Matthew 4:12-25; Matthew 5; Matthew 6; Matthew 7; Matthew 8; Matthew 9; Matthew 10; Matthew 11; Matthew 12; Matthew 13; Matthew 14:1-12

Matthew 4:12-25

12 Now when Jesus heard that John was arrested, he went to Galilee.

13 He left Nazareth and settled in Capernaum, which lies alongside the sea in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali.

14 This fulfilled what Isaiah the prophet said:

15 Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, alongside the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles,

16 the people who lived in the dark have seen a great light, and a light has come upon those who lived in the region and in shadow of death.

17 From that time Jesus began to announce, "Change your hearts and lives! Here comes the kingdom of heaven!"

18 As Jesus walked alongside the Galilee Sea, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, throwing fishing nets into the sea, because they were fishermen.

19 "Come, follow me," he said, "and I'll show you how to fish for people."

20 Right away, they left their nets and followed him.

21 Continuing on, he saw another set of brothers, James the son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with Zebedee their father repairing their nets. Jesus called them and

22 immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

23 Jesus traveled throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues. He announced the good news of the kingdom and healed every disease and sickness among the people.

24 News about him spread throughout Syria. People brought to him all those who had various kinds of diseases, those in pain, those possessed by demons, those with epilepsy, and those who were paralyzed, and he healed them.

25 Large crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from the areas beyond the Jordan River.

Matthew 5

1 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up a mountain. He sat down and his disciples came to him.

2 He taught them, saying:

3 “Happy are people who are hopeless, because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.

4 “Happy are people who grieve, because they will be made glad.

5 “Happy are people who are humble, because they will inherit the earth.

6 “Happy are people who are hungry and thirsty for righteousness, because they will be fed until they are full.

7 “Happy are people who show mercy, because they will receive mercy.

8 “Happy are people who have pure hearts, because they will see God.

9 “Happy are people who make peace, because they will be called God's children.

10 “Happy are people whose lives are harassed because they are righteous, because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.

11 “Happy are you when people insult you and harass you and speak all kinds of bad and false things about you, all because of me.

12 Be full of joy and be glad, because you have a great reward in heaven. In the same way, people harassed the prophets who came before you.

13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its saltiness, how will it become salty again? It's good for nothing except to be thrown away and trampled under people's feet.

14 You are the light of the world. A city on top of a hill can't be hidden.

15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they put it on top of a lampstand, and it shines on all who are in the house.

16 In the same way, let your light shine before people, so they can see the good things you do and praise your Father who is in heaven.

17 “Don't even begin to think that I have come to do away with the Law and the Prophets. I haven't come to do away with them but to fulfill them.

18 I say to you very seriously that as long as heaven and earth exist, neither the smallest letter nor even the smallest stroke of a pen will be erased from the Law until everything there becomes a reality.

19 Therefore, whoever ignores one of the least of these commands and teaches others to do the same will be called the lowest in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever keeps these commands and teaches people to keep them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

20 I say to you that unless your righteousness is greater than the righteousness of the legal experts and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

21 “You have heard that it was said to those who lived long ago, Don't commit murder, and all who commit murder will be in danger of judgment.

22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with their brother or sister will be in danger of judgment. If they say to their brother or sister, ‘You idiot,' they will be in danger of being condemned by the governing council. And if they say, ‘You fool,' they will be in danger of fiery hell.

23 Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you,

24 leave your gift at the altar and go. First make things right with your brother or sister and then come back and offer your gift.

25 Be sure to make friends quickly with your opponents while you are with them on the way to court. Otherwise, they will haul you before the judge, the judge will turn you over to the officer of the court, and you will be thrown into prison.

26 I say to you in all seriousness that you won't get out of there until you've paid the very last penny.

27 “You have heard that it was said, Don't commit adultery.

28 But I say to you that every man who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery in his heart.

29 And if your right eye causes you to fall into sin, tear it out and throw it away. It's better that you lose a part of your body than that your whole body be thrown into hell.

30 And if your right hand causes you to fall into sin, chop it off and throw it away. It's better that you lose a part of your body than that your whole body go into hell.

31 “It was said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a divorce certificate.'

