But Jesus, knowing what they were thinking in their heart, took a child and had him stand beside Him,

John replied, “Master, we saw someone driving out demons in Your name; and we tried to stop him because he does not follow along with us.”

But He turned and rebuked them [and He said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are;

As they were going along the road, someone said to Him, “I will follow You wherever You go.”

He said to another, “Follow Me [accepting Me as Master and Teacher].” But he said, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father.”

Another also said, “I will follow You, Lord [as Your disciple]; but first let me say goodbye to those at my home.”

Now after this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them out ahead of Him, two by two, into every city and place where He was about to go.

He was saying to them, “The harvest is abundant [for there are many who need to hear the good news about salvation], but the workers [those available to proclaim the message of salvation] are few. Therefore, [prayerfully] ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.

Go your way; listen carefully: I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.

And if anyone of peace is there [someone who is sweet-spirited and hospitable], your [blessing of] peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you.

Stay in that house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not move from house to house.

Whenever you go into a city and they welcome you, eat what is set before you;

and heal those in it who are sick [authenticating your message], and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’

But whatever city you enter and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say,

‘Even the dust of your city which clings to our feet we wipe off in protest against you [breaking all ties]; yet understand this, that the kingdom of God has come near [and you rejected it].’

I tell you, it will be more bearable in that day [of judgment] for Sodom than for that city.

However, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment than for you.

Nevertheless do not rejoice at this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.”

Then turning to His disciples, Jesus said privately, “Blessed [joyful, spiritually enlightened, and favored by God] are the eyes which see what you see,

for I say to you that many prophets and kings longed to see what you see, and they did not see it; and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”

And a certain lawyer [an expert in Mosaic Law] stood up to test Him, saying, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?”

Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he encountered robbers, who stripped him of his clothes [and belongings], beat him, and went their way [unconcerned], leaving him half dead.

On the next day he took out two denarii (two days’ wages) and gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I return.’

Now while they were on their way, Jesus entered a village [called Bethany], and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.

She had a sister named Mary, who seated herself at the Lord’s feet and was continually listening to His teaching.

But Martha was very busy and distracted with all of her serving responsibilities; and she approached Him and said, “Lord, is it of no concern to You that my sister has left me to do the serving alone? Tell her to help me and do her part.”

He said to them,

“When you pray, say:
‘Father, hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.

Then He said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves [of bread];

I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything just because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence and boldness he will get up and give him whatever he needs.

“So I say to you, ask and keep on asking, and it will be given to you; seek and keep on seeking, and you will find; knock and keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead of a fish?

And [at another time] Jesus was casting out a demon, and it was [controlling a man so as to make him] mute; when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds were awed.

But some of them said, “He drives out demons by [the power of] Beelzebul (Satan), the ruler of the demons.”

Now if I drive out the demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons [the Jewish exorcists] drive them out? For this reason they will be your judges.

But if I drive out the demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has already come upon you.

When the strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his belongings are undisturbed and secure.

“When the unclean spirit comes out of a person, it roams through waterless places in search [of a place] of rest; and not finding any, it says, ‘I will go back to my house (person) from which I came.’

And when it comes, it finds the place swept and put in order.

Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in [the person] and live there; and the last state of that person becomes worse than the first.”

Now while Jesus was saying these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed (happy, favored by God) is the womb that gave birth to You and the breasts at which You nursed!”

But He said, “On the contrary, blessed (happy, favored by God) are those who hear the word of God and continually observe it.”

Now as the crowds were increasing [in number], He began to say, “This [present] generation is a wicked generation; it seeks a sign (attesting miracle), but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah [the prophet].

The men of Nineveh will stand up [as witnesses] at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and look, something greater than Jonah is here.

“No one lights a lamp and then puts it in a cellar nor under a basket [hiding the light], but [instead it is put] on the lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light.

The eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is clear [spiritually perceptive, focused on God], your whole body also is full of light [benefiting from God’s precepts]. But when it is bad [spiritually blind], your body also is full of darkness [devoid of God’s word].

So if your whole body is illuminated, with no dark part, it will be entirely bright [with light], as when the lamp gives you light with its bright rays.”

Now after Jesus had spoken, a Pharisee asked Him to have lunch with him. He went in [the Pharisee’s home] and reclined at the table [without ceremonially washing His hands].

Woe to you! For you are like graves which are unmarked, and people walk over them without being aware of it [and are ceremonially unclean].”

from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah [the priest], who was murdered between the altar and the house of God. Yes, I tell you, charges will be brought against this generation.’

