REJECTION AT NAZARETH

6 Heaq left there and came to his hometown,ar and his disciplesas followed him. 2 When the Sabbathat came, he began to teachau in the synagogue,av and many who heard him were astonished. “Where did this man get these things?” they said. “What is this wisdomaw that has been given to him, and how are these miraclesax performed by his hands? 3 Isn’t this the carpenter,ay the son of Mary,az and the brother of James,ba Joses, Judas,bb and Simon? And aren’t his sisters here with us?” So they were offendedbc by him.

4 Jesus said to them, “A prophetbd is not without honorbe except in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his household.” 5 He was not able to do a miraclebf there, except that he laid his hands onbg a few sickbh people and healedbi them. 6 And he was amazedbj at their unbelief.bk He was going around the villages teaching.bl

COMMISSIONING THE TWELVE

7 Hebm summonedbn the Twelvebo and began to sendbp them out in pairs and gave them authority over uncleanbq spirits.br 8 He instructed them to take nothing for the road except a staff—no bread, no traveling bag,bs no money in their belts, 9 but to wear sandals and not put on an extra shirt.bt 10 He said to them, “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that place. 11 If any place does not welcomea you or listen to you, when you leave there, shake the dust off your feetb as a testimonyc against them.”A 12 So they went out and preachedd that people should repent.e 13 They drove out many demons,f anointedg many sickh people with oili and healed them.j

JOHN THE BAPTIST BEHEADED

14 Kingk Herodl heard about it, because Jesus’s namem had become well known. SomeB said, “John the Baptistn has been raised from the dead,o and that’s why miraculous powersp are at workq in him.” 15 But others said, “He’s Elijah.”r Still others said, “He’s a prophet, like one of the prophets from long ago.”s

16 When Herodt heard of it, he said, “John,u the one I beheaded, has been raised!”v

17 Forw Herod himself had given orders to arrest John and to chainx him in prison on account of Herodias,y his brother Philip’s wife, because he had married her.z 18 John had been telling Herod, “It is not lawfulaa for you to have your brother’s wife.”ab 19 So Herodias held a grudge against him and wanted to killac him. But she could not, 20 because Herod fearedad John and protected him, knowing he was a righteousae and holyaf man. When Herod heard him he would be very perplexed,C,ag and yet he liked to listen to him.ah

21 An opportune time came on his birthday, when Herod gave a banquetai for his nobles,aj military commanders,ak and the leading men of Galilee.al 22 When Herodias’s own daughterD came in and danced,am she pleased Herod and his guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask me whatever you want, and I’ll give it to you.” 23 He promised her with anan oath:ao “Whatever you ask me I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”ap

24 She went out and said to her mother, “What should I ask for?”

“John the Baptist’saq head,” she said.

25 At once she hurried to the king and said, “I want you to give me John the Baptist’sar head on a platteras immediately.” 26 Although the king was deeply distressed,at because of his oathsau and the guestsE he did not want to refuseav her. 27 The king immediately sent for an executioner and commanded him to bring John’s head. So he went and beheaded him in prison, 28 brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When John’s disciplesaw heard about it, they came and removed his corpse and placed it in a tomb.ax

FEEDING OF THE FIVE THOUSAND

30 Theay apostlesaz gathered around Jesus and reported to him all that they had done and taught. 31 He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a remote place and rest for a while.” For many people were coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.

32 So they went away in the boat by themselves to a remote place, 33 but many saw them leaving and recognized them, and they ran on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them.F

34 When he went ashore, he saw a large crowd and had compassionba on them, because they were like sheepbb without a shepherd. Then he began to teach them many things.

35 When it grew late, his disciplesbc approached him and said, “This place is deserted,bd and it is already late. 36 Send them away so that they can go into the surrounding countryside and villages to buy themselves something to eat.”

37 “You give them something to eat,” he responded.

They said to him, “Should we go and buy two hundred denariiG worth of bread and give them something to eat?”

