It was in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

In the evening, after sunset, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed by demons,

And he pitied him and stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, "I do choose! Be cured!"

Jesus, at once perceiving by his spirit that they were pondering over this, said to them, "Why do you ponder over this in your minds?

But a time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and when that day comes, they will fast.

And no one pours new wine into old wine-skins; or if he does, the wine bursts the skins, and the wine is lost, and the skins too. New wine has to be put into fresh skins."

He happened to be passing through the wheat fields on the Sabbath, and his disciples began to pick the heads of wheat as they made their way through.

And he looked around at them with anger, hurt by their obstinacy, and he said to the man, "Hold out your hand!" And he held it out, and his hand was cured.

He told his disciples to have a boat always ready for his use, to prevent his being crushed by the crowd.

He appointed twelve of them, whom he called apostles, to be with him and to be sent out to preach,

And the scribes who had come down from Jerusalem said that he was possessed by Beelzebub and drove out demons by the help of the prince of demons.

I tell you, men will be forgiven for everything, for all their sins and all the abusive things they say.

But whoever reviles the holy Spirit can never be forgiven, but is guilty of an unending sin."

This was because they said, "He is possessed by a foul spirit."

Then he began again to teach by the seashore. And a crowd gathered around him so great that he got into a boat and sat in it, a little way from the shore, while all the people were on the land close to the water.

and as he was sowing, some of the seed chanced to fall by the path, and the birds came and ate it up.

And he said, "Let him who has ears be sure to listen!"

When he was by himself, those who stayed about him with the Twelve asked him about the figures he had used.

so that " 'They may look and look and yet not see, And listen and listen and yet not understand, Lest possibly they should turn and be forgiven.' ",

The ones by the path are those into whose hearts the message falls, and as soon as they hear it Satan comes and carries off the message that has been sown in their hearts.

If anyone has ears let him be sure to listen.

"Take care what you hear," he said to them. "The measure you give will be given to you, and even more besides.

For people who have will have more given them, and from people who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.

and then sleeping at night and getting up by day, while the seed sprouts and comes up, without his knowing it.

yet once sown, comes up and grows to be the largest of all the plants, and produces branches so large that the wild birds can roost under the shelter of it."

And they were very much frightened, and said to one another, "Who can he be? For even the wind and the sea obey him."

As soon as he got out of the boat, a man possessed by a foul spirit came out of the burial places near by to meet him.

When they came to Jesus and found the demoniac sitting quietly with his clothes on and in his right mind??he same man who had been possessed by Legion??hey were frightened.

As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed begged to be allowed to go with him.

And he said to her, "My daughter, it is your faith that has cured you. Go in peace and be free from your disease."

But Jesus paid no attention to what they said, but said to the leader of the synagogue, "Do not be afraid, just have faith."

Leaving there he went, followed by his disciples, to his own part of the country.

And he called the Twelve to him and sent them off two by two, giving them power over the foul spirits.

and drove out many demons, and cured many sick people by anointing them with oil.

John said to Herod, "It is not right for you to be living with your brother's wife."

And he said to them, "Come away by yourselves to some quiet place, and rest a little while." For people were coming and going in large numbers, and they had no time even for meals.

So they set off by themselves in their boat for a secluded place.

And many people saw them start and knew of it, and hurried around by land from all the neighboring towns, and got ahead of them.

Send the people off to the farms and villages around to buy themselves something to eat."

But he answered, "Give them food yourselves." They said to him, "Can we go and buy forty dollars' worth of bread and give it to them to eat?"

for they all saw him and were terrified. But he immediately spoke to them and said, "Take courage, it is I. Do not be afraid."

and they will not eat anything from the market without first purifying it by sprinkling it, and they have a number of other observances which have come down to them, in the way of washing cups, pitchers, and basins.

And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, "Why do your disciples not observe the rules handed down by our ancestors, but eat food without purifying their hands?"

For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother,' and again, 'Whoever abuses his father or mother must be put to death.'

and so you nullify what God has said by what you have handed down. You have many such practices."

When he had left the crowd and gone home, his disciples asked him what he meant by this figure.

but a woman whose little daughter was possessed by a foul spirit immediately heard about him and came and threw herself at his feet.

He left the neighborhood of Tyre again and went by way of Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, crossing the district of the Ten Towns.

He took him off by himself away from the crowd, and put his fingers in the man's ears, and touched his tongue with saliva.

The Pharisees came out and began a discussion with him, testing him by asking him to show them a sign from heaven.

And he sighed deeply and said, "Why do the men of this day ask for a sign? I tell you, no sign will be given them."

