, where all the Jewish leaders were gathering. 58Meanwhile, Peter was following far to the rear, and came to the courtyard of the High Priest's house and went in and sat with the soldiers, and waited to see what was going to be done to Jesus.

59The chief priests and, in fact, the entire Jewish Supreme Court assembled there and looked for witnesses who would lie about Jesus, in order to build a case against him that would result in a death sentence. 60,61But even though they found many who agreed to be false witnesses, these always contradicted each other.

Finally two men were found who declared, "This man said, 'I am able to destroy the Temple of God and rebuild it in three days.'"

62Then the High Priest stood up and said to Jesus, "Well, what about it? Did you say that, or didn't you?" 63But Jesus remained silent.

Then the High Priest said to him, "I demand in the name of the living God that you tell us whether you claim to be the Messiah, the Son of God."

64"Yes," Jesus said, "I am. And in the future you will see me, the Messiah, sitting at the right hand of God and returning on the clouds of heaven."

65,66Then the High Priest tore at his own clothing, shouting, "Blasphemy! What need have we for other witnesses? You have all heard him say it! What is your verdict?"

They shouted, "Death!--Death!--Death!"

67Then they spat in his face and struck him and some slapped him, 68saying, "Prophesy to us, you Messiah! Who struck you that time?"

69Meanwhile, as Peter was sitting in the courtyard a girl came over and said to him, "You were with Jesus, for both of you are from Galilee."

70But Peter denied it loudly. "I don't even know what you are talking about," he angrily declared.

71Later, out by the gate, another girl noticed him and said to those standing around, "This man was with Jesus--form Nazareth."

72Again Peter denied it, this time with an oath. "I don't even know the man," he said.

73But after a while the men who had been standing there came over to him and said, "We know you are one of his disciples, for we can tell by your Galilean accent."

74Peter began to curse and swear. "I don't even know the man," he said.

And immediately the cock crowed. 75Then Peter remembered what Jesus had said, "Before the cock crows, you will deny me three times." And he went away, crying bitterly.

Chapter 27

When it was morning, the chief priests and Jewish leaders met again to discuss how to induce the Roman government to sentence Jesus to death. 2Then they sent him in chains to Pilate, the Roman governor.

3About that time Judas, who betrayed him, when he saw that Jesus had been condemned to die, changed his mind and deeply regretted what he had done, and brought back the money to the chief priests and other Jewish leaders.

4"I have sinned," he declared, "for I have betrayed an innocent man."

"That's your problem," they retorted.

5Then he threw the money onto the floor of the Temple and went out and hanged himself. 6The chief priests picked the money up. "We can't put it in the collection," they said, "since it's against our laws to accept money paid for murder."

7They talked it over and finally decided to buy a certain field where the clay was used by potters, and to make it into a cemetery for foreigners who died in Jerusalem. 8That is why the cemetery is still called "The Field of Blood."

9This fulfilled the prophecy of Jeremiah which says,

"They took the thirty pieces of silver--the price at which he was valued by the people of Israel-- 10and purchased a field from the potters as the Lord directed me."

11Now Jesus was standing before Pilate, the Roman governor. "Are you the Jews' Messiah?" the governor asked him.

"Yes," Jesus replied.

12But when the chief priests and other Jewish leaders made their many accusations against him, Jesus remained silent.

13"Don't you hear what they are saying?" Pilate demanded.

14But Jesus said nothing much to the governor's surprise.

15Now the governor's custom was to release one Jewish prisoner each year during the Passover celebration--anyone they wanted. 16This year there was a particularly notorious criminal in jail named Barabbas, 17and as the crowds gathered before Pilate's house that morning he asked them, "Which shall I release to you--Barabbas, or Jesus your Messiah?" 18For he knew very well that the Jewish leaders had arrested Jesus out of envy because of his popularity with the people.

19Just then, as he was presiding over the court, Pilate's wife sent him this message: "Leave that good man alone; for I had a terrible nightmare concerning him last night."

20Meanwhile the chief priests and Jewish officials persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas' release, and for Jesus' death. 21So when the governor asked again, "Which of these two shall I release to you?" the crowd shouted back their reply: "Barabbas!"

22"Then what shall I do with Jesus, your Messiah?" Pilate asked.

And they shouted, "Crucify him!"

23"Why?" Pilate demanded. "What has he done wrong?" But they kept shouting, "Crucify! Crucify!"

24When Pilate saw that he wasn't getting anywhere, and that a riot was developing, he sent for a bowl of water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, "I am innocent of the blood of this good man. The responsibility is yours!"

25And the mob yelled back, "His blood be on us and on our children!"

26Then Pilate released Barabbas to them. And after he had whipped Jesus, he gave him to the Roman soldiers to take away and crucify. 27But first they took him into the armory and called out the entire contingent. 28They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29and made a crown from long thorns and put it on his head, and placed a stick in his right hand as a scepter and knelt before him in mockery. "Hail, King of the Jews," they yelled. 30And they spat on him and grabbed the stick and beat him on the head with it.

31After the mockery, they took off the robe and put his own garment on him again, and took him out to crucify him. 32As they were on the way to the execution grounds they came across a man from Cyrene, in Africa--Simon was his name--and forced him to carry Jesus' cross. 33Then they went out to an area known as Golgotha, that is, "Skull Hill," 34where the soldiers gave him drugged wine to drink; but when he had tasted it, he refused.

35After the crucifixion, the soldiers threw dice to divide up his clothes among themselves. 36Then they sat around and watched him as he hung there. 37And they put a sign above his head, "This is Jesus, the King of the Jews."

38Two robbers were also crucified there that morning, one on either side of him. 39And the people passing by hurled abuse, shaking their heads at him and saying, 40"So! You can destroy the Temple and build it again in three days, can you? Well, then, come on down from the cross if you are the Son of God!"

41,42,43And the chief priests and Jewish leaders also mocked him, "He saved others," they scoffed, "but he can't save himself! So you are the King of Israel, are you? Come down from the cross and we'll believe you! He trusted God--let God show his approval by delivering him! Didn't he say, 'I am God's Son'?"

44And the robbers also threw the same in his teeth.

45That afternoon, the whole earth was covered with darkness for three hours, from noon until three o'clock.

46About three o'clock, Jesus shouted, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani," which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

47Some of the bystanders misunderstood and thought he was calling for Elijah. 48One of them ran and filled a sponge with sour wine and put it on a stick and held it up to him to drink. 49But the rest said, "Leave him alone. Let's see whether Elijah will come and save him."

50Then Jesus shouted out again, dismissed his spirit, and died. 51And look! The curtain secluding the Holiest Places in the Temple was split apart from top to bottom; and the earth shook, and rocks broke, 52and tombs opened, and many godly men and women who had died came back to life again. 53After Jesus' resurrection, they left the cemetery and went into Jerusalem, and appeared to many people there.

54The soldiers at the crucifixion and their sergeant were terribly frightened by the earthquake and all that happened. They exclaimed, "Surely this was God's Son."

55And many women who had come down from Galilee with Jesus to care for him were watching from a distance. 56Among them were Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of James and John (the sons of Zebedee).

57When evening came, a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, one of Jesus' followers, 58went to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body. And Pilate issued an order to release it to him. 59Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60and placed it in his own new rock-hewn tomb, and rolled a great stone across the entrance as he left. 61Both Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting nearby watching.

62The next day--at the close of the first day of the Passover ceremonies --the chief priests and Pharisees went to Pilate, 63and told him, "Sir, that liar once said, 'After three days I will come back to life again.' 64So we request an order from you sealing the tomb until the third day, to prevent his disciples from coming and stealing his body and then telling everyone he came back to life! If that happens we'll be worse off that we were at first."

65"Use your own Temple police," Pilate told them. "They can guard it safely enough."

66So they sealed the stone and posted guards to protect it from intrusion.

Chapter 28

Early on Sunday morning, as the new day was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went out to the tomb.

2Suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and rolled aside the stone and sat on it. 3His face shone like lightning and his clothing was a brilliant white. 4The guards shook with fear when they saw him, and fell into a dead faint.

5Then the angel spoke to the women. "Don't be frightened!" he said. "I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified, 6but he isn't here! For he has come back to life again, just as he said he would. Come in and see where his body was lying . . . . 7And now, go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and that he is going to Galilee to meet them there. That is my message to them."

8The women ran from the tomb, badly frightened, but also filled with joy, and rushed to find the disciples to give them the angel's message. 9And as they were running, suddenly Jesus was there in front of them!

"Good morning!" he said. And they fell to the ground before him, holding his feet and worshipping him.

10Then Jesus said to them, "Don't be frightened! Go tell my brothers to leave at once for Galilee, to meet me there."

11As the women were on the way into the city, some of the Temple police who had been guarding the tomb went to the chief priests and told them what had happened. 12,13A meeting of all the Jewish leaders was called, and it was decided to bribe the police to say they had all been asleep when Jesus' disciples came during the night and stole his body.

14"If the governor hears about it," the Council promised, "we'll stand up for you and everything will be all right."

15So the police accepted the bribe and said what they were told to. Their story spread widely among the Jews, and is still believed by them to this very day.

16Then the eleven disciples left for Galilee, going to the mountain where Jesus had said they would find him. 17There they met him and worshiped him--but some of them weren't sure it really was Jesus!

18He told his disciples, "I have been given all authority in heaven and earth. 19Therefore go and make disciples in all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and then teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you; and be sure of this--that I am with you always, even to the end of the world."

According to Mark

Chapter 1

Here begins the wonderful story of Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.

2In the book written by the prophet Isaiah, God announced that he would send his Son to earth, and that a special messenger would arrive first to prepare the world for his coming.

3"This messenger will live out in the barren wilderness," Isaiah said, "and will proclaim that everyone must straighten out his life to be ready for the Lord's arrival."

4This messenger was John the Baptist. He lived in the wilderness and taught that all should be baptized as a public announcement of their decision to turn their backs on sin, so that God could forgive them. 5People from Jerusalem and from all over Judea traveled out into the Judean wastelands to see and hear John, and when they confessed their sins he baptized them in the Jordan River. 6His clothes were woven from camel's hair and he wore a leather belt; locusts and wild honey were his food. 7Here is a sample of his preaching:

"Someone is coming soon who is far greater than I am, so much greater that I am not even worthy to be his slave. 8I baptize you with water but he will baptize you with God's Holy Spirit!"

9Then one day Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and was baptized by John there in the Jordan River. 10The moment Jesus came up out of the water, he saw the heavens open and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descending on him, 11and voice from heaven said, "You are my beloved Son; you are my Delight."

12,13Immediately the Holy Spirit urged Jesus into the desert. There, for forty days, alone except for desert animals, he was subjected to Satan's temptations to sin. And afterwards the angels came and cared for him.

14Later on, after John was arrested by King Herod, Jesus went to Galilee to preach God's Good News.

15"At last the time has come!" he announced. "God's Kingdom is near! Turn from your sins and act on this glorious news!"

16One day as Jesus was walking along the shores of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew fishing with nets, for they were commercial fishermen.

17Jesus called out to them, "Come, follow me! And I will make you fishermen for the souls of men!" 18At once they left their nets and went along with him.

19A little farther up the beach, he saw Zebedee's sons, James and John, in a boat mending their nets. 20He called them too, and immediately they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and went with him.

21Jesus and his companions now arrived at the town of Capernaum and on Saturday morning went into the Jewish place of worship--the synagogue--where he preached. 22The congregation was surprised at his sermon because he spoke as an authority, and didn't try to prove his points by quoting others--quite unlike what they were used to hearing!

23A man possessed by a demon was present and began shouting, 24"Why are you bothering us, Jesus of Nazareth--have you come to destroy us demons? I know who you are--the holy Son of God!"

25Jesus curtly commanded the demon to say no more and to come out of the man. 26At that the evil spirit screamed and convulsed the man violently and left him. 27Amazement gripped the audience and they began discussing what had happened.

"What sort of new religion is this?" they asked excitedly. "Why, even evil spirits obey his orders!"

28The news of what he done spread quickly through that entire area of Galilee.

29,30Then, leaving the synagogue, he and his disciples went over to Simon and Andrew's home, where they found Simon's mother-in-law sick in bed with a high fever. They told Jesus about her right away. 31He went to her bedside, and as he took her by the hand and helped her to sit up, the fever suddenly left, and she got up and prepared dinner for them!

32,33By sunset the courtyard was filled with the sick and demon-possessed, brought to him for healing; and a huge crowd of people from all over the city of Capernaum gathered outside the door to watch. 34So Jesus healed great numbers of sick folk that evening and ordered many demons to come out of their victims. (But he refused to allow the demons to speak, because they knew who he was.)

35The next morning he was up long before daybreak and went out alone into the wilderness to pray.

36,37Later, Simon and the others went out to find him, and told him, "Everyone is asking for you."

38But he replied, "We must go on to other towns as well, and give my message to them too, for that is why I came."

39So he traveled throughout the province of Galilee, preaching in the synagogues and releasing many from the power of demons. 40Once a leper came and knelt in front of him and begged to be healed. "If you want to, you can make me well again," he pled.

41And Jesus, moved with pity, touched him and said, "I want to! Be healed!" 42Immediately the leprosy was gone--the man was healed!

43,44Jesus then told him sternly, "Go and be examined immediately by the Jewish priest. Don't stop to speak to anyone along the way. Take along the offering prescribed by Moses for a leper who is healed, so that everyone will have proof that you are well again."

45But as the man went on his way he began to shout the good news that he was healed; as a result, such throngs soon surrounded Jesus that he couldn't publicly enter a city anywhere, but had to stay out in the barren wastelands. And people from everywhere came to him there.

Chapter 2

Several days later he returned to Capernaum, and the news of his arrival spread quickly through the city. 2Soon the house where he was staying was so packed with visitors that there wasn't room for a single person more, not even outside the door. And he preached the Word to them. 3Four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a stretcher. 4They couldn't get to Jesus through the crowd, so they dug through the clay roof above his head and lowered the sick man on his stretcher, right down in front of Jesus.

5When Jesus saw how strongly they believed that he would help, Jesus said to the sick man, "Son, your sins are forgiven!"

6But some of the Jewish religious leaders said to themselves as they sat there, 7"What? This is blasphemy! Does he think he is God? For only God can forgive sins."

8Jesus could read their minds and said to them at once, "Why does this bother you? 9,10,11I, the Messiah, have the authority on earth to forgive sins. But talk is cheap--anybody could say that. So I'll prove it to you by healing this man." Then, turning to the paralyzed man, he commanded, "Pick up your stretcher and go on home, for you are healed!"

12The man jumped up, took the stretcher, and pushed his way through the stunned onlookers! Then how they praised God. "We've never seen anything like this before!" they all exclaimed.

13Then Jesus went out to the seashore again, and preached to the crowds that gathered around him. 14As he was walking up the beach he saw Levi, the son of Alphaeus, sitting at his tax collection booth. "Come with me," Jesus told him. "Come be my disciple."

And Levi jumped to his feet and went along.

15That night Levi invited his fellow tax collectors and many other notorious sinners to be his dinner guests so that they could meet Jesus and his disciples. (There were many men of this type among the crowds that followed him.) 16But when some of the Jewish religious leaders saw him eating with these men of ill repute, they said to his disciples, "How can he stand it, to eat wit such scum?"

17When Jesus heard what they were saying, he told them, "Sick people need the doctor, not healthy ones! I haven't come to tell good people to repent, but the bad ones."

18John's disciples and the Jewish leaders sometimes fasted, that is, went without food as part of their religion. One day some people came to Jesus and asked why his disciples didn't do this too.

19Jesus replied, "Do friends of the bridegroom refuse to eat at the wedding feast? Should they be sad while he is with them? 20But some day he will be taken away from them, and then they will mourn. 21[Besides, going without food is part of the old way of doing things.] It is like patching an old garment with unshrunk cloth! What happens? The patch pulls away and leaves the hole worse than before. 22You know better than to put new wine into old wineskins. They would burst. The wine would be spilled out and the wineskins ruined. New wine needs fresh wineskins."

23Another time, on a Sabbath day as Jesus and his disciples were walking through the fields, the disciples were breaking off heads of wheat and eating the grain.

24Some of the Jewish religious leaders said to Jesus, "They shouldn't be doing that! It's against our laws to work by harvesting grain on the Sabbath."

25,26But Jesus replied, "Didn't you ever hear about the time King David and his companions were hungry, and he went into the house of God--Abiathar was High Priest then--and they ate the special bread only priests were allowed to eat? That was against the law too. 27But the Sabbath was made to benefit man, and not man to benefit the Sabbath. 28And I, the Messiah, have authority even to decide what men can do on Sabbath days!"

Chapter 3

While in Capernaum Jesus went over to the synagogue again, and noticed a man there with a deformed hand.

2Since it was the Sabbath, Jesus' enemies watched him closely. Would he heal the man's hand? If he did, they planned to arrest him.

3Jesus asked the man to come and stand in front of the congregation. 4Then turning to his enemies he asked, "Is it all right to do kind deeds on Sabbath days? Or is this a day for doing harm? Is it a day to save lives or to destroy them? But they wouldn't answer him. 5Looking around at them angrily, for he was deeply disturbed by their indifference to human need, he said to the man, "Reach out your hand." He did, and instantly his hand was healed!

6At once the Pharisees went away and met with the Herodians to discuss plans for killing Jesus. 7,8Meanwhile, Jesus and his disciples withdrew to the beach, followed by a huge crowd from all over Galilee, Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and from beyond the Jordan River, and even from as far away as Tyre and Sidon. For the news about his miracles had spread far and wide and vast numbers came to see him for themselves.

9He instructed his disciples to bring around a boat and to have it standing ready to rescue him in case he was crowded off the beach. 10For there had been many healings that day and as a result great numbers of sick people were crowding around him, trying to touch him.

11And whenever those possessed by demons caught sight of him they would fall down before him shrieking, "You are the Son of God!" 12But he strictly warned them not to make him known.

13Afterwards he went up into the hills and summoned certain ones he chose, inviting them to come and join him there; and they did. 14,15Then he selected twelve of them to be his regular companions and to go out to preach and to cast out demons. 16-19These are the names of the twelve he chose:

Simon (he renamed him "Peter"),

James and John (the sons of Zebedee, but Jesus called them "Sons of Thunder"),

Andrew,

Philip,

Bartholomew,

Matthew,

Thomas,

James (the son of Alphaeus),

Thaddeus,

Simon (a member of a political party advocating violent overthrow of the Roman government),

Judas Iscariot (who later betrayed him).

20When he returned to the house where he was staying, the crowds began to gather again, and soon it was so full of visitors that he couldn't even find time to eat. 21When his friends heard what was happening they came to try to take him home with them.

"He's out of his mind," they said.

22But the Jewish teachers of religion who had arrived from Jerusalem said, "His trouble is that he's possessed by Satan, king of demons. That's why demon's obey him."

23Jesus summoned these men and asked them (using proverbs they all understood), "How can Satan cast out Satan? 24A kingdom divided against itself will collapse. 25A home filled with strife and division destroys itself. 26And if Satan is fighting against himself, how can he accomplish anything? He would never survive. 27[Satan must be bound before his demons are cast out], just as a strong man must be tied up before his house can be ransacked and his property robbed.

28 "I solemnly declare that any sin of man can be forgiven, even blasphemy against me; 29but blasphemy against the Holy Spirit can never be forgiven. It is an eternal sin."

30He told them this because they were saying he did his miracles by Satan's power [instead of acknowledging it was by the Holy Spirit's power].

31,32Now his mother and brothers arrived at the crowded house where he was teaching, and they sent word for him to come out and talk with them. "Your mother and brothers are outside and want to see you," he was told.

33He replied, "Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?" 34Looking at those around him he said, "These are my mother and brothers! 35Anyone who does God's will is my brother, and my sister, and my mother."

Chapter 4

Once again an immense crowd gathered around him on the beach as he was teaching, so he got into a boat and sat down and talked from there. 2His usual method of teaching was to tell the people stories. One of them went like this:

3"Listen! A farmer decided to sow some grain. As he scattered it across his field, 4some of it fell on a path, and the birds came and picked it off the hard ground and ate it. 5,6Some fell on thin soil with underlying rock. It grew up quickly enough, but soon wilted beneath the hot sun and died because the roots had no nourishment in the shallow soil. 7Other seeds fell among thorns that shot up and crowded the young plants so that they produced no grain. 8But some of the seeds fell into good soil and yielded thirty times as much as he had planted--some of it even sixty or a hundred times as much! 9If you have ears, listen!"

10Afterwards, when he was alone with the Twelve and with his other disciples, they asked him, "What does your story mean?"

11,12He replied, "You are permitted to know some truths about the Kingdom of God that are hidden to those outside the Kingdom:

'Though they see and hear, they will not understand or turn to God, or be forgiven for their sins.'

13But if you can't understand this simple illustration, what will you do about all the others I am going to tell?

14"The farmer I talked about is anyone who brings God's message to others, trying to plant good seed within their lives. 15The hard pathway, where some of the seed fell, represents the hard hearts of some of those who hear God's message; Satan comes at once to try to make them forget it. 16The rocky soil represents the hearts of those who hear the message with joy, 17but, like young plants in such soil, their roots don't go very deep, and though at first they get along fine, as soon as persecution begins, they wilt.

18"The thorny ground represents the hearts of people who listen to the Good News and receive it, 19but all too quickly the attractions of this world and the delights of wealth, and the search for success and lure of nice things come in and crowd out God's message from their hearts, so that no crop is produced.

20"But the good soil represents the hearts of those who truly accept God's message and produce a plentiful harvest for God--thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as was planted in their hearts. 21Then he asked them, "When someone lights a lamp, does he put a box over it to shut out the light? Of course not! The light couldn't be seen or used. A lamp is placed on a stand to shine and be useful.

22"All that is now hidden will someday come to light. 23If you have ears, listen! 24And be sure to put into practice what you hear. The more you do this, the more you will understand what I tell you. 25To him who has shall be given; from him who has not shall be taken away even what he has.

26"Here is another story illustrating what the Kingdom of God is like:

"A farmer sowed his field, 27and went away, and as the days went by, the seeds grew and grew without his help. 28For the soil made the seeds grow. First a leaf-blade pushed through, and later the wheat-heads formed and finally the grain ripened, 29and then the farmer came at once with his sickle and harvested it."

30Jesus asked, "How can I describe the Kingdom of God? What story shall I use to illustrate it? 31,32It is like a tiny mustard seed! Though this is one of the smallest of seeds, yet it grows to become one of the largest of plants, with long branches where birds can build their nests and be sheltered."

33He used many such illustrations to teach the people as much as they were ready to understand. 34In fact, he taught only by illustrations in his public teaching, but afterwards, when he was alone with his disciples, he would explain his meaning to them.

35As evening fell, Jesus said to his disciples, "Let's cross to the other side of the lake." 36So they took him just as he was and started out, leaving the crowds behind (though other boats followed). 37But soon a terrible storm arose. High waves began to break into the boat until it was nearly full of water and about to sink. 38Jesus was asleep at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. Frantically they wakened him, shouting, "Teacher, don't you even care that we are all about to drown?"

39Then he rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Quiet down!" And the wind fell, and there was a great calm!

40And he asked them, "Why were you so fearful? Don't you even yet have confidence in me?"

41And they were filled with awe and said among themselves, "Who is this man, that even the winds and seas obey him?"

Chapter 5

When they arrived at the other side of the lake a demon-possessed man ran out from a graveyard, just as Jesus was climbing from the boat.

3,4This man lived among the gravestones, and had such strength that whenever he was put into handcuffs and shackles--as he often was--he snapped the handcuffs from his wrists and smashed the shackles and walked away. No one was strong enough to control him. 5All day long and through the night he would wander among the tombs and in the wild hills, screaming and cutting himself with sharp pieces of stone.

6When Jesus was still far out on the water, the man had seen him and had run to meet him, and fell down before him.

7,8Then Jesus spoke to the demon within the man and said, "Come out, you evil spirit."

It gave a terrible scream, shrieking, "What are you going to do to me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? For God's sake, don't torture me!"

9 "What is your name?" Jesus asked, and the demon replied, "Legion, for there are many of us here within this man."

10Then the demons begged him again and again not to send them to some distant land.

11Now as it happened there was a huge herd of hogs rooting around on the hill above the lake. 12"Send us into those hogs," the demons begged.

13And Jesus gave them permission. Then the evil spirits came out of the man and entered the hogs, and the entire herd plunged down the steep hillside into the lake and drowned.

14The herdsmen fled to the nearby towns and countryside, spreading the news as they ran. Everyone rushed out to see for themselves. 15And a large crowd soon gathered where Jesus was; but as they saw the man sitting there, fully clothed and perfectly sane, they were frightened. 16Those who saw what happened were telling everyone about it, 17and the crowd began pleading with Jesus to go away and leave them alone! 18So he got back into the boat. The man who had been possessed by the demons begged Jesus to let him go along. 19But Jesus said no.

"Go home to your friends," he told him, "and tell them what wonderful things God has done for you; and how merciful he has been."

20So the man started off to visit the Ten Towns of that region and began to tell everyone about the great things Jesus had done for him; and they were awestruck by his story.

21When Jesus had gone across by boat to the other side of the lake, a vast crowd gathered around him on the shore.

22The leader of the local synagogue, whose name was Jairus, came and fell down before him, 23pleading with him to heal his little daughter.

"She is at the point of death," he said in desperation. "Please come and place your hands on her and make her live."

24Jesus went with him, and the crowd thronged behind. 25In the crowd was a woman who had been sick for twelve years with a hemorrhage. 26She had suffered much from many doctors through the years and had become poor from paying them, and was no better but, in fact, was worse. 27She had heard all about the wonderful miracles Jesus did, and that is why she came up behind him through the crowd and touched his clothes.

28For she thought to herself, "If I can just touch his clothing, I will be healed." 29And sure enough, as soon as she had touched him, the bleeding stopped and she knew she was well!

30Jesus realized at once that healing power had gone out from him, so he turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who touched my clothes?"

31His disciples said to him, "All this crowd pressing around you, and you ask who touched you?"

32But he kept on looking around to see who it was who had done it. 33Then the frightened woman, trembling at the realization of what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and told him what she had done. 34And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well, go in peace, healed of your disease."

35While he was still talking to her, messengers arrived from Jairus' home with the news that it was too late--his daughter was dead and there was no point in Jesus' coming now. 36But Jesus ignored their comments and said to Jairus, "Don't be afraid. Just trust me."

37Then Jesus halted the crowd and wouldn't let anyone go on with him to Jairus' home except Peter and James and John. 38When they arrived, Jesus saw that all was in great confusion, with unrestrained weeping and wailing. 39He went inside and spoke to the people.

"Why all this weeping and commotion?" he asked. "The child isn't dead; she is only asleep!"

40They laughed at him in bitter derision, but he told them all to leave, and taking the little girl's father and mother and his three disciples, he went into the room where she was lying.

41,42Taking her by the hand he said to her, "Get up, little girl!" (She was twelve years old.) And she jumped up and walked around! Her parents just couldn't get over it. 43Jesus instructed them very earnestly not to tell what had happened, and told them to give her something to eat.

Chapter 6

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

24She went out and consulted her mother, who told her, "Ask for John the Baptist's head!"

25So she turned back to the king and told him, "I want the head of John the Baptist--right now--on a tray!"

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

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

30The apostles now returned to Jesus from their tour and told him all they had done and what they had said to the people they visited.

31Then Jesus suggested, "Let's get away from the crowds for a while and rest." For so many people were coming and going that they scarcely had time to eat. 32So they left by boat for a quieter spot. 33But many people saw them leaving and ran on ahead along the shore and met them as they landed. 34So the usual vast crowd was there as he stepped from the boat; and he had pity on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd, and he taught them many things they needed to know.

35,36Late in the afternoon his disciples came to him and said, "Tell the people to go away to the nearby villages and farms and buy themselves some food, for there is nothing to eat here in this desolate spot, and it is getting late."

37But Jesus said, " You feed them."

"With what?" they asked. "It would take a fortune to buy food for all this crowd!"

38 "How much food do we have?" he asked. "Go and find out."

They came back to report that there were five loaves of bread and two fish. 39,40Then Jesus told the crowd to sit down, and soon colorful groups of fifty or a hundred each were sitting on the green grass.

41He took the five loaves and two fish and looking up to heaven, gave thanks for the food. Breaking the loaves into pieces, he gave some of the bread and fish to each disciple to place before the people. 42And the crowd ate until they could hold no more!

43,44There were about 5,000 men there for that meal, and afterwards twelve basketfuls of scraps were picked up off the grass!

45Immediately after this Jesus instructed his disciples to get back into the boat and strike out across the lake to Bethsaida, where he would join them later. He himself would stay and tell the crowds good-bye and get them started home.

46Afterwards he went up into the hills to pray. 47During the night, as the disciples in their boat were out in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land, 48he saw that they were in serious trouble, rowing hard and struggling against the wind and waves.

About three o'clock in the morning he walked out to them on them on the water. He started past them, 49but when they saw something walking along beside them they screamed in terror, thinking it was a ghost, 50for they all saw him.

But he spoke to them at once. "It's all right," he said. "It is I! Don't be afraid." 51Then he climbed into the boat and the wind stopped!

They just sat there, unable to take it in! 52For they still didn't realize who he was, even after the miracle the evening before! For they didn't want to believe!

53When they arrived at Gennesaret on the other side of the lake they moored the boat, 54and climbed out.

The people standing around there recognized him at once, 55and ran throughout the whole area to spread the news of his arrival, and began carrying sick folks to him on mats and stretchers. 56Wherever he went--in villages and cities, and out on the farms--they laid the sick in the market plazas and streets, and begged him to let them at least touch the fringes of his clothes; and as many as touched him were healed.

Chapter 7

One day some Jewish religious leaders arrived from Jerusalem to investigate him, 2and noticed that some of his disciples failed to follow the usual Jewish rituals before eating, 3(For the Jews, especially the Pharisees, will never eat until they have sprinkled their arms to the elbows, as required by their ancient traditions. 4So when they come home from the market they must always sprinkle themselves in this way before touching the food. This is but one of many examples of laws and regulations they have clung to for centuries, and still follow, such as their ceremony of cleansing for pots, pans and dishes.)

5So the religious leaders asked him, "Why don't your disciples follow our age-old customs? For they eat without first performing the washing ceremony."

6,7Jesus replied, "You bunch of hypocrites! Isaiah the prophet described you very well when he said, 'These people speak very prettily about the Lord but they have no love for him at all. Their worship is a farce, for they claim that God commands the people to obey their petty rules.' How right Isaiah was! 8For you ignore God's specific orders and substitute your own traditions. 9You are simply rejecting God's laws and trampling them under your feet for the sake of tradition.

10For instance, Moses gave you this law from God; 'Honor your father and mother.' And he said that anyone who speaks against his father or mother must die. 11But you say it is perfectly all right for a man to disregard his needy parents, telling them, 'Sorry, I can't help you! For I have given to God what I could have given to you.' 12,13And so you break the law of God in order to protect your man-made tradition. And this is only one example. There are many, many others."

14Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. "All of you listen," he said, "and try to understand. 15,16Your souls aren't harmed by what you eat, but by what you think and say!"

17Then he went into a house to get away from the crowds, and his disciples asked him what he meant by the statement he had just made.

18 "Don't you understand either?" he asked. "Can't you see that what you eat won't harm your soul? 19For food doesn't come in contact with your heart, but only passes through the digestive system." (By saying this he showed that every kind of food is kosher.)

20And then he added, "It is the thought-life that pollutes. 21For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts of lust, theft, murder, adultery, 22wanting what belongs to others, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, pride, and all other folly. 23All these vile things come from within; they are what pollute you and make you unfit for God."

