And when they heard that Jesus was alive and had been seen by Mary from Magdala, they refused to believe it.

After these things happened, Jesus showed Himself in a different form to two disciples [Note: One was named Cleopas. See Luke 24:13-18], as they were walking out into the countryside [i.e., to the village of Emmaus, about seven miles northwest of Jerusalem. See Luke 24:13].

And these two men went and told about their encounter with Jesus to the rest of the disciples, but they did not believe them either.

Later on Jesus showed Himself to the eleven apostles as they sat [i.e., reclined. See Matt. 23:6], eating a meal. He scolded them for their lack of faith and stubbornness because they refused to believe those who had seen Him [alive] after His resurrection.

they will pick up snakes [i.e., without being harmed]; and if they happen to drink anything poisonous, it will not harm them; they will place hands on sick people [i.e., with prayer] and they will be healed."

and Acts 2:43]. In my name [i.e., by my authority], they will drive out evil spirits; they will speak in languages [supernaturally];

They both did what was right in God's sight [by] living blamelessly according to all the commandments and requirements of the Lord.

But they had no children, because Elizabeth was unable to bear offspring due to their both being very old.

And when he [finally] came out, he was not able to talk to them. Then they realized he had seen a vision while in the Temple. So, he remained a mute and had to make [hand] signs to them [i.e., in order to be understood].

When her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had extended great mercy toward her [i.e., in giving her a child], they rejoiced with her.

And it happened on the eighth day [i.e., since the baby was born] that they came to circumcise the child [i.e., to perform the Jewish rite of identity, signifying the responsibility to observe the law of Moses]. And they [i.e., probably the neighbors and/or relatives of Elizabeth and Zacharias] suggested that they name him Zacharias, after his father.

And they replied to her, " [But] there are not any of your relatives named that."

And [so] they made [hand] signs to the [baby's] father to find out what he wanted to name him.

Then Zacharias asked for a writing tablet and wrote [the words] "His name is John." And they were all amazed.

And everyone who heard about this incident remembered it [i.e., for some time]. They were saying, "What will this child become? For the hand of the Lord was [surely] with him."

And it happened while they were there that the due date came for her to have the baby.

[Suddenly] an angel from the Lord [was seen] standing near them and the glorious presence of the Lord shone around them, and they were very afraid.

So, they went quickly and found both Mary and Joseph with the baby, lying in the animal's feeding trough.

And when they saw this, they told [everyone] what the angel had said about this baby.

Then the shepherds returned [to their fields], honoring and praising God for everything they had heard and seen, for it all happened just as they had been told.

Eight days later it was time to circumcise Jesus [i.e., to perform the Jewish rite of identity, signifying the responsibility to observe the law of Moses], and they named Him Jesus, which was the name given by the angel before He was [even] conceived.

They came to offer a sacrifice of two doves or two young pigeons, in accordance with what is written in the law of Moses.

And he was led by the Holy Spirit into the Temple, and when Joseph and Mary brought the baby Jesus in, so they could do to Him what was customary under the law of Moses,

So, when Joseph and Mary had completed everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to their [current home] town of Nazareth, in Galilee.

When Jesus was twelve years old, they [all] went up to the Festival as usual.

And when they had completed [all] the days [of festivities], and were returning [home], the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. Now His parents did not know this,

so thinking He was in the caravan, they continued traveling for an entire day [before] they began looking for Him among their relatives and friends.

And when they could not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem to look for Him.

And it happened after three days that they found Him in the Temple, sitting in the middle of the [Jewish] teachers, listening to them and asking questions.

And all of them who heard Him were amazed at His understanding [i.e., of spiritual matters] and His answers [to questions they would ask Him].

When His parents [finally] saw Him, they were very surprised and His mother asked Him, "Son, why have you treated us this way? Look, your [step-] father and I have been anxiously searching for you."

But they did not understand what He meant when He said that to them.

and 'They will lift you up with their hands so you do not trip over a stone.'"

So, everyone spoke well of Him and marvelled at the gracious words coming from His mouth. They said, "Is he not Joseph's son?"

Then everyone in the synagogue became extremely angry when they heard these things.

They rose up and threw Jesus out of the city, leading Him to the top of the hill on which the city was built, in order to throw Him down [from a cliff].

They were amazed at His teaching for He spoke with authority.

