“Listen! A sower went out to sow seed;

As he sowed, this occurred: Some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.

"Any one who has ears to hear," he added, "let him listen to this."

"To you," He replied, "has been entrusted the secret truth concerning the Kingdom of God; but to those others outside your number all this is spoken in figurative language;

This is so that even though they see, they will see and yet not perceive. And even though they hear, they will hear and yet not understand. For if they did, they would turn [back to God] again and receive forgiveness."

And he said unto them, "Perceive ye not this similitude? How then should ye understand all other similitudes?

and the care of this world and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things enter in, and choke the word, and it is made unfruitful.

If anyone has an ear to hear, let him listen to this."

And he said, "The kingdom of God is like this: like a man scatters seed on the ground.

Another saying of His was this: "How are we to picture the Kingdom of God? or by what figure of speech shall we represent it?

By what can we illustrate it? Perhaps by the growth of a mustard-seed. This seed, when sown in the ground, though it is smaller than all other seeds,

In many a parable like this he spoke the word to them, so far as they could listen to it;

And leaving the crowd, the disciples took Him in their boat just the way He was [i.e., this probably means without His making provision for the trip]. They were accompanied by other boats also.

Then he said to them, "Why are you afraid like this? Have you no faith yet?"

And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, "What fellow is this? For both wind and sea obey him."

This man lived among the tombs, and no one could any longer subdue him even with a chain,

For Jesus was saying to [the evil spirit in] him, "Come out of this man, you evil spirit."

Then He asked [the evil spirit], "What is your name?" And he answered Him, "My name is 'Legion,' [Note: This word means a number consisting of between 5,000 and 6,000], for there are many of us [i.e., evil spirits]."

So he let them do this. The unclean spirits came out of the man and went into the pigs, and the herd of about 2,000 rushed down a steep slope into the sea and drowned there.

On this the swineherds ran away and spread the news in town and country. So the people went to see what had happened.

Those who saw this told the people what had happened to the man dominated by the evil spirits and about the [wild] hogs.

And he was looking around to see the one who had done this.

Even while He was saying this, people came from the house of the leader of the synagogue and said, "Your daughter is dead; why trouble the Teacher any longer?"

And they came to the house of the ruler of the Synagogue; and he saw people running this way and that, and weeping and crying loudly.

And he went in and said unto them, "Why make ye this ado and weep? The maiden is not dead, but sleepeth."

To this their reply is a scornful laugh. He, however, puts them all out, takes the child's father and mother and those He has brought with Him, and enters the room where the child lies.

The girl got up at once and began to walk around (she was twelve years old). They were completely astonished at this.

And he commanded them strictly that no one should learn of this, and said to give her [something] to eat.

And when the Sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue. And many that heard him were astonished, and said, "From whence hath he these things? And what wisdom is this that is given unto him? And such virtues that are wrought by his hands?

Is not this that carpenter: Mary's son, the brother of James, and Joseph and of Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?" And they were offended by the reason of him.

And the people from whatever place that does not welcome you or listen to you, when you leave there, shake the dust off from under your shoes as evidence against them." [Note: This was a Jewish custom showing disdain and intended to suggest their unworthiness].

And King Herod heard [it], because his name had become known. And they were saying, "John, the one who baptizes, has been raised from the dead, and because of this these miraculous powers are at work in him."

But [when] Herod heard [it], he said, "John whom I beheaded--this one has been raised!"

Now this Herod had sent and arrested John, and bound him in prison, for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, whom he had married.

Now [because of this] Herodias had a grudge against John and wanted to kill him, but had not been able to.

when the daughter of this very Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and those reclining together, and, the king, said unto the damsel - Ask me what thou wilt, and I will give it thee;

Then she rushed at once before the king, and made this request, "I want you this very minute to give me John the Baptist's head on a platter."

at this the king was exceedingly concern'd; however, in regard to his oath, and to those who were at table with him, he would not refuse her;

And [when] his disciples heard [this], they came and took away his corpse and placed it in a tomb.

And when the day was now far spent, his disciples came unto him saying, "This is a desert place, and now the day is far passed,

The number eating the loaves of bread was five thousand men. [Note: This was besides women and children. See Matt. 14:21].

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.

Then He got up into the boat with them and the wind [immediately] stopped. And His disciples were greatly amazed [at this],

(For the Pharisees, and indeed all strict Jews, will not eat without first scrupulously washing their hands, holding in this to the traditions of their ancestors.

And when they returned from the open shopping markets they refused to eat [anything] until they washed themselves [or "it," that is, the food, thoroughly]. There were also many other traditions which they [strictly] observed, like washing cups, pots and copper kettles [thoroughly].) [Note: The most accurate Greek manuscripts do not add "and beds" in this verse].

So the Pharisees and the Teachers of the Law asked Jesus this question--"How is it that your disciples do not follow the traditions of our ancestors, but eat their food with defiled hands?"

He answered and said unto them, "Well prophesied hath Isaiah of you hypocrites as it is written, 'This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.'

you say that if a man tells his father or mother, 'This money which otherwise you would have received from me, is Korban' (that is, a thing devoted to God),

[thus] making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down, and you do many similar [things] such as this."

Then he called the crowd to him again and said to them, "Listen to me, all of you, and understand this:

If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen to this."

