Now when Jesus had been baptized, the moment he rose out of the water, the heavens opened and he saw the Spirit of God coming down like a dove upon him.

Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee; ??13 he left Nazaret and settled at Capharnahum beside the lake, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali

When you give alms, make no flourish of trumpets like the hypocrites in the synagogues and the streets, so as to win applause from men; I tell you truly, they do get their reward.

Also, when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites, for they like to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street-corners, so as to be seen by men; I tell you truly, they do get their reward.

Do not pray by idle rote like pagans, for they suppose they will be heard the more they say;

When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they look woebegone to let men see they are fasting; I tell you truly, they do get their reward.

Look at the wild birds; they sow not, they reap not, they gather nothing in granaries, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth more than birds?

And why should you trouble over clothing? Look how the lilies of the field grow; they neither toil nor spin,

and yet, I tell you, even Solomon in all his grandeur was never robed like one of them.

Well then, whatever you would like men to do to you, do just the same to them; that is the meaning of the Law and the prophets.

Now, everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts upon them will be like a sensible man who built his house on rock.

And everyone who listens to these words of mine and does not act upon them will be like a stupid man who built his house on sand.

for he taught them like an authority, not like their own scribes.

When Jesus heard that, he marvelled; "I tell you truly," he said to his followers, "I have never met faith like this anywhere in Israel.

As he saw the crowds he was moved with pity for them; they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd.

I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; so be wise like serpents and guileless like doves.

enough for the scholar to fare like his teacher, and the servant like his lord. If men have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they miscall his servants!

to ask him, "Are you the Coming One? Or are we to look out for someone else?"

But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplace, who call to their playmates,

When the Pharisees noticed it, they said to him, "Look at your disciples, they are doing what is not allowed on the sabbath."

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him, "Teacher, we would like to have some Sign from you."

He put another parable before them. "The Realm of heaven," he said, "is like a man who sowed good seed in his field,

He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.' The servants said to him, 'Then would you like us to go and gather them?'

He put another parable before them. "The Realm of heaven," he said, "is like a grain of mustard-seed which a man takes and sows in his field.

He told them another parable. "The Realm of heaven," he said, "is like dough which a woman took and buried in three pecks of flour, till all of it was leavened."

Then the just will shine like the sun in the Realm of their Father. He who has an ear, let him listen to this.

The Realm of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field; the man who finds it hides it and in his delight goes and sells all he possesses and buys that field.

Again, the Realm of heaven is like a trader in search of fine pearls;

Again, the Realm of heaven is like a net which was thrown into the sea and collected fish of every sort.

So he said to them, "Well then, every scribe who has become a disciple of the Realm of heaven is like a householder who produces what is new and what is old from his stores."

There he could not do many miracles owing to their lack of faith.

in their presence he was transfigured, his face shone like the sun, and his clothes turned white as light.

and said, "I tell you truly, unless you turn and become like children, you will never get into the Realm of heaven at all.

Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the Realm of heaven;

and whoever receives a little child like this for my sake, receives me.

See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you, their angels in heaven always look on the face of my Father in heaven.

For the Realm of heaven is like a householder who went out early in the morning to hire labourers for his vineyard;

At the resurrection people neither marry nor are married, they are like the angels of God in heaven.

There is a second like it: you must love your neighbour as yourself.

they like to be saluted in the marketplaces and to be called 'rabbi' by men.

Woe to you, you irreligious scribes and Pharisees! you are like tombs white-washed; they look comely on the outside, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all manner of impurity.

For like lightning that shoots from east to west, so will be the arrival of the Son of man.

At that hour Jesus said to the crowds, "Have you sallied out to arrest me like a robber, with swords and cudgels? Day after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you never seized me.

Then the high priest tore his dress and cried, "He has blasphemed! What more evidence do we want? Look, you have heard his blasphemy for yourselves!

At the close of the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary of Magdala and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

His appearance was like lightning and his raiment white as snow.

For fear of him the sentries shook and became like dead men;