Study Desk

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, ^(C1)the Son of God,

^(C1)just as it is written in Isaiah the prophet: "^(C2)BEHOLD, I AM SENDING MY MESSENGER ^(F1)BEFORE YOU, WHO WILL PREPARE YOUR WAY;

^(C1)THE VOICE OF ONE CALLING ^(F1)OUT IN THE WILDERNESS, 'PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!'"

John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, ^(F1)(C1)preaching a baptism of repentance for the ^(C2)forgiveness of sins.

And all the country of Judea was going out to him, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.

John was clothed with camel's hair and wore ^(C1)a leather belt around his waist, and ^(F1)his diet was locusts and wild honey.

And he was ^(F1)preaching, saying, "After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to bend down and untie the straps of His sandals.

"I baptized you ^(F1)with water; but He will baptize you ^(F1)with the Holy Spirit."

^(C1)In those days Jesus ^(C2)came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

And immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens ^(F1)opening, and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon Him;

and a voice came from the heavens: "^(C1)You are My beloved Son; in You I ^(F1)am well pleased."

^(C1)And immediately the Spirit ^(*)brought Him out into the wilderness.

And He was in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by ^(C1)Satan; and He was with the wild animals, and the angels were serving Him.

^(C1)Now after John was ^(F1)taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, ^(F2)(C2)preaching the gospel of God,

and saying, "^(C1)The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; ^(C2)repent and ^(F1)believe in the gospel."

^(C1)As He was going along the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen.

And Jesus said to them, "Follow Me, and I will have you become fishers of people."

Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.

And going on a little farther, He saw ^(F1)James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John, ^(F2)who were also in the boat mending the nets.

Immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and went away ^(F1)to follow Him.

^(C1)They ^(*)went into Capernaum; and immediately on the Sabbath Jesus ^(C2)entered the synagogue and began to teach.

And ^(C1)they were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out,

saying, "^(C1)What ^(F1)business do You have with us, Jesus ^(F2)of ^(C2)Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are: ^(C3)the Holy One of God!"

And Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"

After throwing him into convulsions and crying out with a loud voice, the unclean spirit came out of him.

And they were all ^(C1)amazed, so they debated among themselves, saying, "What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him."

Immediately the news about Him spread everywhere into all the surrounding region of Galilee.

^(C1)And immediately after they left ^(C2)the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with ^(F1)James and John.

Now Simon's mother-in-law was lying sick with a fever; and they immediately ^(*)spoke to ^(F1)Jesus about her.

And He came to her and raised her up, taking her by the hand, and the fever left her, and she served them.

Now ^(C1)when evening came, ^(C2)after the sun had set, they began bringing to Him all who were ill and those who were ^(C3)demon-possessed.

And the whole ^(C1)city had gathered at the door.

And He ^(C1)healed many who were ill with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew ^(F1)who He was.

^(C1)And in the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and ^(C2)prayed there for a time.

Simon and his companions eagerly searched for Him;

and they found Him and ^(*)said to Him, "Everyone is looking for You."

He ^(*)said to them, "Let's go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may also ^(F1)preach there; for this is why I came."

^(C1)And He went into their synagogues ^(F1)preaching throughout Galilee, and casting out the demons.

^(C1)And a man with ^(F1)leprosy ^(*)came to ^(F2)Jesus, imploring Him and ^(C2)kneeling down, and saying to Him, "If You are willing, You can make me clean."

Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out with His hand and touched him, and ^(*)said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed."

And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed.

And He sternly warned him and immediately sent him away,

and He ^(*)said to him, "^(C1)See that you say nothing to anyone; but ^(C1)go, show yourself to the priest and ^(C2)offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."

But he went out and began to ^(C1)proclaim it ^(F1)freely and to ^(C1)spread the news around, to such an extent that ^(F2)Jesus could no longer publicly enter a city, but ^(F3)stayed out in unpopulated areas; and ^(C2)they were coming to Him from everywhere.