1 And it came to
pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples,
he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities.
2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ,
he sent two of his disciples,
3 And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we
look for another?
4 Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again
those things which ye do hear and see:
5 The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers
are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and
the poor have the gospel preached to them.
6 And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.
7 And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes
concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see?
A reed shaken with the wind?
8 But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment?
behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings' houses.
9 But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto
you, and more than a prophet.
10 For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my
messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before
thee.
11 Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women
there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding
he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom
of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.
13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.
14 And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to
come.
15 He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
16 But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto
children sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows,
17 And saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced;
we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented.
18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say,
He hath a devil.
19 The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold
a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and
sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.
20 Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty
works were done, because they repented not:
21 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if
the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre
and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and
ashes.
22 But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and
Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.
23 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt
be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have
been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained
until this day.
24 But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the
land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.
25 At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father,
Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things
from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.
26 Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight.
27 All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man
knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the
Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal
him.
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and
I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and
lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Chapter 12
1 At that time
Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples
were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn, and to
eat.
2 But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold,
thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath
day.
3 But he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when
he was an hungred, and they that were with him;
4 How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread,
which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which
were with him, but only for the priests?
5 Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days
the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless?
6 But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than
the temple.
7 But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy,
and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless.
8 For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day.
9 And when he was departed thence, he went into their synagogue:
10 And, behold, there was a man which had his hand withered.
And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath
days? that they might accuse him.
11 And he said unto them, What man shall there be among you,
that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the
sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out?
12 How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it
is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.
13 Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he
stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, like as the other.
14 Then the Pharisees went out, and held a council against him,
how they might destroy him.
15 But when Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence:
and great multitudes followed him, and he healed them all;
16 And charged them that they should not make him known:
17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the
prophet, saying,
18 Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom
my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and
he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.
19 He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear
his voice in the streets.
20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall
he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
21 And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.
22 Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind,
and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb
both spake and saw.
23 And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the
son of David?
24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth
not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.
25 And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every
kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and
every city or house divided against itself shall not stand:
26 And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself;
how shall then his kingdom stand?
27 And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children
cast them out? therefore they shall be your judges.
28 But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom
of God is come unto you.
29 Or else how can one enter into a strong man's house, and
spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then
he will spoil his house.
30 He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth
not with me scattereth abroad.
31 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy
shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy
Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it
shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy
Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world,
neither in the world to come.
33 Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make
the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known
by his fruit.
34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good
things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
35 A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth
forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure
bringeth forth evil things.
36 But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak,
they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.
37 For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words
thou shalt be condemned.
38 Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered,
saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee.
39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous
generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be
given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:
40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's
belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights
in the heart of the earth.
41 The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation,
and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching
of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.
42 The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with
this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the
uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon;
and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.
43 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh
through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.
44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I
came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and
garnished.
45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits
more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there:
and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even
so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.
46 While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and
his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him.
47 Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren
stand without, desiring to speak with thee.
48 But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my
mother? and who are my brethren?
49 And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and
said, Behold my mother and my brethren!
50 For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in
heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother. |