24Then he left Galilee and went to the region of Tyre and Sidon, and tried to keep it a secret that he was there, but couldn't. For as usual the news of his arrival spread fast.

25Right away a woman came to him whose little girl was possessed by a demon. She had heard about Jesus and now she came and fell at his feet, 26and pled with him to release her child from the demon's control. (But she was Syrophoenician--a "despised Gentile!")

27Jesus told her, "First I should help my own family--the Jews. It isn't right to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs."

28She replied, "That's true, sir, but even the puppies under the table are given some scraps from the children's plates."

29 "Good!" he said, "You have answered well--so well that I have healed your little girl. Go on home, for the demon has left her!

30And when she arrived home, her little girl was lying quietly in bed, and the demon was gone.

31From Tyre he went to Sidon, then back to the Sea of Galilee by way of the Ten Towns. 32A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and everyone begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man and heal him.

33Jesus led him away from the crowd and put his fingers into the man's ears, then spat and touched the man's tongue with the spittle. 34Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and commanded, "Open!" 35Instantly the man could hear perfectly and speak plainly!

26Jesus told the crowd not to spread the news, but the more he forbade them, the more they made it known, 37for they were overcome with utter amazement. Again and again they said, "Everything he does is wonderful; he even corrects deafness and stammering!"

Chapter 8

One day about this time as another great crowd gathered, the people ran out of food again. Jesus called his disciples to discuss the situation.

"I pity these people," he said, "for they have been here three days, and have nothing left to eat. 3And if I send them home without feeding them, they will faint along the road! For some of them have come a long distance."

4"Are we supposed to find food for them here in the desert?" his disciples scoffed.

5 "How many loaves of bread do you have?" he asked.

"Seven," they replied. 6So he told the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then he took the seven loaves, thanked God for them, broke them into pieces and passed them to his disciples; and the disciples placed them before the people. 7A few small fish were found, too, so Jesus also blessed these and told the disciples to serve them.

8,9And the whole crowd ate until they were full, and afterwards he sent them home. There were about 4,000 people in the crowd that day and when the scraps were picked up after the meal, there were seven very large basketfuls left over!

10Immediately after this he got into a boat with his disciples and came to the region of Dalmanutha. 11When the local Jewish leaders learned of his arrival they came to argue with him.

"Do a miracle for us," they said. "Make something happen in the sky. Then we will believe in you."

12He sighed deeply when he heard this and he said, "Certainly not. How many more miracles do you people need?"

13So he got back into the boat and left them, and crossed to the other side of the lake. 14But the disciples had forgotten to stock up on food before they left, and had only one loaf of bread in the boat.

15As they were crossing, Jesus said to them very solemnly, "Beware of the yeast of King Herod and of the Pharisees."

16"What does he mean?" the disciples asked each other. They finally decided that he must be talking about their forgetting to bring bread.

17Jesus realized what they were discussing and said, "No, that isn't it at all! Can't you understand? Are your hearts too hard to take it in? 18'Your eyes are to see with--why don't you look? Why don't you open your ears and listen?' Don't you remember anything at all?

19"What about the 5,000 men I fed with five loaves of bread? How many basketfuls of scraps did you pick up afterwards?"

"Twelve," they said.

20"And when I fed the 4,000 with seven loaves, how much was left?"

"Seven basketfuls," they said.

21"And yet you think I'm worried that we have no bread?"

22When they arrived at Bethsaida, some people brought a blind man to him and begged him to touch and heal him. 23Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and spat upon his eyes, and laid his hands over them.

"Can you see anything now?" Jesus asked him.

24The man looked around. "Yes!" he said, "I see men! But I can't see them very clearly; they look like tree trunks walking around!"

25Then Jesus placed his hands over the man's eyes again and as the man stared intently, his sight was completely restored, and he saw everything clearly, drinking in the sights around him.

26Jesus sent him home to his family. "Don't even go back to the village first," he said.

27Jesus and his disciples now left Galilee and went out to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. As they were walking along he asked them, "Who do the people think I am? What are they saying about me?"

28"Some of them think you are John the Baptist," the disciples replied, "and others say you are Elijah or some other ancient prophet come back to life again."

29Then he asked, "Who do you think I am?" Peter replied, "You are the Messiah." 30But Jesus warned them not to tell anyone!

31Then he began to tell them about the terrible things he would suffer, and that the would be rejected by the elders and the Chief Priests and the other Jewish leaders--and be killed, and that he would rise again three days afterwards. 32He talked about it quite frankly with them, so Peter took him aside and chided him. "You shouldn't say things like that," he told Jesus.

33Jesus turned and looked at his disciples and then said to Peter very sternly, "Satan, get behind me! You are looking at this only from a human point of view and not from God's."

34Then he called his disciples and the crowds to come over and listen. "If any of you wants to be my follower," he told them, "you must put aside your own pleasures and shoulder your cross, and follow me closely. 35If you insist on saving your life, you will lose it. Only those who throw away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.

36"And how does a man benefit if he gains the whole world and loses his soul in the process? 37For is anything worth more than his soul? 38And anyone who is ashamed of me and my message in these days of unbelief and sin, I, the Messiah, will be ashamed of him when I return in the glory of my Father, with the holy angels."

Chapter 9

Jesus went on to say to his disciples, "Some of you who are standing here right now will live to see the Kingdom of God arrive in great power!"

2Six days later Jesus took Peter, James and John to the top of a mountain. No one else was there.

Suddenly, his face began to shine with glory, 3and his clothing became dazzling white, far more glorious than any earthly process could ever make it! 4Then Elijah and Moses appeared and began talking with Jesus!

5"Teacher, this is wonderful!" Peter exclaimed. "We will make three shelters here, one for each of you . . . ."

6He said this just to be talking, for he didn't know what else to say and they were all terribly frightened.

7But while he was still speaking these words, a cloud covered them, blotting out the sun, and a voice from the cloud said, " This is my beloved Son. Listen to him."

8Then suddenly they looked around and Moses and Elijah were gone, and only Jesus was with them.

9As they descended the mountainside he told them never to mention what they had seen until after he had risen from the dead. 10So they kept it to themselves, but often talked about it, and wondered what he meant by "rising from the dead."

11Now they began asking him about something the Jewish religious leaders often spoke of, that Elijah must return [before the Messiah could come]. 12,13Jesus agreed that Elijah must come first and prepare the way--and that he had, in fact, already come! And that he had been terribly mistreated, just as the prophets had predicted. Then Jesus asked them what the prophets could have been talking about when they predicted that the Messiah would suffer and be treated with utter contempt.

14At the bottom of the mountain they found a great crowd surrounding the other nine disciples, as some Jewish leaders argued with them. 15The crowd watched Jesus in awe as he came toward them, and then ran to greet him. 16 "What's all the argument about?" he asked.

17One of the men in the crowd spoke up and said, "Teacher, I brought my son for you to heal--he can't talk because he is possessed by a demon. 18And whenever the demon is in control of him it dashes him to the ground and makes him foam at the mouth and grind his teeth and become rigid. So I begged your disciples to cast out the demon, but they couldn't do it."

19Jesus said [to his disciples], "Oh, what tiny faith you have; how much longer must I be with you until you believe? How much longer must I be patient with you? Bring the boy to me."

20So they brought the boy, but when he saw Jesus the demon convulsed the child horribly, and he fell to the ground writhing and foaming at the mouth.

21 "How long has he been this way?" Jesus asked the father.

And he replied, "Since he was very small, 22and the demon often makes him fall into the fire or into water to kill him. Oh, have mercy on us and do something if you can."

23 "If I can?" Jesus asked. " Anything is possible if you have faith."

24The father instantly replied, "I do have faith; oh, help me to have more!"

25When Jesus saw the crowd was growing he rebuked the demon.

"O demon of deafness and dumbness," he said, "I command you to come out of this child and enter him no more!"

26Then the demon screamed terribly and convulsed the boy again and left him; and the boy lay there limp and motionless, to all appearance dead. A murmur ran through the crowd--"He is dead." 27But Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to his feet and he stood up and was all right! 28Afterwards, when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, "Why couldn't we cast that demon out?"

29Jesus replied, "Cases like this require prayer."

30,31Leaving that region they traveled through Galilee where he tried to avoid all publicity in order to spend more time with his disciples, teaching them. He would say to them, "I, the Messiah, am going to be betrayed and killed and three days later will return to life again."

32But they didn't understand and were afraid to ask him what he meant.

33And so they arrived at Capernaum. When they were settled in the house where they were to stay he asked them, "What were you discussing out on the road?"

34But they were ashamed to answer, for they had been arguing about which of them was the greatest!

35He sat down and called them around him and said, "Anyone wanting to be the greatest must be the least--the servant of all!"

36Then he placed a little child among them; and taking the child in his arms he said to them, 37 "Anyone who welcomes a little child like this in my name is welcoming me, and anyone who welcomes me is welcoming my Father who sent me!"

38One of his disciples, John, told him one day, "Teacher, we saw a man using your name to cast out demons; but we told him not to, for he isn't one of our group."

39"Don't forbid him!" Jesus said. "For no one doing miracles in my name will quickly turn against me. 40Anyone who isn't against us is for us. 41If anyone so much as gives you a cup of water because you are Christ's--I say this solemnly--he won't lose his reward. 42But if someone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to lose faith--it would be better for that man if a huge millstone were tied around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.

43,44"If your hand does wrong, cut it off. Better live forever with one hand than be thrown into the unquenchable fires of hell with two! 45,46If your foot carries you toward evil, cut it off! Better be lame and live forever than have two feet that carry you to hell.

47"And if your eye is sinful, gouge it out. Better enter the Kingdom of God half blind than have two eyes and see the fires of hell, 48where the worm never dies, and the fire never goes out-- 49where all are salted with fire.

50"Good salt is worthless if it loses its saltiness; it can't season anything. So don't lose your flavor! Live in peace with each other."

Chapter 10

Then he left Capernaum and went southward to the Judean borders and into the area east of the Jordan River. And as always there were the crowds; and as usual he taught them.

2Some Pharisees came and asked him, "Do you permit divorce?" Of course they were trying to trap him.

3 "What did Moses say about divorce?" Jesus asked them.

4"He said it was all right," they replied. "He said that all a man has to do is write his wife a letter of dismissal."

5"And why did he say that?" Jesus asked. "I'll tell you why--it was a concession to your hard-hearted wickedness. 6,7But it certainly isn't God's way. For from the very first he made man and woman to be joined together permanently in marriage; therefore a man is to leave his father and mother, 8and he and his wife are united so that they are no longer two, but one. 9And no man may separate what God has joined together.

10Later, when he was alone with his disciples in the house, they brought up the subject again.

11He told them, "When a man divorces his wife to marry someone else, he commits adultery against her. 12And if a wife divorces her husband and remarries, she, too, commits adultery."

13Once when some mothers were bringing their children to Jesus to bless them, the disciples shooed them away, telling them not to bother him.

14But when Jesus saw what was happening he was very much displeased with his disciples and said to them, "Let the children come to me, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as they. Don't send them away! 15I tell you as seriously as I know how that anyone who refuses to come to God as a little child will never be allowed into his Kingdom."

16Then he took the children into his arms and placed his hands on their heads and he blessed them.

17As he was starting out on a trip, a man came running to him and knelt down and asked, "Good Teacher, what must I do to get to heaven?"

18 "Why do you call me good?" Jesus asked. "Only God is truly good! 19But as for your question--you know the commandments: don't kill, don't commit adultery, don't steal, don't lie, don't cheat, respect your father and mother."

20"Teacher," the man replied, "I've never once broken a single one of those laws."

21Jesus felt genuine love for this man as he looked at him. "You lack only one thing," he told him; "go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor--and you shall have treasure in heaven--and come, follow me."

22Then the man's face fell, and he went sadly away, for he was very rich.

23Jesus watched him go, then turned around and said to his disciples, "It's almost impossible for the rich to get into the Kingdom of God!"

24This amazed them. So Jesus said it again: "Dear children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the Kingdom of God. 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God."

26The disciples were incredulous! "Then who in the world can be saved, if not a rich man?" they asked.

27Jesus looked at them intently, then said, "Without God, it is utterly impossible. But with God everything is possible."

28Then Peter began to mention all that he and the other disciples had left behind. "We've given up everything to follow you," he said.

29And Jesus replied, "Let me assure you that no one has ever given up anything--home, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, or property--for love of me and to tell others the Good News, 30who won't be given back, a hundred times over, homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and land--with persecutions!

"All these will be his here on earth, and in the world to come he shall have eternal life. 31But many people who seem to be important now will be the least important then; and many who are considered least here shall be greatest there."

32Now they were on the way to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking along ahead; and as the disciples were following they were filled with terror and dread.

Taking them aside, Jesus once more began describing all that was going to happen to him when they arrived at Jerusalem.

33"When we get there," he told them, "I, the Messiah, will be arrested and taken before the chief priests and the Jewish leaders, who will sentence me to die and hand me over to the Romans to be killed. 34They will mock me and spit on me and flog me with their whips and kill me; but after three days I will come back to life again."

35Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came over and spoke to him in a low voice. "Master," they said, "we want you to do us a favor."

36 "What is it?" he asked.

37"We want to sit on the thrones next to yours in your kingdom," they said, "one at your right and the other at your left!"

38But Jesus answered, "You don't know what you are asking! Are you able to drink from the bitter cup of sorrow I must drink from? Or to be baptized with the baptism of suffering I must be baptized with?"

39"Oh, yes," they said, "we are!"

And Jesus said, "You shall indeed drink from my cup and be baptized with my baptism, 40but I do not have the right to place you on thrones next to mine. Those appointments have already been made."

41When the other disciples discovered what James and John had asked, they were very indignant. 42So Jesus called them to him and said, "As you know, the kings and great men of the earth lord it over the people; 43but among you it is different. Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant. 44And whoever wants to be greatest of all must be the slave of all. 45For even I, the Messiah, am not here to be served, but to help others, and to give my life as a ransom for many."

46And so they reached Jericho. Later, as they left town, a great crowd was following. Now it happened that a blind beggar named Bartimaeus (the son of Timaeus) was sitting beside the road as Jesus was going by.

47When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus from Nazareth was near, he began to shout out, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"

48"Shut up!" some of the people yelled at him.

But he only shouted the louder, again and again, "O Son of David, have mercy on me!"

49When Jesus heard him he stopped there in the road and said, "Tell him to come here."

So they called the blind man. "You lucky fellow," they said, "come on, he's calling you!" 50Bartimaeus yanked off his old coat and flung it aside, jumped up and came to Jesus.

51 "What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked.

"O Teacher," the blind man said, "I want to see!"

52And Jesus said to him, "All right, it's done. Your faith has healed you."

And instantly the blind man could see, and followed Jesus down the road!

Chapter 11

As they neared Bethphage and Bethany on the outskirts of Jerusalem and came to the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples on ahead.

2"Go into the village over there," he told them, "and just as you enter you will see a colt tied up that has never been ridden. Untie him and bring him here. 3And if anyone asks you what you are doing, just say, 'Our Master needs him and will return him soon.'"

4,5Off went the two men and found the colt standing in the street, tied outside a house. As they were untying it, some who were standing there demanded, "What are you doing, untying that colt?"

6So they said what Jesus had told them to, and then the men agreed.

7So the colt was brought to Jesus and the disciples threw their cloaks across its back for him to ride on. 8Then many in the crowd spread out their coats along the road before him, while others threw down leafy branches from the fields.

9He was in the center of the procession with crowds ahead and behind, and all of them shouting, "Hail to the King!" "Praise God for him who comes in the name of the Lord!" . . . 10"Praise God for the return of our father David's kingdom . . ." "Hail to the King of the universe!"

11And so he entered Jerusalem and went into the Temple. He looked around carefully at everything and then left--for now it was late in the afternoon--and went out to Bethany with the twelve disciples.

12The next morning as they left Bethany, he felt hungry. 13A little way off he noticed a fig tree in full leaf, so he went over to see if he could find any figs on it. But no, there were only leaves, for it was too early in the season for fruit.

14Then Jesus said to the tree, "You shall never bear fruit again!" And the disciples heard him say it.

15When they arrived back to Jerusalem he went to the Temple and began to drive out the merchants and their customers, and knocked over the tables of the moneychangers and the stalls of those selling doves, 16and stopped everyone from bringing in loads of merchandise.

17He told them, "It is written in the Scriptures, 'My Temple is to be a place of prayer for all nations,' but you have turned it into a den of robbers."

18When the chief priests and other Jewish leaders heard what he had done they began planning how best to get rid of him. Their problem was their fear of riots because the people were so enthusiastic about Jesus' teaching.

19That evening as usual they left the city. 20Next morning, as the disciples passed the fig tree he had cursed, they saw that it was withered from the roots! 21Then Peter remembered what Jesus had said to the tree on the previous day, and exclaimed, "Look, Teacher! The fig tree you cursed has withered!"

22,23In reply Jesus said to the disciples, "If you only have faith in God--this is the absolute truth--you can say to this Mount of Olives, 'Rise up and fall into the Mediterranean,' and your command will be obeyed. All that's required is that you really believe and have no doubt! 24Listen to me! You can pray for anything, and if you believe, you have it; it's yours! 25But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive you your sins too."

26,27,28By this time they had arrived in Jerusalem again, and as he was walking through the Temple area, the chief priests and other Jewish leaders came up to him demanding, "What's going on here? Who gave you the authority to drive out the merchants?"

29Jesus replied, "I'll tell you if you answer one question! 30What about John the Baptist? Was he sent by God, or not? Answer me!"

31They talked it over among themselves. "If we reply that God sent him, then he will say, 'All right, why didn't you accept him?' 32But if we say God didn't send him, then the people will start a riot." (For the people all believed strongly that John was a prophet.)

33So they said, "We can't answer. We don't know."

To which Jesus replied, "Then I won't answer your question either!"

Chapter 12

Here are some of the story-illustrations Jesus gave to the people at that time:

"A man planted a vineyard and built a wall around it and dug a pit for pressing out the grape juice, and built a watchman's tower. Then he leased the farm to tenant farmers and moved to another country. 2At grape-picking time he sent one of his men to collect his share of the crop. 3But the farmers beat up the man and sent him back empty-handed.

4"The owner then sent another of his men, who received the same treatment, only worse, for his head was seriously injured. 5The next man he sent was killed; and later, others were either beaten or killed, until 6there was only one left--his only son. He finally sent him, thinking they would surely give him their full respect.

7"But when the farmers saw him coming they said, 'He will own the farm when his father dies. Come on, let's kill him--and then the farm will be ours!" 8So they caught him and murdered him and threw his body out of the vineyard.

9"What do you suppose the owner will do when he hears what happened? He will come and kill them all, and lease the vineyard to others. 10Don't you remember reading this verse in the Scriptures? 'The Rock the builders threw away became the cornerstone, the most honored stone in the building! 11This is the Lord's doing and it is an amazing thing to see.'"

12The Jewish leaders wanted to arrest him then and there for using this illustration, for they knew he was pointing at them--they were the wicked farmers in his story. But they were afraid to touch him for fear of a mob. So they left him and went away. 13But they sent other religious and political leaders to talk with him and try to trap him into saying something he could be arrested for.

14"Teacher," these spies said, "we know you tell the truth no matter what! You aren't influenced by the opinions and desires of men, but sincerely teach the ways of God. Now tell us, is it right to pay taxes to Rome, or not?"

15Jesus saw their trick and said, "Show me a coin and I'll tell you."

16When they handed it to him he asked, "Whose picture and title is this on the coin?" They replied, "The emperor's."

17 "All right," he said, "if it is his, give it to him. But everything that belongs to God must be given to God!" And they scratched their heads in bafflement at his reply.

18Then the Sadducees stepped forward--a group of men who say there is no resurrection. Here was their question:

19"Teacher, Moses gave us a law that when a man dies without children, the man's brother should marry his widow and have children in his brother's name. 20,21,22Well, there were seven brothers and the oldest married and died, and left no children. So the second brother married the widow, but soon he died too, and left no children. Then the next brother married her, and died without children, and so on until all were dead, and still there were no children; and last of all, the woman died too.

23"What we want to know is this: In the resurrection, whose wife will she be, for she had been the wife of each of them?"

24Jesus replied, "Your trouble is that you don't know the Scriptures, and don't know the power of God. 25For when these seven brothers and the woman rise from the dead, they won't be married--they will be like the angels.

26"But now as to whether there will be a resurrection--have you never read in the book of Exodus about Moses and the burning bush? God said to Moses, 'I am the God of Abraham, and I am the God of Isaac, and I am the God of Jacob.'

27"God was telling Moses that these men, though dead for hundreds of years, were still very much alive, for he would not have said, 'I am the God' of those who don't exist! You have made a serious error."

28One of the teachers of religion who was standing there listening to the discussion realized that Jesus had answered well. So he asked, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"

29Jesus replied, "The one that says, 'Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only God. 30And you must love him with all your heart and soul and mind and strength.'

31"The second is: 'You must love others as much as yourself.' No other commandments are greater than these."

32The teacher of religion replied, "Sir, you have spoken a true word in saying that there is only one God and no other. 33And I know it is far more important to love him with all my heart and understanding and strength, and to love others as myself, than to offer all kinds of sacrifices on the altar of the Temple."

34Realizing this man's understanding, Jesus said to him, "You are not far from the Kingdom of God." And after that, no one dared ask him any more questions.

35Later, as Jesus was teaching the people in the Temple area, he asked them this question:

"Why do your religious teachers claim that the Messiah must be a descendant of King David? 36For David himself said--and the Holy Spirit was speaking through him when he said it--'God said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.' 37Since David called him his Lord, how can he be his son?"

(This sort of reasoning delighted the crowd and they listened to him with great interest.)

38Here are some of the other things he taught them at this time:

"Beware of the teachers of religion! For they love to wear the robes of the rich and scholarly, and to have everyone bow to them as they walk through the markets. 39They love to sit in the best seats in the synagogues, and at the places of honor at banquets-- 40but they shamelessly cheat widows out of their homes and then, to cover up the kind of men they really are, they pretend to be pious by praying long prayers in public. Because of this, their punishment will be the greater."

41Then he went over to the collection boxes in the Temple and sat and watched as the crowds dropped in their money. Some who were rich put in large amounts. 42Then a poor widow came and dropped in two pennies.

43,44He called his disciples to him and remarked, "That poor widow has given more than all those rich men put together! For they gave a little of their extra fat, while she gave up her last penny."

Chapter 13

As he was leaving the Temple that day, one of his disciples said, "Teacher, what beautiful buildings these are! Look at the decorated stonework on the walls."

2Jesus replied, "Yes, look! For not one stone will be left upon another, except as ruins."

3,4And as he sat on the slopes of the Mount of Olives across the valley from Jerusalem, Peter, James, John, and Andrew got alone with him and asked him, "Just when is all this going to happen to the Temple? Will there be some warning ahead of time?"

5So Jesus launched into an extended reply. "Don't let anyone mislead you," he said, 6 "for many will come declaring themselves to be your Messiah, and will lead many astray. 7And wars will break out near and far, but this is not the signal of the end-time.

8"For nations and kingdoms will proclaim war against each other, and there will be earthquakes in many lands, and famines. These herald only the early stages of the anguish ahead. 9But when these things begin to happen, watch out! For you will be in great danger. You will be dragged before the courts, and beaten in the synagogues, and accused before governors and kings of being my followers. This is your opportunity to tell them the Good News. 10And the Good News must first be made known in every nation before the end-time finally comes. 11But when you are arrested and stand trial, don't worry about what to say in your defense. Just say what God tells you to. Then you will not be speaking, but the Holy Spirit will.

12"Brothers will betray each other to death, fathers will betray their own children, and children will betray their parents to be killed. 13And everyone will hate you because you are mine. But all who endure to the end without renouncing me shall be saved.

14"When you see the horrible thing standing in the Temple--reader, pay attention!--flee, if you can, to the Judean hills. 15,16Hurry! If you are on your rooftop porch, don't even go back into the house. If you are out in the fields, don't even return for your money or clothes.

17"Woe to pregnant women in those days, and to mothers nursing their children. 18And pray that your flight will not be in winter. 19For those will be days of such horror as have never been since the beginning of God's creation, nor will ever be again. 20And unless the Lord shortens that time of calamity, not a soul in all the earth will survive. But for the sake of his chosen ones he will limit those days.

21"And then if anyone tells you, 'This is the Messiah,' or, 'That one is,' don't pay any attention. 22For there will be many false Messiahs and false prophets who will do wonderful miracles that would deceive, if possible, even God's own children. 23Take care! I have warned you!

24"After the tribulation ends, then the sun will grow dim and the moon will not shine, 25and the stars will fall--the heavens will convulse.

26"Then all mankind will see me, the Messiah, coming in the clouds with great power and glory. 27And I will send out the angels to gather together my chosen ones from all over the world--from the farthest bounds of earth and heaven.

28"Now, here is a lesson from a fig tree. When its buds become tender and its leaves begin to sprout, you know that spring has come. 29And when you see these things happening that I've described, you can be sure that my return is very near, that I am right at the door.

30"Yes, these are the events that will signal the end of the age. 31Heaven and earth shall disappear, but my words stand sure forever.

32"However, no one, not even the angels in heaven, nor I myself, knows the day or hour when these things will happen; only the Father knows. 33And since you don't know when it will happen, stay alert. Be on the watch [for my return].

34"My coming can be compared with that of a man who went on a trip to another country. He laid out his employees' work for them to do while he was gone, and told the gatekeeper to watch for his return.

35,36,37"Keep a sharp lookout! For you do not know when I will come, at evening, at midnight, early dawn or late daybreak. Don't let me find you sleeping. Watch for my return! This is my message to you and everyone else."

Chapter 14

The Passover observance began two days later--an annual Jewish holiday when no bread made with yeast was eaten. The chief priests and other Jewish leaders were still looking for an opportunity to arrest Jesus secretly and put him to death.

2"But we can't do it during the Passover," they said, "or there will be a riot."

3Meanwhile Jesus was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the leper; during supper a woman came in with a beautiful flask of expensive perfume. Then, breaking the seal, she poured it over his head.

4,5Some of those at the table were indignant among themselves about this "waste," as they called it.

"Why, she could have sold that perfume for a fortune and given the money to the poor!" they snarled.

6But Jesus said, "Let her alone; why berate her for doing a good thing? 7You always have the poor among you, and they badly need your help, and you can aid them whenever you want to; but I won't be here much longer.

8"She has done what she could, and has anointed my body ahead of time for burial. 9And I tell you this in solemn truth, that wherever the Good News is preached throughout the world, this woman's deed will be remembered and praised."

10Then Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples, went to the chief priests to arrange to betray Jesus to them.

11When the chief priests heard why he had come, they were excited and happy and promised him a reward. So he began looking for the right time and place to betray Jesus.

12On the first day of the Passover, the day the lambs were sacrificed, his disciples asked him where he wanted to go to eat the traditional Passover supper. 13He sent two of them into Jerusalem to make the arrangements.

"As you are walking along," he told them, "you will see a man coming towards you carrying a pot of water. Follow him. 14At the house he enters, tell the man in charge, 'Our Master sent us to see the room you have ready for us, where we will eat the Passover supper this evening!' 15He will take you upstairs to a large room all set up. Prepare our supper there."

16So the two disciples went on ahead into the city and found everything as Jesus had said, and prepared the Passover.

17In the evening Jesus arrived with the other disciples, 18and as they were sitting around the table eating, Jesus said, "I solemnly declare that one of you will betray me, one of you who is here eating with me."

19A great sadness swept over them, and one by one they asked him, "Am I the one?"

20He replied, "It is one of you twelve eating with me now. 21I must die, as the prophets declared long ago; but, oh, the misery ahead for the man by whom I am betrayed. Oh, that he had never been born!"

22As they were eating, Jesus took bread and asked God's blessing on it and broke it in pieces and gave it to them and said, "Eat it--this is my body."

23Then he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it and gave it to them; and they all drank from it. 24And he said to them, "This is my blood, poured out for many, sealing the new agreement between God and man. 25I solemnly declare that I shall never again taste wine until the day I drink a different kind in the Kingdom of God."

26Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.

27"All of you will desert me," Jesus told them, "for God has declared through the prophets, 'I will kill the Shepherd, and the sheep will scatter.' 28But after I am raised to life again, I will go to Galilee and meet you there."

29Peter said to him, "I will never desert you no matter what the others do!"

30"Peter," Jesus said, "before the cock crows a second time tomorrow morning you will deny me three times."

31"No!" Peter exploded. "Not even if I have to die with you! I'll never deny you!" And all the others vowed the same.

32And now they came to an olive grove called the Garden of Gethsemane, and he instructed his disciples, "Sit here, while I go and pray."

33He took Peter, James and John with him and began to be filled with horror and deepest distress. 34And he said to them, "My soul is crushed by sorrow to the point of death; stay here and watch with me."

35He went on a little further and fell to the ground and prayed that if it were possible the awful hour awaiting him might never come.

36"Father, Father," he said, "everything is possible for you. Take away this cup from me. Yet I want your will, not mine."

37Then he returned to the three disciples and found them asleep.

"Simon!" he said. "Asleep? Couldn't you watch with me even one hour? 38Watch with me and pray lest the Tempter overpower you. For though the spirit is willing enough, the body is weak."

39And he went away again and prayed, repeating his pleadings. 40Again he returned to them and found them sleeping, for they were very tired. And they didn't know what to say.

41The third time when he returned to them he said, "Sleep on; get your rest! But no! The time for sleep has ended! Look! I am betrayed into the hands of wicked men. 42Come! Get up! We must go! Look! My betrayer is here!"

43And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas (one of his disciples) arrived with a mob equipped with swords and clubs, sent out by the chief priests and other Jewish leaders.

44Judas had told them, "You will know which one to arrest when I go over and greet him. Then you can take him easily." 45So as soon as they arrived he walked up to Jesus, "Master!" he exclaimed, and embraced him with a great show of friendliness. 46Then the mob arrested Jesus and held him fast. 47But someone pulled a sword and slashed at the High Priest's servant, cutting off his ear.

48Jesus asked them, "Am I some dangerous robber, that you come like this, armed to the teeth to capture me? 49Why didn't you arrest me in the Temple? I was there teaching every day. But these things are happening to fulfill the prophecies about me."

50Meanwhile, all his disciples had fled. 51,52There was, however, a young man following along behind, clothed only in a linen nightshirt. When the mob tried to grab him, he escaped, though his clothes were torn off in the process, so that he ran away completely naked.

53Jesus was led to the High Priest's home where all of the chief priests and other Jewish leaders soon gathered. 54Peter followed far behind and then slipped inside the gates of the High Priest's residence and crouched beside a fire among the servants.

55Inside, the chief priests and the whole Jewish Supreme Court were trying to find something against Jesus that would be sufficient to condemn him to death. But their efforts were in vain. 56Many false witnesses volunteered, but they contradicted each other.

57Finally some men stood up to lie about him and said, 58"We heard him say, 'I will destroy this Temple made with human hands and in three days I will build another, made without human hands!'" 59But even then they didn't get their stories straight!

60Then the High Priest stood up before the Court and asked Jesus, "Do you refuse to answer this charge? What do you have to say for yourself?"

61To this Jesus made no reply.

Then the High Priest asked him. "Are you the Messiah, the Son of God?"

62Jesus said, "I am, and you will see me sitting at the right hand of God, and returning to earth in the clouds of heaven."

63,64Then the High Priest tore at his clothes and said, "What more do we need? Why wait for witnesses? You have heard his blasphemy. What is your verdict?" And the vote for the death sentence was unanimous.