38 He asked them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”

When they found out they said, “Five, and two fish.” 39 Then he instructed them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. 41 He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he blessed and broke the loaves. He kept giving them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. 42 Everyone ate and was satisfied.be 43 They picked up twelve baskets full of pieces of bread and fish. 44 Now those who had eaten the loaves were five thousand men.

WALKING ON THE WATER

45 Immediatelybf he made his disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side, to Bethsaida,bg while he dismissed the crowd. 46 After he said good-bye to them, he went away to the mountaina to pray.b 47 Well into the night, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and he was alone on the land. 48 He saw them strainingc at the oars,A because the wind was against them. Very early in the morningB he came toward them walking on the sea and wanted to pass by them. 49 When they saw him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghostd and cried out, 50 because they all saw him and were terrified.e Immediately he spoke with them and said, “Have courage!f It is I.g Don’t be afraid.”h 51 Then he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased. They were completely astounded, 52 because they had not understood about the loaves. Instead, their hearts were hardened.i

MIRACULOUS HEALINGS

53 When they had crossed over, they came to shore at Gennesaretj and anchored there.

54 As they got out of the boat, people immediately recognized him. 55 They hurried throughout that region and began to carry the sickk on mats to wherever they heard he was. 56 Wherever he went, into villages, towns, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him that they might touch just the endl of his robe.m And everyone who touched it was healed.

THE TRADITIONS OF THE ELDERS

7 Then Phariseeso and some of the scribesp who had come from Jerusalemq gathered around him. 2 They observed that some of his disciples were eating bread with uncleanr—that is, unwashed—hands. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, keeping the tradition of the elders. 4 When they come from the marketplace,s they do not eat unless they have washed.t And there are many other customs they have received and keep, like the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and dining couches.c,u) 5 So the Phariseesv and the scribesw asked him, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders,x instead of eating bread with ceremonially uncleanD hands?”

6 He answered them, “Isaiahy prophesiedz correctly about you hypocrites,aa as it is written:ab

This people honorsac me with their lips,

but their heart is far from me.

7 They worship me in vain,

teachingad as doctrinesae human commands.E,af

8 Abandoning the command of God, you hold on to human tradition.”F 9 He also said to them, “You have a fine way of invalidating God’s command in order to set upG your tradition! 10 For Mosesag said: Honor your father and your mother;H,ah and Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must be put to death.I,ai 11 But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or mother: Whatever benefitaj you might have received from me is corban’ ” (that is, an offeringak devoted to God), 12 “you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. 13 You nullify the word of Godal by your tradition that you have handedam down. And you do many other similar things.”

14 Summoningan the crowd again, he told them, “Listen to me, all of you, and understand:ao 15 Nothing that goes into a person from outside can defile him but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.” *

17 When he went into the house away from the crowd, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 He said to them, “Are you also as lacking in understanding? Don’t you realize that nothing going into a person from the outside can defile him? 19 For it doesn’t go into his heart but into the stomachap and is eliminated” (thus he declared all foods cleanK,aq). 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of people’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immoralities,ar thefts, murders,as 22 adulteries,at greed,au evil actions, deceit,av self-indulgence,aw envy,L slander,ax pride,ay and foolishness.az 23 All these evil things come from within and defile a person.”

A GENTILE MOTHER’S FAITH

24 He got up and departed fromba there to the region of Tyre.M,bb He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it, but he could not escape notice. 25 Instead, immediately after hearing about him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirita came and fell at his feet.b 26 The woman was a Gentile,A,c a Syrophoenician by birth, and she was asking him to cast the demond out of her daughter. 27 He said to her, “Let the children be fed first, because it isn’t right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”e

28 But she replied to him, “Lord,f even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”

29 Then he told her, “Because of this reply, you may go. The demon has left your daughter.” 30 When she went back to her home, she found her child lying on the bed, and the demon was gone.

