Matthew 12

12:29  Or how can one enter into the house of the strong [man,] and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong [man]? and then he will spoil his house.

12:30  He that is not with me is against me¹, and he that gathereth not with me scattereth².

12:31  Therefore I say unto you, Every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men¹; but the blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven.

12:32  And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him¹; but whosoever shall speak against the Holy Spirit², it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in that which is to come.

12:33  Either make the tree good, and its fruit good¹; or make the tree corrupt, and its fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by its fruit.

"Be honest for once; represent the tree as good, and its fruit is good, or the tree as evil, and its fruit as evil; either say that I am evil, and that my works are evil, or, if you admit that my works are good, admit that I am good also and not in league with Beelzebub."

12:34  Ye offspring of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things¹? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.

"What is the well will be in the bucket."

12:35  The good man out of his good treasure bringeth forth good things: and the evil man out of his evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.

12:36  And I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment¹.

12:37  For by thy words thou shalt be justified¹, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

12:38  Then certain of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, Teacher, we would see a sign from thee¹.

"In Jewish superstition it was held that demons and false gods could give signs "on earth", but only the true God "from heaven"."

The request was the renewal of the one which had assailed him at thebeginning of his ministry ( John 2:18 ), and re-echoed the wildernesstemptation to advance himself by vulgar display rather than by thepower of a life of divine holiness.

12:39  But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign¹; and there shall no sign be given it but the sign of Jonah the prophet²:

12:40  for as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale¹; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights² in the heart of the earth³.

12:41  The men of Nineveh shall stand up in the judgment¹ with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonah²; and behold, a greater than Jonah is here³.

12:42  The queen of the south¹ shall rise up in the judgment² with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the ends of the earth³ to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, a greater than Solomon is here⁴.

12:43  But the unclean spirit, when he is gone out of the man, passeth through waterless places, seeking rest, and findeth it not².

12:44  Then he saith, I will return into my house¹ whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished².

12:45  Then¹ goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits² more evil than himself³, and they enter in and dwell there⁴: and the last state of that man becometh worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this evil generation⁵.

12:46  While he was yet speaking to the multitudes, behold, his mother and his brethren stood without¹, seeking to speak to him.

12:47  And one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without¹, seeking to speak to thee².

12:48  But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren?

12:49  And he stretched forth his hand towards his disciples, and said, Behold, my mother and my brethren!

12:50  For whosoever shall do the will of my Father who is in heaven, he is my brother, and sister, and mother.