65Then some of them began to spit at him, and they blindfolded him and began to hammer his face with their fists.

"Who hit you that time, you prophet?" they jeered. And even the bailiffs were using their fists on him as they led him away.

66,67Meanwhile Peter was below in the courtyard. One of the maids who worked for the High Priest noticed Peter warming himself at the fire.

She looked at him closely and then announced, " You were with Jesus, the Nazarene."

68Peter denied it. "I don't know what you're talking about!" he said, and walked over to the edge of the courtyard.

Just then, a rooster crowed.

69The maid saw him standing there and began telling the others, "There he is! There's that disciple of Jesus!"

70Peter denied it again.

A little later others standing around the fire began saying to Peter, "You are, too, one of them, for you are from Galilee!"

71He began to curse and swear. "I don't even know this fellow you are talking about," he said.

72And immediately the rooster crowed the second time. Suddenly Jesus' words flashed through Peter's mind: "Before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times." And he began to cry.

Chapter 15

Early in the morning the chief priests, elders and teachers of religion--the entire Supreme Court--met to discuss their next steps. Their decision was to send Jesus under armed guard to Pilate, the Roman governor.

2Pilate asked him, "Are you the King of the Jews?"

"Yes," Jesus replied, "it is as you say."

3,4Then the chief priests accused him of many crimes, and Pilate asked him, "Why don't you say something? What about all these charges against you?"

5But Jesus said no more, much to Pilate's amazement.

6Now, it was Pilate's custom to release one Jewish prisoner each year at Passover time--any prisoner the people requested. 7One of the prisoners at that time was Barabbas, convicted along with others for murder during an insurrection.

8Now a mob began to crowd in toward Pilate, asking him to release a prisoner as usual.

9"How about giving you the 'King of Jews'?" Pilate asked. "Is he the one you want released?" 10(For he realized by now that this was a frameup, backed by the chief priests because they envied Jesus' popularity.)

11But at this point the chief priests whipped up the mob to demand the release of Barabbas instead of Jesus.

12"But if I release Barabbas," Pilate asked them, "what shall I do with this man you call your king?"

13They shouted back, "Crucify him!"

14"But why?" Pilate demanded. "What has he done wrong?" They only roared the louder, "Crucify him!"

15Then Pilate, afraid of a riot and anxious to please the people, released Barabbas to them. And he ordered Jesus flogged with a leaded whip, and handed him over to be crucified.

16,17Then the Roman soldiers took him into the barracks of the palace, called out the entire palace guard, dressed him in a purple robe, and made a crown of long, sharp thorns and put it on his head. 18Then they saluted, yelling, "Yea! King of the Jews!" 19And they beat him on the head with a cane, and spit on him and went down on their knees to "worship" him.

20When they finally tired of their sport, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him again, and led him away to be crucified.

21Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country just then, was pressed into service to carry Jesus' cross. (Simon is the father of Alexander and Rufus.)

22And they brought Jesus to a place called Golgotha. (Golgotha means skull.) 23Wine drugged with bitter herbs was offered to him there, but he refused it. 24And then they crucified him--and threw dice for his clothes.

25It was about nine o'clock in the morning when the crucifixion took place.

26A signboard was fastened to the cross above his head, announcing his crime. It read, "The King of the Jews."

27Two robbers were also crucified that morning, their crosses on either side of his. ^{28 Isaiah 53:12} And so the Scripture was fulfilled that said, "He was counted among evil men."

29,30The people jeered at him as they walked by, and wagged their heads in mockery.

"Ha! Look at you now!" they yelled at him. "Sure, you can destroy the Temple and rebuild in three days! If you're so wonderful, save yourself and come down from the cross."

31The chief priests and religious leaders were also standing around joking about Jesus.

"He's quite clever at 'saving' others," they said, "but he can't save himself!"

32"Hey there, Messiah!" they yelled at him. "You 'King of Israel'! Come on down from the cross and we'll believe you!"

And even the two robbers dying with him, cursed him.

33About noon, darkness fell across the entire land, lasting until three o'clock that afternoon.

34Then Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" ("My God, my God, why have you deserted me?")

35Some of these people standing there thought he was calling for the prophet Elijah. 36So one man ran and got a sponge and filled it with sour wine and held it up to him on a stick.

"Let's see if Elijah will come and take him down!" he said.

37Then Jesus uttered another loud cry, and dismissed his spirit.

38And the curtain in the Temple was split apart from top to bottom.

39When the Roman officer standing beside his cross saw how he dismissed his spirit, he exclaimed, "Truly, this was the Son of God!"

40Some women were there watching from a distance--Mary Magdalene, Mary (the mother of James the Younger and of Joses), Salome, and others. 41They and many other Galilean women who were his followers had ministered to him when he was up in Galilee, and had come with him to Jerusalem.

42,43This all happened the day before the Sabbath. Late that afternoon Joseph from Arimathea, an honored member of the Jewish Supreme Court (who personally was eagerly expecting the arrival of God's Kingdom), gathered his courage and went to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body.

44Pilate couldn't believe that Jesus was already dead so he called for the Roman officer in charge and asked him. 45The officer confirmed the fact, and Pilate told Joseph he could have the body.

46Joseph brought a long sheet of linen cloth and, taking Jesus' body down from the cross, wound it in the cloth and laid it in a rock-hewn tomb, and rolled a stone in front of the entrance.

47(Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses were watching as Jesus was laid away.)

Chapter 16

The next evening, when the Sabbath ended, Mary Magdalene and Salome and Mary the mother of James went out and purchased embalming spices.

Early the following morning, just at sunrise, they carried them out to the tomb. 3On the way they were discussing how they could ever roll aside the huge stone from the entrance.

4But when they arrived they looked up and saw that the stone--a very heavy one--was already moved away and the entrance was open! 5So they entered the tomb--and there on the right sat a young man clothed in white. The women were startled, 6but the angel said, "Don't be so surprised. Aren't you looking for Jesus, the Nazarene who was crucified? He isn't here! He has come back to life! Look, that's where his body was lying. 7Now go and give this message to his disciples including Peter:

"'Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there, just as he told you before he died!'"

8The women fled from the tomb, trembling and bewildered, too frightened to talk.

9It was early on Sunday morning when Jesus came back to life, and the first person who saw him was Mary Magdalene--the woman from who he had cast out seven demons. 10,11She found the disciples wet-eyed with grief and exclaimed that she had seen Jesus, and he was alive! But they didn't believe her!

12Later that day he appeared to two who were walking from Jerusalem into the country, but they didn't recognize him at first because he had changed his appearance. 13When they finally realized who he was, they rushed back to Jerusalem to tell the others, but no one believed them.

14Still later he appeared to the eleven disciples as they were eating together. He rebuked them for their unbelief--their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him alive from the dead.

15And then he told them, "You are to go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone, everywhere. 16Those who believe and are baptized will be saved. But those who refuse to believe will be condemned.

17"And those who believe shall use my authority to cast out demons, and they shall speak new languages. 18They will be able even to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won't hurt them; and they will be able to place their hands on the sick and heal them."

19When the Lord Jesus had finished talking with them, he was taken up into heaven and sat down at God's right hand.

20And the disciples went everywhere preaching, and the Lord was with them and confirmed what they said by the miracles that followed their messages.

According to Luke

Chapter 1

Dear friend who loves God: 1,2Several biographies of Christ have already been written using as their source material the reports circulating among us from the early disciples and other eyewitnesses. 3However, it occurred to me that it would be well to recheck all these accounts from first to last and after thorough investigation to pass this summary on to you, 4to reassure you of the truth of all you were taught.

5My story begins with a Jewish priest, Zacharias, who lived when Herod was king of Judea. Zacharias was a member of the Abijah division of the Temple service corps. (His wife Elizabeth was, like himself, a member of the priest tribe of the Jews, a descendant of Aaron.) 6Zacharias and Elizabeth were godly folk, careful to obey all of God's laws in spirit as well as in letter. 7But they had no children, for Elizabeth was barren; and now they were both very old.

8,9One day as Zacharias was going about his work in the Temple--for his division was on duty that week--the honor fell to him by lot to enter the inner sanctuary and burn incense before the Lord. 10Meanwhile, a great crowd stood outside in the Temple court, praying as they always did during that part of the service when the incense was being burned.

11,12Zacharias was in the sanctuary when suddenly an angel appeared, standing to the right of the altar of incense! Zacharias was startled and terrified.

13But the angel said, "Don't be afraid, Zacharias! For I have come to tell you that God has heard your prayer, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son! And you are to name him John. 14You will both have great joy and gladness at his birth, and many will rejoice with you. 15For he will be one of the Lord's great men. He must never touch wine or hard liquor--and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from before his birth! 16And he will persuade many a Jew to turn to the Lord his God. 17He will be a man of rugged spirit and power like Elijah, the prophet of old; and he will precede the coming of the Messiah, preparing the people for his arrival. He will soften adult hearts to become like little children's, and will change disobedient minds to the wisdom of faith."

18Zacharias said to the angel, "But this is impossible! I'm an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years."

19Then the angel said, "I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. It was he who sent me to you with this good news! 20And now, because you haven't believed me, you are to be stricken silent, unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly come true at the proper time."

21Meanwhile the crowds outside were waiting for Zacharias to appear and wondered why he was taking so long. 22When he finally came out, he couldn't speak to them, and they realized from his gestures that he must have seen a vision in the Temple. 23He stayed on at the Temple for the remaining days of his Temple duties and then returned home. 24Soon afterwards Elizabeth his wife became pregnant and went into seclusion for five months.

25"How kind the Lord is," she exclaimed, "to take away my disgrace of having no children!"

26Then following month God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27to a virgin, Mary, engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David.

28Gabriel appeared to her and said, "Congratulations, favored lady! The Lord is with you!"

29Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean.

30"Don't be frightened, Mary," the angel told her, "for God had decided to wonderfully bless you! 31Very soon now, you will become pregnant and have a baby boy, and you are to name him 'Jesus.' 32He shall be very great and shall be called the Son of God. And the Lord God shall give him the throne of his ancestor David. 33And he shall reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom shall never end!"

34Mary asked the angel, "But how can I have a baby? I am a virgin."

35The angel replied, "The Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and the power of God shall overshadow you; so the baby born to you will be utterly holy--the Son of God. 36Furthermore, six months ago your Aunt Elizabeth--'the barren one,' they called her--became pregnant in her old age! 37For every promise from God shall surely come true."

38Mary said, "I am the Lord's servant, and I am willing to do whatever he wants. May everything you said come true." And then the angel disappeared.

39,40A few days later Mary hurried to the highlands of Judea to the town where Zacharias lived, to visit Elizabeth.

41At the sound of Mary's greeting, Elizabeth's child leaped within her and she was filled with the Holy Spirit.

42She gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, "You are the favored by God above all other women, and your child is destined for God's mightiest praise. 43What an honor this is, that the mother of my Lord should visit me! 44When you came in and greeted me, the instant I heard your voice, my baby moved in me for joy! 45You believed that God would do what he said; that is why he has given you this wonderful blessing."

46Mary responded, "Oh, how I praise the Lord. 47How I rejoice in God my Savior! 48For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and now generation after generation forever shall call me blest of God. 49For he, the mighty Holy One, has done great things to me. 50His mercy goes on from generation to generation, to all who reverence him.

51"How powerful is his mighty arm! How he scatters the proud and haughty ones! 52He has torn princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly. 53He has satisfied the hungry hearts and sent the rich away with empty hands. 54And how he has helped his servant Israel! He has not forgotten his promise to be merciful. 55For he promised our fathers--Abraham and his children--to be merciful to them forever."

56Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home.

57By now Elizabeth's waiting was over, for the time had come for the baby to be born--and it was a boy. 58The word spread quickly to her neighbors and relatives of how kind the Lord had been to her, and everyone rejoiced.

59When the baby was eight days old, all the relatives and friends came for the circumcision ceremony. They all assumed the baby's name would be Zacharias, after his father.

60But Elizabeth said, "No! He must be name John!"

61"What?" they exclaimed. "There is no one in all your family by that name." 62So they asked the baby's father, talking to him by gestures.

63He motioned for a piece of paper and to everyone's surprise wrote, "His name is John!" 64Instantly Zacharias could speak again, and he began praising God.

65Wonder fell upon the whole neighborhood, and the news of what had happened spread through the Judean hills. 66And everyone who heard about it thought long thoughts and asked, "I wonder what this child will turn out to be? For the hand of the Lord is surely upon him in some special way."

67Then his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit and gave this prophecy:

68"Praise the Lord, God of Israel, for he has come to visit his people and has redeemed them. 69He is sending us a Might Savior from the royal line of his servant David, 70just as he promised through his holy prophets long ago-- 71someone to save us from our enemies, from all who hate us.

72,73"He has been merciful to our ancestors, yes, to Abraham himself, by remembering his sacred promise to him, 74and by granting us the privilege of serving God fearlessly, freed from our enemies, 75and by making us holy and acceptable, ready to stand in his presence forever.

76"And you, my little son, shall be called the prophet of the glorious God, for you will prepare the way for the Messiah. 77You will tell his people how to find salvation through forgiveness of their sins. 78All this will be because the mercy of our God is very tender, and heaven's dawn is about to break upon us, 79to give light to those who sit in darkness and death's shadow, and to guide us to the path of peace."

80The little boy greatly loved God and when he grew up he lived out in the lonely wilderness until he began his public ministry to Israel.

Chapter 2

About this time Caesar Augustus, the Roman Emperor, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the nation. 2(This census was taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.)

3Everyone was required to return to his ancestral home for this registration. 4And because Joseph was a member of the royal line, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, King David's ancient home--journeying there from the Galilean village of Nazareth. 5He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was obviously pregnant by this time.

6And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born; 7and she gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him in a blanket and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the village inn.

8That night some shepherds were in the fields outside the village, guarding their flocks of sheep. 9Suddenly an angel appeared among them, and the landscape shone bright with the glory of the Lord. They were badly frightened, 10but the angel reassured them.

"Don't be afraid!" he said. "I bring you the most joyful news every announced, and it is for everyone! 11The Savior--yes, the Messiah, the Lord--has been born tonight in Bethlehem! 12How will you recognize him? You will find a baby wrapped in a blanket, lying in a manger!"

13Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others--the armies of heaven--praising God:

14"Glory to God in the highest heaven," they sang, "and peace on earth for all those pleasing him."

15When this great army of angels had returned again to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, "Come on! Let's go to Bethlehem! Let's see this wonderful thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."

16They ran to the village and found their way to Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. 17The shepherd told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 18All who heard the shepherds' story expressed astonishment, 19but Mary quietly treasured these things in her heart and often thought about them.

20Then the shepherds went back again to their fields and flocks, praising God for the visit of the angels, and because they had seen the child, just as the angel had told them.

21Eight days later, at the baby's circumcision ceremony, he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel before he was even conceived.

22When the time came for Mary's purification offering at the Temple, as required by the laws of Moses after the birth of a child, his parents took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord; 23for in these laws God had said, "If a woman's first child is a boy, he shall be dedicated to the Lord."

24At that time Jesus' parents also offered their sacrifice for purification--"either a pair of turtle-doves or two young pigeons" was the legal requirement. 25That day a man named Simeon, a Jerusalem resident, was in the Temple. He was a good man, very devout, filled with the Holy Spirit and constantly expecting the Messiah to come soon. 26For the Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would not die until he had seen him--God's anointed King. 27The Holy Spirit had impelled him to go to the Temple that day; and so, when Mary and Joseph arrived to present the baby Jesus to the Lord in obedience to the law, 28Simeon was there and took the child in his arms, praising God.

29,30,31"Lord," he said, "now I can die content! For I have seen him as you promised me I would. I have seen the Savior you have given to the world. 32He is the Light that will shine upon the nations, and he will be the glory of your people Israel!"

33Joseph and Mary just stood there, marveling at what was being said about Jesus.

34,35Simeon blessed them but then said to Mary, "A sword shall pierce your soul, for this child shall be rejected by many in Israel, and this to their undoing. But he will be the greatest joy of many others. And the deepest thoughts of many hearts shall be revealed."

36,37Anna, a prophetess, was also there in the Temple that day. She was the daughter of Phanuel, of the Jewish tribe of Asher, and was very old, for she had been a widow for eighty-four years following seven years of marriage. She never left the Temple but stayed there night and day, worshipping God by praying and often fasting.

38She came along just as Simeon was talking with Mary and Joseph, and she also began thanking God and telling everyone in Jerusalem who had been awaiting the coming of the Savior that the Messiah had finally arrived.

39When Jesus' parents had fulfilled all the requirements of the Law of God they returned home to Nazareth in Galilee. 40There the child became a strong, robust lad, and was known for wisdom beyond his years; and God poured out his blessings on him.

41,42When Jesus was twelve years old he accompanied his parents to Jerusalem for the annual Passover Festival, which they attended each year. 43After the celebration was over they started home to Nazareth, but Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents didn't miss him the first day, 44for they assumed he was with friends among the other travelers. But when he didn't show up that evening, they started to look for him among their relatives and friends; 45and when they couldn't find him, they went back to Jerusalem to search for him there.

46,47Three days later they finally discovered him. He was in the Temple, sitting among the teachers of Law, discussing deep questions with them and amazing everyone with his understanding and answers.

48His parents didn't know what to think. "Son!" his mother said to him. "Why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been frantic, searching for you everywhere."

49 "But why did you need to search?" he asked. "Didn't you realize that I would be here at the Temple, in my Father's House?" 50But they didn't understand what he meant.

51Then he returned to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them; and his mother stored away all these things in her heart. 52So Jesus grew both tall and wise, and was loved by God and man.

Chapter 3

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius Caesar, a message came from God to John (the son of Zacharias), as he was living out in the deserts. (Pilate was governor over Judea at that time; Herod, over Galilee; his brother Philip, over Iturea and Trachonitis; Lysanias, over Abilene; and Annas and Caiaphas were High Priests.) 3Then John went from place to place on both sides of the Jordan River, preaching that people should be baptized to show that they had turned to God and away from their sins, in order to be forgiven.

4In the words of Isaiah the prophet, John was "a voice shouting from the barren wilderness, 'Prepare a road for the Lord to travel on! Widen the pathway before him! 5Level the mountains! Fill up the valleys! Straighten the curves! Smooth out the ruts! 6And then all mankind shall see the Savior sent from God.'"

7Here is a sample of John's preaching to the crowds that came for baptism: "You brood of snakes! You are trying to escape hell without truly turning to God! That is why you want to be baptized! 8First go and prove by the way you live that you really have repented. And don't think you are safe because you are descendants of Abraham. That isn't enough. God can produce children of Abraham from these desert stones! 9The axe of his judgment is poised over you, ready to sever your roots and cut you down. Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire."

10The crowd replied, "What do you want us to do?"

11"If you have two coats," he replied, "give one to the poor. If you have extra food, give it away to those who are hungry."

12Even tax collectors--notorious for their corruption--came to be baptized and asked, "How shall we prove to you that we have abandoned our sins?"

13"By your honesty," he replied. "Make sure you collect no more taxes than the Roman government requires you to."

14"And us," asked some soldiers, "what about us?"

John replied, "Don't extort money by threats and violence; don't accuse anyone of what you know he didn't do; and be content with your pay!"

15Everyone was expecting the Messiah to come soon, and eager to know whether or not John was he. This was the question of the hour, and was being discussed everywhere.

16John answered the question by saying, "I baptize only with water; but someone is coming soon who has far higher authority than mine; in fact, I am not even worthy of being his slave. He will baptize you with fire--with the Holy Spirit. 17He will separate chaff from grain, and burn up the chaff with eternal fire and store away the grain." 18He used many such warnings as he announced the Good News to the people.

19,20(But after John had publicly criticized Herod, governor of Galilee, for marrying Herodias, his brother's wife, and for many other wrongs he had done, Herod put John in prison, thus adding this sin to all his many others.) 21Then one day, after the crowds had been baptized, Jesus himself was baptized; and as he was praying, the heavens opened, 22and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove settled upon him, and a voice from heaven said, "You are my much loved Son, yes, my delight."

23-38Jesus was about thirty years old when he began his public ministry.

Jesus was known as the son of Joseph.

Joseph's father was Heli;

Heli's father was Matthat;

Matthat's father was Levi;

Levi's father was Melchi;

Melchi's father was Jannai;

Jannai's father was Joseph;

Joseph's father was Mattathias;

Mattathias' father was Amos;

Amos' father was Nahum;

Nahum's father was Esli;

Esli's father was Naggai;

Naggai's father was Maath;

Maath's father was Mattathias;

Mattathias' father was Semein;

Semein's father was Josech;

Josech's father was Joda;

Joda's father was Joanan;

Joanan's father was Rhesa;

Rhesa's father was Zerubbabel;

Zerubbabel's father was Shealtiel;

Shealtiel's father was Neri;

Neri's father was Melchi;

Melchi's father was Addi;

Addi's father was Cosam;

Cosam's father was Elmadam;

Elmadam's father was Er;

Er's father was Joshua;

Joshua's father was Eliezer;

Eliezer's father was Jorim;

Jorim's father was Matthat;

Matthat's father was Levi;

Levi's father was Simeon;

Simeon's father was Judah;

Judah's father was Joseph;

Joseph's father was Jonam;

Jonam's father was Eliakim;

Eliakim's father was Melea;

Melea's father was Menna;

Menna's father was Mattatha;

Mattatha's father was Nathan;

Nathan's father was David;

David's father was Jesse;

Jesse's father was Obed;

Obed's father was Boaz;

Boaz' father was Salmon; "Sala"

Salmon's father was Nahshon;

Nahshon's father was Amminadab;

Amminadab's father was Admin;

Admin's father was Arni;

Arni's father was Herzon;

Herzon's father was Perez;

Perez' father was Judah;

Judah's father was Jacob;

Jacob's father was Isaac;

Isaac's father was Abraham;

Abraham's father was Terrah;

Terrah's father was Nahor;

Nahor's father was Serug;

Serug's father was Reu;

Reu's father was Peleg;

Peleg's father was Eber;

Eber's father was Shelah;

Shelah's father was Cainan;

Cainan's father was Arphaxad;

Arphaxad's father was Shem;

Shem's father was Noah;

Noah's father was Lamech;

Lamech's father was Methuselah;

Methuselah's father was Enoch;

Enoch's father was Jared;

Jared's father was Mahalaleel;

Mahalaleel's father was Cainan;

Cainan's father was Enos;

Enos' father was Seth;

Seth's father was Adam;

Adam's father was God.

Chapter 4

Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan River, being urged by the Spirit out into the barren wastelands of Judea, where Satan tempted him for forty days. He ate nothing all that time, and was very hungry.

3Satan said, "If you are God's Son, tell this stone to become a loaf of bread."

4But Jesus replied, "It is written in the Scriptures, 'Other things in life are much more important than bread!'" Deuteronomy 8:3

5Then Satan took him up and revealed to him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time; 6,7and the devil told him, "I will give you all these splendid kingdoms and their glory--for they are mine to give to anyone I wish--if you will only get down on your knees and worship me."

8Jesus replied, "We must worship God, and him alone. So it is written in the Scriptures."

9,10,11Then Satan took him to Jerusalem to a high roof of the Temple and said, "If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say that God will send his angels to guard you and to keep from crashing to the pavement below!"

12Jesus replied, "The Scriptures also say, 'Do not put the Lord your God to a foolish test.'"

13When the devil had ended all the temptations, he left Jesus for a while and went away.

14Then Jesus returned to Galilee, full of the Holy Spirit's power. Soon he became well known throughout all that region 15for his sermons in the synagogues; everyone praised him.

16When he came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on Saturday, and stood up to read the Scriptures. 17The book of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him, and he opened it to the place where it says:

18,19 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; he has appointed me to preach Good News to the poor; he has sent me to heal the brokenhearted and to announce that captives shall be released and the blind shall see, that the downtrodden shall be freed from their oppressors, and that God is ready to give blessings to all who come to him."

20He closed the book and handed it back to the attendant and sat down, while everyone in the synagogue gazed at him intently. 21Then he added, "These Scriptures came true today!"

22All who were there spoke well of him and were amazed by the beautiful words that fell from his lips. "How can this be?" they asked. "Isn't this Joseph's son?"

23Then he said, "Probably you will quote me that proverb, 'Physician, heal yourself'--meaning, 'Why don't you do miracles here in your home town like those you did in Capernaum?' 24But I solemnly declare to you that no prophet is accepted in his own home town! 25,26For example, remember how Elijah the prophet used a miracle to help the widow of Zarephath--a foreigner from the land of Sidon. There were many Jewish widows needing help in those days of famine, for there had been no rain for three and one-half years, and hunger stalked the land; yet Elijah was not sent to them. 27Or think of the prophet Elisha, who healed Naaman, a Syrian, rather than the many Jewish lepers needing help."

28These remarks stung them to fury; 29and jumping up, they mobbed him and took him to the edge of the hill on which the city was built, to push him over the cliff. 30But he walked away through the crowd and left them.

31Then he returned to Capernaum, a city in Galilee, and preached there in the synagogue every Saturday. 32Here, too, the people were amazed at the things he said. For he spoke as one who knew the truth, instead of merely quoting the opinions of others as his authority.

33Once as he was teaching in the synagogue, a man possessed by a demon began shouting at Jesus, 34"Go away! We want nothing to do with you, Jesus from Nazareth. You have come to destroy us. I know who you are--the Holy Son of God."

35Jesus cut them short. "Be silent!" he told the demon. "Come out!" Then demon threw the man to the floor as the crowd watched, and then left him without hurting him further.

36Amazed, the people asked, "What is in this man's words that even demons obey him?" 37The story of what he had done spread like wildfire throughout the whole region.

38After leaving the synagogue that day, he went to Simon's home where he found Simon's mother-in-law very sick with a high fever. "Please heal her," everyone begged.

39Standing at her bedside he spoke to the fever, rebuking it, and immediately her temperature returned to normal and she got up and prepared a meal for them!

40As the sun went down that evening, all the villagers who had any sick people in their homes, no matter what their diseases were, brought them to Jesus; and the touch of his hands healed every one! 41Some were possessed by demons; and the demons came out at his command, shouting, "You are the Son of God." But because they knew he was the Christ, he stopped them and told them to be silent.

42Early the next morning he went out into the desert. The crowds searched everywhere for him and when they finally found him they begged him not to leave them, but to stay at Capernaum. 43But he replied, "I must preach the Good News of the Kingdom of God in other places, too, for that is why I was sent." 44So he continued to travel around preaching in synagogues throughout Judea.

Chapter 5

One day as he was preaching on the shore of Lake Gennesaret, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the Word of God. 2He noticed two empty boats standing at the water's edge while the fishermen washed their nets. 3Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push out a little into the water, so that he could sit in the boat and speak to the crowds from there.

4When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Now go out where it is deeper and let down your nets and you will catch a lot of fish!"

5"Sir," Simon replied, "we worked hard all last night and didn't catch a thing. But if you say so, we'll try again."

6And this time their nets were so full that they began to tear! 7A shout for help brought their partners in the other boat and soon both boats were filled with fish and on the verge of sinking.

8When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, "Oh, sir, please leave us--I'm too much of a sinner for you to have around." 9For he was awestruck by the size of their catch, as were the others with him, 10and his partners too--James and John, the sons of Zebedee. Jesus replied, "Don't be afraid! From now on you'll be fishing for the souls of men!"

11And as soon as they landed, they left everything and went with him.

12One day in a certain village he was visiting, there was a man with an advanced case of leprosy. When he saw Jesus he fell to the ground before him, face downward in the dust, begging to be healed.

"Sir," he said, "if you only will, you can clear me of every trace of my disease."

13Jesus reached out and touched the man and said, "Of course I will. Be healed." And the leprosy left him instantly! 14Then Jesus instructed him to go at once without telling anyone what had happened and be examined by the Jewish Priest. "Offer the sacrifice Moses' law requires for lepers who are healed," he said. "This will prove to everyone that you are well." 15Now the report of his power spread even faster and vast crowds came to hear him preach and to be healed of their diseases. 16But he often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.

17One day while he was teaching, some Jewish religious leaders and teachers of the Law were sitting nearby. (It seemed that these men showed up from every village in all Galilee and Judea, as well as from Jerusalem.) And the Lord's healing power was upon him.

18,19Then--look! Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a sleeping mat. They tried to push through the crowd to Jesus but couldn't reach him. So they went up on the roof above him, took off some tiles and lowered the sick man down into the crowd, still on his sleeping mat, right in front of Jesus.

20Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the man, "My friend, your sins are forgiven!"

21"Who does this fellow think he is?" the Pharisees and teachers of the Law exclaimed among themselves. "This is blasphemy! Who but God can forgive sins?"

22Jesus knew what they were thinking, and he replied, "Why is it blasphemy? 23,24I, the Messiah, have the authority on earth to forgive sins. But talk is cheap--anybody could say that. So I'll prove it to you by healing this man." Then, turning to the paralyzed man, he commanded, "Pick up your stretcher and go on home, for you are healed!"

25And immediately, as everyone watched, the man jumped to his feet, picked up his mat and went home praising God! 26Everyone present was gripped with awe and fear. And they praised God, remarking over and over again, "We have seen strange things today."

27Later on as Jesus left the town he saw a tax collector--with the usual reputation for cheating--sitting at a tax collection booth. The man's name was Levi. Jesus said to him, "Come and be one of my disciples!" 28So Levi left everything, sprang up and went with him.

29Soon Levi held a reception in his home with Jesus as the guest of honor. Many of Levi's fellow tax collectors and other guests were there.

30But the Pharisees and teachers of the Law complained bitterly to Jesus' disciples about his eating with such notorious sinners.

31Jesus answered them, "It is the sick who need a doctor, not those in good health. 32My purpose is to invite sinners to turn from their sins, not to spend my time with those who think themselves already good enough."

33Their next complaint was that Jesus' disciples were feasting instead of fasting. "John the Baptist's disciples are constantly going without food, and praying," they declared, "and so do the disciples of the Pharisees. Why are yours wining and dining?"

34Jesus asked, "Do happy men fast? Do wedding guests go hungry while celebrating with the groom? 35But the time will come when the bridegroom will be killed; then they won't want to eat."

36Then Jesus used this illustration: "No one tears off a piece of a new garment to make a patch for an old one. Not only will the new garment be ruined, but the old garment will look worse with a new patch on it! 37And no one puts new wine into old wineskins, for the new wine bursts the old skins, ruining the skins and spilling the wine. 38New wine must be put into new wineskins. 39But no one after drinking the old wine seems to want the fresh and the new. 'The old ways are the best,' they say."

Chapter 6

One Sabbath as Jesus and his disciples were walking through some grainfields, they were breaking off the heads of wheat, rubbing off the husks in their hands and eating the grains.

2But some Pharisees said, "That's illegal! Your disciples are harvesting grain, and it's against the Jewish law to work on the Sabbath."

3Jesus replied, "Don't you read the Scriptures? Haven't you ever read what King David did when he and his men were hungry? 4He went into the Temple and took the shewbread, the special bread that was placed before the Lord, and ate it--illegal as this was--and shared it with others." 5And Jesus added, "I am master even of the Sabbath."

6On another Sabbath he was in the synagogue teaching, and a man was present whose right hand was deformed. 7The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees watched closely to see whether he would heal the man that day, since it was the Sabbath. For they were eager to find some charge to bring against him.

8How well he knew their thoughts! But he said to the man with the deformed hand, "Come and stand here where everyone can see." So he did.

9Then Jesus said to the Pharisees and teachers of the Law, "I have a question for you. Is it right to do good on the Sabbath day, or to do harm? To save life, or to destroy it?"