Now when He had left the crowd and gone home, His disciples were asking Him the meaning of this story.

For it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and then goes out into the sewer." (This means all foods are clean.)

But he said, that which comes out of the man, this defiles him;

Now the woman was a Greek [i.e., a Gentile], a Syrophoenician by nationality. [Note: This was a region just north of Galilee and consisted of Syria and Phoenicia]. She begged Him to drive out the evil spirit from her daughter.

And he said unto her, "For this saying, go thy way, the devil is gone out of thy daughter."

Soon after this Jesus left the region of Tyre, and passed through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, through the region of Decapolis [the ten Hellenistic cities].

Jesus ordered them not to tell anything. But as much as he ordered them not to do this, they proclaimed it all the more.

"I have compassion on this people, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat:

"Where will it be possible," answered his disciples, "for one to fill these men with bread in a lonely place like this?"

and he sighed in his spirit and said, "Why doth this generation seek a sign? Verily I say unto you, there shall no sign be given unto this generation."

So he gave them this warning. "Look out! Be on the watch against the leaven of the Pharisees, and the leaven of Herod."

And they began arguing with one another because they had no bread, He noted this and said to them.

And knowing [this], he said to them, "Why are you discussing that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Have your hearts been hardened?

At this he laid his hands on his eyes once more, and the man stared in front of him; he was quite restored and saw everything distinctly.

Afterwards Jesus and his disciples went into the villages round Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples this question-- "Who do people say that I am?"

"But you," he asked, "who do you say that I am?" To this Peter replied: "You are the Christ."

Then he strictly charged them not to say this about him to any one;

This he told them quite openly. Then Peter took him and began to rebuke him.

But He turned and glanced at His disciples and reproved Peter by saying, "Get out of my way, Satan, for this view of yours is not from God but from men!"

For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever will lose his life because of me and the good-news, this man will save it.

Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words, among this adulterous and sinful generation: of him shall the son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his father with the holy angels."

Six days after this, Jesus took Peter, James, and John with Him, and led them up on a high mountain, alone by themselves. And in their presence His appearance was changed,

And there was a cloud that shadowed them. And a voice came out of the cloud saying, "This is my dear son, hear him."

And they kept the matter to themselves, discussing what this rising from the dead {meant}.

At length they started this question, why do the Scribes say, that Elias must first come?

He said to them, "Elijah does come first, to restore all things; but what is written about the Son of man as well? This, that he is to endure great suffering and be rejected.

And he asked his father, "How long is it ago, since this hath happened him?" And he said, "Of a child.

And, Jesus, said unto him - As for this, If it be possible to thee, all things, are possible, to him who hath faith.

When Jesus saw a crowd running together [toward Him], He spoke sternly to the evil spirit [in the boy], saying to it, "You deaf-mute spirit, I order you to come out of this boy and to never return to him again."

now when Jesus was retired to his own house, his disciples asked him in private, why could not we cast this spirit out?

And he said unto them, "This kind can by no other means come forth, but by prayer and fasting."

in the mean time he gave his disciples this intimation, "the son of man is going to be delivered up into the hands of men, who will put him to death, and three days after he is put to death he shall rise again."

They didn't understand what this statement meant, and they were afraid to ask him.

Then Jesus and His disciples came to Capernaum [Note: This city on the northwest shore of Lake Galilee had become sort of a headquarters for Jesus when He was in this region]. When He [and His disciples] entered a house He asked them, "What were you discussing on the way here?"

"Whoever welcomes a child like this in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me."

Upon this occasion John address'd himself to Jesus, saying, master, we saw a man casting out demons in your name, tho' he did not belong to us, for which reason we opposed him.

For whoever will give you a cup of water to drink on this account, because you are Christ s, verily I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.

And whoever causes one of these little ones [i.e., humble followers of the Lord. See Matt. 18:6] who believes in me to be led astray [from God], he would have been better off to have had a huge millstone tied around his neck and thrown into the ocean [Note: This was a heavy, circular stone rolled over grain to crush it, and moved by an animal walking in a circle].

For everyone will be salted with fire. [Note: This meant either the suffering "salt" of fiery trials (the sacrifices of verses 43-47 or the punishing "salt" of being thrown into a fiery hell (verse 45-48)].

then the Pharisees came and propos'd to him this insnaring question, is it lawful for a man to repudiate his wife?

And Jesus answered, and said unto them, "For the hardness of your hearts he wrote this precept unto you.

'And for this thing's sake shall man leave his father and mother, and bide by his wife,

And in the house again the disciples began to ask him about this.

Then some [parents] were bringing [their] little children to Jesus so He could touch them [i.e., to bestow a blessing on them], but His disciples spoke harshly to these parents [for doing this].

When Jesus saw this, he became furious and told them, "Let the little children come to me, and stop keeping them away, because the kingdom of God belongs to people like these.

Shocked at this statement, the man went away sad, because he had many possessions.

at this expression the disciples were much surpriz'd. but Jesus reassum'd the discourse, and said, how difficult a thing is it for those, who place their trust in riches, to enter into the divine kingdom?

at this they were more amazed than before, and said to one another, how then can such a man be saved?

Jesus looked at them and replied, "This is impossible for mere humans, but not for God; all things are possible for God."