1 At that time Jesus walked one sabbath through the cornfields, and as his disciples were hungry they started to pull some ears of corn and eat them.
2 When the Pharisees noticed it, they said to him, "Look at your disciples, they are doing what is not allowed on the sabbath."
3 He replied, "Have you not read what David did when he and his men were hungry,
4 how he went into the house of God, and there they ate the loaves of the Presence which neither he nor his men were allowed to eat, but only the priests?
5 Have you not read in the Law that the priests in the temple are not guilty when they desecrate the sabbath?
6 I tell you, One is here who is greater than the temple.
7 Besides, if you had known what this meant, I care for mercy not for sacrifice, you would not have condemned men who are not guilty.
8 For the Son of man is Lord of the sabbath."
9 Then he moved on from there and went into their synagogue.
10 Now a man with a withered hand was there; so in order to get a charge against him they asked him, "Is it right to heal on the sabbath?"
11 He said to them, "Is there a man of you with one sheep, who will not catch hold of it and lift it out of a pit on the sabbath, if it falls in?
12 And how much more is a man worth than a sheep? Thus it is right to do a kindness on the sabbath."
13 Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and it was quite restored, as sound as the other.
14 So the Pharisees withdrew and plotted against him, to destroy him;
15 but as Jesus knew of it he retired from the spot. Many followed him, and he healed them all,
16 charging them strictly not to make him known ??17 it was for the fulfilment of what had been said by the prophet Isaiah,
18 Here is my servant whom I have selected, my Beloved in whom my soul delights; I will invest him with my Spirit, and he will proclaim religion to the Gentiles.
19 He will not wrangle or shout, no one will hear his voice in the streets.
20 He will not break the bruised reed, he will not put out the smouldering flax, till he carries religion to victory:
21 and the Gentiles will hope in his name.
22 Then a blind and dumb demoniac was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the dumb man spoke and saw.
23 And all the crowds were amazed; they said, "Can this be the Son of David?"
24 But when the Pharisees heard of it they said, "This fellow only casts out daemons by Beelzebul the prince of daemons."
25 As Jesus knew what they were thinking, he said to them, "Any realm divided against itself comes to ruin, any city or house divided against itself will never stand;
26 and if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then can his realm stand?
27 Besides, if I cast out daemons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Thus they will be your judges.
28 But if I cast out daemons by the Spirit of God, then the Reign of God has reached you already.
29 Why, how can anyone enter the strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first of all binds the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.
30 He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.
31 I tell you therefore, men will be forgiven any sin and blasphemy, but they will not be forgiven for blaspheming the Spirit.
32 Whoever says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the holy Spirit will never be forgiven, neither in this world nor in the world to come.
33 Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree rotten and its fruit rotten; for the tree is known by its fruit.
34 You brood of vipers, how can you speak good when you are evil? For the mouth utters what the heart is full of.
35 The good man brings good out of his good store, and the evil man brings evil out of his store of evil.
36 I tell you, men will have to account on the day of judgment for every light word they utter;
37 for by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."
38 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him, "Teacher, we would like to have some Sign from you."
39 He replied to them, "It is an evil and disloyal generation that craves a Sign, but no Sign will be given to it except the Sign of the prophet Jonah;
40 for as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so the Son of man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
41 The men of Ninive will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for when Jonah preached they did repent, and here is One greater than Jonah.
42 The queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon, and here is One greater than Solomon.
43 When an unclean spirit leaves a man, it roams through dry places in search of refreshment and finds none.
44 Then it says, 'I will go back to the house I left,' and when it comes it finds the house vacant, clean, and all in order.
45 Then it goes off to fetch seven other spirits worse than itself; they go in and dwell there, and the last state of that man is worse than the first. This is how it will be with the present evil generation."