10He looked around at them one by one and then said to the man, "Reach out your hand." And as he did, it became completely normal again. 11At this, the enemies of Jesus were wild with rage, and began to plot his murder.

12One day soon afterwards he went out into the mountains to pray, and prayed all night. 13At daybreak he called together his followers and chose twelve of them to be the inner circle of his disciples. (They were appointed as his "apostles," or "missionaries.") 14,15,16Here are their names:

Simon (he also called him Peter),

Andrew (Simon's brother),

James,

John,

Philip,

Bartholomew,

Matthew,

Thomas,

James (the son of Alphaeus),

Simon (a member of the Zealots, a subversive political party),

Judas (son of James),

Judas Iscariot (who later betrayed him).

17,18When they came down the slopes of the mountain, they stood with Jesus on a large, level area, surrounded by many of his followers who, in turn, were surrounded by the crowds. For people from all over Judea and from Jerusalem and from as far north as the seacoasts of Tyre and Sidon had come to hear him or to be healed. And he cast out many demons. 19Everyone was trying to touch him, for when they did healing power went out from him and they were cured.

20Then he turned to his disciples and said, "What happiness there is for you who are poor, for the Kingdom of God is yours! 21What happiness there is for you who are now hungry, for you are going to be satisfied! What happiness there is for you who weep, for the time will come when you shall laugh with joy! 22What happiness it is when others hate you and exclude you and insult you and smear your name because you are mine! 23When that happens, rejoice! Yes, leap for joy! For you will have a great reward awaiting you in heaven. And you will be in good company--the ancient prophets were treated that way too!

24"But, oh, the sorrows that await the rich. For they have their only happiness down here. 25They are fat and prosperous now, but a time of awful hunger is before them. Their careless laughter now means sorrow then. 26And what sadness is ahead for those praised by the crowds--for false prophets have always been praised.

27"Listen, all of you. Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. 28Pray for the happiness of those who curse you; implore God's blessing on those who hurt you.

29"If someone slaps you on one cheek, let him slap the other too! If someone demands your coat, give him your shirt besides. 30Give what you have to anyone who asks you for it; and when things are taken away from you, don't worry about getting them back. 31Treat others as you want them to treat you.

32"Do you think you deserve credit for merely loving those who love you? Even the godless do that! 33And if you do good only to those who do you good--is that so wonderful? Even sinners do that much! 34And if you lend money only to those who can repay you, what good is that? Even the most wicked will lend to their own kind for full return!

35"Love your enemies! Do good to them! Lend to them! And don't be concerned about the fact that they won't repay. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as sons of God: for he is kind to the unthankful and to those who are very wicked.

36"Try to show as much compassion as your Father does. 37Never criticize or condemn--or it will all come back on you. Go easy on others; then they will do the same for you. 38For if you give, you will get! Your gift will return to you in full and overflowing measure, pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, and running over. Whatever measure you use to give--large or small--will be used to measure what is given back to you."

39Here are some of the story-illustrations Jesus used in his sermons: "What good is it for one blind man to lead another? He will fall into a ditch and pull the other down with him. 40How can a student know more than his teacher? But if he works hard, he may learn as much.

41"And why quibble about the speck in someone else's eye--his little fault--when a board is in your own? 42How can you think of saying to him, 'Brother, let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,' when you can't see past the board in yours? Hypocrite! First get rid of the board, and then perhaps you can see well enough to deal with his speck!

43"A tree from good stock doesn't produce scrub fruit nor do trees from poor stock produce choice fruit. 44A tree is identified by the kind of fruit it produces. Figs never grow on thorns, or grapes on bramble bushes. 45A good man produces good deeds from a good heart. And an evil man produces evil deeds from his hidden wickedness. Whatever is in the heart overflows into speech.

46"So why do you call me 'Lord' when you won't obey me? 47,48But all those who come and listen and obey me are like a man who builds a house on a strong foundation laid upon the underlying rock. When the floodwaters rise and break against the house, it stands firm, for it is strongly built.

49"But those who listen and don't obey are like a man who builds a house without a foundation. When the floods sweep down against that house, it crumbles into a heap of ruins."

Chapter 7

When Jesus had finished his sermon he went back into the city of Capernaum.

2Just at that time the highly prized slave of a Roman army captain was sick and near death. 3When the captain heard about Jesus, he sent some respected Jewish elders to ask him to come and heal his slave. 4So they began pleading earnestly with Jesus to come with them and help the man. They told him what a wonderful person the captain was.

"If anyone deserves your help, it is he," they said, 5"for he loves the Jews and even paid personally to build us a synagogue!"

6,7,8Jesus went with them; but just before arriving at the house, the captain sent some friends to say, "Sir, don't inconvenience yourself by coming to my home, for I am not worthy of any such honor or even to come and meet you. Just speak a word from where you are, and my servant boy will be healed! I know, because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my men. I only need to say 'Go!' and they go; or 'Come!' and they come; and to my slave, 'Do this or that,' and he does it. So just say, 'Be healed!' and my servant will be well again!"

9Jesus was amazed. Turning to the crowd he said, "Never among all the Jews in Israel have I met a man with faith like this."

10And when the captain's friends returned to his house, they found the slave completely healed.

11Not long afterwards Jesus went with his disciples to the village of Nain, with the usual great crowd at his heels. 12A funeral procession was coming out as he approached the village gate. They boy who had died was the only son of his widowed mother, and many mourners from the village were with her.

13When the Lord saw her, his heart overflowed with sympathy. "Don't cry!" he said. 14Then he walked over to the coffin and touched it, and the bearers stopped. "Laddie," he said, "come back to life again."

15Then the boy sat up and began to talk to those around him! And Jesus gave him back to his mother.

16A great fear swept the crowd, and they exclaimed with praises to God, "A mighty prophet has risen among us," and, "We have seen the hand of God at work today."

17The report of what he did that day raced from end to end of Judea and even out across the borders.

18The disciples of John the Baptist soon heard of all that Jesus was doing. When they told John about it, 19he sent two of his disciples to Jesus to ask him, "Are you really the Messiah? Or shall we keep on looking for him?"

20,21,22The two disciples found Jesus while he was curing many sick people of their various diseases--healing the lame and the blind and casting out evil spirits. When they asked him John's question, this was his reply: "Go back to John and tell him all you have seen and heard here today: how those who were blind can see. The lame are walking without a limp. The lepers are completely healed. The deaf can hear again. The dead come back to life. And the poor are hearing the Good News. 23And tell him, 'Blessed is the one who does not lose his faith in me.'"

24After they left, Jesus talked to the crowd about John. "Who is this man you went out into the Judean wilderness to see?" he asked. "Did you find him weak as grass, moved by every breath of wind? 25Did you find him dressed in expensive clothes? No! Men who live in luxury are found in palaces, not out in the wilderness. 26But did you find a prophet? Yes! And more than a prophet. 27He is the one to whom the Scriptures refer when they say, 'Look! I am sending my messenger ahead of you, to prepare the way before you.' 28In all humanity there is no one greater than John. And yet the least citizen of the Kingdom of God is greater than he."

29And all who heard John preach--even the most wicked of them--agreed that God's requirements were right, and they were baptized by him. 30All, that is, except the Pharisees and teachers of Moses' Law. They rejected God's plan for them and refused John's baptism.

31"What can I say about such men?" Jesus asked "With what shall I compare them? 32They are like a group of children who complain to their friends, 'You don't like it if we play "wedding" and you don't like it if we play "funeral"'! 33For John the Baptist used to go without food and never took a drop of liquor all his life, and you said, 'He must be crazy!' 34But I eat my food and drink my wine, and you say, 'What a glutton Jesus is! And he drinks! And has the lowest sort of friends!' 35But I am sure you can always justify your inconsistencies."

36One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to come to his home for lunch and Jesus accepted the invitation. As they sat down to eat, 37a woman of the streets--a prostitute--heard he was there and brought an exquisite flask filled with expensive perfume. 38Going in, she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping, with her tears falling down upon his feet; and she wiped them off with her hair and kissed them and poured the perfume on them.

39When Jesus' host, a Pharisee, saw what was happening and who the woman was, he said to himself, "This proves that Jesus is no prophet, for if God had really sent him, he would know what kind of woman this one is!"

40Then Jesus spoke up and answered his thoughts. "Simon," he said to the Pharisee, "I have something to say to you."

"All right, Teacher," Simon replied, "go ahead."

41Then Jesus told him this story: "A man loaned money to two people--$5,000 to one and $500 to the other. 40But neither of them could pay him back, so he kindly forgave them both, letting them keep the money! Which do you suppose loved him most after that?"

43"I suppose the one who had owed him the most," Simon answered.

"Correct," Jesus agreed.

44Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, "Look! See this woman kneeling here! When I entered your home, you didn't bother to offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45You refused me the customary kiss of greeting, but she has kissed my feet again and again from the time I first came in. 46You neglected the usual courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has covered my feet with rare perfume. 47Therefore her sins--and they are many--are forgiven, for she loved me much; but one who is forgiven little, show little love."

48And he said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."

49Then the men at the table said to themselves, "Who does this man think he is, going around forgiving sins?"

50And Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

Chapter 8

Not long afterwards he began a tour of the cities and villages of Galilee to announce the coming of the Kingdom of God, and took his twelve disciples with him. 2Some women went along, from whom he had cast out demons or whom he had healed; among them were Mary Magdalene (Jesus had cast out seven demons from her), 3Joanna, Chuza's wife (Chuza was King Herod's business manager and was in charge of his palace and domestic affairs), Susanna, and many others who were contributing from their private means to the support of Jesus and his disciples.

4One day he gave this illustration to a large crowd that was gathering to hear him--while many others were still on the way, coming from other towns.

5"A farmer went out to his field to sow grain. As he scattered the seed on the ground, some of it fell on a footpath and was trampled on; and the birds came and ate it as it lay exposed. 6Other seed fell on shallow soil with rock beneath. This seed began to grow, but soon withered and died for lack of moisture. 7Other seed landed in thistle patches, and the young grain stalks were soon choked out. 8Still other fell on fertile soil; this seed grew and produced a crop one hundred times as large as he had planted." (As he was giving this illustration he said, "If anyone has listening ears, use them now!")

9His apostles asked him what the story meant.

10He replied, "God has granted you to know the meaning of these parables, for they tell a great deal about the Kingdom of God. But these crowds hear the words and do not understand, just as the ancient prophets predicted."

11"This is its meaning: The seed is God's message to men. 12The hard path where some seed fell represents the hard hearts of those who hear the words of God, but then the devil comes and steals the words away and prevents people from believing and being saved. 13The stony ground represents those who enjoy listening to sermons, but somehow the message never really gets through to them and doesn't take root and grow. They know the message is true, and sort of believe for awhile; but when the hot winds of persecution blow, they lose interest. 14The seed among the thorns represents those who listen and believe God's words but whose faith afterwards is choked out by worry and riches and the responsibilities and pleasures of life. And so they are never able to help anyone else to believe the Good News.

15"But the good soil represents honest, good-hearted people. They listen to God's words and cling to them and steadily spread them to others who also soon believe."

16[Another time he asked,] "Who ever heard of someone lighting a lamp and then covering it up to keep it from shining? No, lamps are mounted in the open where they can be seen. 17This illustrates the fact that someday everything [in men's hearts] shall be brought to light and made plain to all. 18So be careful how you listen; for whoever has, to him shall be given more; and whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has shall be taken away from him."

19Once when his mother and brothers came to see him, they couldn't get into the house where he was teaching, because of the crowds. 20When Jesus heard they were standing outside and wanted to see him, 21he remarked, "My mother and my brothers are all those who hear the message of God and obey it."

22One day about that time, as he and his disciples were out in a boat, he suggested that they cross to the other side of the lake. 23On the way across he lay down for a nap, and while he was sleeping the wind began to rise. A fierce storm developed that threatened to swamp them, and they were in real danger.

24They rushed over and woke him up. "Master, Master, we are sinking!" they screamed.

So he spoke to the storm: "Quiet down," he said, and the wind and waves subsided and all was calm! 25Then he asked them, "Where is your faith?"

And they were filled with awe and fear of him and said to one another, "Who is this man, that even the winds and waves obey him?"

26So they arrived at the other side, in the Gerasene country across the lake from Galilee. 27As he was climbing out of the boat a man from the city of Gadara came to meet him, a man who had been demon-possessed for a long time. Homeless and naked, he lived in a cemetery among the tombs. 28As soon as he saw Jesus he shrieked and fell to the ground before him, screaming, "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of God Most High? Please, I beg you, oh, don't torment me!"

29For Jesus was already commanding the demon to leave him. This demon had often taken control of the man so that even when shackled with chains he simply broke them and rushed out into the desert, completely under the demon's power. 30 "What is your name?" Jesus asked the demon. "Legion," they replied--for the man was filled with thousands of them! 31They kept begging Jesus not to order them into the Bottomless Pit.

32A herd of pigs was feeding on the mountainside nearby, and the demons pled with him to let them enter into the pigs. And Jesus said they could. 33So they left the man and went into the pigs, and immediately the whole herd rushed down the mountainside and fell over a cliff into the lake below, where they drowned. 34The herdsmen rushed away to the nearby city, spreading the news as they ran.

35Soon a crowd came out to see for themselves what had happened and saw the man who had been demon-possessed sitting quietly at Jesus' feet, clothed and sane! And the whole crowd was badly frightened. 36Then those who had seen it happen told how the demon-possessed man had been healed. 37And everyone begged Jesus to go away and leave them alone (for a deep wave of fear had swept over them). So he returned to the boat and left, crossing back to the other side of the lake.

38The man who had been demon-possessed begged to go too, but Jesus said no.

39"Go back to your family," he told him, "and tell them what a wonderful thing God has done for you."

So he went all through the city telling everyone about Jesus' mighty miracle.

40On the other side of the lake the crowds received him with open arms, for they had been waiting for him.

41And now a man named Jairus, a leader of a Jewish synagogue, came and fell down at Jesus' feet and begged him to come home with him, 42for his only child was dying, a little girl twelve years old. Jesus went with him, pushing through the crowds.

43,44As they went a woman who wanted to be healed came up behind and touched him, for she had been slowly bleeding for twelve years, and could find no cure (though she had spent everything she had on doctors). But the instant she touched the edge of his robe, the bleeding stopped.

45 "Who touched me?" Jesus asked.

Everyone denied it, and Peter said, "Master, so many are crowding against you . . . ."

46But Jesus told him, "No, it was someone who deliberately touched me, for I felt healing power go out from me."

47When the woman realized that Jesus knew, she began to tremble and fell to her knees before him and told why she had touched him and that now she was well.

48 "Daughter," he said to her, "your faith has healed you. Go in peace."

49While he was still speaking to her, a messenger arrived from the Jairus' home with the news that the little girl was dead. "She's gone," he told her father; "there's no use troubling the Teacher now."

50But when Jesus heard what had happened, he said to the father, "Don't be afraid! Just trust me, and she'll be all right."

51When they arrived at the house Jesus wouldn't let anyone into the room except Peter, James, John, and the little girl's father and mother. 52The home was filled with mourning people, but he said, "Stop the weeping! She isn't dead; she is only asleep!" 53This brought scoffing and laughter, for they all knew she was dead.

54Then he took her by the hand and called, "Get up, little girl!" 55And at that moment her life returned and she jumped up! "Give her something to eat!" he said. 56Her parents were overcome with happiness, but Jesus insisted that they not tell anyone the details of what had happened.

Chapter 9

One day Jesus called together his twelve apostles and gave them authority over all demons--power to cast them out--and to heal all diseases. 2Then he sent them away to tell everyone about the coming of the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

3 "Don't even take along a walking stick," he instructed them, "nor a beggar's bag, nor food, nor money. Not even an extra coat. 4Be a guest in only one home at each village.

5 "If the people of a town won't listen to you when you enter it, turn around and leave, demonstrating God's anger against it by shaking its dust from your feet as you go."

6So they began their circuit of the villages, preaching the Good News and healing the sick.

7When reports of Jesus' miracles reached Herod, the governor, he was worried and puzzled, for some were saying, "This is John the Baptist come back to life again"; 8and others, "It is Elijah or some other ancient prophet risen from the dead." These rumors were circulating all over the land.

9"I beheaded John," Herod said, "so who is this man about whom I hear such strange stories?" And he tried to see him.

10After the apostles returned to Jesus and reported what they had done, he slipped quietly away with them toward the city of Bethsaida. 11But the crowds found out where he was going, and followed. And he welcomed them, teaching them again about the Kingdom of God and curing those who were ill.

12Late in the afternoon all twelve of the disciples came and urged him to send the people away to the nearby villages and farms, to find food and lodging for the night. "For there is nothing to eat here in this deserted spot," they said.

13But Jesus replied, " You feed them!"

"Why, we have only five loaves of bread and two fish among the lot of us," they protested; "or are you expecting us to go and buy enough for this whole mob?" 14For there were about 5,000 men there!

"Just tell them to sit down on the ground in groups of about fifty each," Jesus replied. 15So they did.

16Jesus took the five loaves and two fish and looked up into the sky and gave thanks; then he broke off pieces for his disciples to set before the crowd. 17And everyone ate and ate; still, twelve basketfuls of scraps were picked up afterwards!

18One day as he was alone, praying, with his disciples nearby, he came over and asked them, "Who are the people saying I am?"

19"John the Baptist," they told him, "or perhaps Elijah or one of the other ancient prophets risen from the dead."

20Then he asked them, "Who do you think I am?"

Peter replied, "The Messiah--the Christ of God!"

21He gave them strict orders not to speak of this to anyone. 22 "For I, the Messiah, must suffer much," he said, "and be rejected by the Jewish leaders--the elders, chief priests, and teachers of the Law--and be killed; and three days later I will come back to life again!"

23Then he said to all, "Anyone who wants to follow me must put aside his own desires and conveniences and carry his cross with him every day and keep close to me! 24Whoever loses his life for my sake will save it, hut whoever insists on keeping his life will lose it; 25and what profit is there in gaining the whole world when it means forfeiting one's self?

26 "When I, the Messiah, come in my glory and in the glory of the Father and the holy angels, I will be ashamed then of all who are ashamed of me and of my words now. 27But this is the simple truth--some of you who are standing here right now will not die until you have seen the Kingdom of God."

28Eight days later he took Peter, James, and John with him into the hills to pray. 29And as he was praying, his face began to shine, and his clothes became dazzling white and blazed with light. 30Then two men appeared and began talking with him--Moses and Elijah! 31They were splendid in appearance, glorious to see; and they were speaking of his death at Jerusalem, to be carried out in accordance with God's plan.

32Peter and the others had been very drowsy and had fallen asleep. Now they woke up and saw Jesus covered with brightness and glory, and the two men standing with him. 33As Moses and Elijah were starting to leave, Peter, all confused and not even knowing what he was saying, blurted out, "Master, this is wonderful! We'll put up three shelters--one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah!"

34But even as he was saying this, a bright cloud formed above them; and terror gripped them as it covered them. 35And a voice from the cloud said, " This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him."

36Then, as the voice died away, Jesus was there alone with his disciples. They didn't tell anyone what they had seen until long afterwards.

37The next day as they descended from the hill, a huge crowd met him, 38and a man in the crowd called out to him, "Teacher, this boy here is my only son, 39and a demon keeps seizing him, making him scream; and it throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth; it is always hitting him and hardly ever leaves him alone. 40I begged your disciples to cast the demon out, but they couldn't."

41 "O you stubborn faithless people," Jesus said [to his disciples], "how long should I put up with you? Bring him here."

42As the boy was coming the demon knocked him to the ground and threw him into a violent convulsion. But Jesus ordered the demon to come out, and healed the boy and handed him over to his father.

43Awe gripped the people as they saw this display of the power of God.

Meanwhile, as they were exclaiming over all the wonderful things he was doing, Jesus said to his disciples, 44 "Listen to me and remember what I say. I, the Messiah, am going to be betrayed." 45But the disciples didn't know what he meant, for their minds had been sealed and they were afraid to ask him.

46Now came an argument among them as to which of them would be greatest [in the coming Kingdom]! 47But Jesus knew their thoughts, so he stood a little child beside him 48and said to them, "Anyone who takes care of a little child like this is caring for me! And whoever cares for me is caring for God who sent me. Your care for others is the measure of your greatness." 49His disciple John came to him and said, "Master, we saw someone using your name to cast out demons. And we told him not to. After all, he isn't in our group."

50But Jesus said, "You shouldn't have done that! For anyone who is not against you is for you."

51As the time drew near for his return to heaven, he moved steadily onward towards Jerusalem with an iron will.

52One day he sent messengers ahead to reserve rooms for them in a Samaritan village. 53But they were turned away! The people of the village refused to have anything to do with them because they were headed for Jerusalem.

54When word came back of what had happened, James and John said to Jesus, "Master, shall we order fire down from heaven to burn them up?" 55But Jesus turned and rebuked them, 56and they went on to another village.

57As they were walking along someone said to Jesus, "I will always follow you no matter where you go."

58But Jesus replied, "Remember, I don't even own a place to lay my head. Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but I, the Messiah, have no earthly home at all."

59Another time, when he invited a man to come with him and to be his disciple, the man agreed--but wanted to wait until his father's death.

60Jesus replied, "Let those without eternal life concern themselves with things like that. Your duty is to come and preach the coming of the Kingdom of God to all the world."

61Another said, "Yes, Lord, I will come, but first let me ask permission of those at home."

62But Jesus told him, "Anyone who lets himself be distracted from the work I plan for him is not fit for the Kingdom of God."

Chapter 10

The Lord now chose seventy other disciples and sent them on ahead in pairs to all the towns and villages he planned to visit later.

2These were his instructions to them: "Plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out more laborers to help you, for the harvest is so plentiful and the workers so few. 3Go now, and remember that I am sending you out as lambs among wolves. 4Don't take any money with you, or a beggar's bag, or even an extra pair of shoes. And don't waste time along the way.

5"Whenever you enter a home, give it your blessing. 6If it is worthy of the blessing, the blessing will stand; if not, the blessing will return to you.

7"When you enter a village, don't shift around from home to home, but stay in one place, eating and drinking without question whatever is set before you. And don't hesitate to accept hospitality, for the workman is worthy of his wages!

8.9"If a town welcomes you, follow these two rules:

(1) Eat whatever is set before you.

(2) Heal the sick; and as you heal them, say, 'The Kingdom of God is very near you now.'

10"But if a town refuses you, go out into its streets and say, 11'We wipe the dust of your town from our feet as a public announcement of your doom. Never forget how close you were to the Kingdom of God!' 12Even wicked Sodom will be better off than such a city on the Judgment Day. 13What horrors await you, you cities of Chorazin and Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did for you had been done in the cities of Tyre and Sidon, their people would have sat in deep repentance long ago, clothed in sack-cloth and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse. 14Yes, Tyre and Sidon will receive less punishment on the Judgment Day than you. 15And you people of Capernaum, what shall I say about you? Will you be exalted to heaven? No, you shall be brought down to hell."

16Then he said to the disciples, "Those who welcome you are welcoming me. And those who reject you are rejecting me. And those who reject me are rejecting God who sent me."

17When the seventy disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, "Even the demons obey us when we use your name."

18"Yes," he told them, "I saw Satan falling from heaven as a flash of lightning! 19And I have given you authority over all the power of the Enemy, and to walk among serpents and scorpions and to crush them. Nothing shall injure you! 20However, the important thing is not that demons obey you, but that your names are registered as citizens of heaven."

21Then he was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit and said, "I praise you, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding these things from the intellectuals and worldly wise and for revealing them to those who are as trusting as little children. Yes, thank you, Father, for that is the way you wanted it. 22I am the Agent of my Father in everything; and no one really knows the Son except the Father, and no one really knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him."

23Then, turning to the twelve disciples, he said quietly, "How privileged you are to see what you have seen. 24Many a prophet and king of old has longed for these days, to see and hear what you have seen and heard!"

25One day an expert on Moses' laws came to test Jesus' orthodoxy by asking him this question: "Teacher, what does a man need to do to live forever in heaven?"

26Jesus replied, "What does Moses' law say about it?"

27"It says," he replied, "that you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind. And you must love your neighbor just as much as you love yourself."

28 "Right!" Jesus told him. " Do this and you shall live!"

29The man wanted to justify (his lack of love for some kinds of people), so he asked, "Which neighbors?"

30Jesus replied with an illustration: "A Jew going on a trip from Jerusalem to Jericho was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes and money and beat him up and left him lying half dead beside the road.

31"By chance a Jewish priest came along; and when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. 32A Jewish Temple-assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but then went on.

33"But a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw him, he felt deep pity. 34Kneeling beside him the Samaritan soothed his wounds with medicine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his donkey and walked along beside him till they came to an inn, where he nursed him through the night. 35The next day he handed the innkeeper a day's wage and told him to take care of the man. 'If his bill runs higher than that,' he said, 'I'll pay the difference the next time I am here.'

36"Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the bandits' victim?"

37The man replied, "The one who showed him some pity."

Then Jesus said, "Yes, now go and do the same."

38As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem they came to a village where a woman named Martha welcomed them into her home. 39Her sister Mary sat on the floor, listening to Jesus as he talked.

40But Martha was the jittery type, and was worrying over the big dinner she was preparing.

She came to Jesus and said, "Sir, doesn't it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me."

41But the Lord said to her, "Martha, dear friend, you are so upset over all these details! 42There is really only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it--and I won't take it away from her!"

Chapter 11

Once when Jesus had been out praying, one of his disciples came to him as he finished and said, "Lord, teach us a prayer to recite just as John taught one to his disciples."

2And this is the prayer he taught them: "Father, may your name be honored for its holiness; send your Kingdom soon. 3Give us our food day by day. 4And forgive our sins--for we have forgiven those who sinned against us. And don't allow us to be tempted."

5,6Then, teaching them more about prayer, he used this illustration: "Suppose you went to friend's house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You would shout up to him, 'A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit and I've nothing to give him to eat.' 7He would call down from his bedroom, 'Please don't ask me to get up. The door is locked for the night and we are all in bed. I just can't help you this time.'

8"But I'll tell you this--though he won't do it as a friend, if you keep knocking long enough he will get up and give you everything you want--just because of your persistence. 9And so it is with prayer--keep on asking and you will keep on getting; keep on looking and you will keep on finding; knock and the door will be opened. 10Everyone who asks, receives; all who seek, find; and the door is opened to everyone who knocks.

11"You men who are fathers--if your boy asks for bread, do you give him a stone? If he asks for fish, do you give him a snake? 12If he asks for an egg, do you give him a scorpion? [Of course not!]

13"And if even sinful persons like yourselves give children what they need, don't you realize that your heavenly Father will do at least as much, and give the Holy Spirit to those who ask for him?"

14Once, when Jesus cast out a demon from a man who couldn't speak, his voice returned to him. The crowd was excited and enthusiastic, 15but some said, "No wonder he can cast them out. He gets his power from Satan, the king of demons!" 16Others asked for something to happen in the sky to prove his claim of being the Messiah.

17He knew the thoughts of each of them, so he said, "Any kingdom filled with civil war is doomed; so is a home filled with argument and strife. 18Therefore, if what you say is true, that Satan is fighting against himself by empowering me to cast out his demons, how can his kingdom survive? 19And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own followers? For they cast out demons! Do you think this proves they are possessed by Satan? Ask them if you are right! 20But if I am casting out demons because of power from God, it proves that the Kingdom of God has arrived.

21"For when Satan, strong and fully armed, guards his palace, it is safe-- 22until someone stronger and better-armed attacks and overcomes him and strips him of his weapons and carries off his belongings.

23"Anyone who is not for me is against me; if he isn't helping me, he is hurting my cause.

24"When a demon is cast out of a man, it goes to the deserts, searching there for rest; but finding none, it returns to the person it left, 25and finds that its former home is all swept and clean. 26Then it goes and gets seven other demons more evil than itself, and they all enter the man. And so the poor fellow is seven times worse off than he was before."

27As he was speaking, a woman in the crowd called out, "God bless your mother--the womb from which you came, and the breasts that gave you suck!"

28He replied, "Yes, but even more blessed are all who hear the Word of God and put it into practice."

29,30As the crowd pressed in upon him, he preached them this sermon: "These are evil times, with evil people. They keep asking for some strange happening in the skies [to prove that I am the Messiah], but the only proof I will give them is a miracle like that of Jonah, whose experiences proved to people of Nineveh that God had sent him. My similar experience will prove that God has sent me to these people.

31"And at the Judgment Day the Queen of Sheba shall arise and point her finger at this generation, condemning it, for she went on a long, hard journey to listen to the wisdom of Solomon; but one far greater than Solomon is here [and few pay any attention].

32"The men of Nineveh, too, shall arise and condemn this nation, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and someone far greater than Jonah is here [but this nation won't listen].

33"No one lights a lamp and hides it! Instead, he puts it on a lampstand to give light to all who enter the room. 34Your eyes light up your inward being. A pure eye lets sunshine into your soul. A lustful eye shuts out the light and plunges you into darkness. 35So watch out that the sunshine isn't blotted out. 36If you are filled with light within, with no dark corners, then your face will be radiant too, as though a floodlight is beamed upon you."

37,38As he was speaking, one of the Pharisees asked him home for a meal. When Jesus arrived, he sat down to eat without first performing the ceremonial washing required by Jewish custom. This greatly surprised his host.

39Then Jesus said to him, "You Pharisees wash the outside, but inside you are still dirty--full of greed and wickedness! 40Fools! Didn't God make the inside as well as the outside? 41Purity is best demonstrated by generosity.

42 "But woe to you Pharisees! For though you are careful to tithe even the smallest part of your income, you completely forget about justice and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but you should not leave these other things undone.

43 "Woe to you Pharisees! For how you love the seats of honor in the synagogues and the respectful greetings from everyone as you walk through the markets! 44Yes, awesome judgment is awaiting you. For you are like hidden graves in a field. Men go by you with no knowledge of the corruption they are passing."

45"Sir," said an expert in religious law who was standing there, "you have insulted my profession, too, in what you just said."

46"Yes," said Jesus, "the same horrors await you! For you crush men beneath impossible religious demands--demands that you yourselves would never think of trying to keep. 47Woe to you! For you are exactly like your ancestors who killed the prophets long ago. 48Murderers! You agree with your fathers that what they did was right--you would have done the same yourselves.

49"This is what God says about you: 'I will send prophets and apostles to you, and you will kill some of them and chase away the others.'

50"And you of this generation will be held responsible for the murder of God's servants from the founding of the world-- 51from the murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, it will surely be charged against you.

52"Woe to you experts in religion! For you hide the truth from the people. You won't accept it for yourselves, and you prevent others from having a chance to believe it."

53,54The Pharisees and legal experts were furious; and from that time on they plied him fiercely with a host of questions, trying to trap him into saying something for which they could have him arrested.

Chapter 12

Meanwhile the crowds grew until thousands upon thousands were milling about and crushing each other. He turned now to his disciples and warned them, "More than anything else, beware of these Pharisees and the way they pretend to be good when they aren't. But such hypocrisy cannot be hidden forever. 2It will become as evident as yeast in dough. 3Whatever they have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in the inner rooms shall be broadcast from the housetops for all to hear!

4"Dear friends, don't be afraid of these who want to murder you. They can only kill the body; they have no power over your souls. 5But I'll tell you whom to fear--fear God who has the power to kill and then cast into hell.

6"What is the price of five sparrows? A couple of pennies? Not much more than that. Yet God does not forget a single one of them. 7And he knows the number of hairs on your head! Never fear, you are far more valuable to him than a whole flock of sparrows.

8"And I assure you of this: I, the Messiah, will publicly honor you in the presence of God's angels if you publicly acknowledge me here on earth as your Friend. 9But I will deny before the angels who deny me here among men. 10(Yet those who speak against me may be forgiven--while those who speak against the Holy Spirit shall never be forgiven.)

