THE MESSIAH’S HERALD

1 The beginninga of the gospelb of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.A,c 2 As it is written in Isaiahd the prophet:B,e

See, I am sending my messengerf ahead of you;

he will prepare your way.C,D,g

3 A voice of one crying out in the wilderness:h

Prepare the way for the Lord;i

make his paths straight!E,j

4 John came baptizingF,k in the wildernessl and proclaiming a baptism of repentancem for the forgivenessn of sins.o 5 The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalemp were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the Jordanq River, confessingr their sins.s 6 John wore a camel-hair garment with a leather belt around his waist and ate locustst and wild honey.u

7 He proclaimed, “One who is more powerfulv than I am is coming after me.w I am not worthyx to stoop down and untie the strap of his sandals.y 8 I baptize you withG water,z but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”aa

THE BAPTISM OF JESUS

9 Inab those days Jesus came from Nazarethac in Galileead and was baptized in the Jordan by John. 10 As soon as he came up out of the water, he saw the heavensae being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voiceaf came from heaven:ag “You are my belovedah Son;ai with you I am well-pleased.”aj

THE TEMPTATION OF JESUS

12 Immediatelyak the Spirital droveam him into the wilderness.an 13 He was in the wilderness forty days, being temptedao by Satan.ap He was with the wild animals,aq and the angelsar were serving him.

MINISTRY IN GALILEE

14 Afteras John was arrested,at Jesus went to Galilee,au proclaimingav the good newsH,I,aw of God:ax 15 “The timeay is fulfilled, and the kingdom of Godaz has comeba near.bb Repentbc and believebd the good news!”

THE FIRST DISCIPLES

16 Asbe he passed alongside the Sea of Galilee,bf he saw Simonbg and Andrew,bh Simon’s brother, casting a net into the seabi—for they were fishermen. 17 “Follow me,”bj Jesus told them, “and I will make you fish forJ,bk people.”bl 18 Immediately they left their nets and followedbm him.bn 19 Going on a little farther, he saw Jamesbo the son of Zebedeebp and his brother Johnbq in a boat putting their nets in order. 20 Immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.br

DRIVING OUT AN UNCLEAN SPIRIT

21 Theybs went into Capernaum,bt and right away he entered the synagoguebu on the Sabbathbv and began to teach.bw 22 They were astonishedbx at his teachingby because he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not like the scribes.

23 Just then a man with an uncleanbz spiritca was in their synagogue.cb He cried out, 24 “What do you have to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?cc Have you come to destroycd us? I know who you are—the Holyce One of God!”cf

25 Jesus rebukedcg him saying, “Be silent,ch and come out of him!” 26 And the unclean spirit threw him into convulsions,ci shouted with a loud voice, and came out of him.

27 They were all amazed,cj and so they began to askck each other, “What is this? A new teachingcl with authority!K,cm He commands even the uncleancn spirits,co and they obey him.” 28 At once the news about him spread throughout the entire vicinity of Galilee.a

HEALINGS AT CAPERNAUM

29 Asb soon as they left the synagogue,c they went into Simond and Andrew’se housef with Jamesg and John.h 30 Simon’s mother-in-law was lying in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. 31 So he went to her, took her by the hand, and raised her up.i The feverj left her,A and she began to servek them.l

32 Whenm evening came, after the sun had set, they brought to him all those who were sickn and demon-possessed.o 33 The whole town was assembled at the door, 34 and he healedp many who were sick with various diseasesq and drove outr many demons.s And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.t

PREACHING IN GALILEE

35 Veryu early in the morning, while it was still dark, he got up, went out, and made his way to a deserted place;v and there he was praying.w 36 Simonx and his companions searched for him, 37 and when they found him they said, “Everyone is looking for you.”

38 And he said to them, “Let’s go on to the neighboring villages so that I may preachy there too. This is why I have come.”

A MAN CLEANSED

39 He went into all of Galilee,z preaching in their synagoguesaa and driving out demons. 40 Thenab a man with leprosy* ac came to him and, on his knees,C,ad begged him, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”ae 41 Moved with compassion,D,af Jesus reached out his hand and touchedag him. “I am willing,” he told him. “Be made clean.” 42 Immediately the leprosyah left him, and he was made clean. 43 Then he sternly warnedai him and sent him awayaj at once, 44 telling him, “See that you say nothing to anyone;ak but go and showal yourself to the priest,am and offeran what Moses commanded for your cleansing,ao as a testimonyap to them.”E 45 Yet he went out and began to proclaimaq it widely and to spread the news,ar with the result that Jesus could no longer enter a town openly. But he was out in deserted places, and they came to him from everywhere.