And everyone became amazed and began saying to one another, "What is he saying? For he orders the evil spirits with authority and power to come out [of people], and they do."

So, He left the synagogue and entered Simon's [i.e., Peter's] house. Now Simon's mother-in-law was [in bed] stricken with a high fever. And they [i.e., Andrew, James and John, besides Peter. See Mark 1:29] begged Him [to do something] for her.

And evil spirits also came out of many people, shouting [at Him], "You are the Son of God." And Jesus spoke sternly to them and would not allow them to speak [anymore] because they knew He was the Christ [Note: Jesus would not accept the endorsement of these Satanic spirits].

And when they had done this, they gathered in a large number of fish [until] their nets began to break.

So, they motioned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. When they came, they filled both boats until they began to sink.

For he and those who were with him were amazed at the [huge] quantity of fish they had caught.

And when they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed Jesus.

But because they could not find a [suitable] way to get him in [to the house] because of the people crowded [around], they went up to the housetop [Note: This was a flat area, where people retired for rest, prayer, etc., with a stairway accessible from the outside] and lowered the man on his cot through the roof tiles into the presence of Jesus.

And everyone was filled with amazement; they gave honor to God and were overwhelmed with reverence, saying, "We have seen incredible things today."

Then they said to Jesus, "John [the Immerser's] disciples fast frequently [i.e., going without food and/or drink for religious reasons] and they offer earnest prayer requests, and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same things. But your disciples eat and drink."

But the time will come when the groom will be taken away from them [Note: Jesus here refers to Himself]. Then they will fast at that time."

Now it happened on a Sabbath day that Jesus was walking through some grainfields. His disciples picked off some heads of grain, rubbed them in their hands and ate [the kernels]. [Note: It was an accepted practice for people in that day to be permitted to do this as they walked along paths bordering a grainfield].

And the experts in the law of Moses were watching Him to see if He would heal [someone] on the Sabbath day, so they could figure out how to accuse Him.

But He knew what they were thinking. Then He said to the man with the deformed hand, "Get up, step forward in front of everyone." So, he got up and stepped forward.

But the experts in the law of Moses and the Pharisees became furious and began discussing among themselves what they could do to Jesus.

[They were] Simon, also called Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John [also brothers], Philip, Bartholomew [i.e., the same as Nathaniel. See John 1:45],

And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying, "This officer deserves that you should do this for him [i.e., heal his slave],

And when these men came to Jesus they said, "John the Immerser has sent us to you to ask, 'Are you the One who was to come, or should we look for someone else?'"

And when all the people, together with the tax collectors, heard this they praised God for being so just, and were immersed with the immersion [preached] by John.

"What then should I compare the people of this generation with?" [Jesus asked]. "And what are they like?

They are like children sitting in the open shopping market, calling to one another, saying, 'We [pretended we] were making music [at a wedding] but you did not dance; we [pretended we] were wailing [at a funeral] but you did not cry [along with us].'

And He said to them, "You [disciples] are being given an understanding of the secrets of the kingdom of God, but the rest of the people [are being told] in parables, so that [even though they appear to be] seeing, they will not [actually] see; and [even though they seem to] hear, they will not understand.

And those people [represented by the seed falling] along side of the road are those who have heard the word [of God], but the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they do not believe it and receive salvation.

And those people [represented by the seed falling] on rocky ground are those who, upon hearing the word [of God], accept it gladly, but since they have no root [system], they believe it for [only] awhile, and [then] in times of trial fall away [from God].

And those people [represented by the seed] that fell among thorns are the ones who have heard [the word], and as they go about their business, they become choked by worry, by money and by worldly pleasures, and produce no mature crop.

And those people [represented by seed falling] in the fertile soil are those who possess a good and honest heart when they hear the word [of God]. They hold on to it and patiently [continue until they] produce a crop.

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

Now it happened on one of those days that Jesus entered a boat with His disciples. He said to them, "Let us go over to the other side" [i.e., the east side of Lake Galilee]; so they launched out.

But while they were sailing, Jesus fell asleep. A windstorm blew down on the lake and [the boat] began filling with water so they were in great danger [of sinking].

Then He said to the disciples, "Where is your faith?" They became afraid and were amazed, saying to one another, "Who can this [man] be, that he can even command the winds and the water and they obey him?"