11"And when you are brought to trial before these Jewish rulers and authorities in the synagogues, don't be concerned about what to say in your defense, 12for the Holy Spirit will give you the right words even as you are standing there."

13Then someone called from the crowd, "Sir, please tell my brother to divide my father's estate with me."

14But Jesus replied, "Man, who made me a judge over you to decide such things as that? 15Beware! Don't always be wishing for what you don't have. For real life and real living are not related to how rich we are."

16Then he gave an illustration: "A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. 17In fact, his barns were full to overflowing--he couldn't get everything in. He thought about his problem, 18and finally exclaimed, 'I know--I'll tear down my barns and build bigger ones! Then I'll have room enough. 19And I'll sit back and say to myself, "Friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Wine, women, and song for you!"'

20"But God said to him, 'Fool! Tonight you die. Then who will get it all?"

21"Yes, every man is a fool who gets rich on earth but not in heaven."

22Then turning to his disciples he said, "Don't worry about whether you have enough food to eat or clothes to wear. 23For life consists of far more than food and clothes. 24Look at the ravens--they don't plant or harvest or have barns to store away their food, and yet they get along all right--for God feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than any birds!

25"And besides, what's the use of worrying? What good does it do? Will it add a single day to your life? Of course not! 26And if worry can't even do such little things as that, what's the use of worrying over bigger things?

27"Look at the lilies! They don't toil and spin, and yet Solomon in all his glory was not robed as well as they are. 28And if God provides clothing for the flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, don't you suppose that he will provide clothing for you, you doubters? 29And don't worry about food--what to eat and drink; don't worry at all that God will provide it for you. 30All mankind scratches for its daily bread, but your heavenly Father knows your needs. 31He will always give you all you need from day to day if you will make the Kingdom of God your primary concern.

32"So don't be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom. 33Sell what you have and give to those in need. This will fatten your purses in heaven! And the purses of heaven have no rips or holes in them. Your treasures there will never disappear; no thief can steal them; no moth can destroy them. 34Wherever your treasure is, there your heart and thoughts will also be.

35"Be prepared--all dressed and ready-- 36for your Lord's return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks. 37There will be great joy for those who are ready and waiting for his return. He himself will seat them and put on a waiter's uniform and serve them as they sit and eat! 38He may come at nine o'clock at night--or even at midnight. But whenever he comes there will be joy for his servants who are ready!

39"Everyone would be ready for him if they knew the exact hour of his return--just as they would be ready for a thief if they knew when he was coming. 40So be ready all the time. For I, the Messiah, will come when least expected."

41Peter asked, "Lord, are you talking just to us or to everyone?"

42,43,44And the Lord replied, "I'm talking to any faithful, sensible man whose master gives him the responsibility of feeding the other servants. If his master returns and finds that he has done a good job, there will be a reward--his master will put him in charge of all he owns.

45"But if the man begins to think, 'My Lord won't be back for a long time,' and begins to whip the men and women he is supposed to protect, and to spend his time at drinking parties and in drunkenness-- 46well, his master will return without notice and remove him from his position of trust and assign him to the place of the unfaithful. 47He will be severely punished, for though he knew his duty he refused to do it.

48"But anyone who is not aware that he is doing wrong will be punished only lightly. Much is required from those to whom much is given, for their responsibility is greater.

49"I have come to bring fire to the earth, and, oh, that my task were completed! 50There is a terrible baptism ahead of me, and how I am pent up until it is accomplished!

51"Do you think I have come to give peace to the earth? No! Rather, strife and division! 50From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against--or perhaps the other way around. 51A father will decide one way about me; his son, the other; mother and daughter will disagree; and the decision of an honored mother-in-law will be spurned by her daughter-in-law.

54Then he turned to the crowd and said, "When you see clouds beginning to form in the west, you say, 'Here comes a shower.' And you are right.

55"When the south wind blows you say, 'Today will be a scorcher.' And it is. 56Hypocrites! You interpret the sky well enough, but you refuse to notice the warnings all around you about the crisis ahead. 57Why do you refuse to see for yourselves what is right?

58"If you meet your accuser on the way to court, try to settle the matter before it reaches the judge, lest he sentence you to jail; 59for if that happens you won't be free again until the last penny is pain in full."

Chapter 13

About this time he was informed that Pilate had butchered some Jews from Galilee as they were sacrificing at the Temple in Jerusalem.

2"Do you think they were worse sinners than other men from Galilee?" he asked. "Is that why they suffered? 3Not at all! And don't you realize that you also will perish unless you leave your evil ways and turn to God?

4"And what about the eighteen men who died when the Tower of Siloam fell on them? Were they the worst sinners in Jerusalem? 5Not at all! And you, too, will perish unless you repent."

6Then he used this illustration: "A man planted a fig tree in his garden and came again and again to see if he could find any fruit on it, but he was always disappointed. 7Finally he told his gardener to cut it down. 'I've waited three years and there hasn't been a single fig!' he said. 'Why bother with it any longer? It's taking up space we can use for something else.'

8"'Give it one more chance,' the gardener answered. 'Leave it another year, and I'll give it special attention and plenty of fertilizer. 9If we get figs next year, fine; if not, I'll cut it down."

10One Sabbath as he was teaching in a synagogue, 11he saw a seriously handicapped woman who had been bent double for eighteen years and was unable to straighten herself.

12Calling her over to him Jesus said, "Woman, you are healed of your sickness!" 13He touched her, and instantly she could stand straight. How she praised and thanked God!

14But the local Jewish leader in charge of the synagogue was very angry about it because Jesus had healed her on the Sabbath day. "There are six days of the week to work," he shouted to the crowd. "Those are the days to come for healing, not on the Sabbath!"

15But the Lord replied, "You hypocrite! You work on the Sabbath! Don't you untie your cattle from their stalls on the Sabbath and lead them out for water? 16And is it wrong for me, just because it is the Sabbath day, to free this Jewish woman from the bondage in which Satan has held her for eighteen years?"

17This shamed his enemies. And all the people rejoiced at the wonderful things he did.

18Now he began teaching them about the Kingdom of God: "What is the Kingdom like?" he asked. "How can I illustrate it? 19It is like a tiny mustard seed planted in a garden; soon it grows into a tall bush, and the birds live among its branches. 20,21It is like yeast kneaded into dough, which works unseen until it has risen high and light."

22He went from city to city and village to village, teaching as he went, always pressing onward toward Jerusalem.

23Someone asked him, "Will only a few be saved?"

And he replied, 24,25 "The door to heaven is narrow. Work hard to get in, for the truth is that many will try to enter but when the head of the house has locked the door, it will be too late. Then if you stand outside knocking, and pleading, 'Lord, open the door for us,' he will reply, 'I do not know you.'

26"'But we ate with you, and you taught in our streets,' you will say.

27"And he will reply, 'I tell you, I don't know you. You can't come in here, guilty as you are. Go away.'

28"And there will be great weeping and gnashing of teeth as you stand outside and see Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets within the Kingdom of God-- 29for people will come from all over the world to take their places there. 30And note this: some who are despised now will be greatly honored then; and some who are highly thought of now will be least important then."

31A few minutes later some Pharisees said to him, "Get out of here if you want to live, for King Herod is after you!"

32Jesus replied, "Go tell that fox that I will keep on casting out demons and doing miracles of healing today and tomorrow; and the third day I will reach my destination. 33Yes, today, tomorrow, and the next day! For it wouldn't do for a prophet of God to be killed except in Jerusalem!

34"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! The city that murders the prophets. The city that stones those sent to help her. How often I have wanted to gather your children together even as a hen protects her brood under her wings, but you wouldn't let me. 35And now--now your house is left desolate. And you will never again see me until you say, 'Welcome to him who comes in the name of the Lord.'"

Chapter 14

One Sabbath as he was in the home of a member of the Jewish Council, the Pharisees were watching him like hawks to see if he would heal a man who was present who was suffering from dropsy.

3Jesus said to the Pharisees and legal experts standing around, "Well, is it within the Law to heal a man on the Sabbath day, or not?"

4And when they refused to answer, Jesus took the sick man by the hand and healed him and sent him away.

5Then he turned to them: "Which of you doesn't work on the Sabbath?" he asked. "If your cow falls into a pit, don't you proceed at once to get it out?"

6Again they had no answer.

7When he noticed that all who came to the dinner were trying to sit near the head of the table, he gave them this advice: 8 "If you are invited to a wedding feast, don't always head for the best seat. For if someone more respected than you shows up, 9the host will bring him over to where you are sitting and say, 'Let this man sit here instead.' And you, embarrassed, will have to take whatever seat is left at the foot of the table!

10"Do this instead--start at the foot; and when your host sees you he will come and say, 'Friend, we have a better place than this for you!' Thus you will be honored in front of all the other guests. 11For everyone who tries to honor himself shall be humbled; and he who humbles himself shall be honored." 12Then he turned to his host. "When you put on a dinner," he said, "don't invite friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors! For they will return the invitation. 13Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. 14Then at the resurrection of the godly, God will reward you for inviting those who can't repay you."

15Hearing this, a man sitting at the table with Jesus exclaimed, "What a privilege it would be to get into the Kingdom of God!"

16Jesus replied with this illustration: "A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations. 17When all was ready, he sent his servant around to notify the guests that it was time for them to arrive. 18But they all began making excuses. One said he had just bought a field and wanted to inspect it, and asked to be excused. 19Another said he had just bought five pair of oxen and wanted to try them out. 20Another had just been married and for that reason couldn't come.

21"The servant returned and reported to his master what they had said. His master was angry and told him to go quickly into the streets and alleys of the city and to invite the beggars, crippled, lame, and blind. 22But even then, there was still room.

23"'Well, then,' said his master, 'go out into the country lanes and out behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full. 24For none of those I invited first will get even the smallest taste of what I had prepared for them.'"

25Great crowds were following him. He turned around and addressed them as follows: 26 "Anyone who wants to be my follower must love me far more than he does his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, or sisters--yes, more than his own life-- otherwise he cannot be my disciple. 27And no one can be my disciple who does not carry his own cross and follow me.

28"But don't begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first getting estimates and then checking to see if he has enough money to pay the bills? 29Otherwise he might complete only the foundation before running out of funds. And then how everyone would laugh!

30"'See that fellow there?' they would mock. 'He started that building and ran out of money before it was finished!'

31"Or what king would ever dream of going to war without first sitting down with his counselors and discussing whether his army of 10,000 is strong enough to defeat the 20,000 men who are marching against him?

32"If the decision is negative, then while the enemy troops are still far away, he will send a truce team to discuss terms of peace. 33So no one can become my disciple unless he first sits down and counts his blessings--and then renounces them all for me.

34"What good is salt that has lost its saltiness? 35Flavorless salt is fit for nothing--not even for fertilizer. It is worthless and must be thrown out. Listen well, if you would understand my meaning."

Chapter 15

Dishonest tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus' sermons; 2but this caused complaints from the Jewish religious leaders and the experts on Jewish law because he was associating with such despicable people--even eating with them! 3,4So Jesus used this illustration: "If you had a hundred sheep and one of them strayed away and was lost in the wilderness, wouldn't you leave the ninety-nine others to go and search for the lost one until you found it? 5And then you would joyfully carry it home on your shoulders. 6When you arrived you would call together your friends and neighbors to rejoice with you because your lost sheep was found.

7"Well, in the same way heaven will be happier over one lost sinner who returns to God than over ninety-nine others who haven't strayed away!

8"Or take another illustration: A woman has ten valuable silver coins and loses one. Won't she light a lamp and look in every corner of the house and sweep every nook and cranny until she finds it? 9And then won't she call in her friends and neighbors to rejoice with her? 10In the same way there is joy in the presence of the angels of God when one sinner repents."

To further illustrate the point, he told them this story: 11 "A man had two sons. 12When the younger told his father, 'I want my share of your estate now, instead of waiting until you die!' his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons.

13"A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and took a trip to a distant land, and there wasted all his money on parties and prostitutes. 14About the time his money was gone a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve. 15He persuaded a local farmer to hire him to feed his pigs. 16The boy became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the swine looked good to him. And no one gave him anything.

17"When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, 'At home even the hired men have food enough and to spare, and here I am, dying of hunger! 18I will go home to my father and say, "Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, 19and am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired man."'

20"So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long distance away, his father saw him coming, and was filled with loving pity and ran and embraced him and kissed him.

21"His son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and you, and am not worthy of being called your son--'

22"But his father said to the slaves, 'Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. And a jeweled ring for his finger; and shoes! 23And kill the calf we have in the fattening pen. We must celebrate with a feast, 24for this son of mine was dead and has returned to life. He was lost and is found.' So the party began.

25"Meanwhile, the older son was in the fields working; when he returned home, he heard dance music coming from the house, 26and he asked one of the servants what was going on.

27"'Your brother is back,' he was told, 'and your father has killed the calf we were fattening and has prepared a great feast to celebrate his coming home again unharmed.'

28"The older brother was angry and wouldn't go in. His father came out and begged him, 29but he replied, 'All these years I've worked hard for you and never once refused to do a single thing you told me to; and in all that time you never gave me even one young goat for a feast with my friends. 30Yet when this son of yours comes back after spending your money on prostitutes, you celebrate by killing the finest calf we have on the place.'

31"'Look, dear son,' his father said to him, 'you and I are very close, and everything I have is yours. 31But it is right to celebrate. For he is your brother; and he was dead and has come back to life! He was lost and is found!'"

Chapter 16

Jesus now told this story to his disciples: "A rich man hired an accountant to handle his affairs, but soon a rumor went around that the accountant was thoroughly dishonest.

2"So his employer called him in and said, 'What's this I hear about your stealing from me? Get your report in order, for you are to be dismissed.'

3"The accountant thought to himself, 'Now what? I'm through here, and I haven't the strength to go out and dig ditches, and I'm too proud to beg. 4I know just the thing! And then I'll have plenty of friends to take care of me when I leave!'

5,6"So he invited each one who owed money to his employer to come and discuss the situation. He asked the first one, 'How much do you owe him?' 'My debt is 850 gallons of olive oil,' the man replied. 'Yes, here is the contract you signed,' the accountant told him. 'Tear it up and write another one for half that much!'

7"'And how much do you owe him?' he asked the next man. 'A thousand bushels of wheat,' was the reply. 'Here,' the accountant said, 'take your note and replace it with one for only 800 bushels!'

8"The rich man had to admire the rascal for being so shrewd. And it is true that the citizens of this world are more clever [in dishonesty!] than the godly are. 9But shall I tell you to act that way, to buy friendship through cheating? Will this ensure your entry into an everlasting home in heaven? 10 No! For unless you are honest in small matters, you won't be in large ones. If you cheat even a little, you won't be honest with greater responsibilities. 11And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? 12And if you are not faithful with other people's money, why should you be entrusted with money of your own?

13"For neither you nor anyone else can serve two masters. You will hate one and show loyalty to the other, or else the other way around--you will be enthusiastic about one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."

14The Pharisees, who dearly loved their money, naturally scoffed at all this.

15Then he said to them, "You wear a noble, pious expression in public, but God knows your evil hearts. Your pretense brings you honor from the people, but it is an abomination in the sight of God. 16Until John the Baptist began to preach, the laws of Moses and the messages of the prophets were your guides. But John introduced the Good News that the Kingdom of God would come soon. And now eager multitudes are pressing in. 17But that doesn't mean that the Law has lost its force in even the smallest point. It is as strong and unshakable as heaven and earth.

18"So anyone who divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery."

19"There was a certain rich man," Jesus said, "who was splendidly clothed and lived each day in mirth and luxury. 20One day Lazarus, a diseased beggar, was laid at his door. 21As he lay there longing for scraps from the rich man's table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores. 22Finally the beggar died and was carried by the angels to be with Abraham in the place of the righteous dead. The rich man also died and was buried, 23and his soul went into hell. There, in torment, he saw Lazarus in the far distance with Abraham.

24"'Father Abraham,' he shouted, 'have some pity! Send Lazarus over here if only to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in these flames.'

25"But Abraham said to him, 'Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted and you are in anguish. 26And besides, there is a great chasm separating us, and anyone wanting to come to you from here is stopped at its edge; and no one over there can cross to us.'

27"Then the rich man said, 'O Father Abraham, then please send him to my father's home-- 28for I have five brothers--to warn them about this place of torment lest they come here when they die.'

29"But Abraham said, 'The Scriptures have warned them again and again. Your brothers can read them any time they want to.'

30"The rich man replied, 'No, Father Abraham, they won't bother to read them. But if someone is sent to them from the dead, then they will turn from their sins.'

31"But Abraham said, 'If they won't listen to Moses and the prophets, they won't listen even though someone rises from the dead.'"

Chapter 17

"There will always be temptations to sin," Jesus said one day to his disciples, "but woe to the man who does the tempting. 2,3If he were thrown into the sea with a huge rock tied to his neck, he would be far better off than facing the punishment in store for those who harm these little children's souls. I am warning you!

"Rebuke your brother if he sins, and forgive him if he is sorry. 4Even if he wrongs you seven times a day and each time turns again and asks forgiveness, forgive him."

5One day the apostles said to the Lord, "We need more faith; tell us how to get it."

6"If your faith were only the size of a mustard seed," Jesus answered, "it would be large enough to uproot that mulberry tree over there and send it hurtling into the sea! Your command would bring immediate results! 7,8,9When a servant comes in from plowing or taking care of sheep, he doesn't just sit down and eat, but first prepares his master's meal and serves him his supper before he eats his own. And he is not even thanked, for he is merely doing what he is supposed to do. 10Just so, if you merely obey me, you should not consider yourselves worthy of praise. For you have simply done your duty!"

11As they continued onward toward Jerusalem, they reached the border between Galilee and Samaria, 12and as they entered a village there, ten lepers stood at a distance, 13crying out, "Jesus, sir, have mercy on us!"

14He looked at them and said, "Go to the Jewish priest and show him that you are healed!" And as they were going, their leprosy disappeared.

15One of them came back to Jesus, shouting, "Glory to God, I'm healed!" 16He fell flat on the ground in front of Jesus, face downward in the dust, thanking him for what he had done. This man was a despised Samaritan.

17Jesus asked, "Didn't I heal ten men? Where are the nine? 18Does only this foreigner return to give glory to God?"

19And Jesus said to the man, "Stand up and go; your faith has made you well."

20One day the Pharisees asked Jesus, "When will the Kingdom of God begin?" Jesus replied, "The Kingdom of God isn't ushered in with visible signs. 21You won't be able to say, 'It has begun here in this place or there in that part of the country.' For the Kingdom of God is within you."

22Later he talked again about this with his disciples. "The time is coming when you will long for me to be with you even for a single day, but I won't be here," he said, 23 "Reports will reach you that I have returned and that I am in this place or that; don't believe it or go out to look for me. 24For when I return, you will know it beyond all doubt. It will be as evident as the lightning that flashes across the skies. 25But first I must suffer terribly and be rejected by this whole nation.

26"[When I return] the world will be [as indifferent to the things of God] as the people were in Noah's day. 27They ate and drank and married--everything just as usual right up to the day when Noah went into the ark and the flood came and destroyed them all.

28"And the world will be as it was in the days of Lot: people went about their daily business--eating and drinking, buying and selling, farming and building-- 29until the morning Lot left Sodom. Then fire and brimstone rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. 30Yes, it will be 'business as usual' right up to the hour of my return.

31"Those away from home that day must not return to pack; those in the fields must not return to town-- 32remember what happened to Lot's wife! 33Whoever clings to his life shall lose it, and whoever loses his life shall save it. 34That night two men will be asleep in the same room, and one will be taken away, the other left. 35,36Two women will be working together at household tasks; one will be taken, the other left; and so it will be with men working side by side in the fields."

37"Lord, where will they be taken?" the disciples asked.

Jesus replied, "Where the body is, the vultures gather!"

Chapter 18

One day Jesus told his disciples a story to illustrate their need for constant prayer and to show them that they must keep praying until the answer comes.

2"There was a city judge," he said, "a very godless man who had great contempt for everyone. 3A widow of that city came to him frequently to appeal for justice against a man who had harmed her. 4,5The judge ignored her for a while, but eventually she got on his nerves.

"'I fear neither God nor man,' he said to himself, 'but this woman bothers me. I'm going to see that she gets justice, for she is wearing me out with her constant coming!'"

6Then the Lord said, "If even an evil judge can be worn down like that, 7don't you think that God will surely give justice to his people who plead with him day and night? 8Yes! He will answer them quickly! But the question is: When I, the Messiah, return, how many will I find who have faith [and are praying]?"

9Then he told this story to some who boasted of their virtue and scorned everyone:

10"Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a proud, self-righteous Pharisee, and the other a cheating tax collector. 11The proud Pharisee 'prayed' this prayer: 'Thank God, I am not a sinner like everyone else, especially like that tax collector over there! For I never cheat, I don't commit adultery, 12I go without food twice a week, and I give to God a tenth of everything I earn.'

13"But the corrupt tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed, but beat upon his chest in sorrow, exclaiming, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner.' 14I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home forgiven! For the proud shall be humbled, but the humble shall be honored."

15One day some mothers brought their babies to him to touch and bless. But the disciples told them to go away.

16,17Then Jesus called the children over to him and said to the disciples, "Let the little children come to me! Never send them away! For the Kingdom of God belongs to men who have hearts as trusting as these little children's. And anyone who doesn't have their kind of faith will never get within the Kingdom's gates."

18Once a Jewish religious leader asked him this question: "Good sir, what shall I do to get to heaven?"

19"Do you realize what you are saying when you call me 'good'?" Jesus asked him. "Only God is truly good, and no one else.

20"But as to your question, you know what the ten commandments say--don't commit adultery, don't murder, don't steal, don't lie, honor your parents, and so on." 21The man replied, "I've obeyed every one of these laws since I was a small child."

22"There is still one thing you lack," Jesus said, "Sell all you have and give the money to the poor--it will become treasure for you in heaven--and come, follow me."

23But when the man heard this he went sadly away, for he was very rich.

24Jesus watched him go and then said to his disciples, "How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God! 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God."

26Those who heard him say this exclaimed, "If it is that hard, how can anyone be saved?"

27He replied, "God can do what men can't!"

28And Peter said, "We have left our homes and followed you."

29"Yes," Jesus replied, "and everyone who has done as you have, leaving home, wife, brothers, parents, or children for the sake of the Kingdom of God, 30will be repaid many times over now, as well as receiving eternal life in the world to come."

31Gathering the Twelve around him he told them, "As you know, we are going to Jerusalem. And when we get there, all the predictions of the ancient prophets concerning me will come true. 32I will be handed over to the Gentiles to be mocked and treated shamefully and spat upon, 33and lashed and killed. And the third day I will rise again."

34But they didn't understand a thing he said. He seemed to be talking in riddles.

35As they approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting beside the road, begging from travelers. 36When he heard the noise of a crowd going past, he asked what was happening. 37He was told that Jesus from Nazareth was going by, 38so he began shouting, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"

39The crowds ahead of Jesus tried to hush the man, but he only yelled the louder, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"

40When Jesus arrived at the spot, he stopped, "Bring the blind man over here," he said. 41Then Jesus asked the man, "What do you want?"

"Lord," he pleaded, "I want to see!"

42And Jesus said, "All right, begin seeing! Your faith has healed you."

43And instantly the man could see, and followed Jesus, praising God. And all who saw it happen praised God too.

Chapter 19

As Jesus was passing through Jericho, a man named Zacchaeus, one of the most influential Jews in the Roman tax-collecting business (and, of course, a very rich man), 3tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowds. 4So he ran ahead and climbed into a sycamore tree beside the road, to watch from there.

5When Jesus came by he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name! "Zacchaeus!" he said. "Quick! Come down! For I am going to be a guest in your home today!"

6Zacchaeus hurriedly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy.

7But the crowds were displeased. "He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner," they grumbled.

8Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, "Sir, from now on I will give half my wealth to the poor, and if I find I have overcharged anyone on his taxes, I will penalize myself by giving him back four times as much!"

9,10Jesus told him, "This shows that salvation has come to this home today. This man was one of the lost sons of Abraham, and I, the Messiah, have come to search for and to save such souls as his."

11And because Jesus was nearing Jerusalem, he told a story to correct the impression that the Kingdom of God would begin right away.

12"A nobleman living in a certain province was called away to the distant capital of the empire to be crowned king of his province. 13Before he left he called together ten assistants and gave them each $2,000 to invest while he was gone. 14But some of his people hated him and sent him their declaration of independence, stating that they had rebelled and would not acknowledge him as their king.

15"Upon his return he called in the men to whom he had given the money, to find out what they had done with it, and what their profits were.

16"The first man reported a tremendous gain--ten times as much as the original amount!

17"'Fine!' the king exclaimed. 'You are a good man. You have been faithful with the little I entrusted to you, and as your reward, you shall be governor of ten cities.'

18"The next man also reported a splendid gain--five times the original amount.

19"'All right!' his master said, 'You can be governor over five cities.'

20"But the third man brought back only the money he had started with. 'I've kept it safe,' he said, 21'because I was afraid [you would demand my profits], for you are a hard man to deal with, taking what isn't yours and even confiscating the crops that others plant.' 22'You vile and wicked slave,' the king roared. 'Hard, am I? That's exactly how I'll be toward you! If you knew so much about me and how tough I am, 23then why didn't you deposit the money in the bank so that I could at least get some interest on it?'

24"Then turning to the others standing by he ordered, 'Take the money away from him and give it to the man who earned the most.'

25"'But, sir,' they said, 'he has enough already!'

26"'Yes,' the king replied, 'but it is always true that those who have, get more, and those who have little, soon lose even that. 27And now about these enemies of mine who revolted--bring them in and execute them before me.'"

28After telling this story, Jesus went on towards Jerusalem, walking along ahead of his disciples. 29As they came to the towns of Bethphage and Bethany, on the Mount of Olives, he sent two disciples ahead, 30with instructions to go to the next village, and as they entered they were to look for a donkey tied beside the road. It would be a colt, not yet broken for riding.

"Untie him, Jesus said, "and bring him here. 31And if anyone asks you what you are doing, just say, 'The Lord needs him.'"

32They found the colt as Jesus said, 33and sure enough, as they were untying it, the owners demanded an explanation.

"What are you doing?" they asked. "Why are you untying our colt?"

34And the disciples simply replied, "The Lord needs him!" 35So they brought the colt to Jesus and threw some of their clothing across its back for Jesus to sit on.

36,37Then the crowds spread out their robes along the road ahead of him, and as they reached the place where the road started down from the Mount of Olives, the whole procession began to shout and sing as they walked along, praising God for all the wonderful miracles Jesus had done.

38"God has given us a King!" they exulted. "Long live the King! Let all heaven rejoice! Glory to God in the highest heavens!"

39But some of the Pharisees among the crowd said, "Sir, rebuke your followers for saying things like that!"

40He replied, "If they keep quiet, the stones along the road will burst into cheers!"

41But as they came closer to Jerusalem and he saw the city ahead, he began to cry. 42 "Eternal peace was within your reach and you turned it down," he wept, "and now it is too late. 43Your enemies will pile up earth against your walls and encircle you and close in on you, 44and crush you to the ground, and your children within you; your enemies will not leave one stone upon another--for you have rejected the opportunity God offered you."

45Then he entered the Temple and began to drive out the merchants from their stalls, 46saying to them, "The Scriptures declare, 'My Temple is a place of prayer; but you have turned it into a den of thieves.'"

47After that he taught daily in the Temple, but the chief priests and other religious leaders and the business community were trying to find some way to get rid of him. 48But they could think of nothing, for he was a hero to the people--they hung on every word he said.

Chapter 20

On one of those days when he was teaching and preaching the Good News in the Temple, he was confronted by the chief priests and other religious leaders and councilmen. 2They demanded to know by what authority he had driven out the merchants from the Temple.

3"I'll ask you a question before I answer," he replied. 4 "Was John sent by God, or was he merely acting under his own authority?"

5They talked it over among themselves. "If we say his message was from heaven, then we are trapped because he will ask, 'Then why didn't you believe him?' 6But if we say John was not sent from God, the people will mob us, for they are convinced he was a prophet." 7Finally they replied, "We don't know!"

8And Jesus responded, "Then I won't answer your question either."

9Now he turned to the people again and told them this story: "A man planted a vineyard and rented it out to some farmers, and went away to a distant land to live for several years. 10When harvest time came, he sent one of his men to the farm to collect his share of the crops. But the tenants beat him up and sent him back empty-handed. 11Then he sent another, but the same thing happened; he was beaten up and insulted and sent away without collecting. 12A third man was sent and the same thing happened. He, too, was wounded and chased away.

13"'What shall I do?' the owner asked himself. 'I know! I'll send my cherished son. Surely they will show respect for him.'

14"But when the tenants saw his son, they said. 'This is our chance! This fellow will inherit all the land when his father dies. Come on. Let's kill him, and then it will be ours.' 15So they dragged him out of the vineyard and killed him.

"What do you think the owner will do? 16I'll tell you--he will come and kill them and rent the vineyard to others."

"But they would never do a thing like that," his listeners protested.

17Jesus looked at them and said, "Then what does the Scripture mean where it says, 'The Stone rejected by the builders was made the cornerstone'?" 18And he added, "Whoever stumbles over that Stone shall be broken; and those on whom it falls will be crushed to dust."

19When the chief priests and religious leaders heard about this story he had told, they wanted him arrested immediately, for they realized that he was talking about them. They were the wicked tenants in his illustration. But they were afraid that if they themselves arrested him there would be a riot. So they tried to get him to say something that could be reported to the Roman governor as reason for arrest by him.

20Watching their opportunity, they sent secret agents pretending to be honest men. 21They said to Jesus, "Sir, we know what an honest teacher you are. You always tell the truth and don't budge an inch in the face of what others think, but teach the ways of God. 22Now tell us--is it right to pay taxes to the Roman government or not?"

23He saw through their trickery and said, 24 "Show me a coin. Whose portrait is this on it? And whose name?"

They replied, "Caesar's--the Roman emperor's."

25He said, "Then give the emperor all that is his--and give to God all that is his!"

26Thus their attempt to outwit him before the people failed; and marveling at his answer, they were silent.

27Then some Sadducees--men who believed that death is the end of existence, that there is no resurrection-- 28came to Jesus with this:

"The laws of Moses state that if a man dies without children, the man's brother shall marry the widow and their children will legally belong to the dead man, to carry on his name. 29We know of a family of seven brothers. The oldest married and then died without any children. 30His brother married the widow and he, too, died. Still no children. 31And so it went, one after the other, until each of the seven had married her and died, leaving no children. 32Finally the woman died also. 33Now here is our question: Whose wife will she be in the resurrection? For all of them were married to her!"

34,35Jesus replied, "Marriage is for people here on earth, but when those who are counted worthy of being raised from the dead get to heaven, they do not marry. 36And they never die again; in these respects they are like angels, and are sons of God, for they are raised up in new life from the dead.

37,38"But as to your real question--whether or not there is a resurrection--why, even the writings of Moses himself prove this. For when he describes how God appeared to him in the burning bush, he speaks of God as 'the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' To say that the Lord is some person's God means that person is alive, not dead! So from God's point of view, all men are living."

39"Well said, sir!" remarked some of the experts in the Jewish law who were standing there. 40And that ended their questions, for they dared ask no more!

41Then he presented them with a question, "Why is it," he asked, "that Christ, the Messiah, is said to be a descendant of King David? 42,43,For David himself wrote in the book of Psalms: 'God said to my Lord, the Messiah, "Sit at my right hand until I place your enemies beneath your feet."' 44How can the Messiah be both David's son and David's God at the same time?"

