Matthew 8–9

8TH CHAPTER

Jesus Cures a Man with a Skin Disease—Mark 1:40–45; Luke 5:12–16

¹When Jesus came down from the mountain, large crowds followed him. 

²A man with a serious skin disease came and bowed down in front of him. The man said to Jesus, “Sir, if you’re willing, you can make me clean.”^a

³Jesus reached out, touched him, and said, “I’m willing. So be clean!” Immediately, his skin disease went away, and he was clean. 

⁴Jesus said to him, “Don’t tell anyone about this! Instead, show yourself to the priest. Then offer the sacrifice Moses commanded as proof to people that you are clean.” 

A Believing Army Officer—Luke 7:1–10

⁵When Jesus went to Capernaum, a Roman army officer came to beg him for help. ⁶The officer said, “Sir, my servant is lying at home paralyzed and in terrible pain.” 

⁷Jesus said to him, “I’ll come to heal him.” 

⁸The officer responded, “Sir, I don’t deserve to have you come into my house. But just give a command, and my servant will be healed. ⁹As you know, I’m in a chain of command and have soldiers at my command. I tell one of them, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and another, ‘Come!’ and he comes. I tell my servant, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.” 

¹⁰Jesus was amazed when he heard this. He said to those who were following him, “I can guarantee this truth: I haven’t found faith as great as this in anyone in Israel. ¹¹I can guarantee that many will come from all over the world. They will eat with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. ¹²The citizens of that kingdom will be thrown outside into the darkness. People will cry and be in extreme pain there. 

¹³Jesus told the officer, “Go! What you believed will be done for you.” And at that moment the servant was healed. 

Jesus Cures Peter’s Mother-in-Law and Many Others—Mark 1:29–34; Luke 4:38–41

¹⁴When Jesus went to Peter’s house, he saw Peter’s mother-in-law in bed with a fever. ¹⁵Jesus touched her hand, and the fever went away. So she got up and prepared a meal for him. 

¹⁶In the evening the people brought him many who were possessed by demons. He forced the ⸤evil⸥ spirits out of people with a command and cured everyone who was sick. ¹⁷So what the prophet Isaiah had said came true: “He took away our weaknesses and removed our diseases.” 

¹⁸Now, when Jesus saw a crowd around him, he ordered ⸤his disciples⸥ to cross to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. 

What It Takes to Be a Disciple—Luke 9:57–62

¹⁹An expert in Moses’ Teachings came to him and said, “Teacher, I’ll follow you wherever you go.” 

²⁰Jesus told him, “Foxes have holes, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to sleep.” 

²¹Another disciple said to him, “Sir, first let me go to bury my father.” 

²²But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.” 

Jesus Calms the Sea—Mark 4:35–41; Luke 8:22–25

²³Jesus’ disciples went with him as he left in a boat. ²⁴Suddenly, a severe storm came across the sea. The waves were covering the boat. Yet, Jesus was sleeping. 

²⁵So they woke him up, saying, “Lord! Save us! We’re going to die!” 

²⁶Jesus said to them, “Why do you cowards have so little faith?” Then he got up, gave an order to the wind and the sea, and the sea became very calm. 

²⁷The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!” 

Jesus Cures Two Demon-Possessed Men—Mark 5:1–20; Luke 8:26–39

²⁸When he arrived in the territory of the Gadarenes on the other side ⸤of the Sea of Galilee⸥, two men met him. They were possessed by demons and had come out of the tombs. No one could travel along that road because the men were so dangerous. 

²⁹They shouted, “Why are you bothering us now, Son of God? Did you come here to torture us before it is time?” 

³⁰A large herd of pigs was feeding in the distance. ³¹The demons begged Jesus, “If you’re going to force us out, send us into that herd of pigs.” 

³²Jesus said to them, “Go!” The demons came out and went into the pigs. Suddenly, the whole herd rushed down the cliff into the sea and died in the water. ³³Those who took care of the pigs ran into the city. There they reported everything, especially about the men possessed by demons. 

³⁴Everyone from the city went to meet Jesus. When they saw him, they begged him to leave their territory. 