32 But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife except for sexual unfaithfulness forces her to commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

33 “Again you have heard that it was said to those who lived long ago: Don't make a false solemn pledge, but you should follow through on what you have pledged to the Lord.

34 But I say to you that you must not pledge at all. You must not pledge by heaven, because it's God's throne.

35 You must not pledge by the earth, because it's God's footstool. You must not pledge by Jerusalem, because it's the city of the great king.

36 And you must not pledge by your head, because you can't turn one hair white or black.

37 Let your yes mean yes, and your no mean no. Anything more than this comes from the evil one.

38 “You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

39 But I say to you that you must not oppose those who want to hurt you. If people slap you on your right cheek, you must turn the left cheek to them as well.

40 When they wish to haul you to court and take your shirt, let them have your coat too.

41 When they force you to go one mile, go with them two.

42 Give to those who ask, and don't refuse those who wish to borrow from you.

43 “You have heard that it was said, You must love your neighbor and hate your enemy.

44 But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who harass you

45 so that you will be acting as children of your Father who is in heaven. He makes the sun rise on both the evil and the good and sends rain on both the righteous and the unrighteous.

46 If you love only those who love you, what reward do you have? Don't even the tax collectors do the same?

47 And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing? Don't even the Gentiles do the same?

48 Therefore, just as your heavenly Father is complete in showing love to everyone, so also you must be complete.

Matthew 6

1 “Be careful that you don't practice your religion in front of people to draw their attention. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

2 “Whenever you give to the poor, don't blow your trumpet as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets so that they may get praise from people. I assure you, that's the only reward they'll get.

3 But when you give to the poor, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing

4 so that you may give to the poor in secret. Your Father who sees what you do in secret will reward you.

5 “When you pray, don't be like hypocrites. They love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners so that people will see them. I assure you, that's the only reward they'll get.

6 But when you pray, go to your room, shut the door, and pray to your Father who is present in that secret place. Your Father who sees what you do in secret will reward you.

7 “When you pray, don't pour out a flood of empty words, as the Gentiles do. They think that by saying many words they'll be heard.

8 Don't be like them, because your Father knows what you need before you ask.

9 Pray like this: Our Father who is in heaven, uphold the holiness of your name.

10 Bring in your kingdom so that your will is done on earth as it's done in heaven.

11 Give us the bread we need for today.

12 Forgive us for the ways we have wronged you, just as we also forgive those who have wronged us.

13 And don't lead us into temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.

14 “If you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

15 But if you don't forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your sins.

16 “And when you fast, don't put on a sad face like the hypocrites. They distort their faces so people will know they are fasting. I assure you that they have their reward.

17 When you fast, brush your hair and wash your face.

18 Then you won't look like you are fasting to people, but only to your Father who is present in that secret place. Your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

19 “Stop collecting treasures for your own benefit on earth, where moth and rust eat them and where thieves break in and steal them.

20 Instead, collect treasures for yourselves in heaven, where moth and rust don't eat them and where thieves don't break in and steal them.

21 Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. Therefore, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light.

23 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how terrible that darkness will be!

24 No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be loyal to the one and have contempt for the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

25 “Therefore, I say to you, don't worry about your life, what you'll eat or what you'll drink, or about your body, what you'll wear. Isn't life more than food and the body more than clothes?

26 Look at the birds in the sky. They don't sow seed or harvest grain or gather crops into barns. Yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren't you worth much more than they are?

27 Who among you by worrying can add a single moment to your life?

28 And why do you worry about clothes? Notice how the lilies in the field grow. They don't wear themselves out with work, and they don't spin cloth.

29 But I say to you that even Solomon in all of his splendor wasn't dressed like one of these.

30 If God dresses grass in the field so beautifully, even though it's alive today and tomorrow it's thrown into the furnace, won't God do much more for you, you people of weak faith?

31 Therefore, don't worry and say, ‘What are we going to eat?' or ‘What are we going to drink?' or ‘What are we going to wear?'

32 Gentiles long for all these things. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them.

33 Instead, desire first and foremost God's kingdom and God's righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

34 Therefore, stop worrying about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Matthew 7

1 “Don't judge, so that you won't be judged.