45Then, with the crowds listening, he turned to his disciples and said, 46 "Beware of these experts in religion, for they love to parade in dignified robes and to be bowed to by the people as they walk along the street. And how they love the seats of honor in the synagogues and at religious festivals! 47But even while they are praying long prayers with great outward piety, they are planning schemes to cheat widows out of their property. Therefore God's heaviest sentence awaits these men."

Chapter 21

As he stood in the Temple, he was watching the rich tossing their gifts into the collection box. 2Then a poor widow came by and dropped in two small copper coins.

3"Really," he remarked, "this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them combined. 4For they have given a little of what they didn't need, but she, poor as she is, has given every thing she has."

5Some of his disciples began talking about the beautiful stonework of the Temple and the memorial decorations on the walls.

5But Jesus said, "The time is coming when all these things you are admiring will be knocked down, and not one stone will be left on top of another; all will become one vast heap of rubble."

7"Master!" they exclaimed. "When? And will there be any warning ahead of time?"

8He replied, "Don't let anyone mislead you. For many will come announcing themselves as the Messiah, and saying, 'The time has come.' But don't believe them! 9And when you hear of wars and insurrections beginning, don't panic. True, wars must come, but the end won't follow immediately-- 10for nation shall rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, 11and there will be great earthquakes, and famines in many lands, and epidemics, and terrifying things happening in the heavens.

12"But before all this occurs, there will be a time of special persecution, and you will be dragged into synagogues and prisons and before kings and governors for my Name's sake. 13But as a result, the Messiah will be widely known and honored. 14Therefore, don't be concerned about how to answer the charges against you, 15for I will give you the right words and such logic that none of your opponents will be able to reply! 16Even those closest to you--your parents, brothers, relatives, and friends will betray you and have you arrested; and some of you will be killed. 17And everyone will hate you because you are mine and are called by my Name. 18But not a hair of your head will perish! 19For if you stand firm, you will win your souls.

20"But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then you will know that the time of its destruction has arrived. 21Then let the people of Judea flee to the hills. Let those in Jerusalem try to escape, and those outside the city must not attempt to return. 22For those will be days of God's judgment, and the words of the ancient Scriptures written by the prophets will be abundantly fulfilled. 23Woe to expectant mothers in those days, and those with tiny babies. For there will be great distress upon this nation and wrath upon this people. 24They will be brutally killed by enemy weapons, or sent away as exiles and captives to all the nations of the world; and Jerusalem shall be conquered and trampled down by the Gentiles until the period of Gentile triumph ends in God's good time.

25"Then there will be strange events in the skies--warnings, evil omens and portents in the sun, moon and stars; and down here on earth the nations will be in turmoil, perplexed by the roaring seas and strange tides. 26The courage of many people will falter because of the fearful fate they see coming upon the earth, for the stability of the very heavens will be broken up. 27Then the peoples of earth shall see me, the Messiah, coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28So when all these things begin to happen, stand straight and look up! For your salvation is near."

29Then he gave them this illustration: "Notice the fig tree, or any other tree. 30When the leaves come out, you know without being told that summer is near. 31In the same way, when you see the events taking place that I've described you can be just as sure that the Kingdom of God is near.

32"I solemnly declare to you that when these things happen, the end of this age has come. 33And though all heaven and earth shall pass away, yet my words remain forever true."

34,35"Watch out! Don't let my sudden coming catch you unawares; don't let me find you living in careless ease, carousing and drinking, and occupied with the problems of this life, like all the rest of the world. 36Keep a constant watch. And pray that if possible you may arrive in my presence without having to experience these horrors."

37,38Every day Jesus went to the Temple to teach, and the crowds began gathering early in the morning to hear him. And each evening he returned to spend the night on the Mount of Olives.

Chapter 22

And now the Passover celebration was drawing near--the Jewish festival when only bread made without yeast was used. 2The chief priests and other religious leaders were actively plotting Jesus' murder, trying to find a way to kill him without starting a riot--a possibility they greatly feared.

3Then Satan entered into Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve disciples, 4and he went over to the chief priests and captains of the Temple guards to discuss the best way to betray Jesus to them. 5They were, of course, delighted to know that he was ready to help them and promised him a reward. 6So he began to look for an opportunity for them to arrest Jesus quietly when the crowds weren't around.

7Now the day of the Passover celebration arrived, when the Passover lamb was killed and eaten with the unleavened bread. 8Jesus sent Peter and John ahead to find a place to prepare their Passover meal.

9"Where do you want us to go?" they asked.

10And he replied, "As soon as you enter Jerusalem, you will see a man walking along carrying a pitcher of water. Follow him into the house he enters, 11and say to the man who lives there, 'Our Teacher says for you to show us the guest room where he can eat the Passover meal with his disciples.' 12He will take you upstairs to a large room all ready for us. That is the place. Go ahead and prepare the meal there."

13They went off to the city and found everything just as Jesus said, and prepared the Passover supper.

14Then Jesus and the others arrived, and at the proper time all sat down together at the table; 15and he said, "I have looked forward to this hour with deep longing, anxious to eat this Passover meal with you before my suffering begins. 16For I tell you now that I won't eat it again until what it represents has occurred in the Kingdom of God."

17Then he took a glass of wine, and when he had given thanks for it, he said, "Take this and share it among yourselves. 18For I will not drink wine again until the Kingdom of God has come."

19Then he took a loaf of bread; and when he had thanked God for it, he broke it apart and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body, given for you. Eat it in remembrance of me."

20After supper he gave them another glass of wine, saying, "This wine is the token of God's new agreement to save you--an agreement sealed with the blood I shall pour out to purchase back your souls. 21But here at this table, sitting among us as a friend, is the man who will betray me. 22I must die. It is part of God's plan. But, oh, the horror awaiting that man who betrays me."

23Then the disciples wondered among themselves which of them would ever do such a thing.

24And they began to argue among themselves as to who would have the highest rank [in the coming Kingdom].

25Jesus told them, "In this world the kings and great men order their slaves around, and the slaves have no choice but to like it! 26But among you, the one who serves you best will be your leader. 27Out in the world the master sits at the table and is served by his servants. But not here! For I am your servant. 28Nevertheless, because you have stood true to me in these terrible days, 29and because my Father has granted me a Kingdom, I, here and now, grant you the right 30to eat and drink at my table in that Kingdom; and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

31"Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to have you, to sift you like wheat, 32but I have pleaded in prayer for you that your faith should not completely fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen and build up the faith of your brothers."

33Simon said, "Lord, I am ready to go to jail with you, and even to die with you."

34But Jesus said, "Peter, let me tell you something. Between now and tomorrow morning when the rooster crows, you will deny me three times, declaring that you don't even know me."

35Then Jesus asked them, "When I sent you out to preach the Good News and you were without money, duffle bag, or extra clothing, how did you get along?"

"Fine," they replied.

36"But now," he said, "take a duffle bag if you have one, and your money. And if you don't have a sword, better sell your clothes and buy one! 37For the time has come for this prophecy about me to come true: 'He will be condemned as a criminal!' Yes, everything written about me by the prophets will come true."

38"Master," they replied, "we have two swords among us."

"Enough!" he said.

39Then, accompanied by the disciples, he left the upstairs room and went as usual to the Mount of Olives. 40There he told them, "Pray God that you will not be overcome by temptation."

41,42He walked away, perhaps a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed this prayer: "Father, if you are willing, please take away this cup of horror from me. But I want your will, not mine." 43Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him, 44for he was in such agony of spirit that he broke into a sweat of blood, with great drops falling to the ground as he prayed more and more earnestly. 45At last he stood up again and returned to the disciples--only to find them asleep, exhausted from grief.

46 "Asleep!" he said. "Get up! Pray God that you will not fall when you are tempted."

47But even as he said this, a mob approached, led by Judas, one of his twelve disciples. Judas walked over to Jesus and kissed him on the cheek in friendly greeting.

48But Jesus said, "Judas, how can you do this--betray the Messiah with a kiss?"

49When the other disciples saw what was about to happen, they exclaimed, "Master, shall we fight? We brought along the swords!" 50And one of them slashed at the High Priest's servant, and cut off his right ear.

51But Jesus said, "Don't resist any more." And he touched the place where the man's ear had been and restored it. 52Then Jesus addressed the chief priests and captains of the Temple guards and the religious leaders who headed the mob. "Am I a robber," he asked, "that you have come armed with swords and clubs to get me? 53Why didn't you arrest me in the Temple? I was there every day. But this is your moment--the time when Satan's power reigns supreme."

54So they seized him and led him to the High Priest's residence, and Peter followed at a distance. 55The soldiers lit a fire in the courtyard and sat around it for warmth, and Peter joined them there.

56A servant girl noticed him in the firelight and began staring at him. Finally she spoke: "This man was with Jesus!"

57Peter denied it. "Woman," he said, "I don't even know the man!"

58After a while someone else looked at him and said, "You must be one of them!"

"No sir, I am not!" Peter replied.

59About an hour later someone else flatly stated, "I know this fellow is one of Jesus' disciples, for both are from Galilee."

60But Peter said, "Man, I don't know what you are talking about." And as he said the words, a rooster crowed.

61At that moment Jesus turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered what he had said--"Before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny me three times." 62And Peter walked out of the courtyard, crying bitterly.

63,64Now the guards in charge of Jesus began mocking him. They blindfolded him and hit him with their fists and asked, "Who hit you that time, prophet?" 65And they threw all sorts of other insults at him.

66Early the next morning at daybreak the Jewish Supreme Court assembled, including the chief priests and all the top religious authorities of the nation. Jesus was led before the Council, 67,68and instructed to state whether or not he claimed to be the Messiah.

But he replied, "If I tell you, you won't believe me or let me present my case. 69But the time is soon coming when I, the Messiah, shall be enthroned beside Almighty God."

70They all shouted, "Then you claim you are the Son of God?"

And he replied, "Yes, I am."

71"What need do we have for other witnesses?" they shouted. "For we ourselves have heard him say it."

Chapter 23

Then the entire Council took Jesus over to Pilate the governor. 2The began at once accusing him: "This fellow has been leading our people to ruin by telling them not to pay their taxes to the Roman government and by claiming he is our Messiah--a King."

3So Pilate asked him, "Are you their Messiah--their King?"

"Yes," Jesus replied, "it is as you say."

4Then Pilate turned to the chief priests and to the mob and said, "So? That isn't a crime!"

5Then they became desperate. "But he is causing riots against the government everywhere he goes, all over Judea, from Galilee to Jerusalem!"

6"Is he then a Galilean?" Pilate asked.

7When they told him yes, Pilate said to take him to King Herod, for Galilee was under Herod's jurisdiction; and Herod happened to be in Jerusalem at the time. 8Herod was delighted at the opportunity to see Jesus, for he had heard a lot about him and had been hoping to see him perform a miracle.

9He asked Jesus question after question, but there was no reply. 10Meanwhile, the chief priests and the other religious leaders stood there shouting their accusations.

11Now Herod and his soldiers began mocking and ridiculing Jesus; and putting a kingly robe on him, they sent him back to Pilate. 12That day Herod and Pilate--enemies before--became fast friends.

13Then Pilate called together the chief priests and other Jewish leaders, along with the people, 14and announced his verdict:

"You brought this man to me, accusing him of leading a revolt against the Roman government. I have examined him thoroughly on this point and find him innocent. 15Herod came to the same conclusion and sent him back to us--nothing this man has done calls for the death penalty. 16I will therefore have him scourged with leaded thongs, and release him."

17,18But now a mighty roar rose from the crowd as with one voice they shouted, "Kill him, and release Barabbas to us!" 19(Barabbas was in prison for starting an insurrection in Jerusalem against the government, and for murder.) 20Pilate argued with them, for he wanted to release Jesus. 21But they shouted, "Crucify him! Crucify him!"

22Once more, for the third time, he demanded, "Why? What crime has he committed? I have found no reason to sentence him to death. I will therefore scourge him and let him go." 23But they shouted louder and louder for Jesus' death, and their voices prevailed.

24So Pilate sentenced Jesus to die as they demanded. 25And he released Barabbas, the man in prison for insurrection and murder, at their request. But he delivered Jesus over to them to do with as they would.

26As the crowd led Jesus away to his death, Simon of Cyrene, who was just coming into Jerusalem from the country, was forced to follow, carrying Jesus' cross. 27Great crowds trailed along behind, and many grief-stricken women.

28But Jesus turned and said to them, "Daughters of Jerusalem, don't weep for me, but for yourselves and for your children. 29For the days are coming when the women who have no children will be counted fortunate indeed. 30Mankind will beg the mountains to fall on them and crush them, and the hills to bury them. 31For if such things as this are done to me, the Living Tree, what will they do to you?"

32,33Two others, criminals, were led out to be executed with him at a place called "The Skull." There all three were crucified--Jesus on the center cross, and the two criminals on either side.

34 "Father, forgive these people," Jesus said, "for they don't know what they are doing."

And the soldiers gambled for his clothing, throwing dice for each piece. 35The crowd watched. And the Jewish leaders laughed and scoffed. "He was so good at helping others," they said, "let's see him save himself if he is really God's Chosen One, the Messiah."

36The soldiers mocked him, too, by offering him a drink--of sour wine. 37And they called to him, "If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!"

38A signboard was nailed to the cross above him with these words: "This is the King of the Jews."

39One of the criminals hanging beside him scoffed, "So you're the Messiah, are you? Prove it by saving yourself--and us, too, while you're at it!"

40,41But the other criminal protested. "Don't you even fear God when you are dying? We deserve to die for our evil deeds, but this man hasn't done one thing wrong." 42Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom."

43And Jesus replied, "Today you will be with me in Paradise. This is a solemn promise."

44By now it was noon, and darkness fell across the whole land for three hours, until three o'clock. 45The light from the sun was gone--and suddenly the thick veil hanging in the Temple split apart.

46Then Jesus shouted, "Father, I commit my spirit to you," and with those words he died.

47When the captain of the Roman military unit handling the executions saw what had happened, he was stricken with awe before God and said, "Surely this man was innocent."

48And when the crowd that came to see the crucifixion saw that Jesus was dead, they went home in deep sorrow. 49Meanwhile, Jesus' friends, including the women who had followed him down from Galilee, stood in the distance watching.

50,51,52Then a man named Joseph, a member of the Jewish Supreme Court, from the city of Arimathea in Judea, went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. He was a godly man who had been expecting the Messiah's coming and had not agreed with the decision and actions of the other Jewish leaders. 53So he took down Jesus' body and wrapped it in long linen cloth and laid it in a new, unused tomb hewn into the rock [at the side of a hill]. 54This was done late on Friday afternoon, the day of the preparation for the Sabbath.

55As the body was taken away, the women from Galilee followed and saw it carried into the tomb. 56Then they went home and prepared spices and ointments to embalm him; but by the time they were finished it was the Sabbath, so they rested all that day as required by the Jewish law.

Chapter 24

But very early on Sunday morning they took the ointments to the tomb-- 2and found that the huge stone covering the entrance had been rolled aside. 3So they went in--but the Lord Jesus' body was gone.

4They stood there puzzled, trying to think what could have happened to it. Suddenly two men appeared before them, clothed in shining robes so bright their eyes were dazzled. 5The women were terrified and bowed low before them.

Then the men asked, "Why are you looking in a tomb for someone who is alive? 6,7He isn't here! He has come back to life again! Don't you remember what he told you back in Galilee--that the Messiah must be betrayed into the power of evil men and be crucified and that he would rise again the third day?"

8Then they remembered, 9and rushed back to Jerusalem to tell his eleven disciples--and everyone else--what had happened. 10(The women who went to the tomb were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James, and several others.) 11But the story sounded like a fairy tale to the men--they didn't believe it.

12However, Peter ran to the tomb to look. Stooping, he peered in and saw the empty linen wrappings; and then he went back home again, wondering what had happened.

13That same day, Sunday, two of Jesus' followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles out of Jerusalem. 14As they walked along they were talking of Jesus' death, 15when suddenly Jesus himself came along and joined them and began walking beside them. 16But they didn't recognize him, for God kept them from it.

17 "You seem to be in a deep discussion about something," he said. "What are you so concerned about?" They stopped short, sadness written across their faces. 18And one of them, Cleopas, replied, "You must be the only person in Jerusalem who hasn't heard about the terrible things that happened there last week."

19 "What things?" Jesus asked.

"The things that happened to Jesus, the Man from Nazareth," they said. "He was a Prophet who did incredible miracles and was a mighty Teacher, highly regarded by both God and man. 20But the chief priests and our religious leaders arrested him and handed him over to the Roman government to be condemned to death, and they crucified him. 21We had thought he was the glorious Messiah and that he had come to rescue Israel.

"And now, besides all this--which happened three days ago-- 22,23some women from our group of his followers were at his tomb early this morning and came back with an amazing report that his body was missing, and that they had seen some angels there who told them Jesus is alive! 24Some of our men ran out to see, and sure enough, Jesus' body was gone, just as the women had said."

25Then Jesus said to them, "You are such foolish, foolish people! You find it so hard to believe all that the prophets wrote in the Scriptures! 26Wasn't it clearly predicted by the prophets that the Messiah would have to suffer all these things before entering his time of glory?"

27Then Jesus quoted them passage after passage from the writings of the prophets, beginning with the book of Genesis and going right on through the Scriptures, explaining what the passages meant and what they said about himself.

28By this time they were nearing Emmaus and the end of their journey. Jesus would have gone on, 29but they begged him to stay the night with them, as it was getting late. So he went home with them. 30As they sat down to eat, he asked God's blessing on the food and then took a small loaf of bread and broke it and was passing it over to them, 31when suddenly--it was as though their eyes were opened--they recognized him! And at that moment he disappeared!

32They began telling each other how their hearts had felt strangely warm as he talked with them and explained the Scriptures during the walk down the road. 33,34Within the hour they were on their way back to Jerusalem, where the eleven disciples and the other followers of Jesus greeted them with these words, "The Lord has really risen! He appeared to Peter!"

35Then the two from Emmaus told their story of how Jesus had appeared to them as they were walking along the road and how they had recognized him as he was breaking the bread. 36And just as they were telling about it, Jesus himself was suddenly standing there among them, and greeted them. 37But the whole group was terribly frightened, thinking they were seeing a ghost!

38 "Why are you frightened?" he asked. "Why do you doubt that it is really I? 39Look at my hands! Look at my feet! You can see that it is I, myself! Touch me and make sure that I am not a ghost! For ghosts don't have bodies, as you see that I do!" 40As he spoke, he held out his hands for them to see [the marks of the nails], and showed them [the wounds in] his feet.

41Still they stood there undecided, filled with joy and doubt.

Then he asked them, "Do you have anything here to eat?"

42They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43and he ate it as they watched!

44Then he said, "When I was with you before, don't you remember my telling you that everything written about me by Moses and the prophets and in the Psalms must all come true?" 45Then he opened their minds to understand at last these many Scriptures! 46And he said, "Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah must suffer and die and rise again from the dead on the third day; 47and that this message of salvation should be taken from Jerusalem to all the nations: There is forgiveness of sins for all who turn to me. 48You have seen these prophecies come true.

49"And now I will send the Holy Spirit upon you, just as my Father promised. Don't begin telling others yet--stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven."

50Then Jesus led them out along the road to Bethany, and lifting his hands to heaven, he blessed them, 51and then began rising into the sky, and went on to heaven. 52And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem filled with mighty joy, 53and were continually in the Temple, praising God.

According to John

Chapter 1

Before anything else existed, there was Christ, with God. He has always been alive and is himself God. 3He created everything there is--nothing exists that he didn't make. 4Eternal life is in him, and this life gives light to all mankind. 5His life is the light that shines through the darkness--and the darkness can never extinguish it.

6,7God sent John the Baptist as a witness to the fact that Jesus Christ is the true Light. 8John himself was not the Light; he was only a witness to identify it. 9Later on, the one who is the true Light arrived to shine on everyone coming into the world.

10But although he made the world, the world didn't recognize him when he came. 11,12Even in his own land and among his own people, the Jews, he was not accepted. Only a few would welcome and receive him. But to all who received him, he gave the right to become children of God. All they needed to do was to trust him to save them. 13All those who believe this are reborn!--not a physical rebirth resulting from human passion or plan--but from the will of God.

14And Christ became a human being and lived here on earth among us and was full of loving forgiveness and truth. And some of us have seen his glory--the glory of the only Son of the heavenly Father!

15John pointed him out to the people, telling the crowds, "This is the one I was talking about when I said, 'Someone is coming who is greater by far than I am--for he existed long before I did!'" 16We have all benefited from the rich blessings he brought to us--blessing upon blessing heaped upon us! 17For Moses gave only the Law with its rigid demands and merciless justice, while Jesus Christ brought us loving forgiveness as well. 18No one has ever actually seen God, but, of course, his only Son has, for he is the companion of the Father and has told us all about him.

19The Jewish leaders sent priests and assistant priests from Jerusalem to ask John whether he claimed to be the Messiah.

20He denied it flatly, "I am not the Christ." he said.

21"Well then, who are you?" they asked. "Are you Elijah?"

"No," he replied.

"Are you the Prophet?"

"No."

22"Then who are you? Tell us, so we can give an answer to those who sent us. What do you have to say for yourself?"

23He replied, "I am a voice from the barren wilderness, shouting as Isaiah prophesied, 'Get ready for the coming of the Lord!'"

24,25Then those who were sent by the Pharisees asked him, "If you aren't the Messiah or Elijah or the Prophet, what right do you have to baptize?"

26John told them, "I merely baptize with water, but right here in the crowd is someone you have never met, 27who will soon begin his ministry among you, and I am not even fit to be his slave."

28This incident took place at Bethany, a village on the other side of the Jordan River where John was baptizing.

29The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look! There is the Lamb of God who takes away the world's sin! 30He is the one I was talking about when I said, 'Soon a man far greater than I am is coming, who existed long before me!' 31I didn't know he was the one, but I am here baptizing with water in order to point him out to the nation of Israel."

32Then John told about seeing the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descending from heaven and resting upon Jesus.

33"I didn't know he was the one," John said again, "but at the time God sent me to baptize he told me, 'When you see the Holy Spirit descending and resting upon someone--he is the one you are looking for. He is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' 34I saw it happen to this man, and I therefore testify that he is the Son of God."

35The following day as John was standing with two of his disciples, 36Jesus walked by. John looked at him intently and then declared, "See! There is the Lamb of God!"

37Then John's two disciples turned and followed Jesus.

38Jesus looked around and saw them following. "What do you want?" he asked them.

"Sir," they replied, "where do you live?"

39 "Come and see," he said. So they went with him to the place where he was staying and were with him from about four o'clock that afternoon until the evening. 40(One of these men was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.)

41Andrew then went to find his brother Peter and told him, "We have found the Messiah!" 42And he brought Peter to meet Jesus.

Jesus looked intently at Peter for a moment and then said, "You are Simon, John's son--but you shall be called Peter, the rock!"

43The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and told him, "Come with me." 44(Philip was from Bethsaida, Andrew and Peter's home town.)

45Philip now went off to look for Nathanael and told him, "We have found the Messiah!--the very person Moses and the prophets told about! His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth!"

46"Nazareth!" exclaimed Nathanael. "Can anything good come from there?"

"Just come and see for yourself," Philip declared.

47As they approached, Jesus said, "Here comes an honest man--a true son of Israel."

48"How do you know what I am like?" Nathanael demanded.

And Jesus replied, "I could see you under the fig tree before Philip found you."

49Nathanael replied, "Sir, you are the Son of God--the King of Israel!"

50Jesus asked him, "Do you believe all this just because I told you I had seen you under the fig tree? You will see greater proofs than this. ⁵¹ You will even see heaven open and the angels of God coming back and forth to me, the Messiah."

Chapter 2

Two days later Jesus' mother was a guest at a wedding in the village of Cana in Galilee, 2and Jesus and his disciples were invited too. 3The wine supply ran out during the festivities, and Jesus' mother came to him with the problem.

"I can't help you now," he said. "It isn't yet my time for miracles."

5But his mother told the servants, "Do whatever he tells you to."

6Six stone waterpots were standing there; they were used for Jewish ceremonial purposes and held perhaps twenty to thirty gallons each. 7,8Then Jesus told the servants to fill them to the brim with water. When this was done he said, "Dip some out and take it to the master of ceremonies."

9When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants did), he called the bridegroom over.

10"This is wonderful stuff!" he said. "You're different from most. Usually a host uses the best wine first, and afterwards, when everyone is full and doesn't care, then he brings out the less expensive brands. But you have kept the best for the last!"

11This miracle at Cana in Galilee was Jesus' first public demonstration of his heaven-sent power. And his disciples believed that he really was the Messiah.

12After the wedding he left for Capernaum for a few days with his mother, brothers, and disciples.

13Then it was time for the annual Jewish Passover celebration, and Jesus went to Jerusalem.

14In the Temple area he saw merchants selling cattle, sheep, and doves for sacrifices, and money changers behind their counters. 15Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out, and drove out the sheep and oxen, scattering the money changers' coins over the floor and turning over their tables! 16Then, going over to the men selling doves, he told them, "Get these things out of here. Don't turn my Father's House into a market!"

17Then his disciples remembered this prophecy from the Scriptures: "Concern for God's House will be my undoing."

18"What right have you to order them out?" the Jewish leaders demanded. "If you have this authority from God, show us a miracle to prove it."

19 "All right," Jesus replied, "this is the miracle I will do for you: Destroy this sanctuary and in three days I will raise it up!"

20"What!" they exclaimed. "It took forty-six years to build this Temple, and you can do it in three days?" 21But by "this sanctuary" he meant his body. 22After he came back to life again, the disciples remembered his saying this and realized that what he had quoted from the Scriptures really did refer to him, and had all come true!

23Because of the miracles he did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many people were convinced that he was indeed the Messiah. 24,25But Jesus didn't trust them, for he knew mankind to the core. No one needed to tell him how changeable human nature is!

Chapter 3

After dark one night a Jewish religious leader named Nicodemus, a member of the sect of the Pharisees, came for an interview with Jesus. "Sir," he said, "we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miracles are proof enough of this."

3Jesus replied, "With all the earnestness I possess I tell you this: Unless you are born again, you can never get into the Kingdom of God."

4"Born again!" exclaimed Nicodemus. "What do you mean? How can an old man go back into his mother's womb and be born again?"

5Jesus replied, "What I am telling you so earnestly is this: Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God. 6Men can only reproduce human life, but the Holy Spirit gives new life from heaven; 7so don't be surprised at my statement that you must be born again! 8Just as you can hear the wind but can't tell where it comes from or where it will go next, so it is with the Spirit. We do not know on whom he will next bestow this life from heaven."

9"What do you mean?" Nicodemus asked.

10,11Jesus replied, "You, a respected Jewish teacher, and yet you don't understand these things? I am telling you what I know and have seen--and yet you won't believe me. 12But if you don't even believe me when I tell you about such things as these that happen here among men, how can you possibly believe if I tell you what is going on in heaven? 13For only I, the Messiah, have come to earth and will return to heaven again. 14And as Moses in the wilderness lifted up the bronze image of a serpent on a pole, even so I must be lifted up upon a pole, 15so that anyone who believes in me will have eternal life. 16For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son so that anyone who believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.

18 "There is no eternal doom awaiting those who trust him to save them. But those who don't trust him have already been tried and condemned for not believing in the only Son of God. 19Their sentence is based on this fact: that the Light from heaven came into the world, but they loved the darkness more than the Light, for their deeds were evil. 20They hated the heavenly Light because they wanted to sin in the darkness. They stayed away from that Light for fear their sins would be exposed and they would be punished. 21But those doing right come gladly to the Light to let everyone see that they are doing what God wants them to."

22Afterwards Jesus and his disciples left Jerusalem and stayed for a while in Judea and baptized there.

23,24At this time John the Baptist was not yet in prison. He was baptizing at Aenon, near Salim, because there was plenty of water there. 25One day someone began an argument with John's disciples, telling them that Jesus' baptism was best. 26So they came to John and said, "Master, the man you met on the other side of the Jordan River--the one you said was the Messiah--he is baptizing too, and everybody is going over there instead of coming here to us."

27John replied, "God in heaven appoints each man's work. 28My work is to prepare the way for that man so that everyone will go to him. You yourselves know how plainly I told you that I am not the Messiah. I am here to prepare the way for him--that is all. 29The crowds will naturally go to the main attraction--the bride will go where the bridegroom is! A bridegroom's friends rejoice with him. I am the Bridegroom's friend, and I am filled with joy at his success. 30He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.

31"He has come from heaven and is greater than anyone else. I am of the earth, and my understanding is limited to the things of earth. 32He tells what he has seen and heard, but how few believe what he tells them! 33,34Those who believe him discover that God is a fountain of truth. For this one--sent by God--speaks God's words, for God's Spirit is upon him without measure or limit. 35The Father loves this man because he is his Son, and God has given him everything there is. 36And all who trust him--God's Son--to save them have eternal life; those who don't believe and obey him shall never see heaven, but the wrath of God remains upon them."

Chapter 4

When the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard about the greater crowds coming to him than to John to be baptized and to become his disciples--(though Jesus himself didn't baptize them, but his disciples did)-- 3he left Judea and returned to the province of Galilee.

4He had to go through Samaria on the way, 5,6and around noon as he approached the village of Sychar, he came to Jacob's Well, located on the parcel of ground Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jesus was tired from the long walk in the hot sun and sat wearily beside the wall.

7Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus asked her for a drink. 8He was alone at the time as his disciples had gone into the village to buy some food. 9The woman was surprised that a Jew would ask a "despised Samaritan" for anything--usually they wouldn't even speak to them!--and she remarked about this to Jesus.

10He replied, "If you only knew what a wonderful gift God has for you, and who I am, you would ask me for some living water!"

11"But you don't have a rope or a bucket," she said, "and this is a very deep well! Where would you get this living water? 12And besides, are you greater than our ancestor Jacob? How can you offer better water than this which he and his sons and cattle enjoyed?"

13Jesus replied that people soon became thirsty again after drinking this water. 14 "But the water I give them," he said, "becomes a perpetual spring within them, watering them forever with eternal life."

15"Please, sir," the woman said, "give me some of that water! Then I'll never be thirsty again and won't have to make this long trip out here every day."

16 "Go and get your husband," Jesus told her.

17,18"But I'm not married," the woman replied.

"All too true!" Jesus said. "For you have had five husbands, and you aren't even married to the man you're living with now."

19"Sir," the woman said, "you must be a prophet. 20But say, tell me, why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place of worship, while we Samaritans claim it is here [at Mount Gerizim], where our ancestors worshipped?"

21-24Jesus replied, "The time is coming, ma'am, when we will no longer be concerned about whether to worship the Father here or in Jerusalem. For it's not where we worship that counts, but how we worship--is our worship spiritual and real? Do we have the Holy Spirit's help? For God is Spirit, and we must have his help to worship as we should. The Father wants this kind of worship from us. But you Samaritans know so little about him, worshiping blindly, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes to the world through the Jews."

25The woman said, "Well, at least I know that the Messiah will come--the one they call Christ--and when he does, he will explain everything to us."

26Then Jesus told her, "I am the Messiah!"

27Just then his disciples arrived. They were surprised to find him talking to a woman, but none of them asked him why, or what they had been discussing.

28,29Then the woman left her waterpot beside the well and went back to the village and told everyone, "Come and meet a man who told me everything I ever did! Can this be the Messiah? 30So the people came streaming from the village to see him.

31Meanwhile, the disciples were urging Jesus to eat. 32 "No," he said, "I have some food you don't know about."

