Study Desk

When Jesus had finished giving orders to His 12 disciples, He moved on from there to teach and preach in their towns.^(a)

When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent a message by his disciples^(b)

and asked Him, "Are You the One who is to come, or should we expect someone else?"^(c)

Jesus replied to them, "Go and report to John what you hear and see:

the blind see, the lame walk, those with skin diseases are healed,^[a] the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor are told the good news.^(d)

And if anyone is not offended because of Me, he is blessed." ^(e)

As these men went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swaying in the wind?^(f)

What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothes? Look, those who wear soft clothes are in kings' palaces.

But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and far more than a prophet.^(g)

This is the one it is written about: Look, I am sending My messenger ahead of You; ^[b] he will prepare Your way before You. ^(h)[c]

"I assure you: Among those born of women no one greater than John the Baptist has appeared,^[d] but the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been suffering violence,^[e] and the violent have been seizing it by force.

For all the prophets and the Law prophesied until John;

if you're willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who is to come.⁽ⁱ⁾

Anyone who has ears^[f] should listen! ^(j)

"To what should I compare this generation? It's like children sitting in the marketplaces who call out to each other:

We played the flute for you, but you didn't dance; we sang a lament, but you didn't mourn! ^[g]

For John did not come eating or drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon!'^(k)

The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard,^(l) a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'^(m) Yet wisdom is vindicated^[h] by her deeds." ^[i]

Then He proceeded to denounce the towns where most of His miracles were done, because they did not repent:

"Woe to you, Chorazin!⁽ⁿ⁾ Woe to you, Bethsaida!^(o) For if the miracles that were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon,^(p) they would have repented in sackcloth and ashes long ago!

But I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment^(q) than for you.

And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will go down to Hades.^(r) For if the miracles that were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until today.

But I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom on the day of judgment than for you."

At that time Jesus said,^(s) "I praise^[j] You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to infants.^(t)

Yes, Father, because this was Your good pleasure.^[k]

All things have been entrusted to Me by My Father. No one knows^[l] the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son desires^[m] to reveal Him. ^(u)

"Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.^(v)

All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me,^(w) because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves.^(x)

For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

At that time Jesus passed through the grainfields on the Sabbath.^(a) His disciples^(b) were hungry and began to pick and eat some heads of grain.

But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, "Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful^(c) to do on the Sabbath!"

He said to them, "Haven't you read what David did when he and those who were with him were hungry—

how he entered the house of God, and they ate^[a] the sacred bread, which is not lawful for him or for those with him to eat, but only for the priests?^(d)

Or haven't you read in the Law^[b] that on Sabbath days the priests in the temple violate the Sabbath and are innocent?^(e)

But I tell you that something greater than the temple is here!^(f)

If you had known what this means: I desire mercy and not sacrifice , ^(g)[c] you would not have condemned the innocent.

For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath." ^(h)

Moving on from there, He entered their synagogue.⁽ⁱ⁾

There He saw a man who had a paralyzed hand. And in order to accuse Him they asked Him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"^(j)

But He said to them, "What man among you, if he had a sheep^[d] that fell into a pit on the Sabbath, wouldn't take hold of it and lift it out?^(k)

A man is worth far more than a sheep,^(l) so it is lawful to do what is good on the Sabbath."

Then He told the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he stretched it out, and it was restored,^(m) as good as the other.

But the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him.⁽ⁿ⁾

When Jesus became aware of this, He withdrew from there. Huge crowds^[e] followed Him, and He healed them all.^(o)

He warned them not to make Him known,^(p)

so that what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

Here is My Servant whom I have chosen, My beloved in whom My soul delights; I will put My Spirit on Him, and He will proclaim justice to the nations. ^(q)

He will not argue or shout, and no one will hear His voice in the streets.

He will not break a bruised reed, and He will not put out a smoldering wick, until He has led justice to victory. ^[f]

The nations will put their hope in His name. ^(r)[g]

Then a demon-possessed man^(s) who was blind and unable to speak was brought to Him. He healed him, so that the man^[h] could both speak and see.^(t)

And all the crowds were astounded and said, "Perhaps this is the Son of David!"^(u)

When the Pharisees heard this, they said, "The man drives out demons only by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons."^(v)

Knowing their thoughts,^(w) He told them: "Every kingdom divided against itself is headed for destruction, and no city or house divided against itself will stand.

If Satan^(x) drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?

And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, who is it your sons drive them out by? For this reason they will be your judges.^(y)

If I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you.^(z)

How can someone enter a strong man's house and steal his possessions unless he first ties up^(aa) the strong man? Then he can rob his house.

Anyone who is not with Me is against Me,^(ab) and anyone who does not gather with Me scatters.

Because of this,^(ac) I tell you, people will be forgiven every sin and blasphemy,^(ad) but the blasphemy against^[i] the Spirit will not be forgiven.^[j]

Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man,^(ae) it will be forgiven him. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the one to come. ^(af)

"Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad^[k] and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.^(ag)

Brood of vipers! How can you speak good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks from the overflow^(ah) of the heart.

A good man produces good things from his storeroom of good,^[l] and an evil man produces evil things from his storeroom of evil.^(ai)

I tell you that on the day of judgment^(aj) people will have to account^(ak) for every careless word they speak.^[m]

For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You."^(al)

But He answered them,^(am) "An evil and adulterous generation demands a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.^(an)

For as Jonah was in the belly of the huge fish three days and three nights,^(ao) so the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights.