When He left there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to be very hostile [toward Him] and to interrogate Him on many subjects,

plotting against Him to catch Him in something He might say.

But there is nothing [so carefully] concealed that it will not be revealed, nor so hidden that it will not be made known.

For that reason, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be proclaimed on the housetops.

Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? Yet not one of them has [ever] been forgotten in the presence of God.

“I say to you, whoever declares openly and confesses Me before men [speaking freely of Me as his Lord], the Son of Man also will declare openly and confess him [as one of His own] before the angels of God.

And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit [that is, whoever intentionally discredits the Holy Spirit by attributing the authenticating miracles done by Me to Satan], it will not be forgiven him [for him there is no forgiveness].

When they bring you before the synagogues and the magistrates and the authorities, do not be worried about how you are to defend yourselves or what you are to say;

for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

Someone from the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.”

And he began thinking to himself, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place [large enough in which] to store my crops?’

And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many good things stored up, [enough] for many years; rest and relax, eat, drink and be merry (celebrate continually).”’

So it is for the one who continues to store up and hoard possessions for himself, and is not rich [in his relationship] toward God.”

Jesus said to His disciples, “For this reason I tell you, do not worry about your life, as to what you will eat; or about your body, as to what you will wear.

Consider the ravens, for they neither sow [seed] nor reap [the crop]; they have no storehouse or barn, and yet God feeds them. How much more valuable are you than the birds!

And which of you by worrying can add one hour to his life’s span?

Consider the lilies and wildflowers, how they grow [in the open field]. They neither labor nor spin [wool to make clothing]; yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory and splendor dressed himself like one of these.

So as for you, do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink; nor have an anxious and unsettled mind.

But [strive for and actively] seek His kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

Do not be afraid and anxious, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

“Sell your possessions (show compassion) and give [donations] to the poor. Provide money belts for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing and inexhaustible treasure in the heavens, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.

Blessed (happy, prosperous, to be admired) are those servants whom the master finds awake and watching when he arrives. I assure you and most solemnly say to you, he will prepare himself to serve, and will have them recline at the table, and will come and wait on them.

“But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time the thief was coming, he [would have been awake and alert, and] would not have allowed his house to be broken into.

You too, be continually ready; because the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”

The Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and wise steward [of the estate], whom his master will put in charge over his household, to give his servants their portion of food at the proper time?

But if that servant says in his heart, ‘My master is taking his time in coming,’ and begins to beat the servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk,

the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

“I have come to cast fire (judgment) on the earth; and how I wish that it were already kindled!

I have a baptism [of great suffering] with which to be baptized, and how [greatly] I am distressed until it is accomplished!

He also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you immediately say, ‘It is going to rain,’ and that is how it turns out.

And when [you see that] a south wind is blowing, you say, ‘It will be a hot day,’ and it happens.

You hypocrites (play-actors, pretenders)! You know how to analyze and intelligently interpret the appearance of the earth and sky [to forecast the weather], but why do you not intelligently interpret this present time?

“And why do you not even on your own initiative judge what is right?

I say to you, you [absolutely] will not get out of there until you have paid the very last cent.”

Just at that time some people came who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate [the governor] had mixed with their sacrifices.

Then He began telling them this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree that had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it, but did not find any;

so he said to the vineyard-keeper, ‘For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree and have found none. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground [depleting the soil and blocking the sunlight]?’

But he replied to him, ‘Let it alone, sir, [just] one more year until I dig around it and put in fertilizer;

and if it bears fruit after this, fine; but if not, cut it down.’”

But the Lord replied to him, “You hypocrites (play-actors, pretenders)! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the stall and lead it away to water it?

So this led Him to say, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it?

It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his own garden; and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky found shelter and nested in its branches.”

And again He said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God?

It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three peck measures of flour until it was all leavened.”

“Strive to enter through the narrow door [force aside unbelief and the attractions of sin]; for many, I tell you, will try to enter [by their own works] and will not be able.

Once the head of the house gets up and closes the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock on the door [again and again], saying, ‘Lord, open to us!’ then He will answer you, ‘I do not know where you are from [for you are not of My household].’

Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets’;

but He will say to you, ‘I do not know where you are from; depart from Me, all you evildoers!’

And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and they will sit down [and feast at the table] in the kingdom of God.

At that very hour some Pharisees came up and said to Him, “Leave and go away from here, because Herod [Antipas] wants to kill You.”