And he warned them, saying, "Look out! Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod!"

He took him by the hand and led him outside of the village, and spitting in his eyes he laid his hands on him and asked him, "Do you see anything?"

Then he explained to them for the first time that the Son of Man must go through much suffering, and be refused by the elders and the high priests and the scribes, and be killed, and rise again three days after.

For what can a man give to buy back his life?

For if anyone is ashamed of me and my teachings in this unfaithful and sinful age, then the Son of Man will be ashamed of him, when he comes back in his Father's glory, with the holy angels."

Six days after this Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him, and led them up on a high mountain, off by themselves. And his appearance underwent a change in their presence,

And Elijah appeared to them, accompanied by Moses, and they talked with Jesus.

And they did not forget what he said, but discussed with one another what he meant by the rising from the dead.

He said to them, "Elijah does come first, and reforms everything, and does not the Scripture say of the Son of Man that he will suffer much and be refused?

One of the crowd answered, "Master, I brought my son to you, for he is possessed by a dumb spirit,

He answered them and said, "O you unbelieving people, how long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to me!"

And they brought the boy to him. As soon as the spirit saw him, it convulsed the boy, and he fell down on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth.

Jesus asked the boy's father, "How long has he been like this?" And he said,

The boy's father immediately cried out, "I have faith! Help my want of faith!"

And it gave a cry and convulsed him terribly, and went out of him. And the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said that he was dead.

He said to them, "This kind of thing can be driven out only by prayer."

for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, "The Son of Man is to be handed over to men, and they will kill him, and three days after he is killed he will rise again."

And he sat down and called the Twelve in, and said to them, "If anyone wishes to be first, he must be the last of all and the servant of all."

But Jesus said, "Do not tell him not to do so, for there is no one who will use my name to do a mighty act, and be able soon after to abuse me.

For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink, on the ground that you belong to Christ, I tell you, will certainly not fail to be repaid.

And whoever causes one of these humble believers to fall might better have a great millstone hung around his neck and be thrown into the sea.

If your hand makes you fall, cut it off. You might better enter upon life maimed, than go with both your hands to the pit, into the fire that cannot be put out.

And if your foot makes you fall, cut it off. You might better enter upon life crippled, than be thrown with both your feet into the pit.

And if your eye makes you fall, tear it out. You might better get into the Kingdom of God with only one eye than be thrown with both your eyes into the pit,

Everyone must be seasoned with fire.

Some Pharisees came up, and in order to test him asked him whether a man should be allowed to divorce his wife.

They said, "Moses permits a man to divorce his wife by drawing up a written divorce-notice."

And Jesus looked at him and loved him, and he said to him, "There is one thing that you lack. Go, sell all you have, and give the money to the poor, and then you will have riches in heaven; and come back and be a follower of mine."

And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it will be for those who have money to enter the Kingdom of God!"

They were perfectly astounded and said to him, "Then who can be saved?"

But many who are first now will be last then, and the last will be first."

"See!" he said, "we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the high priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and hand him over to the heathen

but it is not to be so among you. Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant,

and whoever wants to hold the first place among you must be everybody's slave.

For the Son of Man himself has not come to be waited on, but to wait on other people, and to give his life to free many others."

Many of the people rebuked him and told him to be still. But he cried out all the louder, "You son of David, take pity on me!"

And those in front and those behind shouted, "God bless him! Blessed be he who comes in the Lord's name!

Blessed be the reign of our father David which is coming! God bless him from on high!"

And he taught them, and said, "Does not the Scripture say, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations'? But you have made it a robbers' cave."

And they came up and said to him, "Master, we know that you tell the truth regardless of the consequences, for you are not guided by personal considerations, but teach the way of God with sincerity. Is it right to pay the poll tax to the emperor or not?

Should we pay it, or refuse to pay it?" But he saw through their pretense, and said to them, "Why do you put me to such a test? Bring me a denarius to look at."

And Jesus said, "Pay the emperor what belongs to the emperor, and pay God what belongs to God!" And they were astonished at him.

At the resurrection, which one's wife will she be? For all seven of them married her."

David himself calls him lord, and how can he be his son?" The mass of the people liked to hear him.

And in the course of his teaching he said to them, "Beware of the scribes who like to go about in long robes and to be saluted with respect in public places,

Jesus said to him, "Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone shall be left here upon another that shall not be torn down."

"Tell us when this is to happen, and what the sign will be when it is all just going to be carried out."

Many will come under my name and say 'I am he,' and many will be misled by them.

But when you hear of wars and rumors of war, you must not be alarmed. They have to come, but it is not yet the end.