JESUS DOES EVERYTHING WELL

31 Again, leaving the region of Tyre,g he went by way of Sidon to the Sea of Galilee,h throughB the region of the Decapolis.i 32 They brought to him a deafj man who had difficulty speakingk and begged Jesus to lay his hand onl him. 33 So he took him away from the crowd in private. After putting his fingers in the man’s ears and spitting,m he touched his tongue. 34 Looking up to heaven,n he sighed deeply and said to him, “Ephphatha!”c (that is, “Be opened!”). 35 Immediately his ears were opened,o his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak clearly.p 36 He ordered them to tell no one,q but the more he ordered them, the more they proclaimed it.r

37 They were extremely astonished and said, “He has done everything well.s He even makes the deaft hear and the mute speak.”u

FEEDING FOUR THOUSAND

8 Inv those days there was again a large crowd, and they had nothing to eat. He calledw the disciplesx and said to them, 2 “I have compassiony on the crowd, because they’ve already stayed with me three days and have nothing to eat. 3 If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way,z and some of them have come a long distance.”

4 His disciples answered him, “Where can anyone get enough bread here in this desolate place to feedaa these people?”

5 “How many loaves do you have?” he asked them.

“Seven,” they said. 6 He commanded the crowd to sit down on the ground. Taking the seven loaves, he gave thanks, brokeab them, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people. So they served them to the crowd. 7 They also had a few small fish, and after he had blessed them, he said these were to be served as well. 8 They ate and were satisfied. Then they collected seven large baskets of leftover pieces. 9 About four thousand were there. He dismissed them. 10 And he immediately got into the boat with his disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.

THE LEAVEN OF THE PHARISEES AND HEROD

11 Theac Phariseesad came and began to argue with him, demanding of him a signae from heavenaf to testag him. 12 Sighing deeply in his spirit,ah he said, “Why does this generationai demand a sign? Truly I tell you,aj no sign will be given to this generation.” 13 Then he left them, got back into the boat, and went to the other side.

14 The disciples had forgotten to take bread and had only one loaf with them in the boat. 15 Thenak he gave them strict orders: “Watch out! Beware of the leavenD,al of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”am 16 They were discussing among themselves that they did not have any bread. 17 Aware of this, he said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact you have no bread? Don’t you understand or comprehend? Do you have hardened hearts?an 18 Do you have eyes and not see; do you have ears and not hear?E,ao And do you not remember?ap 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of leftovers did you collect?”

“Twelve,” they told him.

20 “When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many baskets full of pieces did you collect?”

“Seven,” they said.

21 And he said to them, “Don’t you understand yet?”aq

HEALING A BLIND MAN

22 They came to Bethsaida.ar They brought a blindas man to him and begged him to touch him. 23 He took the blind man by the hand and brought him out of the village. Spittingat on his eyes and laying his hands onau him, he asked him, “Do you see anything?”

24 He looked up and said, “I see people—they look like trees walking.”av

25 Again Jesus placed his hands on the man’s eyes. The man looked intently and his sight was restored and he saw everything clearly. 26 Then he senta him home, saying, “Don’t even go into the village.”A,b

PETER’S CONFESSION OF THE MESSIAH

27 Jesusc went out with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the road he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?”

28 They answered him, “John the Baptist;d others, Elijah; still others, one of the prophets.”e

29 “But you,” he asked them, “who do you say that I am?”

Peterf answered him, “You are the Messiah.”g 30 And he strictly warnedh them to tell no one about him.

HIS DEATH AND RESURRECTION PREDICTED

31 Theni he began to teach them that it was necessary for the Son of Manj to suffer many things and be rejectedk by the elders,l chief priests, and scribes,m be killed, and risen after three days.o 32 He spoke openly about this. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning around and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan!p You are not thinking about God’s concernsB but human concerns.”

TAKE UP YOUR CROSS

34 Calling the crowd along with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself,q take up his cross,r and follow me.s 35 For whoever wants to savet his life will lose it,u but whoever losesv his lifew because of mex and the gospely will save it.z 36 For what does it benefitaa someone to gainab the whole worldac and yet losead his life?ae 37 What can anyone give in exchange for his life?af 38 For whoever is ashamedag of me and my wordsah in this adulterous and sinfulai generation,aj the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the gloryak of his Fatheral with the holyam angels.”an