The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it,^(ap) because they repented at Jonah's proclamation; and look—something greater than Jonah is here! ^(aq)

The queen of the south^(ar) will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and look—something greater than Solomon is here!

"When an unclean spirit comes out of a man, it roams through waterless places looking for rest but doesn't find any.^(as)

Then it says, ‘I'll go back to my house that I came from.' And returning, it finds the house vacant, swept, and put in order.

Then off it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and settle down there. As a result, that man's last condition is worse than the first.^(at) That's how it will also be with this evil generation."

He^(au) was still speaking to the crowds when suddenly His mother and brothers were standing outside wanting to speak to Him.^(av)

Someone told Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to You."^[n]

But He replied to the one who told Him, "Who is My mother and who are My brothers?"

And stretching out His hand toward His disciples,^(aw) He said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!

For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven, that person is My brother and sister and mother." ^(ax)

On that day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea.^(a)

Such large crowds gathered around Him that He got into a boat and sat down, while the whole crowd stood on the shore.^(b)

Then He told them many things in parables,^(c) saying: "Consider the sower who went out to sow.

As he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate them up.

Others fell on rocky ground, where there wasn't much soil, and they sprang up quickly since the soil wasn't deep.

But when the sun came up they were scorched, and since they had no root, they withered.

Others fell among thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them.

Still others fell on good ground and produced a crop: some 100, some 60, and some 30 times what was sown. ^(d)

Anyone who has ears^[a] should listen!" ^(e)

Then the disciples^(f) came up and asked Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?"^(g)

He answered them, "Because the secrets of the kingdom of heaven have been given for you to know,^(h) but it has not been given to them.

For whoever has, more will be given to him, and he will have more than enough. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.⁽ⁱ⁾

For this reason I speak to them in parables, because looking they do not see,^(j) and hearing they do not listen or understand.^(k)

Isaiah's prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says: You will listen and listen, yet never understand; and you will look and look, yet never perceive. ^(l)

For this people's heart has grown callous; their ears are hard of hearing, and they have shut their eyes; otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn back— and I would cure them. ^(m)[b]

"But your eyes are blessed⁽ⁿ⁾ because they do see, and your ears because they do hear!^(o)

For I assure you: Many prophets and righteous people longed to see the things you see yet didn't see them; to hear the things you hear yet didn't hear them. ^(p)

"You, then, listen to the parable of the sower:^(q)

When anyone hears the word^[c] about the kingdom and doesn't understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the one sown along the path.^(r)

And the one sown on rocky ground—this is one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy.^(s)

Yet he has no root in himself, but is short-lived. When pressure or persecution^(t) comes because of the word, immediately he stumbles.

Now the one sown among the thorns—this is one who hears the word, but the worries of this age^(u) and the seduction^[d] of wealth^(v) choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.

But the one sown on the good ground—this is one who hears and understands the word, who does bear fruit and yields: some 100, some 60, some 30 times what was sown."

He presented another parable to them: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field.^(w)

But while people were sleeping, his enemy came, sowed weeds^[e] among the wheat, and left.

When the plants sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also appeared.

The landowner's slaves^(x) came to him and said, ‘Master, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Then where did the weeds come from?'

"‘An enemy did this!' he told them. "‘So, do you want us to go and gather them up?' the slaves asked him.

"‘No,' he said. ‘When you gather up the weeds, you might also uproot the wheat with them.

Let both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time I'll tell the reapers: Gather the weeds first and tie them in bundles to burn them, but store the wheat in my barn.'"

He^(y) presented another parable to them: "The kingdom of heaven^(z) is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field.

It's the smallest of all the seeds, but when grown, it's taller than the vegetables and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches." ^(aa)

He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into 50 pounds^[f] of flour until it spread through all of it." ^[g](ab)

Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables, and He would not speak anything to them without a parable,^(ac)

so that what was spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled: I will open My mouth in parables; I will declare things kept secret from the foundation of the world. ^(ad)[h]

Then He dismissed the crowds and went into the house. His disciples approached Him and said, "Explain the parable of the weeds in the field to us."^(ae)

He replied: "The One who sows the good seed is the Son of Man;

the field is the world; and the good seed—these are the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, ^(af)

and the enemy who sowed them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.^(ag)

Therefore, just as the weeds are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age.^(ah)

The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather from His kingdom everything that causes sin^[i] and those guilty of lawlessness. ^[j](ai)

They will throw them into the blazing furnace^(aj) where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.^(ak)

Then the righteous will shine like the sun in their Father's kingdom. Anyone who has ears^[k] should listen! ^(al)

"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field. ^(am)

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls.

When he found one priceless^[l] pearl, he went and sold everything he had, and bought it. ^(an)

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a large net thrown into the sea. It collected every kind of fish,^(ao)

and when it was full, they dragged it ashore, sat down, and gathered the good fish into containers, but threw out the worthless ones.

So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out, separate the evil people from the righteous,^(ap)

and throw them into the blazing furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. ^(aq)

"Have you understood all these things?" ^[m] "Yes," they told Him.

"Therefore," He said to them, "every student of Scripture^[n] instructed in the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who brings out of his storeroom what is new and what is old." ^(ar)

When Jesus had finished these parables, He left there.

He went to His hometown^(as) and began to teach them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "How did this wisdom and these miracles come to Him?^(at)

Isn't this the carpenter's son?^(au) Isn't His mother called Mary, and His brothers James,^(av) Joseph,^[o] Simon, and Judas?^(aw)

And His sisters, aren't they all with us? So where does He get all these things?"

And they were offended by Him. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his household." ^(ax)

And He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief.