In his preaching John said, "One who is more powerful than I am will follow my ministry. I am not [even] worthy to stoop down and loosen the straps of His sandals [i.e., to serve as His slave].

And Jesus said to them, "Come, follow me and I will make you fishermen for people."

When evening came and the sun had set, they brought to Jesus all those who were sick and those dominated by evil spirits.

When they found Him, they said to Him, "Everyone is looking for you."

He said to them, "Let us go on to the next towns so that I can preach there also, for this was why I came out [i.e., Jesus was sent by God to preach to other towns as well as Capernaum. See Luke 4:43]."

And being moved with deep pity, Jesus reached out His hand, touched him and said, "I do want to; be healed."

When Jesus saw [the evidence of] their faith, He said to the paralyzed man, "Son, your sins are forgiven."

And immediately Jesus perceived in His spirit what they were reasoning in their minds and said to them, "Why are you reasoning like this in your minds?

But, so you will know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins (He then said to the paralyzed man),

And as He walked along He saw Levi [i.e., the same person as Matthew. See Matt. 9:9], the son of Alphaeus, sitting at the toll booth [i.e., collecting taxes]. He said to him, "Become my follower." And he got up and followed Him.

And it happened that Jesus was having a meal at Levi's house and many tax collectors and worldly people sat down with Him and His disciples, for many [of these kinds of people] became His followers.

And when the experts in the law of Moses, being Pharisees [i.e., a strict sect of the Jewish religion], saw that He was eating with tax collectors and worldly people, they said to His disciples, "Why does Jesus eat and drink with tax collectors and worldly people?"

When Jesus heard [about] this, He said to them, "People who are healthy do not need a doctor, but [only] sick people do. I did not come to call those who do right, but sinners [instead]."

And Jesus said to them, "The Sabbath day was made for man's [benefit], and not man for the Sabbath [day's benefit].

And He said to the man whose hand was deformed, "Step forward."

Then He said to the Pharisees, "Is it permissible by the law of Moses to do something good, or something harmful on the Sabbath day? To save a life or to kill it?" But they did not reply.

And when He had looked around at them with righteous indignation, being grieved over their stubbornness, He said to the man, "Reach out your hand." And when he reached it out, his hand was restored [to normal use].

Jerusalem, Idumaea, the east side of the Jordan River, and from around Tyre and Sidon [i.e., cities on the northwest coast of Palestine] came to Him, having heard about the great things [i.e., miracles] He had been performing.

Jesus said all this because these experts in the law of Moses had been saying, "He has an evil spirit in him."

Someone in the large crowd that was sitting around Him said to Him, "Look, your mother and your brothers are outside looking for you."

Then He looked out over those gathered around Him and said, "Look, [here is] my mother and my brothers

Jesus again began teaching along the shore of the lake [of Galilee]. A huge crowd gathered around Him so that He had to sit in a boat out in the lake [to speak to them], while all the crowd stood on the shore.

He taught the people many things using parables [to illustrate His lessons]. In His teaching He said to them,

"Listen carefully A farmer went out to plant seed,

and it happened, as he sowed [i.e., scattering the seed by hand], some of it fell by the side of the road and birds came and ate it.

And some seed fell on rocky ground where there was not much soil, and immediately it sprouted up because the soil was so shallow.

And Jesus said, "Whoever has ears to hear with ought to listen [to this] carefully."

He said to them, "You disciples are being given an understanding of the secret of the kingdom of God, but to outsiders everything will be told in parables.

Some of the seed that fell along the roadside represents where 'the word' was sown [i.e., preached]. When these people have heard, immediately Satan comes and takes away 'the word' which had been sown in them.

And in the same way, some [of the seed] that was sown on rocky soil represented those who heard 'the word' and immediately accepted it gladly,

Then He said to them, "Is a lamp brought in to be put under a bushel-sized container, or under the bed, instead of on its stand?

And He said to them, "Pay attention to what you are hearing from me. The standard you use in giving [to others] is the standard they will use on you, with even more added.

And Jesus said, "The kingdom of God is like a farmer who scattered seed on the ground,

then went to bed and got up the next day to find that the seed had sprouted and grown, yet he did not know how it happened.

