She will give birth to a son, and you are to name Him Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.”

Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:

After hearing the king, they went on their way. And there it was—the star they had seen in the east! It led them until it came and stopped above the place where the child was.

Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary His mother, and falling to their knees, they worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

And being warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their own country by another route.

After they were gone, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Get up! Take the child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. For Herod is about to search for the child to destroy Him.”

He stayed there until Herod’s death, so that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled: Out of Egypt I called My Son.

Then what was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:

But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned in a dream, he withdrew to the region of Galilee.

Then he went and settled in a town called Nazareth to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets, that He will be called a Nazarene.

For he is the one spoken of through the prophet Isaiah, who said:

A voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
Prepare the way for the Lord;
make His paths straight!

and they were baptized by him in the Jordan River as they confessed their sins.

And there came a voice from heaven:

This is My beloved Son.
I take delight in Him!

and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written:

He will give His angels orders concerning you,
and they will support you with their hands
so that you will not strike
your foot against a stone.”

Again, the Devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.

This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:

Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.

Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and He called them.

Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed Him.

Jesus was going all over Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.

So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother has something against you,

leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

I assure you: You will never get out of there until you have paid the last penny!

If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to go into hell!

So whenever you give to the poor, don’t sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be applauded by people. I assure you: They’ve got their reward!

“Whenever you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by people. I assure you: They’ve got their reward!

When you pray, don’t babble like the idolaters, since they imagine they’ll be heard for their many words.

“For if you forgive people their wrongdoing, your heavenly Father will forgive you as well.

“Whenever you fast, don’t be sad-faced like the hypocrites. For they make their faces unattractive so their fasting is obvious to people. I assure you: They’ve got their reward!

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and look, there’s a log in your eye?

Don’t give what is holy to dogs or toss your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them with their feet, turn, and tear you to pieces.

“Enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it.

You’ll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles?

So you’ll recognize them by their fruit.

because He was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes.

But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

so that what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

He Himself took our weaknesses
and carried our diseases.

But Jesus told him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, you of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea. And there was a great calm.

At that, the whole town went out to meet Jesus. When they saw Him, they begged Him to leave their region.

Just then some men brought to Him a paralytic lying on a mat. Seeing their faith, Jesus told the paralytic, “Have courage, son, your sins are forgiven.”

But perceiving their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why are you thinking evil things in your hearts?

As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” So he got up and followed Him.

As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed Him, shouting, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”

Then He touched their eyes, saying, “Let it be done for you according to your faith!”

And their eyes were opened. Then Jesus warned them sternly, “Be sure that no one finds out!”

Then Jesus went to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness.

“When you enter any town or village, find out who is worthy, and stay there until you leave.

Because people will hand you over to sanhedrins and flog you in their synagogues, beware of them.

because you are not speaking, but the Spirit of your Father is speaking through you.

“Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will even rise up against their parents and have them put to death.

“Therefore, don’t be afraid of them, since there is nothing covered that won’t be uncovered and nothing hidden that won’t be made known.

When Jesus had finished giving orders to His 12 disciples, He moved on from there to teach and preach in their towns.

At that time Jesus passed through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick and eat some heads of grain.

Moving on from there, He entered their synagogue.

There He saw a man who had a paralyzed hand. And in order to accuse Him they asked Him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”

When Jesus became aware of this, He withdrew from there. Huge crowds followed Him, and He healed them all.

so that what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

The nations will put their hope in His name.

Knowing their thoughts, He told them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is headed for destruction, and no city or house divided against itself will stand.

For as Jonah was in the belly of the huge fish three days and three nights, so the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights.

“When an unclean spirit comes out of a man, it roams through waterless places looking for rest but doesn’t find any.

Then off it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and settle down there. As a result, that man’s last condition is worse than the first. That’s how it will also be with this evil generation.”

Others fell on rocky ground, where there wasn’t much soil, and they sprang up quickly since the soil wasn’t deep.

For this people’s heart has grown callous;
their ears are hard of hearing,
and they have shut their eyes;
otherwise they might see with their eyes
and hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts
and turn back—
and I would cure them.

He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into 50 pounds of flour until it spread through all of it.”

so that what was spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled:

I will open My mouth in parables;
I will declare things kept secret
from the foundation of the world.

They will throw them into the blazing furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Then the righteous will shine like the sun in their Father’s kingdom. Anyone who has ears should listen!

and when it was full, they dragged it ashore, sat down, and gathered the good fish into containers, but threw out the worthless ones.

and throw them into the blazing furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

When Jesus had finished these parables, He left there.

He went to His hometown and began to teach them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “How did this wisdom and these miracles come to Him?

And He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief.

When Jesus heard about it, He withdrew from there by boat to a remote place to be alone. When the crowds heard this, they followed Him on foot from the towns.

As He stepped ashore, He saw a huge crowd, felt compassion for them, and healed their sick.

After dismissing the crowds, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone.

Around three in the morning, He came toward them walking on the sea.

“Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they don’t wash their hands when they eat!”

These people honor Me with their lips,
but their heart is far from Me.

When Jesus left there, He withdrew to the area of Tyre and Sidon.

He answered, “It isn’t right to take the children’s bread and throw it to their dogs.”

“Yes, Lord,” she said, “yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table!”

Moving on from there, Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee. He went up on a mountain and sat there,

Now Jesus summoned His disciples and said, “I have compassion on the crowd, because they’ve already stayed with Me three days and have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry; otherwise they might collapse on the way.”

I assure you: There are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”

Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it’s good for us to be here! If You want, I will make three tabernacles here: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

“But I tell you: Elijah has already come, and they didn’t recognize him. On the contrary, they did whatever they pleased to him. In the same way the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.”

“Because of your little faith,” He told them. “For I assure you: If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.

“Yes,” he said.

When he went into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, “What do you think, Simon? Who do earthly kings collect tariffs or taxes from? From their sons or from strangers?”

If your hand or your foot causes your downfall, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into the eternal fire.

And if your eye causes your downfall, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, rather than to have two eyes and be thrown into hellfire!

“See that you don’t look down on one of these little ones, because I tell you that in heaven their angels continually view the face of My Father in heaven.

But if he won’t listen, take one or two more with you, so that by the testimony of two or three witnesses every fact may be established.

For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there among them.”

But he wasn’t willing. On the contrary, he went and threw him into prison until he could pay what was owed.

When the other slaves saw what had taken place, they were deeply distressed and went and reported to their master everything that had happened.

Large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there.