1 Then Jesus was led up to the desert by the Holy Spirit in order to be put to the test by the devil.
2 After He had fasted forty days and nights, He was [very] hungry.
3 The tempter [i.e., the devil] came and said to Him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to turn into bread."
4 But Jesus answered, "It is written [Deut. 8:3], 'A person is not to live by [eating] bread only, but [instead] by [believing and obeying] every statement spoken by God.'"
5 Then the devil took Him to the holy city [i.e., Jerusalem] and placed Him on an [elevated] wing of the Temple,
6 and said to Him, "If you are the Son of God jump off, for it is written [Psalm 91:11-12]: 'He will put His angels in charge of you' and 'They will lift you up with their hands so you do not trip over a stone.'"
7 Jesus said to him, "It is also written [Deut. 6:16], 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'"
8 The devil took Him again, [this time] to a very high mountain and showed Him all the world's kingdoms, along with their splendor,
9 and said to Him, "I will give you all these things if you fall to the ground and worship me."
10 Then Jesus replied to him, "Get away from me Satan, for it is written [Deut. 6:13], 'You are supposed to worship the Lord your God, and serve only Him.'"
12 Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, He left [the province of Judea] and went to Galilee.
13 [After] leaving Nazareth [i.e., a major town in Galilee], He came to live in Capernaum, [a city] beside Lake Galilee, near the districts of Zebulun and Naphtali.
14 [This was] so that what Isaiah the prophet had spoken would be fulfilled, saying,
15 [Isa. 9:1-2] "The districts of Zebulun and Naphtali, near the lake, beyond [i.e., where it enters] the Jordan in Galilee, [the territory] of the Gentiles;
16 the people who lived [there] in [spiritual] darkness saw a great light. Light shone upon these people, who lived in an area that was under the shadow of death."
17 From that time onward Jesus began to preach, saying, "You people [must] repent [i.e., change your hearts and lives], for the kingdom of heaven is near."
18 While Jesus was walking beside Lake Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting their net into the lake, because they were fishermen.
19 And He said to them, "Come with me, and I will make you fishermen for people."
20 They immediately left their nets and went with Him.
21 [As] Jesus went from there He saw two [other] brothers, James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were in the boat with their father Zebedee, repairing their nets. He called them,
22 and immediately they left their boat and their father and went with Him.
23 Jesus went all over Galilee teaching in the [Jewish] synagogues and preaching the good news of the [coming, see verse 17] kingdom, and healing all kinds of disease and sickness among the people.
24 The news [of what Jesus was doing] spread all over [the country of] Syria and they brought to Him all those who were sick, stricken with various diseases and pains, dominated by evil spirits, and afflicted with seizures and paralysis, and He healed them [all].
25 Large crowds followed Him from Galilee, Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and from beyond [i.e., the east side of] the Jordan River.