2 You'll receive the same judgment you give. Whatever you deal out will be dealt out to you.

3 Why do you see the splinter that's in your brother's or sister's eye, but don't notice the log in your own eye?

4 How can you say to your brother or sister, ‘Let me take the splinter out of your eye,' when there's a log in your eye?

5 You deceive yourself! First take the log out of your eye, and then you'll see clearly to take the splinter out of your brother's or sister's eye.

6 Don't give holy things to dogs, and don't throw your pearls in front of pigs. They will stomp on the pearls, then turn around and attack you.

7 “Ask, and you will receive. Search, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened to you.

8 For everyone who asks, receives. Whoever seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door is opened.

9 Who among you will give your children a stone when they ask for bread?

10 Or give them a snake when they ask for fish?

11 If you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask him.

12 Therefore, you should treat people in the same way that you want people to treat you; this is the Law and the Prophets.

13 “Go in through the narrow gate. The gate that leads to destruction is broad and the road wide, so many people enter through it.

14 But the gate that leads to life is narrow and the road difficult, so few people find it.

15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you dressed like sheep, but inside they are vicious wolves.

16 You will know them by their fruit. Do people get bunches of grapes from thorny weeds, or do they get figs from thistles?

17 In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, and every rotten tree produces bad fruit.

18 A good tree can't produce bad fruit. And a rotten tree can't produce good fruit.

19 Every tree that doesn't produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire.

20 Therefore, you will know them by their fruit.

21 “Not everybody who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,' will get into the kingdom of heaven. Only those who do the will of my Father who is in heaven will enter.

22 On the Judgment Day, many people will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn't we prophesy in your name and expel demons in your name and do lots of miracles in your name?'

23 Then I'll tell them, ‘I've never known you. Get away from me, you people who do wrong.'

24 "Everybody who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise builder who built a house on bedrock.

25 The rain fell, the floods came, and the wind blew and beat against that house. It didn't fall because it was firmly set on bedrock.

26 But everybody who hears these words of mine and doesn't put them into practice will be like a fool who built a house on sand.

27 The rain fell, the floods came, and the wind blew and beat against that house. It fell and was completely destroyed."

28 When Jesus finished these words, the crowds were amazed at his teaching

29 because he was teaching them like someone with authority and not like their legal experts.

Matthew 8

1 Now when Jesus had come down from the mountain, large crowds followed him.

2 A man with a skin disease came, kneeled before him, and said, "Lord, if you want, you can make me clean."

3 Jesus reached out his hand and touched him, saying, "I do want to. Become clean." Instantly his skin disease was cleansed.

4 Jesus said to him, "Don't say anything to anyone. Instead, go and show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded. This will be a testimony to them."

5 When Jesus went to Capernaum, a centurion approached,

6 pleading with him, "Lord, my servant is flat on his back at home, paralyzed, and his suffering is awful."

7 Jesus responded, "I'll come and heal him."

8 But the centurion replied, "Lord, I don't deserve to have you come under my roof. Just say the word and my servant will be healed.

9 I'm a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I say to one, ‘Go,' and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,' and the servant does it."

10 When Jesus heard this, he was impressed and said to the people following him, "I say to you with all seriousness that even in Israel I haven't found faith like this.

11 I say to you that there are many who will come from east and west and sit down to eat with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.

12 But the children of the kingdom will be thrown outside into the darkness. People there will be weeping and grinding their teeth."

13 Jesus said to the centurion, "Go; it will be done for you just as you have believed." And his servant was healed that very moment.

14 Jesus went home with Peter and saw Peter's mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever.

15 He touched her hand, and the fever left her. Then she got up and served them.

16 That evening people brought to Jesus many who were demon-possessed. He threw the spirits out with just a word. He healed everyone who was sick.

17 This happened so that what Isaiah the prophet said would be fulfilled: He is the one who took our illnesses and carried away our diseases.

18 Now when Jesus saw the crowd, he ordered his disciples to go over to the other side of the lake.

19 A legal expert came and said to him, "Teacher, I'll follow you wherever you go."

20 Jesus replied, "Foxes have dens, and the birds in the sky have nests, but the Human One has no place to lay his head."

