I am baptizing you in water to picture your repentance. But He that is coming after me is stronger than I am, and I am not fit to carry His shoes. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and in fire;

and a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, my Beloved, in whom I am delighted!"

But the captain answered, "I am not fit for you to come under my roof, but simply speak the word, and my servant-boy will be cured.

For I, too, am under authority of others, and have soldiers under me, and I order this one to go, and he goes, another to come, and he comes, my slave-boy to do this, and he does it."

"Listen! I am sending you out as sheep surrounded by wolves. So you must be sensible like serpents and guileless like doves.

This is the man of whom the Scripture says, "'Attention! I am sending my messenger on before you; He will prepare the road ahead of you.'

All things have been entrusted to me by my Father, and no one but the Father perfectly knows the Son, and no one but the Son perfectly knows the Father, and the one to whom the Son chooses to make Him known.

Put on my yoke, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls,

"Here is my Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved, in whom my soul delights itself. I will endow Him with my Spirit, and He will announce a judgment to the heathen.

And if I am driving out demons by the help of Beelzebub, by whose help are your sons driving them out? So they must be your judges.

But if I by the Spirit of God am driving the demons out, then the kingdom of God has come to you.

This is why I am speaking to them in stories, because they look but do not see, they listen but do not really hear or understand.

He said to them, "Who do you yourselves say that I am?"

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud cast its shadow over them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my Son, my Beloved, in whom I am delighted. Keep on listening to Him!"

He answered, "Yes." When Jesus reached home -- He got there ahead of Simon -- He asked him, "What do you think about it, Simon? From whom do civil rulers collect duties or taxes, from their own citizens or from aliens?"

A curse on the world for such influences to do wrong! For they must come, but a curse on the man from whom these influences come!

For wherever two or three have met as my disciples, I am right there with them."

He said to them, "It is not every man who has the capacity to carry out this saying, but it is for those to whom the capacity has been given.

But he answered one of them, 'Friend, I am doing you no injustice. Did you not contract with me at twenty cents?

Have I not the right to do what I please with my own money? Or, is your eye causing you to be covetous, because I am generous?

But Jesus answered, "You do not realize what you are asking for. Can you drink the cup that I am about to drink?" They answered, "Yes, we can."

He said to them, "You will drink the cup that I am to drink, but seats at my right and at my left are not mine to give, but they will be given to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father."

So they answered Jesus, "We do not know." He also answered them, "Nor am I going to tell you what sort of authority I have for doing as I do.

'I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob!' Now God is not the God of dead but of living men."

Therefore, I am going to send you prophets, wise men, and scribes, some of whom you will kill -- even crucify -- and some you will flog in your synagogues and chase from city to city,

so that on you will come all the righteous blood shed on the earth from the blood of upright Abel to the blood of Zechariah, Barachiah's son, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar.

for many will come bearing the name of the Messiah, and saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will mislead many people.

"Who then is the faithful and thoughtful slave, whom his master put in charge of his household, to deal out to the members of it their supplies at the proper time?

And He said, "Go into the city, to a certain man, and say to him, 'The Teacher says, "My time is near. I am going to keep the Passover at your house with my disciples."'"

The Son of Man is going away as the Scriptures say of Him, but a curse will be on that man by whom He is betrayed. It would have been better for that man, if he had never been born!"

But after I am raised from the dead, I will go back to Galilee to meet you."

Do you suppose that I am unable to appeal to my Father and have Him furnish me on the spot one hundred thousand angels?

Jesus answered him, "Yes, I am. But I tell you, you will all soon see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Almighty, and coming on the clouds of the sky."

Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to set any prisoner free whom the people wanted.

So Pilate, since he saw that he was making no headway with them, but that a riot was about to break out instead, took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, and said, "I am not responsible for this man's death; you must see to it yourselves."

He has put His trust in God; let God deliver Him now, if He cares for Him, for He said, 'I am the Son of God.'"

He kept preaching the following message, "After me there is coming One who is stronger than I am, whose shoes I am not fit to stoop down and untie.

And out of the heavens came a voice, "You are my Son, my Beloved! In you I am delighted!"

Then He went up on the hillside and summoned to Him those whom He wanted, and they went to Him.

And He appointed the Twelve, to whom He gave the title, apostles, to be with Him, to send them forth to preach,

The Twelve whom He appointed were: Peter, the name which He gave to Simon,

But when Herod heard of Him, he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has risen from the dead."

Then Jesus and His disciples left Galilee and went to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way there He was asking His disciples, "Who do people say that I am?"

Then He began to ask them, "Who do you yourselves say that I am?" Peter answered Him, "You are the Christ."

Jesus said to them, "You do not realize what you are asking for. Can you drink the cup that I am drinking, or endure the baptism of agony that I am to endure?"

They answered Him, "We can." Jesus said to them, "Yes, the cup that I am drinking you will have to drink, and the baptism of agony that I am enduring you will have to endure,

but seats at my right and at my left are not mine to give, but they will be given to those for whom they have been prepared."

So they said to Jesus, "We do not know." Jesus also said to them, "Nor am I going to tell you what sort of authority I have for doing as I do."

Then he sent a third one, and they killed him, and many others, some of whom they beat, some they killed.

