But her husband, Joseph, was an upright man and did not wish to disgrace her, and he decided to break off the engagement privately.

But he did not live with her as a husband until she had had a son, and he named the child Jesus.

"A cry was heard in Ramah! Weeping and great lamenting! Rachel weeping for her children, And inconsolable because they were gone."

John wore clothing made of hair cloth, and he had a leather belt around his waist, and he lived on dried locusts and wild honey.

But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman with desire has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

"They were told, 'Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.'

But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife on any ground, except unfaithfulness, makes her commit adultery, and anyone who marries her after she is divorced commits adultery.

You must not swear by your own head, for you cannot make one single hair white or black.

But when you fast, perfume your hair and wash your face,

But which of you with all his worry can add a single hour to his life?

And he touched her hand and the fever left her, and she got up and waited on him.

And they suddenly screamed out, "What do you want of us, you Son of God? Have you come here before the appointed time to torture us?"

Just as he said this to them, an official came up and bowing low before him said to him, "My daughter has just died. But come! Lay your hand on her and she will come to life!"

And Jesus turned and saw her, and he said, "Courage, my daughter! Your faith has cured you!" And from that time the woman was well.

But when he had driven the people out, he went in and grasped her hand, and the girl got up.

And their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly not to let anyone hear of it.

"Here I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. So you must be wise like serpents, and guileless like doves.

What I tell you in the dark you must say in the light, and what you hear whispered in your ear, you must proclaim from the housetops.

For I have come to turn a man against his father and a daughter against her mother and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law,

Jesus answered, "Go and report to John what you hear and see.

The blind are regaining their sight and the lame can walk, the lepers are being cured and the deaf can hear, the dead are being raised and good news is being preached to the poor.

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

Now that the Son of Man has come, he does eat and drink, and people say, 'Look at him! A glutton and a drinker, the companion of tax-collectors and irreligious people!' And yet Wisdom is vindicated by her actions!"

But I tell you, there is something greater than the Temple here!

"Here is my servant whom I have selected, My beloved, who delights my heart! I will endow him with my Spirit, And he will announce a judgment to the heathen.

He will not wrangle or make an outcry, And no one will hear his voice in the streets;

Men of Nineveh will rise with this age at the judgment and condemn it, for when Jonah preached they repented, and there is more than Jonah here!

The queen of the south will rise with this age at the judgment and condemn it, for she came from the very ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom, and there is more than Solomon here!

And he pointed to his disciples and said, "Here are my mother and my brothers!

This is why I speak to them in figures, because though they look they do not see, and though they listen they do not hear or understand.

For this nation's mind has grown dull, And they hear faintly with their ears, And they have shut their eyes, So as never to see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their minds, and turn back, And let me cure them!'

But blessed are your eyes, for they do see, and your ears, for they do hear.

For I tell you, many prophets and upright men have longed to see what you see, and could not see it, and to hear what you hear, and could not hear it.

And do not all his sisters live here among us? Then where did he get all this?"

for John said to him, "It is not right for you to be living with her."

But when Herod's birthday came, Herodias' daughter danced before the company. And Herod was delighted with her,

and swore that he would give her anything she asked for.

But she, at her mother's instigation, said, "Give me John the Baptist's head here on a platter!"

And the king was sorry, but because he had sworn to do it, and because of the guests who were present, he ordered it to be given to her.

And his head was brought back on a platter and given to the girl, and she took it to her mother.

They said to him, "We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish."

He said, "Bring them here to me."

Then his disciples came up to him and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees were shocked to hear you say that?"

But he would not answer her a word. And his disciples came up and urged him, saying, "Send her away, for she keeps screaming after us."

Then Jesus answered, "You have great faith! You shall have what you want." And her daughter was cured from that time.

I tell you, some of you who stand here will certainly live to see the Son of Man come to reign!"

And Peter spoke, and said to Jesus, "Master, how good it is that we are here! If you wish, I will make three huts here, one for you, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah."

Jesus answered, "O you unbelieving, obstinate people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to me!"

He said to them, "Because you have so little faith. For I tell you, if you have faith the size of a grain of mustard, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here over to there!' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you."

Again, I tell you, if even two of you here on earth agree about what they shall pray for, it will be given them by my Father in heaven.

They said to him, "Then why did Moses command us to draw up a written divorce-notice and give it to her?"

I tell you that whoever divorces his wife on any ground but her unfaithfulness, and marries another woman, commits adultery."

