And he vowed to her, "I will give you whatever you ask me for, up to one half [the wealth] of my kingdom."

And the woman was given the two wings of a large eagle so she could fly to her place in the desert, where she would be taken care of for a time, and times and half a time, from the presence of the snake [i.e., for three and one half years. See 11:2; 12:6].

Are not two sparrows sold [in the market for food] for a small coin [Note: The coin mentioned here was worth about a half hour's worth of a farm laborer's pay, or about $3 in 1994]? And not a [single] one of them can fall to the ground without your Father [knowing about it].

Then when the Lamb broke open the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.

And people from among the races and tribes and language groups and nations will gaze at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and they will not permit their bodies to be buried.

And after three and a half days, God breathed life into them and they stood up on their feet, and the people who saw them became terrified.

While Jesus was still speaking to the large crowds, His mother and [half-] brothers were standing outside [of the large house. See 13:1] wanting to speak to Him.

Then He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is similar to yeast, which a woman worked into a batch of dough [i.e., the amount was over half a bushel], until [the dough] was completely leavened [by it]."

Then Jesus' mother and [half-] brothers came and stood outside [i.e., of a large house. See Matt. 12:46-13:1]. They sent a message to Him, asking Him to come out to them.

But it is true when I tell you, [while] there were many widows [living] in Israel during the time of Elijah, when it did not rain for three and a half years, causing a great famine over the entire land,

Then Jesus' mother and [half-] brothers came to Him, but they could not get near Him because of the [large] crowd.

Jesus answered him, "A certain man was traveling down from Jerusalem to Jericho [Note: This was a town about eighteen miles northeast of Jerusalem], when he was attacked by robbers, who stripped him [of his clothing and belongings] and beat him up, then went away leaving him half dead.

But [then] a certain Samaritan [Note: This was a person despised by the Jews and regarded by them as a 'half-breed'], as he traveled along, came to where the [injured] man was [lying], and upon seeing him [lying there], felt deep pity [for him].

Elijah was a man with a similar nature as ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain [I Kings 17:1; 18:1], and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years.

And he fell on his face at Jesus' feet and thanked Him. And he was a Samaritan. [Note: Samaritans were despised by the Jews and regarded as a 'half-breeds'].

Then Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord, I [plan to] give half of my possessions to poor people. And if I have cheated anyone out of something, [I promise] to repay them four times as much."

After this incident, Jesus, His mother, His [half-] brothers and His disciples went down to Capernaum [i.e., located on the north shore of Lake Galilee] and stayed there a few days.

Then Jesus' [half-] brothers said to Him, "You should leave here and go to Judea so your disciples [there] can see the [supernatural] deeds you are performing.

For even Jesus' [half-] brothers did not believe in Him [i.e., at that time].

But after His [half-] brothers had gone up to the Festival, Jesus also went up, but secretly instead of openly.

But when the Festival was about half over, Jesus went up into the Temple and began teaching.

These men continued in united prayer [for the kingdom to come? See 1:6; Matt. 6:10] along with [certain] women, Mary the mother of Jesus and His [half-] brothers.

[Upon entering the house] he held up his hand to quiet them, then went on to explain how the Lord had rescued him from jail. He said to them, "[Go] tell all this to James [the Lord's half-brother] and to [the rest of] the brothers." Then he left [them] and went elsewhere.

Then, after they finished speaking, James [the Lord's half-brother, See 12:17] spoke up and said, "Brothers, listen to me.

The next day Paul went with us to visit James [the Lord's half-brother and a leader in the Jerusalem church], with all of the elders [of the Jerusalem church] being present.

From there we sailed around [and then north] until we arrived at Rhegium [i.e., a town on the "toe" of Italy]. The next day a south wind began blowing, and on the second day we arrived at Puteoli [i.e., a town about half-way to Rome],

Then He appeared to James [Note: This was probably Jesus' half-brother. See Acts 12:17; Gal. 1:19], and then to all of the apostles. [See John 20:26].