and then will I make this declaration to them: I never knew you: depart from me ye that have practised iniquity.

Everyone, therefore, that listens to this teaching of mine and acts upon it may be compared to a prudent man, who built his house upon the rock.

And every one that listens to this teaching of mine and does not act upon it may be compared to a foolish man, who built his house on the sand.

When Jesus had closed this address, the result was that the crowds were dumbfounded at His teaching,

And Jesus said to him, “See that you tell no one [about this]; but go, show yourself to the priest [for inspection] and present the offering that Moses commanded, as a testimony (evidence) to them [of your healing].”

For I also am a man under authority who has soldiers under me, and I say to this one, 'Go!' and he goes, and to another one, 'Come!' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this!' and he does [it]."

Now [when] Jesus heard [this], he was astonished, and said to those who were following [him], "Truly I say to you, I have found such great faith with no one in Israel.

After this Jesus went to Peter's house, where seeing his wife's mother lying sick of a fever,

This was to fulfill what was declared by the prophet Isaiah when he said, "It was he who took our illnesses away and removed our diseases."

And the men were astonished, saying, "What sort of [man] is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?"

So, the evil spirits [in one of the men. See Mark 5:1ff] begged Jesus, saying, "If you are going to drive us out [of this man], send us away into that herd of [wild] hogs."

At this the men who tended them ran away and went to the town, carrying the news of all that had occurred, and of what had happened to the possessed men.

And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, "This man is blaspheming!"

But [when] the crowds saw [this], they were afraid and glorified God who had given such authority to men.

The Pharisees saw this and asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

"It is not those who are well," said Jesus, when he heard this, "but the sick, who need a doctor.

But go ye, and learn what this meaneth, - Mercy, I desire, and not, sacrifice; For I came, not to call the righteous, but sinners.

As he spoke these things to them, behold, a ruler coming in did homage to him, saying, My daughter has by this died; but come and lay thy hand upon her and she shall live.

what she said to herself was this, "If I can only touch his robe, I will recover."

And this report went out into that whole region.

And [when he] came into the house, the blind men approached him, and Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" They said to him, "Yes, Lord."

And their eyes were opened. Then Jesus sternly told them, "See to it that nobody knows about this."

And [after] the demon had been expelled, the one who had been mute spoke, and the crowds were astonished, saying, "{This has never been seen before} in Israel!"

As you go, make this announcement: "The kingdom from heaven is near!'

or a traveling bag [for personal belongings], or a change of jackets or shoes, or [even] a walking stick [Note: By comparing this and the restriction in Matt. 10:10 with the permission given in Mark 6:8, the harmony seems to be "if you do not already have a walking stick, do not get one"]. For the worker deserves having his food provided.

And when you go in, say, May peace be on this house.

And whoever does not welcome you or listen to what you have to say, shake the dust off of your shoes as you leave that house or town. [Note: This was a Jewish custom showing disdain and intended to suggest unworthiness]

Yes, you will [even] be brought in front of governors and kings for being loyal to me. [This will give you an opportunity] for witnessing to them [as well] as to the [unconverted] Gentiles.

and you will be hated by everyone because of my name. But the one who endures to the end--this one will be saved.

And whenever they persecute you in this town, flee to another, for truly I say to you, you will never finish [going through] the towns of Israel until the Son of Man comes.

The person who finds [everything to satisfy him in] this life [here on earth] will lose [never ending life]. But the person who [is willing to] lose [the comforts and security of] this life [here on earth] for my sake [i.e., in loyal service to me] will find it [i.e., never ending life]. [See Mark 10:29-30]

When Jesus had closed this charge to His disciples, He left there to teach and preach in their towns.

Now when John in prison heard of the doings of the Christ, he sent this message by his disciples:

It is this man about whom it is written: 'Behold, I am sending my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.'

From the time of John the Baptist to this very hour, the Kingdom of Heaven has been taken by force, and men using force have been seizing it.

For all the prophets and the law until John, foretold [this].

And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, who is to come.

He who has an ear, let him listen to this.

"But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces who call out to one another,

The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they exclaim, 'See this man! --given to gluttony and tippling, and a friend of tax-gatherers and notorious sinners!' And yet Wisdom is vindicated by her actions."

I tell you this, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.

And thou, Capernaum, who hast been raised up to heaven, shalt be brought down even to hades. For if the works of power which have taken place in thee, had taken place in Sodom, it had remained until this day.

At that time Jesus spoke and said, "I praise thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding all this from the wise and learned and revealing it to the simpleminded;

Yes, Father, because this is what was pleasing to you.

About this time as Jesus passed through the cornfields on the sabbath-day, his disciples being hungry began to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat them.

When the Pharisees saw this, they told him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!"

But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple.