33"Who brought it to him?" the disciples asked each other.

34Then Jesus explained: "My nourishment comes from doing the will of God who sent me, and from finishing his work. ³⁵ Do you think the work of harvesting will not begin until the summer ends four months from now? Look around you! Vast fields of human souls are ripening all around us, and are ready now for reaping. ³⁶ The reapers will be paid good wages and will be gathering eternal souls into the granaries of heaven! What joys await the sower and the reaper, both together! ³⁷ For it is true that one sows and someone else reaps. ³⁸ I sent you to reap where you didn't sow; others did the work, and you received the harvest."

39Many from the Samaritan village believed he was the Messiah because of the woman's report: "He told me everything I ever did!" 40,41When they came out to see him at the well, they begged him to stay at their village; and he did, for two days, long enough for many of them to believe in him after hearing him. 42Then they said to the woman, "Now we believe because we have heard him ourselves, not just because of what you told us. He is indeed the Savior of the world."

43,44At the end of the two days' stay he went on into Galilee. Jesus used to say, "A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own country!" 45But the Galileans welcomed him with open arms, for they had been in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration and had seen some of his miracles.

46,47In the course of his journey through Galilee he arrived at the town of Cana, where he had turned the water into wine. While he was there, a man in the city of Capernaum, a government official, whose son was very sick, heard that Jesus had come from Judea and was traveling in Galilee. This man went over to Cana, found Jesus, and begged him to come to Capernaum with him and heal his son, who was now at death's door.

48Jesus asked, "Won't any of you believe in me unless I do more and more miracles?"

49The official pled, "Sir, please come now before my child dies."

50Then Jesus told him, "Go back home. Your son is healed!" And the man believed Jesus and started home. 51While he was on his way, some of his servants met him with the news that all was well--his son had recovered. 52He asked them when the lad had begun to feel better, and they replied, "Yesterday afternoon at about one o'clock his fever suddenly disappeared!" 53Then the father realized it was the same moment that Jesus had told him, "Your son is healed." And the officer and his entire household believed that Jesus was the Messiah.

54This was Jesus' second miracle in Galilee after coming from Judea.

Chapter 5

Afterwards Jesus returned to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish religious holidays. 2Inside the city, near the Sheep Gate, was Bethesda Pool, with five covered platforms or porches surrounding it. 3Crowds of sick folks--lame, blind, or with paralyzed limbs--lay on the platforms(waiting for a certain movement of the water, 4for an angel of the Lord came from time to time and disturbed the water, and the first person to step down into it afterwards was healed).

5One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. 6When Jesus saw him and knew how long he had been ill, he asked him, "Would you like to get well?"

7"I can't," the sick man said, "for I have no one to help me into the pool at the movement of the water. While I am trying to get there, someone else always gets in ahead of me."

8Jesus told him, "Stand up, roll up your sleeping mat and go on home!"

9Instantly, the man was healed! He rolled up the mat and began walking!

But it was on the Sabbath when this miracle was done. 10So the Jewish leaders objected. They said to the man who was cured, "You can't work on the Sabbath! It's illegal to carry that sleeping mat!"

11"The man who healed me told me to," was his reply.

12"Who said such a thing as that?" they demanded.

13The man didn't know, and Jesus had disappeared into the crowd. 14But afterwards Jesus found him in the Temple and told him, "Now you are well; don't sin as you did before, or something even worse may happen to you."

15Then the man went to find the Jewish leaders and told them it was Jesus who had healed him.

16So they began harassing Jesus as a Sabbath breaker. 17But Jesus replied, "My Father constantly does good, and I'm following his example."

18Then the Jewish leaders were all the more eager to kill him because in addition to disobeying their Sabbath laws, he had spoken of God as his Father, thereby making himself equal with God.

19Jesus replied, "The Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing, and in the same way. 20For the Father loves the Son, and tells him everything he is doing; and the Son will do far more awesome miracles than this man's healing. 21He will even raise from the dead anyone he wants to, just as the Father does. 22And the Father leaves all judgment of sin to his Son, 23so that everyone will honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. But if you refuse to honor God's Son, whom he sent to you, then you are certainly not honoring the Father.

24 "I say emphatically that anyone who listens to my message and believes in God who sent me has eternal life, and will never be damned for his sins, but has already passed out of death into life. 25And I solemnly declare that the time is coming, in fact, it is here, when the dead shall hear my voice--the voice of the Son of God--and those who listen shall live. 26The Father has life in himself, and has granted his Son to have life in himself, 27and to judge the sins of all mankind because he is the Son of Man. 28Don't be so surprised! Indeed the time is coming when all the dead in their graves shall hear the voice of God's Son, 29and shall rise again--those who have done good, to eternal life, and those who have continued in evil, to judgment.

30 "But I pass no judgment without consulting the Father. I judge as I am told. And my judgment is absolutely fair and just, for it is according to the will of God who sent me and is not merely my own.

31 "When I make claims about myself they aren't believed, 32,33 but someone else, yes, John the Baptist, is making these claims for me too. You have gone out to listen to his preaching, and I can assure you that all he says about me is true! 34But the truest witness I have is not from a man, though I have reminded you about John's witness so that you will believe in me and be saved. 35John shone brightly for a while, and you benefited and rejoiced, 36but I have a greater witness than John. I refer to the miracles I do; these have been assigned me by the Father, and they prove that the Father has sent me. 37And the Father himself has also testified about me, though not appearing to you personally, or speaking to you directly. 38But you are not listening to him, for you refuse to believe me--the one sent to you with God's message.

39 "You search the Scriptures, for you believe they give you eternal life. And the Scriptures point to me! 40Yet you won't come to me so that I can give you this life eternal!

41,42"Your approval or disapproval means nothing to me, for as I know so well, you don't have God's love within you. 43I know, because I have come to you representing my Father and you refuse to welcome me, though you readily enough receive those who aren't sent from him, but represent only themselves! 44No wonder you can't believe! For you gladly honor each other, but you don't care about the honor that comes from the only God!

45"Yet it is not I who will accuse you of this to the Father--Moses will! Moses, on whose laws you set your hopes of heaven. 46For you have refused to believe Moses. He wrote about me, but you refuse to believe him, so you refuse to believe in me. 47And since you don't believe what he wrote, no wonder you don't believe me either."

Chapter 6

After this, Jesus crossed over the Sea of Galilee, also know as the Sea of Tiberias. 2-5And a huge crowd, many of them pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem for the annual Passover celebration, were following him wherever he went, to watch him heal the sick. So when Jesus went up into the hills and sat down with his disciples around him, he soon saw a great multitude of people climbing the hill, looking for him

Turning to Philip he asked, "Philip, where can we buy bread to feed all these people?" 6(He was testing Philip, for he already knew what he was going to do.)

7Philip replied, "It would take a fortune to begin to do it!"

8,9Then Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, spoke up. "There's a youngster here with five barley loaves and a couple of fish! But what good is that with all this mob?"

10 "Tell everyone to sit down," Jesus ordered. And all of them--the approximate count of the men only was 5,000--sat down on the grassy slopes. 11Then Jesus took the loaves and gave thanks to God and passed them out to the people. Afterwards he did the same with the fish. And everyone ate until full!

12 "Now gather the scraps," Jesus told his disciples, "so that nothing is wasted." 13And twelve baskets were filled with the leftovers!

14When the people realized what a great miracle had happened, they exclaimed, "Surely, he is the Prophet we have been expecting!"

15Jesus saw that they were ready to take him by force and make him their king, so he went higher into the mountains alone.

16That evening his disciples went down to the shore to wait for him. 17But as darkness fell and Jesus still hadn't come back, they got into the boat and headed out across the lake toward Capernaum. 18,19But soon a gale swept down upon them as they rowed, and the sea grew very rough. They were three or four miles out when suddenly they saw Jesus walking toward the boat! They were terrified, 20but he called out to them and told them not to be afraid. 21Then they were willing to let him in, and immediately the boat was where they were going!

22,23The next morning, back across the lake, crowds began gathering on the shore [waiting to see Jesus]. For they knew that he and his disciples had come over together and that the disciples had gone off in their boat, leaving him behind. Several small boats from Tiberias were nearby, 24so when the people saw that Jesus wasn't there, nor his disciples, they got into the boats and went across to Capernaum to look for him.

25When they arrived and found him, they said, "Sir, how did you get here?" 26Jesus replied, "The truth of the matter is that you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you believe in me. 27But you shouldn't be so concerned about perishable things like food. No, spend your energy seeking the eternal life that I, the Messiah, can give you. For God the Father has sent me for this very purpose."

28They replied, "What should we do to satisfy God?"

29Jesus told them, "This is the will of God, that you believe in the one he has sent."

30,31They replied, "You must show us more miracles if you want us to believe you are the Messiah. Give us free bread every day, like our fathers had while they journeyed through the wilderness! As the Scriptures say, 'Moses gave them bread from heaven.'"

32Jesus said, "Moses didn't give it to them. My Father did. And now he offers you true Bread from heaven. 33The true Bread is a Person--the one sent by God from heaven, and he gives life to the world."

34"Sir," they said, "give us that bread every day of our lives!"

35Jesus replied, "I am the Bread of Life. No one coming to me will ever be hungry again. Those believing in me will never thirst. 36But the trouble is, as I have told you before, you haven't believed even though you have seen me. 37But some will come to me--those the Father has given me--and I will never, never reject them. 38For I have come here from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to have my own way. 39And this is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those he has given me, but that I should raise them to eternal life at the Last Day. 40For it is my Father's will that everyone who sees his Son and believes on him should have eternal life--that I should raise him at the Last Day."

41Then the Jews began to murmur against him because he claimed to be the Bread from heaven.

42"What?" they exclaimed. "Why, he is merely Jesus the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know. What is this he is saying, that he came down from heaven?"

43But Jesus replied, "Don't murmur among yourselves about my saying that. 44For no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him to me, and at the Last Day I will cause all such to rise again from the dead. 45As it is written in the Scriptures, 'They shall all be taught of God.' Those the Father speaks to, who learn the truth from him, will be attracted to me. 46(Not that anyone actually sees the Father, for only I have seen him.)

47"How earnestly I tell you this--anyone who believes in me already has eternal life! 48-51Yes, I am the Bread of Life! When your fathers in the wilderness ate bread from the skies, they all died. But the Bread from heaven gives eternal life to everyone who eats it. I am that Living Bread that came down out of heaven. Anyone eating this Bread shall live forever; this Bread is my flesh given to redeem humanity."

52Then the Jews began arguing with each other about what he meant. "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" they asked.

53So Jesus said it again, "With all the earnestness I possess I tell you this: Unless you eat the flesh of the Messiah and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you. 54But anyone who does eat my flesh and drink my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him at the Last Day. 55For my flesh is the true food, and my blood is the true drink. 56Everyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood is in me, and I in him. 57I live by the power of the living Father who sent me, and in the same way those who partake of me shall live because of me! 58I am the true Bread from heaven; and anyone who eats this Bread shall live forever, and not die as your fathers did--though they ate bread from heaven. 59(He preached this sermon in the synagogue in Capernaum.)

60Even his disciples said, "This is very hard to understand. Who can tell what he means?"

61Jesus knew within himself that his disciples were complaining and said to them, "Does this offend you? 62Then what will you think if you see me, the Messiah, return to heaven again? 63Only the Holy Spirit gives eternal life. Those born only once, with physical birth, will never receive this gift. But now I have told you how to get this true spiritual life. 64But some of you don't believe me." (For Jesus knew from the beginning who didn't believe and knew the one who would betray him.)

65And he remarked, "That is what I meant when I said that no one can come to me unless the Father attracts him to me."

66At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him.

67Then Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, "Are you going too?"

68Simon Peter replied, "Master, to what shall we go? You alone have the words that give eternal life, 69and we believe them and know you are the holy Son of God."

70Then Jesus said, "I chose the twelve of you, and one is a devil." 71He was speaking of Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, one of the Twelve, who would betray him.

Chapter 7

After this, Jesus went to Galilee, going from village to village, for he wanted to stay out of Judea where the Jewish leaders were plotting his death. 2But soon it was time for the Tabernacle Ceremonies, one of the annual Jewish holidays, 3and Jesus' brothers urged him to go to Judea for the celebration.

"Go where more people can see your miracles!" they scoffed. 4"You can't be famous when you hide like this! If you're so great, prove it to the world!" 5For even his brothers didn't believe in him.

6Jesus replied, "It is not the right time for me to go now. But you can go anytime and it will make no difference, 7for the world can't hate you; but it does hate me, because I accuse it of sin and evil. 8You go on, and I'll come later when it is the right time." 9So he remained in Galilee.

10But after his brothers had left for the celebration, then he went too, though secretly, staying out of the public eye. 11The Jewish leaders tried to find him at the celebration and kept asking if anyone had seen him. 12There was a lot of discussion about him among the crowds. Some said, "He's a wonderful man," while others said, "No, he's duping the public." 13But no one had the courage to speak out for him in public for fear of reprisals from the Jewish leaders.

14Then, midway through the festival, Jesus went up to the Temple and preached openly. 15The Jewish leaders were surprised when they heard him. "How can he know so much when he's never been to our schools?" they asked.

16So Jesus told them, "I'm not teaching you my own thoughts, but those of God who sent me. 17If any of you really determines to do God's will, then you will certainly know whether my teaching is from God or is merely my own. 18Anyone presenting his own ideas is looking for praise for himself, but anyone seeking to honor the one who sent him is a good and true person. 19None of you obeys the laws of Moses! So why pick on me for breaking them? Why kill me for this?"

20The crowd replied, "You're out of your mind! Who's trying to kill you?"

21,22,23Jesus replied, "I worked on the Sabbath by healing a man, and you were surprised. But you work on the Sabbath, too, whenever you obey Moses' law of circumcision (actually, however, this tradition of circumcision is older than the Mosaic law); for if the correct time for circumcising your children falls on the Sabbath, you go ahead and do it, as you should. So why should I be condemned for making a man completely well on the Sabbath? 24Think this through and you will see that I am right."

25Some of the people who lived there in Jerusalem said among themselves, "Isn't this the man they are trying to kill? 26But here he is preaching in public, and they say nothing to him. Can it be that our leaders have learned, after all, that he really is the Messiah? 27But how could he be? For we know where this man was born; when Christ comes, he will just appear and no one will know where he comes from."

28So Jesus, in a sermon in the Temple, called out, "Yes, you know me and where I was born and raised, but I am the representative of one you don't know, and he is Truth. 29I know him because I was with him, and he sent me to you."

30Then the Jewish leaders sought to arrest him; but no hand was laid on him, for God's time had not yet come.

31Many among the crowds at the Temple believed on him. "After all," they said, "what miracles do you expect the Messiah to do that this man hasn't done?"

32When the Pharisees heard that the crowds were in this mood, they and the chief priests sent officers to arrest Jesus. 33But Jesus told them, "[Not yet!] I am to be here a little longer. Then I shall return to the one who sent me. 34You will search for me but not find me. And you won't be able to come where I am!"

35The Jewish leaders were puzzled by this statement. "Where is he planning to go?" they asked. "Maybe he is thinking of leaving the country and going as a missionary among the Jews in other lands, or maybe even to the Gentiles! 36What does he mean about our looking for him and not being able to find him, and, 'You won't be able to come where I am'?"

37On the last day, the climax of the holidays, Jesus shouted to the crowds, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water shall flow from the inmost being of anyone who believes in me." 39(He was speaking of the Holy Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him; but the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet returned to his glory in heaven.)

40When the crowds heard him say this, some of them declared, "This man surely is the prophet who will come just before the Messiah." 41,42Others said, "He is the Messiah." Still others, "But he can't be! Will the Messiah come from Galilee? For the Scriptures clearly state that the Messiah will be born of the royal line of David, in Bethlehem, the village where David was born." 43So the crowd was divided about him. 44And some wanted him arrested, but no one touched him.

45The Temple police who had been sent to arrest him returned to the chief priests and Pharisees. "Why didn't you bring him in?" they demanded.

46"He says such wonderful things!" they mumbled. "We've never heard anything like it."

47"So you also have been led astray?" the Pharisees mocked. 48"Is there a single one of us Jewish rulers or Pharisees who believes he is the Messiah? 49These stupid crowds do, yes; but what do they know about it? A curse upon them anyway!"

50Then Nicodemus spoke up. (Remember him? He was the Jewish leader who came secretly to interview Jesus.) 51"Is it legal to convict a man before he is even tried?" he asked.

52They replied, "Are you a wretched Galilean too? Search the Scriptures and see for yourself--no prophets will come from Galilee!" 53Then the meeting broke up and everybody went home.

Chapter 8

Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, 2but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and talked to them. 3As he was speaking, the Jewish leaders and Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery and placed her out in front of the staring crowd.

4"Teacher," they said to Jesus, "this woman was caught in the very act of adultery. 5Moses' law says to kill her. What about it?"

6They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. 7They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, "All right, hurl the stones at her until she dies. But only he who never sinned may throw the first!"

8The he stooped down again and wrote some more in the dust. 9And the Jewish leaders slipped away one by one, beginning with the eldest, until only Jesus was left in front of the crowd with the woman.

10The Jesus stood up again and said to her, "Where are your accusers? Didn't even one of them condemn you?"

11"No, sir," she said.

And Jesus said, "Neither do I. Go and sin no more."

12Later, in one of his talks, Jesus said to the people, "I am the Light of the world. So if you follow me, you won't be stumbling through the darkness, for living light will flood your path."

13The Pharisees replied, "You are boasting--and lying!"

14Jesus told them, "These claims are true even though I make them concerning myself. For I know where I came from and where I am going, but you don't know this about me. 15You pass judgment on me without knowing the facts. I am not judging you now; 16but if I were, it would be an absolutely correct judgment in every respect, for I have with me the Father who sent me. 17Your laws say that if two men agree on something that has happened, their witness is accepted as fact. 18Well, I am one witness, and my Father who sent me is the other."

19"Where is your father?" they asked.

Jesus answered, "You don't know who I am, so you don't know who my Father is. If you knew me, then you would know him too."

20Jesus made these statements while in the section of the Temple known as the Treasury. But he was not arrested, for his time had not yet run out.

21Later he said to them again, "I am going away; and you will search for me, and die in your sins. And you cannot come where I am going."

22The Jews asked, "Is he planning suicide? What does he mean, 'You cannot come where I am going'?"

23Then he said to them, "You are from below, I am from above. You are of this world; I am not. 24That is why I said that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am the Messiah, the Son of God, you will die in your sins."

25"Tell us who you are," they demanded.

He replied, "I am the one I have always claimed to be. 26I could condemn you for much and teach you much, but I won't, for I say only what I am told to by the one who sent me; and he is Truth." 27But they still didn't understand that he was talking to them about God.

28So Jesus said, "When you have killed the Messiah, then you will realize that I am he and that I have not been telling you my own ideas, but have spoken what the Father taught me. 29And he who sent me is with me--he has not deserted me--for I always do those things that are pleasing to him."

30,31Then many of the Jewish leaders who heard him say these things began believing him to be the Messiah.

Jesus said to them, "You are truly my disciples if you live as I tell you to, 32and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

33"But we are descendants of Abraham," they said, "and have never been slaves to any man on earth! What do you mean, 'set free'?"

34Jesus replied, "You are slaves of sin, every one of you. 35And slaves don't have rights, but the Son has every right there is! 36So if the Son sets you free, you will indeed be free-- 37(Yes, I realize that you are descendants of Abraham!) And yet some of you are trying to kill me because my message does not find a home within your hearts. 38I am telling you what I saw when I was with my Father. But you are following the advice of your father."

39"Our father is Abraham," they declared.

"No!" Jesus replied, "for if he were, you would follow his good example. 40But instead you are trying to kill me--and all because I told you the truth I heard from God. Abraham wouldn't do a thing like that! 41No, you are obeying your real father when you act that way."

They replied, "We were not born out of wedlock--our true Father is God himself."

42Jesus told them, "If that were so, then you would love me, for I have come to you from God. I am not here on my own, but he sent me. 43Why can't you understand what I am saying? It is because you are prevented from doing so! 44For you are the children of your father the devil and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning and a hater of truth--there is not an iota of truth in him. When he lies, it is perfectly normal; for he is the father of liars. 45And so when I tell the truth, you just naturally don't believe it!

46 "Which of you can truthfully accuse me of one single sin? [No one!] And since I am telling you the truth, why don't you believe me? 47Anyone whose Father is God listens gladly to the words of God. Since you don't, it proves you aren't his children."

48"You Samaritan! Foreigner! Devil!" the Jewish leaders snarled. "Didn't we say all along you were possessed by a demon?"

49 "No," Jesus said, "I have no demon in me. For I honor my Father--and you dishonor me. 50And though I have no wish to make myself great, God wants this for me and judges [those who reject me]. 51With all the earnestness I have I tell you this--no one who obeys me shall ever die!"

52The leaders of the Jews said, "Now we know you are possessed by a demon. Even Abraham and the mightiest prophets died, and yet you say that obeying you will keep a man from dying! 53So you are greater than our father Abraham, who died? And greater than the prophets, who died? Who do you think you are?" 54Then Jesus told them this: "If I am merely boasting about myself, it doesn't count. But it is my Father--and you claim him as your God--who is saying these glorious things about me. 55But you do not even know him. I do. If I said otherwise, I would be as great a liar as you! But it is true--I know him and fully obey him. 56Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day. He knew I was coming and was glad."

57 The Jewish leaders: "You aren't even fifty years old--sure, you've seen Abraham!"

58 Jesus: "The absolute truth is that I was in existence before Abraham was ever born!"

59At that point the Jewish leaders picked up stones to kill him. But Jesus was hidden from them, and walked past them and left the Temple.

Chapter 9

As he was walking along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2"Master," his disciples asked him, "why was this man born blind? Was it a result of his own sins or those of this parents?"

3 "Neither," Jesus answered. "But to demonstrate the power of God. 4All of us must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent me, for there is little time left before the night falls and all work comes to an end. 5But while I am still here in the world, I give it my light."

6Then he spat on the ground and made mud from the spittle and smoothed the mud over the blind man's eyes, 7and told him, "Go and wash in the Pool of Siloam" (the word "Siloam" means "Sent"). So the man went where he was sent and washed and came back seeing!

8His neighbors and others who knew him as a blind beggar asked each other, "Is this the same fellow--that beggar?"

9Some said yes, and some said no. "It can't be the same man," they thought, "but he surely looks like him!"

And the beggar said, "I am the same man!"

10Then they asked him how in the world he could see. What had happened?

11And he told them, "A man they call Jesus made mud and smoothed it over my eyes and told me to go to the Pool of Siloam and wash off the mud. I did, and I can see!"

12"Where is he now?" they asked.

"I don't know," he replied.

13Then they took the man to the Pharisees. 14Now as it happened, this all occurred on a Sabbath. 15Then the Pharisees asked him all about it. So he told them how Jesus had smoothed the mud over his eyes, and when it was washed away, he could see!

16Some of them said, "Then this fellow Jesus is not from God, because he is working on the Sabbath."

Others said, "But how could an ordinary sinner do such miracles?" So there was a deep division of opinion among them.

17Then the Pharisees turned on the man who had been blind and demanded, "This man who opened your eyes--who do you say he is?"

"I think he must be a prophet sent from God," the man replied.

18The Jewish leaders wouldn't believe he had been blind, until they called in his parents 19and asked them, "Is this your son? Was he born blind? If so, how can he see?"

20His parents replied, "We know this is our son and the he was born blind, 21but we don't know what happened to make him see, or who did it. He is old enough to speak for himself. Ask him."

22,23They said this in fear of the Jewish leaders who had announced that anyone saying Jesus was the Messiah would be excommunicated.

24So for the second time they called in the man who had been blind and told him, "Give the glory to God, not to Jesus, for we know Jesus is an evil person."

25"I don't know whether he is good or bad," the man replied, "but I know this: I was blind, and now I see!"

26"But what did he do?" they asked. "How did he heal you?"

27"Look!" the man exclaimed. "I told you once; didn't you listen? Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples too?"

28Then they cursed him and said, "You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29We know God has spoken to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don't know anything about him."

30"Why, that's very strange!" the man replied. "He can heal blind men, and yet you don't know anything about him! 31Well, God doesn't listen to evil men, but he has open ears to those worship him and do his will. 32Since the world began there has never been anyone who could open the eyes of someone born blind. 33If this man were not from God, he couldn't do it."

34"You illegitimate bastard, you!" they shouted. "Are you trying to teach us?" And they threw him out.

35When Jesus heard what had happened, he found the man and said, "Do you believe in the Messiah?"

36The man answered, "Who is he, sir, for I want to."

37 "You have seen him," Jesus said, "and he is speaking to you!"

38"Yes, Lord," the man said, "I believe!" And he worshipped Jesus.

39Then Jesus told him, "I have come into the world to give sight to those who are spiritually blind and to show those who think they see that they are blind."

40The Pharisees who were standing there asked, "Are you saying we are blind?"

41 "If you were blind, you wouldn't be guilty," Jesus replied, "But your guilt remains because you claim to know what you are doing.

Chapter 10

"Anyone refusing to walk through the gate into a sheepfold, who sneaks over the wall, must surely be a thief! 2For a shepherd comes through the gate. 3The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice and come to him; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4He walks ahead of them; and they follow him, for they recognize his voice. 5They won't follow a stranger but will run from him, for they don't recognize his voice."

6Those who heard Jesus use this illustration didn't understand what he meant, 7so he explained it to them.

"I am the Gate for the sheep," he said. 8 "All others who came before me were thieves and robbers. But the true sheep did not listen to them. 9Yes, I am the Gate. Those who come in by way of the Gate will be saved and will go in and out and find green pastures. 10The thief's purpose is to steal, kill and destroy. My purpose is to give life in all its fullness.

11"I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12A hired man will run when he sees a wolf coming and will leave the sheep, for they aren't his and he isn't their shepherd. And so the wolf leaps on them and scatters the flock. 13The hired man runs because he is hired and has no real concern for the sheep.

14"I am the Good Shepherd and know my own sheep, and they know me, 15just as my Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep, too, in another fold. I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice; and there will be one flock with one Shepherd.

17"The Father loves me because I lay down my life that I may have it back again. 18No one can kill me without my consent--I lay down my life voluntarily. For I have the right and power to lay it down when I want to and also the right and power to take it again. For the Father has given me this right."

19When he said these things, the Jewish leaders were again divided in their opinions about him. 20Some of them said, "He has a demon or else is crazy. Why listen to a man like that?"

21Others said, "This doesn't sound to us like a man possessed by a demon! Can a demon open the eyes of blind men?"

22,23It was winter, and Jesus was in Jerusalem at the time of the Dedication Celebration. He was at the Temple, walking through the section known as Solomon's Hall. 24The Jewish leaders surrounded him and asked, "How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly."

25"I have already told you, and you don't believe me," Jesus replied. "The proof is in the miracles I do in the name of my Father. 26But you don't believe me because you are not part of my flock. 27My sheep recognize my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28I give them eternal life and they shall never perish. No one shall snatch them away from me, 29for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else, so no one can kidnap them from me. 30I and the Father are one."

31Then again the Jewish leaders picked up stones to kill him.

32Jesus said, "At God's direction I have done many a miracle to help the people. For which one are you killing me?"

33They replied, "Not for any good work, but for blasphemy; you, a mere man, have declared yourself to be God."

34,35,36"In your own Law it says that men are gods!" he replied. "So if the Scripture, which cannot be untrue, speaks of those as gods to whom the message of God came, do you call it blasphemy when the one sanctified and sent into the world by the Father says, 'I am the Son of God'? 37Don't believe me unless I do miracles of God. 38But if I do, believe them even if you don't believe me. Then you will become convinced that the Father is in me, and I in the Father."

39Once again they started to arrest him. But he walked away and left them, 40and went beyond the Jordan River to stay near the place where John was first baptizing. 41And many followed him.

"John didn't do miracles," they remarked to one another, "but all his predictions concerning this man have come true." 42And many came to the decision that he was the Messiah.

Chapter 11

Do you remember Mary, who poured the costly perfume on Jesus' feet and wiped them her hair? Well, her brother Lazarus, who lived in Bethany with Mary and her sister Martha, was sick. 3So the two sisters sent a message to Jesus telling him, "Sir, your good friend is very, very sick."

4But when Jesus heard about it he said, "The purpose of his illness is not death, but for the glory of God. I, the Son of God, will receive glory from this situation."

5Although Jesus was very fond of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, 6he stayed where he was for the next two days and made no move to go to them. 7Finally, after the two days, he said to his disciples, "Let's go to Judea."

8But the disciples objected. "Master," they said, "only a few days ago the Jewish leaders in Judea were trying to kill you. Are you going there again?"

9Jesus replied, "There are twelve hours of daylight every day, and during every hour of it a man can walk safely and not stumble. 10Only at night is there danger of a wrong step, because of the dark." 11Then he said, "Our friend Lazarus has gone to sleep, but now I will go and waken him!"

12,13The disciples, thinking Jesus meant Lazarus was having a good night's rest, said, "That means he is getting better!" But Jesus meant Lazarus had died.

14Then he told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. 15And for your sake, I am glad I wasn't there, for this will give you another opportunity to believe in me. Come, let's go to him."

16Thomas, nicknamed "The Twin," said to his fellow disciples, "Let's go too--and die with him."

17When they arrived at Bethany, they were told that Lazarus had already been in this tomb for four days. 18Bethany was only a couple of miles down the road from Jerusalem, 19and many of the Jewish leaders had come to pay their respects and to console Martha and Mary on their loss. 20When Martha got word that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him. But Mary stayed at home.

21Martha said to Jesus, "Sir, if you had been here, my brother wouldn't have died. 22And even now it's not too late, for I know that God will bring my brother back to life again, if you will only ask him to."

23Jesus told her, "Your brother will come back to life again."

24"Yes," Martha said, "when everyone else does, on Resurrection Day."

25Jesus told her, "I am the one who raises the dead and gives them life again. Anyone who believes in me, even though he dies like anyone else, shall live again. 26He is given eternal life for believing in me and shall never perish. Do you believe this, Martha?"

27"Yes, Master," she told him. "I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one we have so long awaited."

28Then she left him and returned to Mary and, calling her aside from the mourners, told her, "He is here and wants to see you." 29So Mary went to him at once.

30Now Jesus had stayed outside the village, at the place where Martha met him. 31When the Jewish leaders who were at the house trying to console Mary saw her leave so hastily, they assumed she was going to Lazarus' tomb to weep; so they followed her.

32When Mary arrived where Jesus was, she fell down at his feet, saying, "Sir, if you had been here, my brother would still be alive."

33When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jewish leaders wailing with her, he was moved with indignation and deeply troubled. 34 "Where is he buried?" he asked them.

They told him, "Come and see." 35Tears came to Jesus' eyes.

36"They were close friends," the Jewish leaders said. "See how much he loved him."

37,38But some said, "This fellow healed a blind man--why couldn't he keep Lazarus from dying?" And again Jesus was moved with deep anger. Then they came to the tomb. It was a cave with heavy stone rolled across its door.

39 "Roll the stone aside," Jesus told them.

But Martha, the dead man's sister, said, "By now the smell will be terrible, for he has been dead four days."

40 "But didn't I tell you that you will see a wonderful miracle from God if you believe?" Jesus asked her.

41So they rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, "Father, thank you for hearing me. 42(You always hear me, of course, but I said it because of all these people standing here, so that they will believe you sent me.)" 43Then he shouted, "Lazarus, come out!"

44And Lazarus came--bound up in the gravecloth, his face muffled in a head swath. Jesus told them, "Unwrap him and let him go!"