9TH CHAPTER

Jesus Forgives Sins—Mark 2:1–12; Luke 5:17–26

¹Jesus got into a boat, crossed the sea, and came to his own city. ²Some people brought him a paralyzed man on a stretcher. 

When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Cheer up, friend! Your sins are forgiven.” 

³Then some of the experts in Moses’ Teachings thought, “He’s dishonoring God.” 

⁴Jesus knew what they were thinking. He asked them, “Why are you thinking evil things? ⁵Is it easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? ⁶I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, pick up your stretcher, and go home.” 

⁷So the man got up and went home. ⁸When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe and praised God for giving such authority to humans. 

Jesus Chooses Matthew to Be a Disciple—Mark 2:13–17; Luke 5:27–32

⁹When Jesus was leaving that place, he saw a man sitting in a tax office. The man’s name was Matthew. Jesus said to him, “Follow me!” So Matthew got up and followed him. 

¹⁰Later Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house. Many tax collectors and sinners came to eat with Jesus and his disciples. ¹¹The Pharisees saw this and asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 

¹²When Jesus heard that, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor; those who are sick do. ¹³Learn what this means: ‘I want mercy, not sacrifices.’ I’ve come to call sinners, not people who think they have God’s approval.” 

Jesus Is Questioned about Fasting—Mark 2:18–22; Luke 5:33–39

¹⁴Then John’s disciples came to Jesus. They said, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast often but your disciples never do?” 

¹⁵Jesus replied, “Can wedding guests be sad while the groom is still with them? The time will come when the groom will be taken away from them. Then they will fast. 

¹⁶“No one patches an old coat with a new piece of cloth that will shrink. When the patch shrinks, it will rip away from the coat, and the tear will become worse. ¹⁷Nor do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins burst, the wine runs out, and the skins are ruined. Rather, people pour new wine into fresh skins, and both are saved.” 

A Synagogue Leader’s Daughter and the Woman with Chronic Bleeding—Mark 5:21–43; Luke 8:40–56

¹⁸A ⸤synagogue⸥ leader came to Jesus while he was talking to John’s disciples. He bowed down in front of Jesus and said, “My daughter just died. Come, lay your hand on her, and she will live.” 

¹⁹Jesus and his disciples got up and followed the man. 

²⁰Then a woman came up behind Jesus and touched the edge of his clothes. She had been suffering from chronic bleeding for twelve years. ²¹She thought, “If I only touch his clothes, I’ll get well.” 

²²When Jesus turned and saw her he said, “Cheer up, daughter! Your faith has made you well.” At that very moment the woman became well. 

²³Jesus came to the ⸤synagogue⸥ leader’s house. He saw flute players and a noisy crowd. ²⁴He said to them, “Leave! The girl is not dead. She’s sleeping.” But they laughed at him. 

²⁵When the crowd had been put outside, Jesus went in, took her hand, and the girl came back to life. 

²⁶The news about this spread throughout that region. 

Jesus Heals Two Blind Men

²⁷When Jesus left that place, two blind men followed him. They shouted, “Have mercy on us, Son of David.” 

²⁸Jesus went into a house, and the blind men followed him. He said to them, “Do you believe that I can do this?” 

“Yes, Lord,” they answered. 

²⁹He touched their eyes and said, “What you have believed will be done for you!” ³⁰Then they could see. 

He warned them, “Don’t let anyone know about this!” ³¹But they went out and spread the news about him throughout that region. 

Jesus Forces a Demon out of a Man Who Couldn’t Talk

³²As they were leaving, some people brought a man to Jesus. The man was unable to talk because he was possessed by a demon. ³³But as soon as the demon was forced out, the man began to speak. 

The crowds were amazed and said, “We have never seen anything like this in Israel!” 

³⁴But the Pharisees said, “He forces demons out of people with the help of the ruler of demons.” 

Jesus’ Compassion for People

³⁵Jesus went to all the towns and villages. He taught in the synagogues and spread the Good News of the kingdom. He also cured every disease and sickness. 

³⁶When he saw the crowds, he felt sorry for them. They were troubled and helpless like sheep without a shepherd. ³⁷Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is large, but the workers are few. ³⁸So ask the Lord who gives this harvest to send workers to harvest his crops.”