If, however, ye had known what this meaneth - Mercy, I desire, and not, sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the blameless;

where they brought a man with a withered hand: and asked him this insnaring question, is it lawful to heal on the sabbath-day?

But he said to them, "What man will there be among you who will have one sheep and if this one fell into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift [it] out?

Of how much more value is a man than a sheep! For this reason it is right to do good on the Sabbath day.

Upon this the Pharisees went out of the synagogue, and form'd a conspiracy against his life.

When Jesus became aware of this, he left that place. Many crowds followed him, and he healed all of them,

This was to fulfill what was declared by the prophet Isaiah when he said,

"This is My servant whom I have chosen, My dearly loved One in whom My soul takes pleasure. I will put My spirit upon Him, and He will announce justice to the nations.

And all the crowds were amazed and began saying, "Perhaps this one is the Son of David!"

But the Pharisees, [when they] heard [it], said, "This man does not expel demons except by Beelzebul the ruler of demons!"

And if I expel demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons expel [them]? For this [reason] they will be your judges!

For this [reason] I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven!

And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him either in this age or in the coming one!

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees, hearing this, said to him, Master, we are looking for a sign from you.

but he answered them, this wicked degenerate race demand a miracle; but no other miracle shall they have, except that of the prophet Jonas.

The people of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the proclamation of Jonah, and behold, [something] greater than Jonah [is] here!

The queen of the south will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, [something] greater than Solomon [is] here!

Then it goes and brings along with itself seven other spirits more evil than itself, and [they] go in [and] live there. And the last [state] of that person becomes worse than the first. So it will be for this evil generation also!"

Someone told him this, and Jesus replied:

To the one who had said this, Jesus replied, "Who is my mother and who are my brothers?"

But other [seed] fell on the good soil and produced grain, this one a hundred [times as much] and this one sixty and this one thirty.

He who has an ear, let him listen to this."

For this [reason] I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand,

And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which saith, Ye shall hear by the hearing of the ear, and not understand; and in seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: for the heart of this people is grown stupid,

For the heart of this people has become dull, and with their ears they hear with difficulty, and they have shut their eyes, so that they would not see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them."

Hear then the meaning of this parable of the sower.

[When] anyone hears the word about the kingdom and does not understand [it], the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is what was sown on the side of the path.

And what was sown on the rocky ground--this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy.

And what was sown into the thorn plants--this is the one who hears the word, and the anxiety of this world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word and it becomes unproductive.

But what was sown on the good soil--this is the one who hears the word and understands [it], who indeed bears fruit and produces, this one a hundred [times as much], and this one sixty, and this one thirty."

Another parable he propos'd to them in these words. the state of the gospel in this world may be compar'd to a man who sowed good grain in his field:

On this the owner's servants came to him, and said 'Was not it good seed that you sowed in your field? Where, then, do the tares in it come from?'

And he said to them, 'An enemy has done this!' So the slaves said to him, 'Then do you want us to go [and] gather them?'

He told them this story, as follows: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field.

"This is indeed the smallest of seeds, but when it is grown it is greater than any herb, and becomes a tree, so that the winged things of the sky come and roost in its branches."

Another of his parables was this; the gospel-state is like unto leaven, which a woman took and mixt with three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.

Jesus told all this to the crowd in parables; indeed he never spoke to them except in parables,

This was to fulfill what was declared by the prophet when he said, "I will open my mouth to speak in parables. I will declare what has been hidden since the creation of the world."

'As, then, the darnel is gathered up, and is burned with fire, so shall it be in the full end of this age,

Then the just will shine like the sun in the Realm of their Father. He who has an ear, let him listen to this.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hid in a field: a man finds this treasure and buries it again, then goes in great joy, sells all that he hath, and purchases that field.

It will be this way at the end of the age. Angels will come and separate the evil from the righteous

"Have you understood all this?" he asked. "We have," they answered him.

And he said to them, "For this [reason] every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of the house who brings out of his storeroom new [things] and old [things]."

Jesus concluded this series of parables and then departed.

And he came to his hometown [and] began to teach them in their synagogue, so that they were amazed and said, "From where did this man [get] this wisdom and these miracles?

Is not this one the son of the carpenter? Is not his mother called Mary and his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas?

And are not all his sisters with us? From where then did this man [get] all these [things]?"

This kept them from believing in him. Wherefore Jesus said, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and among his own family."

At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the fame of Jesus, And said to his servants, This is John the Baptist:

and he said to his servants, "This is John the Baptist! He has been raised from the dead, and for this [reason] miraculous powers are at work in him."

And she, at the instigation of her mother, said, "Give me John the Baptist's head this moment on a dish."

The king was displeased because of this, but because of his oaths and his guests he ordered it to be given her.