But as to the rising of the dead, did you never read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God said to him, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?

Many will come bearing the name of Messiah, and saying, 'I am He,' and they will mislead many.

For the Son of Man is going away, as the Scriptures say of Him, but a curse will be on that man by whom He is betrayed. It would have been better for that man, if he had never been born."

But after I am raised from the dead, I will go back to Galilee to meet you."

Jesus said, "Yes, I am, and you will all see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Almighty and coming in the clouds of the sky!"

Now at the time of the feast Pilate usually set a prisoner free whom the people requested.

Then Pilate again said to them, "What then do you want me to do to the man whom you call king of the Jews?"

Now after He had risen, early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary of Magdala, out of whom He had driven seven demons.

Then Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know that this is so? For I am an old man, and my wife is far advanced in years."

The angel answered him, "I am Gabriel; I stand in the very presence of God. I have been sent to talk with you and to tell you this good news.

Then Mary said, "I am the Lord's slave. May what you say take place with me." Then the angel left her.

John expressly answered them all, "I am baptizing you in water only, but there is coming the One who is stronger than I am, whose shoestrings I am not fit to untie. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and in fire;

and the Holy Spirit came down upon Him in bodily form as a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, "You are my Son, my Beloved! In you I am delighted!"

When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' feet and said, "Leave me, Lord, because I am a sinful man."

When day came, He called His disciples to Him, and selected from them twelve whom He also named apostles:

Simon whom he named Peter, his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew,

Everyone who comes to me and continues to listen to my words and practices their teachings, I will show you whom he is like.

Then Jesus started to go with them. But when He was not far from the house, the captain sent friends to say to Him, "My Lord, stop troubling yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof.

For I too am under authority of others, and have soldiers under me, and I order one to go, and he goes, another to come, and he comes, my slave to do this, and he does it."

This is the man of whom the Scripture says: "'Attention! I send my messenger on before you. He will prepare the road ahead of you.'

Simon answered, "The one, I suppose, for whom he canceled most." Then He said, "You are correct in your judgment."

and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary, who was called Mary of Magdala, out of whom seven demons had gone,

So the people went out to see what had taken place, and they went to Jesus and found the man out of whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, with his clothes on and in his right mind; and they were frightened.

The man out of whom the demons had gone begged Him to let him go with Him, but Jesus sent him away and said,

So Herod said, "John I beheaded, but who can this be about whom I hear such reports?" So he was trying to see Him.

One day while He was praying in solitude, His disciples were nearby, and He asked them, "Who do people say that I am?"

So He said to them, "But who do you, yourselves, say that I am?" Peter answered, "The Christ of God!"

Go on. Listen! I am sending you out as lambs surrounded by wolves.

All things have been entrusted to me by my Father, and no one knows who the Son is but the Father, and who the Father is but the Son, and anyone to whom the Son chooses to make Him known."

And if Satan is really disunited, how can his kingdom last? Yet you say that I am driving the demons out with Beelzebub's help.

Now if I with Beelzebub's help am driving the demons out, with whose help do your sons drive them out?

But if I by the finger of God am driving the demons out, then the kingdom of God has come to you.

A curse on you, because you build monuments for the prophets, whom your forefathers killed!

But I will show you whom to fear. Fear Him who, after killing you, has power to hurl you down to the pit; yes, I tell you, fear Him.

So he began to argue with himself, 'What am I to do, because I have nowhere to store my crops?'

Happy are those slaves whom the master, when he comes, will find on the watch for him. I solemnly say to you, he will tighten his belt and have them sit at table, and he will go around and wait on them.

And the Lord said, "Who then is the faithful, thoughtful manager whom his master will put in charge of his household, to give out the supplies at the proper time?

Happy is that slave whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing.

But the one who does wrong without knowing it will be lightly punished. Much will be demanded from anyone to whom much has been given; yea, people will demand much more from anyone to whom they have entrusted much.

I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how I am pressed with anguish till it is accomplished!

Or those eighteen people at Siloam on whom the tower fell and whom it crushed to death, do you think that they were offenders worse than all the rest of the people who live in Jerusalem?

And so was it not right for this woman, a descendant of Abraham, whom Satan has for eighteen years kept bound, to be freed from this bond on the Sabbath?"

But He said to them: "Go and tell that fox, 'Here I am, driving out demons and performing cures, today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will finish these tasks.

Another said, 'I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I am on my way to try them. Please excuse me.'

Then he came to himself and said, 'How many of my father's hired men have more to eat than they need, and here I am dying of hunger!

So he called the manager to him and said, 'What is this that I am hearing about you? Balance your accounts and show how you are conducting my affairs, for you cannot be manager any longer.'

Then the manager said to himself, What shall I do, because my master is going to take my position away from me? I am not strong enough to dig; I am ashamed to beg.

I know what I will do -- I will ask them to take me into their homes when I am removed from my position.

So he called and said, 'Father Abraham, take pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water to cool off my tongue, because I am ceaselessly tortured in this flame.'

Now He said to His disciples: "It is inevitable that snares to evil will come, but a curse be on the man through whom they come!

Even if he sins against you seven times in a day and seven times turns to you and says, 'I am sorry,' you must forgive him."