21 Another man, one of his disciples, said to him, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father."

22 But Jesus said to him, "Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead."

23 When Jesus got into a boat, his disciples followed him.

24 A huge storm arose on the lake so that waves were sloshing over the boat. But Jesus was asleep.

25 They came and woke him, saying, "Lord, rescue us! We're going to drown!"

26 He said to them, "Why are you afraid, you people of weak faith?" Then he got up and gave orders to the winds and the lake, and there was a great calm.

27 The people were amazed and said, "What kind of person is this? Even the winds and the lake obey him!"

28 When Jesus arrived on the other side of the lake in the country of the Gadarenes, two men who were demon-possessed came from among the tombs to meet him. They were so violent that nobody could travel on that road.

29 They cried out, "What are you going to do with us, Son of God? Have you come to torture us before the time of judgment?"

30 Far off in the distance a large herd of pigs was feeding.

31 The demons pleaded with him, "If you throw us out, send us into the herd of pigs."

32 Then he said to the demons, "Go away," and they came out and went into the pigs. The whole herd rushed down the cliff into the lake and drowned.

33 Those who tended the pigs ran into the city and told everything that had happened to the demon-possessed men.

34 Then the whole city came out and met Jesus. When they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.

Matthew 9

1 Boarding a boat, Jesus crossed to the other side of the lake and went to his own city.

2 People brought to him a man who was paralyzed, lying on a cot. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man who was paralyzed, "Be encouraged, my child, your sins are forgiven."

3 Some legal experts said among themselves, "This man is insulting God."

4 But Jesus knew what they were thinking and said, "Why do you fill your minds with evil things?

5 Which is easier—to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, ‘Get up and walk'?

6 But so you will know that the Human One has authority on the earth to forgive sins"—he said to the man who was paralyzed—"Get up, take your cot, and go home."

7 The man got up and went home.

8 When the crowds saw what had happened, they were afraid and praised God, who had given such authority to human beings.

9 As Jesus continued on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at a kiosk for collecting taxes. He said to him, "Follow me," and he got up and followed him.

10 As Jesus sat down to eat in Matthew's house, many tax collectors and sinners joined Jesus and his disciples at the table.

11 But when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

12 When Jesus heard it, he said, "Healthy people don't need a doctor, but sick people do.

13 Go and learn what this means: I want mercy and not sacrifice. I didn't come to call righteous people, but sinners."

14 At that time John's disciples came and asked Jesus, "Why do we and the Pharisees frequently fast, but your disciples never fast?"

15 Jesus responded, “The wedding guests can't mourn while the groom is still with them, can they? But the days will come when the groom will be taken away from them, and then they'll fast.

16 "No one sews a piece of new, unshrunk cloth on old clothes because the patch tears away the cloth and makes a worse tear.

17 No one pours new wine into old wineskins. If they did, the wineskins would burst, the wine would spill, and the wineskins would be ruined. Instead, people pour new wine into new wineskins so that both are kept safe."

18 While Jesus was speaking to them, a ruler came and knelt in front of him, saying, "My daughter has just died. But come and place your hand on her, and she'll live."

19 So Jesus and his disciples got up and went with him.

20 Then a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years came up behind Jesus and touched the hem of his clothes.

21 She thought, If I only touch his robe I'll be healed.

22 When Jesus turned and saw her, he said, "Be encouraged, daughter. Your faith has healed you." And the woman was healed from that time on.

23 When Jesus went into the ruler's house, he saw the flute players and the distressed crowd.

24 He said, "Go away, because the little girl isn't dead but is asleep"; but they laughed at him.

25 After he had sent the crowd away, Jesus went in and touched her hand, and the little girl rose up.

26 News about this spread throughout that whole region.

27 As Jesus departed, two blind men followed him, crying out, "Show us mercy, Son of David."

28 When he came into the house, the blind men approached him. Jesus said to them, "Do you believe I can do this?" "Yes, Lord," they replied.

29 Then Jesus touched their eyes and said, "It will happen for you just as you have believed."

30 Their eyes were opened. Then Jesus sternly warned them, "Make sure nobody knows about this."

31 But they went out and spread the word about him throughout that whole region.

32 As they were leaving, people brought to him a man who was demon-possessed and unable to speak.

33 When Jesus had thrown out the demon, the man who couldn't speak began to talk. The crowds were amazed and said, "Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel."

