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The Preaching of John the Baptist

¹ The beginning of the facts regarding the good news of ^(F1)Jesus Christ, ^(C1)the Son of God.

^2 (C1)As it is written and forever remains in the writings of the prophet Isaiah:

"^(C2)BEHOLD, I SEND MY MESSENGER AHEAD OF YOU,
WHO WILL PREPARE YOUR WAY— ^(VR1)

^3 (C1)A VOICE OF ONE SHOUTING IN THE WILDERNESS,
'PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD,
^(F1)MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!'" ^(VR1)

The Baptism of Jesus

^9 (C1)In those days Jesus ^(C2)came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. ^{(VR1)10 (F1)}Immediately coming up out of the water, he (John) saw the heavens torn open, and the ^(F2)Spirit like a dove descending on Him (Jesus);¹¹ and a ^(F1)voice came out of heaven saying: "^(C1)You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased and delighted!" ^(VR1)

^12 (C1)Immediately the Holy Spirit forced Him out into the wilderness.¹³ He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted to do evil by ^(C1)Satan; and He was with the wild animals, and the angels ministered continually to Him.

Jesus Preaches in Galilee

^14 (C1)Now after John the Baptist was arrested and ^(F1)taken into custody, Jesus went to Galilee, ^(C2)preaching the good news of the kingdom of God,¹⁵ and saying, "^(C1)The appointed period of time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; ^(C2)repent change your inner self—your old way of thinking, regret past sins, live your life in a way that proves repentance; seek God's purpose for your life and believe with a deep, abiding trust in the good news regarding salvation."

^16 (C1)As Jesus was walking by the shore of the ^(F1)Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon Peter and Simon's brother, ^(F2)Andrew, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen.¹⁷ And Jesus said to them, "^(F1)Follow Me as My disciples, accepting Me as your Master and Teacher and walking the same path of life that I walk, and I will make you fishers of men."¹⁸ Immediately they left their nets and followed Him becoming His disciples, believing and trusting in Him and following His example.¹⁹ Going on a little farther, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John, who were also in the boat mending and cleaning the nets.²⁰ Immediately Jesus called to them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired workers, and went away to follow Him becoming His disciples, believing and trusting in Him and following His example.

^21 (C1)They went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath ^(C2)Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. ^{(VR1)22 (C1)}They were completely amazed at His teaching; because He was teaching them as one having God-given authority, and not as the scribes.²³ Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out terribly from the depths of his throat,²⁴ saying, "^(F1)(C1)What business do You have with us, Jesus of ^(C2)Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—^(C3)the Holy One of God!"²⁵ Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet (muzzled, silenced), and come out of him!"²⁶ The unclean spirit threw the man into convulsions, and screeching with a loud voice, came out of him.²⁷ They were all so ^(C1)amazed that they debated and questioned each other, saying, "What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits (demons), and they obey Him."²⁸ Immediately the news about Him spread everywhere throughout the district surrounding Galilee.

Healing the Crowds

^29 (C1)And immediately they ^(C2)left the synagogue and went into the house of Simon Peter and Andrew, accompanied by James and John. ^(VR1)30 Now Simon's mother-in-law was lying sick with a fever; and immediately they told Him about her.³¹ Jesus went to her, and taking her by the hand, raised her up; and the fever left her, and she began to serve them as her guests.

^32 (C1)Now when evening came, ^(C2)after the sun had set and the Sabbath Day had ended, in a steady stream they were bringing to Him all who were sick and those who were ^(C3)under the power of demons,³³ until the whole ^(C1)city had gathered together at the door.³⁴ And Jesus ^(C1)healed many who were suffering with various diseases; and He drove out many demons, but would not allow the demons to speak, because they knew Him recognizing Him as the Son of God.

^35 (C1)Early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went out to a secluded place, and ^(C2)was praying there.³⁶ Simon Peter and his companions searched everywhere, looking anxiously for Him,³⁷ and they found Him and said, "Everybody is looking for You!"³⁸ He replied, "Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so I may preach there also; that is why I came from the Father."³⁹ So ^(C1)He went throughout Galilee, preaching the gospel in their synagogues and casting out demons.

^40 (C1)And a leper came to Him, begging Him and ^(C2)falling on his knees before Him, saying, "If You are willing, You are able to make me ^(F1)clean." ^(VR1)41 Moved with compassion for his suffering, Jesus reached out with His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed."⁴² The leprosy left him immediately and he was cleansed completely healed and restored to health.⁴³ And Jesus deeply moved admonished him sternly and sent him away immediately,⁴⁴ saying to him, "^(C1)See that you tell no one anything about this; but ^(C1)go, show yourself to the priest and ^(C2)offer for your purification what Moses commanded, as proof to them that you are really healed." ^(VR1)45 But he went out and began to ^(C1)proclaim it freely and to ^(C1)spread the news of his healing, to such an extent that Jesus could no longer openly enter a city where He was known, but stayed out in the unpopulated places; yet ^(C2)people were still coming to Him from everywhere.