[Finally] they arrived at the district of the Gerasenes, which is opposite [i.e., across the lake from the province of] Galilee. [Note: Matt. 8:28 says 'Gadara.' Geresa and Gadara were two towns about twelve miles apart in the same region east of Lake Galilee].

For Jesus was commanding the evil spirits to be driven out of the man, because they had been controlling him for a long time. The man was continually being guarded and his hands and feet were bound with chains. [Sometimes] he broke loose from the chains and was driven into the desert by the evil spirits.

And when those who had been grazing the hogs saw what had happened, they ran and told it in the town and [around] the country.

People went out to see [i.e., to find out] what had happened. And [when] they came to Jesus and found the man from whom the evil spirits had been driven out sitting down at Jesus' feet with his clothes on and perfectly sane, they were afraid.

Then all the people around the district of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave their area because they were gripped with great fear. So, He entered a boat and returned.

And they laughed at Him scornfully, knowing that she was [already] dead.

So, they left and went throughout the villages preaching the good news and healing people everywhere.

When the apostles returned they told Jesus what they had done. Then Jesus took them and went away privately to a town called Bethsaida. [Note: This town was on the east side of Lake Galilee, and apparently was a different "Bethsaida" from the one mentioned in Mark 6:45].

But the crowds found out about it [i.e., where Jesus had gone], so they followed Him [there]. He welcomed them and spoke to them about the [coming] kingdom of God and cured those who needed healing.

Then late in the day the twelve apostles came and said to Jesus, "Send the crowd away so they can go into the villages and the surrounding countryside to find lodging and food because this place is deserted."

But He said to the apostles, "You men give them something to eat." But they replied, "We have only five loaves of [barley] bread [See John 6:9] and two [probably smoked] fish, unless we go and buy [more] food for all these people."

They all ate until they were full, then gathered up twelve baskets [full] of the remaining broken pieces.

And they answered, " [Some say you are] John the Immerser, while others say [the prophet] Elijah, and [still others say] that one of the [other] prophets of old has risen again [from the dead]."

But I tell you the truth, there are some people standing here who will surely not experience death until they see that God's kingdom has come [i.e., in a demonstration of power. See Mark 9:1]."

Then suddenly two men were [seen] talking with Jesus. They were Moses and Elijah,

Now Peter and those with him [i.e., James and John] had been very sleepy, but became wide awake when they saw the splendor of Jesus and the two men standing with Him.

And after the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. But the apostles kept quiet [about this incident], and did not tell anyone at that time about anything they had seen.

And it happened on the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, that a large crowd met Jesus.

And I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not."

And everyone was amazed at [seeing] the greatness of God. But while they were all amazed at everything Jesus was doing, He said to His disciples,

But they did not understand what He was talking about, for it was hidden from them, so that they would not understand its meaning. And they were afraid to ask Him about what He had said.

When Jesus knew what they were disputing about in their minds, He took a small child and placed him at His side,

And these Samaritans did not welcome Him because He was heading for Jerusalem. [Note: They perceived He was a Jew and Samaritans did not associate with Jews].

And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said [to Him], "Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to burn them up?"

for the Son of man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them"}} So, they went to another village.

And as they were going along the road, a certain man [i.e., an expert in the law of Moses. See Matt. 8:19] said to Him, "I will follow you wherever you go."

But Jesus replied to him, "Let the [spiritually] dead bury their own dead [i.e., let them care for their family members until they die], but you go and proclaim the [coming] kingdom of God."

And you should remain in that same house [i.e., the peace-loving one], eating and drinking whatever they serve you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move from house to house [i.e., wasting time].

"It is too bad for you, Chorazin! It is too bad for you, Bethsaida! For if the powerful miracles had been performed in Tyre and Sidon which were performed in your presence, they would have repented long ago by sitting in ashes and wearing sackcloth. [Note: This sackcloth was a coarse cloth made of goat hair and indicated deep remorse or mourning].

for I tell you, many prophets and kings wanted to see the things that you see, but did not [get to] see them. And [they wanted] to hear the things that you hear, but did not [get to] hear them."

Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a certain village [i.e., Bethany. See John 11:1], and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.

But, if I drive out evil spirits by [the power of] Beelzebub, by whom do your followers drive them out? So, they will be your judges.

Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits, more evil than itself, and they reenter [the body] and [begin] to live there, so that the latter state of that person becomes worse than the former state."