34 But the Pharisees said, "He throws out demons with the authority of the ruler of demons."

35 Jesus traveled among all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, announcing the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness.

36 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion for them because they were troubled and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

37 Then he said to his disciples, "The size of the harvest is bigger than you can imagine, but there are few workers.

38 Therefore, plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out workers for his harvest."

Matthew 10

1 He called his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to throw them out and to heal every disease and every sickness.

2 Here are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon, who is called Peter; and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee; and John his brother;

3 Philip; and Bartholomew; Thomas; and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus; and Thaddaeus;

4 Simon the Cananaean; and Judas, who betrayed Jesus.

5 Jesus sent these twelve out and commanded them, “Don't go among the Gentiles or into a Samaritan city.

6 Go instead to the lost sheep, the people of Israel.

7 As you go, make this announcement: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.'

8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with skin diseases, and throw out demons. You received without having to pay. Therefore, give without demanding payment.

9 Workers deserve to be fed, so don't gather gold or silver or copper coins for your money belts to take on your trips.

10 Don't take a backpack for the road or two shirts or sandals or a walking stick.

11 Whatever city or village you go into, find somebody in it who is worthy and stay there until you go on your way.

12 When you go into a house, say, ‘Peace!'

13 If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if the house isn't worthy, take back your blessing.

14 If anyone refuses to welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet as you leave that house or city.

15 I assure you that it will be more bearable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on Judgment Day than it will be for that city.

16 “Look, I'm sending you as sheep among wolves. Therefore, be wise as snakes and innocent as doves.

17 Watch out for people—because they will hand you over to councils and they will beat you in their synagogues.

18 They will haul you in front of governors and even kings because of me so that you may give your testimony to them and to the Gentiles.

19 Whenever they hand you over, don't worry about how to speak or what you will say, because what you can say will be given to you at that moment.

20 You aren't doing the talking, but the Spirit of my Father is doing the talking through you.

21 Brothers and sisters will hand each other over to be executed. A father will turn his child in. Children will defy their parents and have them executed.

22 Everyone will hate you on account of my name. But whoever stands firm until the end will be saved.

23 Whenever they harass you in one city, escape to the next, because I assure that you will not go through all the cities of Israel before the Human One comes.

24 “Disciples aren't greater than their teacher, and slaves aren't greater than their master.

25 It's enough for disciples to be like their teacher and slaves like their master. If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul, it's certain that they will call the members of his household by even worse names.

26 “Therefore, don't be afraid of those people because nothing is hidden that won't be revealed, and nothing secret that won't be brought out into the open.

27 What I say to you in the darkness, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, announce from the rooftops.

28 Don't be afraid of those who kill the body but can't kill the soul. Instead, be afraid of the one who can destroy both body and soul in hell.

29 Aren't two sparrows sold for a small coin? But not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father knowing about it already.

30 Even the hairs of your head are all counted.

31 Don't be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows.

32 “Therefore, everyone who acknowledges me before people, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven.

33 But everyone who denies me before people, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.

34 “Don't think that I've come to bring peace to the earth. I haven't come to bring peace but a sword.

35 I've come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.

36 People's enemies are members of their own households.

37 “Those who love father or mother more than me aren't worthy of me. Those who love son or daughter more than me aren't worthy of me.

38 Those who don't pick up their crosses and follow me aren't worthy of me.

39 Those who find their lives will lose them, and those who lose their lives because of me will find them.

40 "Those who receive you are also receiving me, and those who receive me are receiving the one who sent me.

41 Those who receive a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet's reward. Those who receive a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person's reward.

42 I assure you that everybody who gives even a cup of cold water to these little ones because they are my disciples will certainly be rewarded."

Matthew 11

1 When Jesus finished teaching his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in their cities.

2 Now when John heard in prison about the things Jesus was doing, he sent word by his disciples to Jesus, asking,

3 "Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?"

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

5 Those who were blind are able to see. Those who were crippled are walking. People with skin diseases are cleansed. Those who were deaf now hear. Those who were dead are raised up. The poor have good news proclaimed to them.

6 Happy are those who don't stumble and fall because of me."

7 When John's disciples had gone, Jesus spoke to the crowds about John: “What did you go out to the wilderness to see? A stalk blowing in the wind?