It is similar to a seed from the mustard tree which, when planted in the ground,

When evening came that day He said to the disciples, "Let us go over to the other side [i.e., the east side of Lake Galilee]."

And He said to His disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you not still have [any] faith?"

And they were extremely afraid, and said to one another, "Who can this man be that even the wind and water obey him?"

Then Jesus and His disciples [finally] arrived on the other side of the lake [i.e., the east side] in the district of Geresa [Note: Matt. 8:28 says 'Gadara.' Geresa and Gadara were two towns

And shouting with a loud voice, he said, "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, in God's name, do not torture me."

On the side of a [nearby] mountain, a large herd of [wild] hogs was grazing.

When Jesus had crossed over again in a boat to the other side [i.e., to the northwest shore of the lake, probably in the vicinity of Capernaum], a large crowd gathered around Him along the shore of the lake.

And His disciples said to Him, "You see the large crowd thronging you and yet you ask 'Who touched me'?"

And He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace and be [i.e., remain] healed from your affliction."

While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the synagogue official's house and said [to the official], "Your daughter is dead; why are you bothering the Teacher any more?"

But Jesus disregarded what the person said and told the official, "Do not be afraid; just believe [i.e., in my power to restore your daughter]."

And when He entered [the house] He said to them, "Why are you making such a commotion and crying? The child is not [really] dead, but only sleeping."

And taking the child by the hand He said to her, "Talitha cumi," which means "Little girl," (I tell you), "get up."

Then Jesus said to them, "A prophet does not go without receiving honor, except in his own home town, and among his own relatives, and among his own family members."

And He said to them, "Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that place.

Now King Herod heard about this [i.e., what Jesus was doing] because His name had become well known. He said, "John the Immerser has risen from the dead and it is his powers that are at work in Jesus."

But others said, "He is [the prophet] Elijah" [while] others said, "He is a prophet like one of the prophets [of old]."

But when King Herod heard [about Jesus], he said, "John, whom I [had] decapitated, has risen."

For John had said to Herod, "It is unlawful for you to marry your brother's wife."

And when Herodias' daughter [Note: According to Josephus her name was Salome] came in and danced [in front of them, sensually], she pleased Herod and his party guests so much that the king said to the young woman, "Ask me for whatever you want and I will give it to you."

So, she went out and said to her mother, "What shall I ask for?" And her mother said, " [Ask for] the head of John the Immerser."

At once she hurried in to the king and said, "I would like you to give me the head of John the Immerser on a [large] platter right away."

He said to them, "You men, leave here and go to a deserted place and rest for awhile." For there were so many people coming and going [i.e., to listen to preaching, receive healing, etc.], that they had no opportunity even to eat.

And when the day was nearly over His disciples came to Him and said, "This place is deserted and the day is almost over;

And He said to them, "How many loaves [of bread] do you have? Go and see." And when had found out, they said, "Five [barley] loaves [See John 6:9] and two [probably smoked] fish."

Then He took the five loaves of bread and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He asked God's blessing on them. Then He broke the loaves and gave them to His disciples to set in front of the people [to eat]. He divided the two fish among them also

And about then Jesus compelled His disciples to get into a boat and go on ahead of Him to the other side [i.e., to the west side of Lake Galilee] to Bethsaida [Note: This was apparently a different "Bethsaida" from the one mentioned in Luke 9:10, which was on the east side of Lake Galilee], while He Himself sent the crowd away.

becoming [very] frightened when they saw Him. But He immediately spoke to them and said, "Take courage, and do not be afraid, it is I."

And when they had [finally] crossed over [i.e., to the west side of Lake Galilee], they arrived in the district of Gennesaret and moored the boat on shore.

And He said to them, "You are good at rejecting the commandment of God so you can keep your traditions.

For Moses said, [Ex. 20:12] 'Give honor to your father and mother,' and [Ex. 21:17 says], 'Whoever says bad things about his father or mother should surely be put to death.'

Then He called the crowd to Him again and said to them, "Listen to me, all of you, and understand [what I am saying].

He said to them, "Are you also as lacking in understanding [as the others]? Do you not understand that whatever enters a person's body from the outside cannot [spiritually] corrupt him?

