Thematic Bible: Replies to the scribes and pharisees who seek a sign from him (in galilee)


Thematic Bible



Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him, "Teacher, we would like to have some Sign from you." He replied to them, "It is an evil and disloyal generation that craves a Sign, but no Sign will be given to it except the Sign of the prophet Jonah; for as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so the Son of man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. read more.
The men of Ninive will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for when Jonah preached they did repent, and here is One greater than Jonah. The queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon, and here is One greater than Solomon. When an unclean spirit leaves a man, it roams through dry places in search of refreshment and finds none. Then it says, 'I will go back to the house I left,' and when it comes it finds the house vacant, clean, and all in order. Then it goes off to fetch seven other spirits worse than itself; they go in and dwell there, and the last state of that man is worse than the first. This is how it will be with the present evil generation."

Others by way of tempting him demanded he should give them a Sign from heaven. He knew what they were thinking about, so he said to them, "Any realm divided against itself comes to ruin, house after house falls down; and if Satan is divided against himself, how can his realm stand? You say I am casting out daemons by Beelzebul? read more.
If I cast out daemons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Thus they will be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that I cast daemons out, then the Reign of God has reached you already. When the strong man in armour guards his homestead, his property is undisturbed; but when a stronger man attacks and conquers him, he seizes the panoply on which he relied and divides up the spoil. He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. When an unclean spirit leaves a man, it roams through dry places in search of refreshment. As it finds none, then it says, 'I will go back to the house I left,' and when it comes it finds the house clean and in order. Then it goes off to fetch seven other spirits worse than itself; they go in and dwell there, and the last state of that man is worse than the first." While he was saying this, a woman shouted to him out of the crowd, "Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts you sucked!" But he said, "Blessed rather are those who hear and who observe the word of God!" As the crowds were thronging to him, he proceeded to say, "This is an evil generation: it demands a Sign, but no Sign will be given to it except the Sign of Jonah; for as Jonah was a Sign to the Ninivites, so shall the Son of man be to this generation. The queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon, and here is One greater than Solomon. The men of Ninive will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for when Jonah preached they did repent, and here is One greater than Jonah. No one lights a lamp to put it in a cellar or under a bowl, but on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light. Your eye is the lamp of the body: when your eye is sound, then the whole of your body has light, but if your eye is diseased, then your body is darkened. (Look! perhaps your very light is dark.) So if your whole body has light, without any corner of it in darkness, it will be lit up entirely, as when a lamp lights you with its rays."