8 What did you go out to see? A man dressed up in refined clothes? Look, those who wear refined clothes are in royal palaces.

9 What did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.

10 He is the one of whom it is written: Look, I'm sending my messenger before you, who will prepare your way before you.

11 “I assure you that no one who has ever been born is greater than John the Baptist. Yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

12 From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven is violently attacked as violent people seize it.

13 All the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John came.

14 If you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come.

15 Let the person who has ears, hear.

16 "To what will I compare this generation? It is like a child sitting in the marketplaces calling out to others,

17 ‘We played the flute for you and you didn't dance. We sang a funeral song and you didn't mourn.'

18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.'

19 Yet the Human One came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunk, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.' But wisdom is proved to be right by her works."

20 Then he began to scold the cities where he had done his greatest miracles because they didn't change their hearts and lives.

21 "How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible it will be for you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles done among you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have changed their hearts and lives and put on funeral clothes and ashes a long time ago.

22 But I say to you that Tyre and Sidon will be better off on Judgment Day than you.

23 And you, Capernaum, will you be honored by being raised up to heaven? No, you will be thrown down to the place of the dead. After all, if the miracles that were done among you had been done in Sodom, it would still be here today.

24 But I say to you that it will be better for the land of Sodom on the Judgment Day than it will be for you."

25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you've hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have shown them to babies.

26 Indeed, Father, this brings you happiness.

27 “My Father has handed all things over to me. No one knows the Son except the Father. And nobody knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wants to reveal him.

28 "Come to me, all you who are struggling hard and carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest.

29 Put on my yoke, and learn from me. I'm gentle and humble. And you will find rest for yourselves.

30 My yoke is easy to bear, and my burden is light."

Matthew 12

1 At that time Jesus went through the wheat fields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry so they were picking heads of wheat and eating them.

2 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, "Look, your disciples are breaking the Sabbath law."

3 But he said to them, "Haven't you read what David did when he and those with him were hungry?

4 He went into God's house and broke the law by eating the bread of the presence, which only the priests were allowed to eat.

5 Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple treat the Sabbath as any other day and are still innocent?

6 But I tell you that something greater than the temple is here.

7 If you had known what this means, I want mercy and not sacrifice, you wouldn't have condemned the innocent.

8 The Human One is Lord of the Sabbath."

9 Jesus left that place and went into their synagogue.

10 A man with a withered hand was there. Wanting to bring charges against Jesus, they asked, "Does the Law allow a person to heal on the Sabbath?"

11 Jesus replied, "Who among you has a sheep that falls into a pit on the Sabbath and will not take hold of it and pull it out?

12 How much more valuable is a person than a sheep! So the Law allows a person to do what is good on the Sabbath."

13 Then Jesus said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he did and it was made healthy, just like the other one.

14 The Pharisees went out and met in order to find a way to destroy Jesus.

15 Jesus knew what they intended to do, so he went away from there. Large crowds followed him, and he healed them all.

16 But he ordered them not to spread the word about him,

17 so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled:

18 Look, my Servant whom I chose, the one I love, in whom I find great pleasure. I'll put my Spirit upon him, and he'll announce judgment to the Gentiles.

19 He won't argue or shout, and nobody will hear his voice in the streets.

20 He won't break a bent stalk, and he won't snuff out a smoldering wick, until he makes justice win.

21 And the Gentiles will put their hope in his name.

22 They brought to Jesus a demon-possessed man who was blind and unable to speak. Jesus healed him so that he could both speak and see.

23 All the crowds were amazed and said, "This man couldn't be the Son of David, could he?"

24 When the Pharisees heard, they said, "This man throws out demons only by the authority of Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons."

25 Because Jesus knew what they were thinking, he replied, “Every kingdom involved in civil war becomes a wasteland. Every city or house torn apart by divisions will collapse.

26 If Satan throws out Satan, he is at war with himself. How then can his kingdom endure?

27 And if I throw out demons by the authority of Beelzebul, then by whose authority do your followers throw them out? Therefore, they will be your judges.

28 But if I throw out demons by the power of God's Spirit, then God's kingdom has already overtaken you.

29 Can people go into a house that belongs to a strong man and steal his possessions, unless they first tie up the strong man? Then they can rob his house.