45And so at last many of the Jewish leaders who were with Mary and saw it happen, finally believed on him. 46But some went away to the Pharisees and reported it to them.

47Then the chief priests and Pharisees convened a council to discuss the situation.

"What are we going to do?" they asked each other. "For this man certainly does miracles. 48If we let him alone the whole nation will follow him--and then the Roman army will come and kill us and take over the Jewish government."

49And one of them, Caiaphas, who was High Priest that year, said, "You stupid idiots-- 50let this one man die for the people--why should the whole nation perish?"

51This prophecy that Jesus should die for the entire nation came from Caiaphas in his position as High Priest--he didn't think of it by himself, but was inspired to say it. 52It was a prediction that Jesus' death would not be for Israel only, but for all the children of God scattered around the world. 53So from that time on the Jewish leaders began plotting Jesus' death.

54Jesus now stopped his public ministry and left Jerusalem; he went to the edge of the desert, to the village of Ephraim, and stayed there with his disciples.

55The Passover, a Jewish holy day, was near, and many country people arrived in Jerusalem several days early so that they could go through the cleansing ceremony before the Passover began. 56They wanted to see Jesus, and as they gossiped in the Temple, they asked each other, "What do you think? Will he come for the Passover?" 57Meanwhile the chief priests and Pharisees had publicly announced that anyone seeing Jesus must report him immediately so that they could arrest him.

Chapter 12

Six days before the Passover ceremonies began, Jesus arrived in Bethany where Lazarus was--the man he had brought back to life. 2A banquet was prepared in Jesus' honor. Martha served, and Lazarus sat at the table with him. 3Then Mary took a jar of costly perfume made from essence of nard, and anointed Jesus' feet with it and wiped them with her hair. And the house was filled with fragrance.

4But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples--the one who would betray him--said, 5"That perfume was worth a fortune. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor." 6Not that he cared for the poor, but he was in charge of the disciples' funds and often dipped into them for his own use!

7Jesus replied, "Let her alone. She did it in preparation for my burial. 8You can always help the poor, but I won't be with you very long."

9When the ordinary people of Jerusalem heard of his arrival, they flocked to see him and also to see Lazarus--the man who had come back to life again. 10Then the chief priests decided to kill Lazarus too, 11for it was because of him that many of the Jewish leaders had deserted and believed in Jesus as their Messiah.

12The next day, the news that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem swept through the city, and a huge crowd of Passover visitors 13took palm branches and went down the road to meet him, shouting, "The Savior! God bless the King of Israel! Hail to God's Ambassador!"

14Jesus rode along on a young donkey, fulfilling the prophecy that said: 15"Don't be afraid of your King, people of Israel, for he will come to you meekly, sitting on a donkey's colt!"

16(His disciples didn't realize at the time that this was a fulfillment of prophecy; but after Jesus returned to his glory in heaven, then they noticed how many prophecies of Scripture had come true before their eyes.)

17And those in the crowd who had seen Jesus call Lazarus back to life were telling all about it. 18That was the main reason why so many went out to meet him--because they had heard about this mighty miracle.

19Then the Pharisees said to each other, "We've lost. Look--the whole world has gone after him!"

20Some Greeks who had come to Jerusalem to attend the Passover 21paid a visit to Philip, who was from Bethsaida, and said, "Sir, we want to meet Jesus." 22Philip told Andrew about it, and they went together to ask Jesus.

23,24Jesus replied that the time had come for him to return to his glory in heaven, and that "I must fall and die like a kernel of wheat that falls into the furrows of the earth. Unless I die I will be alone--a single seed. But my death will produce many new wheat kernels--a plentiful harvest of new lives. 25If you love your life down here--you will lose it. If you despise your life down here--you will exchange it for eternal glory.

26"If these Greeks want to be my disciples, tell them to come and follow me, for my servants must be where I am. And if they follow me, the Father will honor them. 27Now my soul is deeply troubled. Shall I pray, 'Father, save me from what lies ahead'? But that is the very reason why I came! 28Father, bring glory and honor to your name."

Then a voice spoke from heaven saying, "I have already done this, and I will do it again." 29When the crowd heard the voice, some of them thought it was thunder, while others declared an angel had spoken to him.

30Then Jesus told them, "The voice was for your benefit, not mine. 31The time of judgment for the world has come--and the time when Satan, the prince of this world, shall be cast out. 32And when I am lifted up [on the cross], I will draw everyone to me." 33He said this to indicate how he was going to die.

34"Die?" asked the crowd. "We understood that the Messiah would live forever and never die. Why are you saying he will die? What Messiah are you talking about?"

35Jesus replied, "My light will shine out for you just a little while longer. Walk in it while you can, and go where you want to go before the darkness falls, for then it will be too late for you to find your way. 36Make use of the Light while there is still time; then you will become light bearers." After saying these things, Jesus went away and was hidden from them.

37But despite all the miracles he had done, most of the people would not believe he was the Messiah. 38This is exactly what Isaiah the prophet had predicted: "Lord, who will believe us? Who will accept God's mighty miracles as proof?" 39But they couldn't believe, for as Isaiah also said: 40"God has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts so that they can neither see nor understand nor turn to me to heal them." 41Isaiah was referring to Jesus when he made this prediction, for he had seen a vision of the Messiah's glory.

42However, even many of the Jewish leaders believed him to be the Messiah but wouldn't admit it to anyone because of their fear that the Pharisees would excommunicate them from the synagogue; 43for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

44Jesus shouted to the crowds, "If you trust me, you are really trusting God. 45For when you see me, you are seeing the one who sent me. 46I have come as a Light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer wander in the darkness. 47If anyone hears me and doesn't obey me, I am not his judge--for I have come to save the world and not to judge it. 48But all who reject me and my message will be judged at the Day of Judgment by the truths I have spoken. 49For these are not my own ideas, but I have told you what the Father said to tell you. 50And I know his instructions lead to eternal life; so whatever he tells me to say, I say!"

Chapter 13

Jesus knew on the evening of Passover Day that it would be his last night on earth before returning to his Father. During supper the devil had already suggested to Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, that this was the night to carry out his plan to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had given him everything and that he had come from God and would return to God. And how he loved his disciples! 4So he got up from the supper table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his loins, 5poured water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples feet and to wipe them with the towel he had around him.

6When he came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, "Master, you shouldn't be washing our feel like this!"

7Jesus replied, "You don't understand now why I am doing it; some day you will."

8"No," Peter protested, "you shall never wash my feet!"

"But if I don't, you can't be my partner," Jesus replied.

9Simon Peter exclaimed, "Then wash my hands and head as well--not just my feet!"

10Jesus replied, "One who has bathed all over needs only to have his feet washed to be entirely clean. Now you are clean--but that isn't true of everyone here." 11For Jesus knew who would betray him. That is what he mean when he said, "Not all of you are clean."

12After washing their feet he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, "Do you understand what I was doing? 13You call me 'Master' and 'Lord,' and you do well to say it, for it is true. 14And since I, the Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other's feet. 15I have given you an example to follow: do as I have done to you. 16How true it is that a servant is not greater than his master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends him. 17You know these things--now do them! That is the path of blessing.

18"I am not saying these things to all of you; I know so well each one of you I chose. The Scripture declares, 'One who eats supper with me will betray me,' and this will soon come true. 19I tell you this now so that when it happens, you will believe on me.

20"Truly, anyone welcoming my messenger is welcoming me. And to welcome me is to welcome the Father who sent me."

21Now Jesus was in great anguish of spirit and exclaimed, "Yes, it is true--one of you will betray me." 22The disciples looked at each other, wondering whom he could mean. 23Since I was sitting next to Jesus at the table, being his closest friend, 24Simon Peter motioned to me to ask him who it was who would do this terrible deed.

25So I turned and asked him, "Lord, who is it?"

26He told me, "It is the one I honor by giving the bread dipped in the sauce."

And when he had dipped it, he gave it to Judas, son of Simon Iscariot.

27As soon as Judas had eaten it, Satan entered into him. Then Jesus told him, "Hurry--do it now."

28None of the others at the table knew what Jesus meant. 29Some thought that since Judas was their treasurer, Jesus was telling him to go and pay for the food or to give some money to the poor. 30Judas left at once, going out into the night.

31As soon as Judas left the room, Jesus said, "My time has come; the glory of God will soon surround me--and God shall receive the great praise because of all that happens to me. 32And God shall give me his own glory, and this so very soon. 33Dear, dear children, how brief are these moments before I must go away and leave you! Then, though you search for me, you cannot come to me--just as I told the Jewish leaders.

34"And so I am giving a new commandment to you now--love each other just as much as I love you. 35Your strong love for each other will prove to the world that you are my disciples."

36Simon Peter said, "Master, where are you going?"

And Jesus replied, "You can't go with me now, but you will follow me later."

37"But why can't I come now?" he asked, "for I am ready to die for you."

38Jesus answered, "Die for me? No--three times before the cock crows tomorrow morning, you will deny that you even know me!

Chapter 14

"Let not your heart be troubled. You are trusting God, now trust in me. 2,3There are many homes up there where my Father lives, and I am coming to prepare them for your coming. When everything is ready, then I will come and get you, so that you can always be with me where I am. If this weren't so, I would tell you plainly. 4And you know where I am going and how to get there."

5"No, we don't," Thomas said. "We haven't any idea where you are going, so how can we know the way?"

6Jesus told him, "I am the Way--yes, and the Truth and the Life. No one can get to the Father except by means of me. 7If you had known who I am, then you would have known who my Father is. From now on you know him--and have seen him!"

8Philip said, "Sir, show us the Father and we will be satisfied."

9Jesus replied, "Don't you even yet know who I am, Philip, even after all this time I have been with you? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you asking to see him? 10Don't you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I say are not my own but are from my Father who lives in me. And he does his work through me. 11Just believe it--that I am in the Father and the Father is in me. Or else believe it because of the mighty miracles you have seen me do.

12,13"In solemn truth I tell you, anyone believing in me shall do the same miracles I have done, and even greater ones, because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask him for anything, using my name, and I will do it, for this will bring praise to the Father because of what I, the Son, will do for you. 14Yes, ask anything, using my name, and I will do it!

15,16"If you love me, obey me; and I will ask the Father and he will give you another Comforter, and he will never leave you. 17He is the Holy Spirit, the Spirit who leads into all truth. The world at large cannot receive him, for it isn't looking for him and doesn't recognize him. But you do, for he lives with you now and some day shall be in you. 18No, I will not abandon you or leave you as orphans in the storm--I will come to you. 19In just a little while I will be gone from the world, but I will still be present with you. For I will live again--and you will too. 20When I come back to life again, you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21The one who obeys me is the one who loves me; and because he loves me, my Father will love him; and I will too, and I will reveal myself to him."

22Judas (not Judas Iscariot, but his other disciple with that name) said to him, "Sir, why are going to reveal yourself only to us disciples and not to the world at large?"

23Jesus replied, "Because I will only reveal myself to those who love me and obey me. The Father will love them too, and we will come to them and live with them. 24Anyone who doesn't obey me doesn't love me. And remember, I am not making up this answer to your question! It is the answer given by the Father who sent me. 25I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. 26But when the Father sends the Comforter instead of me-- and by the Comforter I mean the Holy Spirit--he will teach you much, as well as remind you of everything I myself have told you.

27"I am leaving you with a gift--peace of mind and heart! And the peace I give isn't fragile like the peace the world gives. So don't be troubled or afraid. 28Remember what I told you--I am going away, but I will come back to you again. If you really love me, you will be very happy for me, for now I can go to the Father, who is greater than I am. 29I have told you these things before they happen so that when they do, you will believe [in me].

30"I don't have much more time to talk to you, for the evil prince of this world approaches. He has no power over me, 31but I will freely do what the Father requires of me so that the world will know that I love the Father. Come, let's be going.

Chapter 15

"I am the true Vine, and my Father is the Gardener. 2He lops off every branch that doesn't produce. And he prunes those branches that bear fruit for even larger crops. 3He has already tended you by pruning you back for greater strength and usefulness by means of the commands I gave you. 4Take care to live in me, and let me live in you. For a branch can't produce fruit when severed from the vine. Nor can you be fruitful apart from me.

5"Yes, I am the Vine, you are the branches. Whoever lives in me and I in him shall produce a large crop of fruit. For apart from me you can't do a thing. 6If anyone separates from me, he is thrown away like a useless branch, withers, and is gathered into a pile with all the others and burned. 7But if you stay in me and obey my commands, you may ask any request you like, and it will be granted! 8My true disciples produce bountiful harvests. This brings great glory to my Father.

9"I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Live within my love. 10When you obey me you are living in my love, just as I obey my Father and live in his love. 11I have told you this so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your cup of joy will overflow! 12I demand that you love each other as much as I love you. 13And here is how to measure it--the greatest love is shown when a person lays down his life for his friends; 14and you are my friends if you obey me. 15I no longer call you slaves, for a master doesn't confide in his slaves; now you are my friends, proved by the fact that I have told you everything the Father told me.

16"You didn't choose me! I chose you! I appointed you to go and produce lovely fruit always, so that no matter what you ask for from the Father, using my name, he will give it to you. 17I demand that you love each other, 18for you get enough hate from the world! But then, it hated me before it hated you. 19The world would love you if you belonged to it; but you don't--for I chose you to come out of the world, and so it hates you. 20Do you remember what I told you? 'A slave isn't greater than his master!' So since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you! 21The people of the world will persecute you because you belong to me, for they don't know God who sent me.

22"They would not be guilty if I had not come and spoken to them. But now they have no excuse for their sin. 23Anyone hating me is also hating my Father. 24If I hadn't done such mighty miracles among them they would not be counted guilty. But as it is, they saw these miracles and yet they hated both of us--me and my Father. 25This has fulfilled what the prophets said concerning the Messiah, 'They hated me without reason.'

26"But I will send you the Comforter--the Holy Spirit, the source of all truth. He will come to you from the Father and will tell you all about me. 27And you also must tell everyone about me, because you have been with me from the beginning.

Chapter 16

"I have told you these things so that you won't be staggered [by all that lies ahead.] 2For you will be excommunicated from the synagogues, and indeed the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing God a service. 3This is because they have never known the Father or me. 4Yes, I'm telling you these things now so that when they happen you will remember I warned you. I didn't tell you earlier because I was going to be with you for a while longer.

5"But now I am going away to the one who sent me; and none of you seems interested in the purpose of my going; none wonders why. 6Instead you are only filled with sorrow. 7But the fact of the matter is that it is best for you that I go away, for if I don't, the Comforter won't come. If I do, he will--for I will send him to you.

8"And when he has come he will convince the world of its sin, and of the availability of God's goodness, and of deliverance from judgment. 9The world's sin is unbelief in me; 10there is righteousness available because I go the Father and you shall see me no more; 11there is deliverance from judgment because the prince of this world has already been judged.

12"Oh, there is so much more I want to tell you, but you can't understand it now. 13When the Holy Spirit, who is truth, comes, he shall guide you into all truth, for he will not be presenting his own ideas, but will be passing on to you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. 14He shall praise me and bring me great honor by showing you my glory. 15All the Father's glory is mine; this is what I mean when I say that he will show you my glory. 16In just a little while I will be gone, and you will see me no more; but just a little while after that, and you will see me again!"

17,18"Whatever is he saying?" some of his disciples asked. "What is this about 'going to Father'? We don't know what he means."

19Jesus realized they wanted to ask him so he said, "Are you asking yourselves what I mean? 20The world will greatly rejoice over what is going to happen to me, and you will weep. But your weeping shall suddenly be turned to wonderful joy [when you see me again]. 21It will be the same joy as that of a woman in labor when her child is born--her anguish gives place to rapturous joy and the pain is forgotten. 22You have sorrow now, but I will see you again and then you will rejoice; and no one can rob you of that joy. 23At that time you won't need to ask me for anything, for you can go directly to the Father and ask him, and he will give what you ask for because you use my name. 24You haven't tried this before, [but begin now]. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and your cup of joy will overflow.

25"I have spoken of these matters very guardedly, but the time will come when this will not be necessary and I will tell you plainly all about the Father. 26Then you will present your petitions over my signature! And I won't need to ask the Father to grant you these requests, 27for the Father himself loves you dearly because you love me and believe that I came from the Father. 28Yes, I came from the Father into the world and will leave the world and return to the Father."

29"At last you are speaking plainly," his disciples said, "and not in riddles. 30Now we understand that you know everything and don't need anyone to tell you anything. From this we believe that you came from God."

31"Do you finally believe this?" Jesus asked. 32 "But the time is coming--in fact, it is here--when you will be scattered, each one returning to his own home, leaving me alone. Yet I will not be alone, for the Father is with me. 33I have told you all this so that you will have peace of heart and mind. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows; but cheer up, for I have overcome the world."

Chapter 17

When Jesus had finished saying all these things he looked up to heaven and said, "Father, the time has come. Reveal the glory of your Son so that he can give the glory back to you. 2For you have given him authority over every man and woman in all the earth. He gives eternal life to each one you have given him. 3And this is the way to have eternal life--by knowing you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth! 4I brought glory to you here on earth by doing everything you told me to. 5And now, Father, reveal my glory as I stand in your presence, the glory we shared before the world began.

6"I have told these men all about you. They were in the world, but then you gave them to me. Actually, they were always yours, and you gave them to me; and they have obeyed you. 7Now they know that everything I have is a gift from you, 8for I have passed on to them the commands you gave me; and they accepted them and know of a certainty that I came down to earth from you, and they believe you sent me.

9"My plea is not for the world but for those you have given me because they belong to you. 10And all of them, since they are mine, belong to you; and you have given them back to me with everything else of yours, and so they are my glory! 11Now I am leaving the world, and leaving them behind, and coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your own care--all those you have given me--so that they will be united just as we are, with none missing. 12During my time here I have kept safe within your family all of these you gave me. I guarded them so that not one perished, except the son of hell, as the Scriptures foretold.

13"And now I am coming to you. I have told them many things while I was with them so that they would be filled with my joy. 14I have given them your commands. And the world hates them because they don't fit in with it, just as I don't. 15I'm not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from Satan's power. 16They are not part of this world any more than I am. 17Make them pure and holy through teaching them your words of truth. 18As you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world, 19and I consecrate myself to meet their need for growth in truth and holiness.

20"I am not praying for these alone but also for the future believers who will come to me because of the testimony of these. 21My prayer for all of them is that they will be of one heart and mind, just as you and I are, Father--that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the world will believe you sent me.

22"I have given them the glory you gave me--the glorious unity of being one, as we are-- 23I in them and you in me, all being perfected into one--so that the world will know you sent me and will understand that you love them as much as you love me. 24Father, I want them with me--these you've given me--so that they can see my glory. You gave me the glory because you loved me before the world began!

25"O righteous Father, the world doesn't know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent me. 26And I have revealed you to them, and will keep on revealing you so that the mighty love you have for me may be in them, and I in them."

Chapter 18

After saying these things Jesus crossed the Kidron ravine with his disciples and entered a grove of olive trees. 2Judas, the betrayer, knew this place, for Jesus had gone there many times with his disciples.

3The chief priests and Pharisees had given Judas a squad of soldiers and police to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons they arrived at the olive grove.

4,5Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him. Stepping forward to meet them he asked, "Whom are you looking for?"

"Jesus of Nazareth," they replied.

"I am he," Jesus said. 6And as he said it, they all fell backwards to the ground!

7Once more he asked them, "Whom are you searching for?"

And again they replied, "Jesus of Nazareth."

8 "I told you I am he," Jesus said; "and since I am the one you are after, let these others go." 9He did this to carry out the prophecy he had just made, "I have not lost a single one of those you gave me . . . ."

10Then Simon Peter drew a sword and slashed off the right ear of Malchus, the High Priest's servant.

11But Jesus said to Peter, "Put your sword away. Shall I not drink from the cup the Father has given me?"

12So the Jewish police, with the soldiers and their lieutenant, arrested Jesus and tied him. 13First they took him to Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the High Priest that year. 14Caiaphas was the one who told the other Jewish leaders, "Better that one should die for all." 15Simon Peter followed along behind, as did another of the disciples who was acquainted with the High Priest. So that other disciple was permitted into the courtyard along with Jesus, 16while Peter stood outside the gate. Then the other disciple spoke to the girl watching at the gate, and she let Peter in. 17The girl asked Peter, "Aren't you one of Jesus' disciples?"

"No," he said, "I am not!"

18The police and the household servants were standing around a fire they had made, for it was cold. And Peter stood there with them, warming himself.

19Inside, the High Priest began asking Jesus about his followers and what he had been teaching them.

20Jesus replied, "What I teach is widely known, for I have preached regularly in the synagogue and Temple; I have been heard by all the Jewish leaders and teach nothing in private that I have not said in public. 21Why are you asking me this question? Ask those who heard me. You have some of them here. They know what I said."

22One of the soldiers standing there struck Jesus with his fist. "Is that the way to answer the High Priest?" he demanded.

23 "If I lied, prove it," Jesus replied. "Should you hit a man for telling the truth?"

24Then Annas sent Jesus, bound, to Caiaphas the High Priest.

25Meanwhile, as Simon Peter was standing by the fire, he was asked again, "Aren't you one of his disciples?"

"Of course not," he replied.

26But one of the household slaves of the High Priest--a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off--asked, "Didn't I see you out there in the olive grove with Jesus?"

27Again Peter denied it. And immediately a rooster crowed.

28Jesus' trial before Caiaphas ended in the early hours of the morning. Next he was taken to the palace of the Roman governor. His accusers wouldn't go in themselves for that would "defile" them, they said, and they wouldn't be allowed to eat the Passover lamb. 29So Pilate, the governor, went out to them and asked, "What is your charge against this man? What are you accusing him of doing?"

30"We wouldn't have arrested him if he weren't a criminal!" they retorted.

31"Then take him away and judge him yourselves by your own laws," Pilate told them.

"But we want him crucified," they demanded, "and your approval is required." 32This fulfilled Jesus' prediction concerning the method of his execution.

33Then Pilate went back into the palace and called for Jesus to be brought to him. "Are you the King of the Jews?" he asked him.

34 "'King' as you use the word or as the Jews use it?" Jesus asked.

35"Am I a Jew?" Pilate retorted. "Your own people and their chief priests brought you here. Why? What have you done?"

36Then Jesus answered, "I am not an earthly king. If I were, my followers would have fought when I was arrested by the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of the world."

37Pilate replied, "But you are a king then?"

"Yes," Jesus said. "I was born for that purpose. And I came to bring truth to the world. All who love the truth are my followers."

38"What is truth?" Pilate exclaimed. Then he went out again to the people and told them, "He is not guilty of any crime. 39But you have a custom of asking me to release someone from prison each year at Passover. So if you want me to, I'll release the 'King of the Jews.'"

40But they screamed back, "No! Not this man, but Barabbas!" Barabbas was a robber.

Chapter 19

Then Pilate laid open Jesus' back with a leaded whip, 2and the soldiers made a crown of thorns and placed it on his head and robed him in royal purple. 3"Hail, 'King of the Jews!'" they mocked, and struck him with their fists.

4Pilate went outside again and said to the Jews, "I am going to bring him out to you now, but understand clearly that I find him not guilty."

5Then Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said, "Behold the man!"

6At sight of him the chief priests and Jewish officials began yelling, "Crucify! Crucify!"

" You crucify him," Pilate said. "I find him not guilty."

7They replied, "By our laws he ought to die because he called himself the Son of God."

8When Pilate heard this, he was more frightened than ever. 9He took Jesus back into the palace again and asked him, "Where are you from?" but Jesus gave no answer.

10"You won't talk to me?" Pilate demanded. "Don't you realize that I have the power to release you or to crucify you?"

11Then Jesus said, "You would have no power at all over me unless it were given to you from above. So those who brought me to you have the greater sin."

12Then Pilate tired to release him, but the Jewish leaders told him, "If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar's. Anyone who declares himself a king is a rebel against Caesar."

13At these words Pilate brought Jesus out to them again and sat down at the judgment bench on the stone-paved platform. 14It was now about noon of the day before Passover.

And Pilate said to the Jews, "Here is your king!"

15"Away with him," they yelled. "Away with him-crucify him!"

"What? Crucify your king?" Pilate asked.

"We have no king but Caesar," the chief priests shouted back.

16Then Pilate gave Jesus to them to be crucified.

17So they had him at last, and he was taken out of the city, carrying his cross to the place known as "The Skull," in Hebrew, "Golgotha." 18There they crucified him and two others with him, one on either side, with Jesus between them. 19And Pilate posted a sign over him reading, "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." 20The place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and the signboard was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek, so that many people read it.

21Then the chief priests said to Pilate, "Change it from 'The King of the Jews' to ' He said, I am King of the Jews.'"

22Pilate replied, "What I have written, I have written. It stays exactly as it is."

23,24When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they put his garments into four piles, one for each of them. But they said, "Let's not tear up his robe," for it was seamless. "Let's throw dice to see who gets it." This fulfilled the Scripture that says,

"They divided my clothes among them, and cast lots for my robe." Psalm 22:18

25So that is what they did.

Standing near the cross were Jesus' mother, Mary, his aunt, the wife of Cleopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside me, his close friend, he said to her, "He is your son."

27And to me he said, "She is your mother!" And from then on I took her into my home.

28Jesus knew that everything was now finished, and to fulfill the Scriptures said, "I'm thirsty." 29A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so a sponge was soaked in it and put on a hyssop branch and held up to his lips.

30When Jesus had tasted it, he said, "It is finished," and bowed his head and dismissed his spirit.

31The Jewish leaders didn't want the victims hanging there the next day, which was the Sabbath (and a very special Sabbath at that, for it was the Passover), so they asked Pilate to order the legs of the men broken to hasten death; then their bodies could be taken down. 32So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the two men crucified with Jesus; 33but when they came to him, they saw that he was dead already, so they didn't break his. 34However, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and blood and water flowed out. 35I saw all this myself and have given an accurate report so that you also can believe. 36,37The soldiers did this in fulfillment of the Scripture that says, "Not one of his bones shall be broken," and, "They shall look on him whom they pierced.

38Afterwards Joseph of Arimathea, who had been a secret disciple of Jesus for fear of the Jewish leaders, boldly asked Pilate for permission to take Jesus' body down; and Pilate told him to go ahead. So he came and took it away. 39Nicodemus, the man who had come to Jesus at night, came too, bringing a hundred pounds of embalming ointment made from myrrh and aloes. 40Together they wrapped Jesus' body in a long linen cloth saturated with the spices, as is the Jewish custom of burial. 41The place of crucifixion was near a grove of trees, where there was a new tomb, never used before. 42And so, because of the need for haste before the Sabbath, and because the tomb was close at hand, they laid him there.

Chapter 20

Early Sunday morning, while it was sill dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone was rolled aside from the entrance.

2She ran and found Simon Peter and me and said, "They have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb, and I don't know where they have put him!"

3,4We ran to the tomb to see; I outran Peter and got there first, 5and stooped and looked in and saw the linen cloth lying there, but I didn't go in. 6Then Simon Peter arrived and went on inside. He also noticed the cloth lying there, 7while the swath that had covered Jesus' head was rolled up in a bundle and was lying at the side. 8Then I went in too, and saw, and believed [that he had risen]-- 9for until then we hadn't realized that the Scriptures said he would come to life again!

10We went on home, 11and by that time Mary had returned to the tomb and was standing outside crying. And as she wept, she stooped and looked in 12and saw two white-robed angels sitting at the head and foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying.

13"Why are you crying?" the angels asked her.

"Because they have taken away my Lord," she replied, "and I don't know where they have put him."

14She glanced over her shoulder and saw someone standing behind her. It was Jesus, but she didn't recognize him!

15 "Why are you crying?" he asked her. "Whom are you looking for?"

She thought he was the gardener. "Sir," she said, "if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and get him."

16 "Mary!" Jesus said. She turned toward him.

"Master!" she exclaimed.

17 "Don't touch me," he cautioned, "for I haven't yet ascended to the Father. But go find my brothers and tell them that I ascend to my Father and your Father, my God and your God."

18Mary Magdalene found the disciples and told them, "I have seen the Lord!" Then she gave them his message.

19That evening the disciples were meeting behind locked doors, in fear of the Jewish leaders, when suddenly Jesus was standing there among them! After greeting them, 20he showed them his hands and side. And how wonderful was their joy as they saw their Lord!

21He spoke to them again and said, "As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you." 22Then he breathed on them and told them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive anyone's sins, they are forgiven. If you refuse to forgive them, they are unforgiven."

24One of the disciples, Thomas, "The Twin," was not there at the time with the others. 25When they kept telling him, "We have seen the Lord," he replied, "I won't believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands--and put my fingers into them--and place my hand into his side."

26Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them and greeting them.

27Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger into my hands. Put your hand into my side. Don't be faithless any longer. Believe!"

28"My Lord and my God!" Thomas said.

29Then Jesus told him, "You believe because you have seen me. But blessed are those who haven't seen me and believe anyway."

30,31Jesus' disciples saw him do many other miracles besides the ones told about in this book, but these are recorded so that you will believe that he is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that believing in him you will have life.

Chapter 21

Later Jesus appeared again to the disciples beside the Lake of Galilee. This is how it happened:

2A group of us were there--Simon Peter, Thomas, "The Twin," Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, my brother James and I and two other disciples.

3Simon Peter said, "I'm going fishing."

"We'll come too," we all said. We did, but caught nothing all night. 4At dawn we saw a man standing on the beach but couldn't see who he was.

5He called, "Any fish boys?"

"No," we replied.

6Then he said, "Throw out your net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you'll get plenty of them!" So we did, and couldn't draw in the net because of the weight of the fish, there were so many!

7Then I said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" At that, Simon Peter put on his tunic (for he was stripped to the waist) and jumped into the water [and swam ashore]. 8The rest of us stayed in the boat and pulled the loaded net to the beach, about 300 feet away. 9When we got there, we saw that a fire was kindled and fish were frying over it, and there was bread.

10 "Bring some of the fish you've just caught," Jesus said. 11So Simon Peter went out and dragged the net ashore. By his count there were 153 large fish; and yet the net hadn't torn.

12 "Now come and have some breakfast!" Jesus said; and none of us dared ask him if he really was the Lord, for we were quite sure of it. 13Then Jesus went around serving us the bread and fish.

14This was the third time Jesus had appeared to us since his return from the dead.

15After breakfast Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these others?"

"Yes," Peter replied, "You know I am your friend."

"Then feed my lambs," Jesus told him.

16Jesus repeated the question: "Simon, son of John, do you really love me?"

"Yes, Lord," Peter said, "you know I am your friend."

"Then take care of my sheep," Jesus said.

17Once more he asked him, "Simon, son of John, are you even my friend?"

Peter was grieved at the way Jesus asked the question this third time. "Lord, you know my heart; you know I am," he said.

Jesus said, "Then feed my little sheep. 18When you were young, you were able to do as you liked and go wherever you wanted to; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands and others will direct you and take you where you don't want to go." 19Jesus said this to let him know what kind of death he would die to glorify God. Then Jesus told him, "Follow me."

20Peter turned around and saw the disciple Jesus loved following, the one who had leaned around at supper that time to ask Jesus, "Master, which of us will betray you?" 21Peter asked Jesus, "What about him, Lord? What sort of death will he die?"

22Jesus replied, "If I want him to live until I return, what is that to you? You follow me."

23So the rumor spread among the brotherhood that that disciple wouldn't die! But that isn't what Jesus said at all! He only said, "If I want him to live until I come, what is that to you?"

24 I am that disciple! I saw these events and have recorded them here. And we all know that my account of these things is accurate.

25And I suppose that if all the other events in Jesus' life were written, the whole world could hardly contain the books!