Then Peter spoke and said to him, "Here we have left all we had and followed you. What are we to have?"

For the Kingdom of Heaven is like an employer who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.

About five he went out and found others standing about and he said to them, 'Why have you been standing about here all day doing nothing?'

and said, 'These men who were hired last worked only one hour, and you have put them on the same footing with us who have done the heavy work of the day and have stood the midday heat.'

Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came up to him with her sons, bowing low, to ask a favor of him.

He said to her, "What do you want?" She said to him, "Give orders that these two sons of mine sit one at your right and one at your left, when you are king!"

saying to them, "Go to the village that lies in front of you, and you will at once find an ass tied there, and a colt with her. Untie her and bring them to me.

"Tell the daughter of Zion, 'Here is your king coming to you, Gentle, and riding on an ass, And on the foal of a beast of burden.' "

and said to him, "Do you hear what they are saying?" Jesus said to them, "Yes. Did you never read, 'You have drawn praise from the mouths of children and infants'?"

But when the tenants saw his son, they said to one another. 'This is his heir! Come on, let us kill him, and get his inheritance!'

He sent other slaves a second time, and said to them, 'Tell those who have been asked, "Here I have my banquet all ready, my bullocks and fat cattle are killed, and everything is ready. Come to the banquet!" '

And he said to him, 'My friend, how did you happen to come here without wedding clothes?' But he had nothing to say.

At the resurrection which one's wife will she be? For they all married her."

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! murdering the prophets, and stoning those who are sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children around me, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you refused!

But he answered, "Do you see all this? I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another but shall be torn down."

You will hear of wars and rumors of war; do not let yourselves be alarmed. They have to come, but that is not the end.

For nation will rise in arms against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes here and there.

"If anyone says to you at that time, 'Look! here is the Christ!' or 'There he is!' do not believe it,

Here I have told you beforehand.

So if they say to you, 'There he is, in the desert!' do not go out there; 'Here he is, in a room in here!' do not believe it.

But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father.

But in the middle of the night there was a shout 'Here is the bridegroom! Come out and meet him!'

So you must be on the watch, for you do not know either the day or the hour.

And the man who had received the five thousand dollars came up bringing him five thousand more, and said, 'Sir, you put five thousand dollars in my hands; here I have made five thousand more.'

And the man who had received the two thousand came up and said, 'Sir, you put two thousand dollars into my hands; here I have made two thousand more.'

and I was frightened, and I went and hid your thousand dollars in the ground. Here is your money!'

I tell you, wherever this good news is preached all over the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."

Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to the disciples, "Sit down here while I go over yonder and pray."

Then he said to them, "My heart is almost breaking. You must stay here and keep watch with me."

When he went back to the disciples he found them asleep. And he said to Peter, "Then were you not able to watch with me for one hour?

Get up! Let us be going! Look! Here comes my betrayer!"

Jesus said to him, "My friend, what are you here for?" Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and secured him.

Then the high priest tore his clothing and said, "He has uttered blasphemy! What do we want of witnesses now? Here you have heard his blasphemy!

Then Pilate said to him, "Do you not hear what evidence they are bringing against you?"

He is not here, he has risen, as he said he would do. Come and see the place where he was lying.

As it is written in the prophet Isaiah, "Here I send my messenger on before you; He will prepare your way;

John's clothing was made of hair cloth, and the belt around his waist was leather, and he lived on dried locusts and wild honey.

Simon's mother-in-law was in bed, sick with a fever, and they immediately told him about her.

And he went up to her, and grasping her hand, he made her rise. And the fever left her, and she waited on them.

He said to them, "Let us go somewhere else, to the neighboring country towns, so that I may preach in them, too, for that is why I came out here."

And looking around at the people sitting about him, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers!

The ones by the path are those into whose hearts the message falls, and as soon as they hear it Satan comes and carries off the message that has been sown in their hearts.

It is so too with the ones sown on the rocky ground; they gladly accept the message as soon as they hear it,

"Take care what you hear," he said to them. "The measure you give will be given to you, and even more besides.

and appealed to him, saying, "My little daughter is at the point of death. Come, lay your hands on her, so that she may get well and live!"

The hemorrhage stopped at once, and she felt in her body that she was cured.

The woman, knowing what had happened to her, came forward frightened and trembling, and threw herself down at his feet and told him the whole truth.

And he said to her, "My daughter, it is your faith that has cured you. Go in peace and be free from your disease."