30 Whoever isn't with me is against me, and whoever doesn't gather with me scatters.

31 “Therefore, I tell you that people will be forgiven for every sin and insult to God. But insulting the Holy Spirit won't be forgiven.

32 And whoever speaks a word against the Human One will be forgiven. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit won't be forgiven, not in this age or in the age that is coming.

33 "Either consider the tree good and its fruit good, or consider the tree rotten and its fruit rotten. A tree is known by its fruit.

34 Children of snakes! How can you speak good things while you are evil? What fills the heart comes out of the mouth.

35 Good people bring out good things from their good treasure. But evil people bring out evil things from their evil treasure.

36 I tell you that people will have to answer on Judgment Day for every useless word they speak.

37 By your words you will be either judged innocent or condemned as guilty."

38 At that time some of the legal experts and the Pharisees requested of Jesus, "Teacher, we would like to see a sign from you."

39 But he replied, “An evil and unfaithful generation searches for a sign, but it won't receive any sign except Jonah's sign.

40 Just as Jonah was in the whale's belly for three days and three nights, so the Human One will be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.

41 The citizens of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it as guilty, because they changed their hearts and lives in response to Jonah's preaching. And look, someone greater than Jonah is here.

42 The queen of the South will be raised up by God at the judgment with this generation and condemn it because she came from a distant land to hear Solomon's wisdom. And look, someone greater than Solomon is here.

43 "When an unclean spirit leaves a person, it wanders through dry places looking for a place to rest. But it doesn't find any.

44 Then it says, ‘I'll go back to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the place vacant, cleaned up, and decorated.

45 Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself. They go in and make their home there. That person is worse off at the end than at the beginning. This is the way it will be also for this evil generation."

46 While Jesus was speaking to the crowds, his mother and brothers stood outside trying to speak with him.

47 Someone said to him, "Look, your mother and brothers are outside wanting to speak with you."

48 Jesus replied, "Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?"

49 He stretched out his hand toward his disciples and said, "Look, here are my mother and my brothers.

50 Whoever does the will of my Father who is in heaven is my brother, sister, and mother."

Matthew 13

1 That day Jesus went out of the house and sat down beside the lake.

2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he climbed into a boat and sat down. The whole crowd was standing on the shore.

3 He said many things to them in parables: "A farmer went out to scatter seed.

4 As he was scattering seed, some fell on the path, and birds came and ate it.

5 Other seed fell on rocky ground where the soil was shallow. They sprouted immediately because the soil wasn't deep.

6 But when the sun came up, it scorched the plants, and they dried up because they had no roots.

7 Other seed fell among thorny plants. The thorny plants grew and choked them.

8 Other seed fell on good soil and bore fruit, in one case a yield of one hundred to one, in another case a yield of sixty to one, and in another case a yield of thirty to one.

9 Everyone who has ears should pay attention."

10 Jesus' disciples came and said to him, "Why do you use parables when you speak to the crowds?"

11 Jesus replied, “Because they haven't received the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but you have.

12 For those who have will receive more and they will have more than enough. But as for those who don't have, even the little they have will be taken away from them.

13 This is why I speak to the crowds in parables: although they see, they don't really see; and although they hear, they don't really hear or understand.

14 What Isaiah prophesied has become completely true for them: You will hear, to be sure, but never understand; and you will certainly see but never recognize what you are seeing.

15 For this people's senses have become calloused, and they've become hard of hearing, and they've shut their eyes so that they won't see with their eyes or hear with their ears or understand with their minds, and change their hearts and lives that I may heal them.

16 “Happy are your eyes because they see. Happy are your ears because they hear.

17 I assure you that many prophets and righteous people wanted to see what you see and hear what you hear, but they didn't.

18 "Consider then the parable of the farmer.

19 Whenever people hear the word about the kingdom and don't understand it, the evil one comes and carries off what was planted in their hearts. This is the seed that was sown on the path.

20 As for the seed that was spread on rocky ground, this refers to people who hear the word and immediately receive it joyfully.

21 Because they have no roots, they last for only a little while. When they experience distress or abuse because of the word, they immediately fall away.