And He said, "Whatever proceeds out of a man's life is what [spiritually] corrupts him.

So, He said to her, "Children should be the first ones to eat until they are full, for it is not proper to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs."

And He said to her, "Because you have said this, go on your way; the evil spirit has left your daughter."

and, looking up to heaven, He sighed and said, "Ephphatha," which means, "Be opened."

In those days, when a large crowd again assembled [i.e., to listen to Jesus' teaching] and did not have anything to eat, Jesus called His disciples and said to them,

Then He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground; he took the seven loaves, and after giving thanks to God [for them], He divided the food and gave it to His disciples to set in front of them. They [in turn] set it in front of the crowd.

They [also] had a few small fish and after asking God's blessing on them, He ordered these also to be set in front of them.

Immediately He boarded a boat with His disciples and crossed [to the west side of the lake], to the region of Dalmanutha. [Note: Matt. 15:39 says "Magadan," which was probably in the same vicinity as Dalmanutha].

Then He sighed deeply in His spirit and said, "Why does this generation of people look for a [supernatural] sign? Truly I tell you, there will not be any [supernatural] sign given to this generation."

Then He left them and boarded a boat again and sailed to the other side [i.e., the east side of Lake Galilee].

Jesus, being aware of what they were thinking, said, "Why are you reasoning about not having any bread? Have you not yet perceived or understood? Have your hearts become insensitive?

When I divided the five loaves of bread among the five thousand persons, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you gather up?" They said to Him, "Twelve baskets full."

He again asked, "And when the seven loaves were divided among the four thousand persons, how many large basketfuls of broken pieces did you gather up?" And they said to Him, "Seven large basketfuls."

Then He said to them, "Do you not understand yet?"

The man looked up and said, " [Yes], I see people, but they look like trees walking around."

Then Jesus again placed His hands on his eyes; the man stared intently, then his sight was [completely] restored and he was able to see everything clearly.

And He called the crowd to Him, along with His disciples, and said to them, "If anyone wants to be my follower, he should deny himself [i.e., of always having his own way] and accept his cross [i.e., his responsibilities, with all their difficulties] and then he can become my follower.

And Jesus said to them, "Truly I tell you, there are some people standing here who will surely not experience death until they see that God's kingdom has come in [a demonstration of] power."

And Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi [i.e., Teacher], it is good for us to be here. Let us build three small shelters, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." [See note at Matt. 17:4]

Jesus said to them, "You generation of faithless people How long must I be with you [i.e., before you understand]? How long do I have to be patient with you? Bring the sick boy to me."

And Jesus said to him, "'If you can.' [Note: By repeating the man's words Jesus seems to be saying, "You mean, if YOU can believe"]. Everything is possible to the person who believes [it can happen]."

So, He sat down and called the twelve apostles and said to them, "If anyone [of you] should [try to] be first [in importance] he will [end up] being last, and become the servant of all [the others].

And He took a little child and placed it in front of them, and lifting the child up into His arms, He said to them,

[Then] John [the apostle] said to Him, "Teacher, we saw someone driving out evil spirits by using your name, so we told him to stop doing it, because he was not following [You] with us."

But Jesus said, "Do not try to stop him, for there is not anyone who performs a supernatural deed using my name who will be able to quickly say something bad about me.

But Jesus said to them, "He wrote you this commandment [only] because of the rebellious spirit of you [Jews].

And He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another [woman] commits sexual unfaithfulness [toward her].

But when Jesus saw it, He was moved with [righteous] indignation, and said to them, "Allow these little children to come to me and stop trying to prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such [humble ones. See Matt. 18:4].

miles northeast of Jerusalem]. As He left there with His disciples and a large crowd, they met a blind beggar named Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sitting along side the road.

And Jesus looked at him, and filled with love, said to him, "There is one thing you [still] lack. Go and sell your possessions and give [the money] to poor people; become my follower, then you will have treasure in heaven."

But the man had a sad look on his face when he heard these words, and went away sorrowful, for he had many possessions.

Then Jesus looked around Him and said to His disciples, "How difficult it is for rich people to enter the kingdom of God "