22 As for the seed that was spread among thorny plants, this refers to those who hear the word, but the worries of this life and the false appeal of wealth choke the word, and it bears no fruit.

23 As for what was planted on good soil, this refers to those who hear and understand, and bear fruit and produce—in one case a yield of one hundred to one, in another case a yield of sixty to one, and in another case a yield of thirty to one."

24 Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like someone who planted good seed in his field.

25 While people were sleeping, an enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat and went away.

26 When the stalks sprouted and bore grain, then the weeds also appeared.

27 “The servants of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Master, didn't you plant good seed in your field? Then how is it that it has weeds?'

28 “‘An enemy has done this,' he answered. “The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and gather them?'

29 "But the landowner said, ‘No, because if you gather the weeds, you'll pull up the wheat along with them.

30 Let both grow side by side until the harvest. And at harvesttime I'll say to the harvesters, First gather the weeds and tie them together in bundles to be burned. But bring the wheat into my barn. '"

31 He told another parable to them: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and planted in his field.

32 It's the smallest of all seeds. But when it's grown, it's the largest of all vegetable plants. It becomes a tree so that the birds in the sky come and nest in its branches."

33 He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast, which a woman took and hid in a bushel of wheat flour until the yeast had worked its way through all the dough."

34 Jesus said all these things to the crowds in parables, and he spoke to them only in parables.

35 This was to fulfill what the prophet spoke: I'll speak in parables; I'll declare what has been hidden since the beginning of the world.

36 Jesus left the crowds and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field."

37 Jesus replied, "The one who plants the good seed is the Human One.

38 The field is the world. And the good seeds are the followers of the kingdom. But the weeds are the followers of the evil one.

39 The enemy who planted them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the present age. The harvesters are the angels.

40 Just as people gather weeds and burn them in the fire, so it will be at the end of the present age.

41 The Human One will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all things that cause people to fall away and all people who sin.

42 He will throw them into a burning furnace. People there will be weeping and grinding their teeth.

43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in their Father's kingdom. Those who have ears should hear."

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure that somebody hid in a field, which someone else found and covered up. Full of joy, the finder sold everything and bought that field.

45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls.

46 When he found one very precious pearl, he went and sold all that he owned and bought it.

47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that people threw into the lake and gathered all kinds of fish.

48 When it was full, they pulled it to the shore, where they sat down and put the good fish together into containers. But the bad fish they threw away.

49 That's the way it will be at the end of the present age. The angels will go out and separate the evil people from the righteous people,

50 and will throw the evil ones into a burning furnace. People there will be weeping and grinding their teeth.

51 "Have you understood all these things?" Jesus asked. They said to him, "Yes."

52 Then he said to them, "Therefore, every legal expert who has been trained as a disciple for the kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings old and new things out of their treasure chest."

53 When Jesus finished these parables, he departed.

54 When he came to his hometown, he taught the people in their synagogue. They were surprised and said, "Where did he get this wisdom? Where did he get the power to work miracles?

55 Isn't he the carpenter's son? Isn't his mother named Mary? Aren't James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas his brothers?

56 And his sisters, aren't they here with us? Where did this man get all this?"

57 They were repulsed by him and fell into sin. But Jesus said to them, "Prophets are honored everywhere except in their own hometowns and in their own households."

58 He was unable to do many miracles there because of their disbelief.

Matthew 14:1-12

1 At that time Herod the ruler heard the news about Jesus.

2 He said to his servants, "This is John the Baptist. He's been raised from the dead. This is why these miraculous powers are at work through him."

3 Herod had arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison because of Herodias, the wife of Herod's brother Philip.

4 That's because John told Herod, "It's against the law for you to marry her."

5 Although Herod wanted to kill him, he feared the crowd because they thought John was a prophet.

6 But at Herod's birthday party Herodias' daughter danced in front of the guests and thrilled Herod.

7 Then he swore to give her anything she asked.

8 At her mother's urging, the girl said, "Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a plate."

9 Although the king was upset, because of his solemn pledge and his guests he commanded that they give it to her.

10 Then he had John beheaded in prison.

11 They brought his head on a plate and gave it to the young woman, and she brought it to her mother.

12 But John's disciples came and took his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus what had happened.