Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version) longer form Chapters 8-14

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Introduction

Index

Eight

Chapter 8 Bible texts

This is John’s testimony, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” he declared, and did not deny, but he declared, “I am not the Christ.”

They asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?”

He said, “I am not.”

“Are you the Prophet?”

He answered, “No.”

(They asked this because it is written, Moses said,

“The LORD your God will raise up to you a Prophet from among you, of your brothers, like me. You shall listen to him. This is according to all that you desired of the LORD your God in Horeb in the day of the Assembly, saying, ‘Let me not hear again the LORD my God’s voice, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I not die.’ The LORD said to me, ‘They have well said that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brothers, like you. I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I shall command him. It shall happen, that whoever will not listen to my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.’ ”)

They said therefore to him, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

He said, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.”

The ones who had been sent were from the Pharisees. They asked him, “Why then do you baptize, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”

John answered them, “I baptize with water, but among you stands one whom you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, who is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loosen.”

These things were done in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

The next day, he saw Jesus coming to him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who is preferred before me, for he was before me.’ I did not know him, but for this reason I came baptizing with water: that he would be revealed to Israel.”

And John testified, saying, “I have seen the Spirit descending like a dove out of heaven, and it remained on him. I did not recognize him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘On whomever you will see the Spirit descending and remaining on him is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.”

Again, the next day, John was standing with two of his followers, his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!

The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following, and said to them, “What are you looking for?”

They said to him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, being interpreted, Teacher), “where are you staying?”

He said to them, “Come, and see.”

They came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was about the tenth hour (which is about four o'clock in the afternoon, sixteen hundred hours military time). One of the two who heard John and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother, Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah!” (which is, being interpreted, Christ, Anointed).

He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter, being interpreted Rock: both Cephas in Aramaic and Peter in Greek mean Rock or Stone).

On the next day, he was determined to go out into Galilee, and he found Philip. Jesus said to him, “Follow me.”

Now Philip was from Bethsaida, of the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael, and said to him, “We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, wrote: Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

Nathanael said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”

Philip said to him, “Come and see.”

Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and said about him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!

Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?”

Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”

Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are King of Israel!

Jesus answered him, “Because I told you, ‘I saw you underneath the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these!

And He said to him, “Most certainly, I tell you all, hereafter you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

The third day, there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee. Jesus’s mother was there. Jesus also was invited, with his followers, his disciples, to the wedding: Jesus, Peter, John, Andrew, Philip, and Nathanael, six. When the wine ran out, Jesus’s mother said to him, “They have no wine.”

(No more wine for the marriage feast would shame and disgrace the bridegroom, the bride, and their families. Remember the word that Isaiah spoke, that his virgin mother would conceive and bear a son, and call him Emmanuel, which means, God with us. She therefore interceded in saying to Jesus, “They have no wine.”)

Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does that have to do with you and me? My hour has not yet come.”

His mother said to the servants, “Whatever he says to you, do it.”

Now there were six water pots of stone set there after the Jews’ way of purifying, containing two or three firkins or metretes apiece, each holding twenty or thirty gallons, a total volume of one hundred twenty to one hundred eighty gallons. Jesus said to them, “Fill the water pots with water.”

So they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the ruler of the feast.”

So they took it. When the ruler of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the ruler of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when the guests have drunk freely, then that which is worse. You have kept the good wine to now!

This beginning of his signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

After this, he went down to Capernaum, he, and his mother, his brethren, and his disciples; and they stayed there a few days.

John 1:19-21
Deuteronomy 18:15-19
John 1:22–2:3
Isaiah 7:14
John 2:4-12

Compare
World English Bible text
Greek original text
Latin Vulgate text
NRSV text
Scofield Reference Bible (1917 Edition)
Conservative Bible text
multiple versions of any verse
multiple commentaries any passage
interlinear Bible: Hebrew, Greek, English
Bible maps (click initial letter of place name)
Bible Encyclopedias: Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature (studylight.org)
Catholic Encyclopedia Catholic Online (catholic.org)
Hebrew Calendar Converter See exact equivalents of Gregorian Calendar dates.

—in Gregorian Calendar click the cursor in the day, month, or year fields, to highlight selection,
then use [Backspace ←] and [←] [→] right and left arrow keys in the day and year fields,
and [Backspace ←] and [ ↑ ] [ ↓ ] up and down arrow keys in the month field,
then click on [Calculate].

Table of Old Testament quotes in the New Testament, in English translation, Joel Kalvesmaki 2013 (kalvesmaki.com)

List of 300 Septuagint Old Testament quotations in the New Testament, by Steve Rudd 2017 (bible.ca)

Table of LXX quotes and allusions in the New Testament


Church History (Eusebius): The Ecclesiastical History Of Eusebius Pamphilus: Bishop Of Caesarea, In Palestine (newadvent.org)

The Works of Flavius Josephus William Whiston, Translator, 1737 (sacred-texts.com)

Suetonius: Twelve Caesars: The Lives of the Twelve Caesars by C. Suetonius Tranquilus; To which are added His Lives of the Grammarians, Rhetoricians, and Poets. The Translation of Alexander Thomson, M.D., Revised and corrected by T. Forester, Esq., A.M. (Gutenberg.org)

Tacitus: The Annals, Written 109 A.C.E. Translated by Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb

Sextus Aurelius Victor: Epitome De Caesaribus (roman-emperors.org)

Eutropius: Breviarium - Eutropius's Abridgement of Roman History (tertullian.org)

Cassius Dio: Roman History Epitome (penelope.uchicago.edu)

Early Christian Writings A.D. 30 through 380 (earlychristianwritings.com)
See Biblical Canon and Apocrypha.


"He said, 'I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, "Make straight the way of the Lord," as Isaiah the prophet said.' "

John 1:23
John quotes the Septuagint text of Isaiah 40:3

"Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"

John 1:29.
These words are said during the Catholic Mass.
After the consecration of the bread, which is called the "Host", and before Communion, the priest lifts it up for the people to see and he says these words.
Compare John 6:40. "every one which seeth the Son".
The Catholic Church teaches the doctrine that everyone who looks at the consecrated Host (wafer) of the Mass "seeth the Son" with eyes of faith.
See Real presence and Transubstantiation.
In Hebrew, "lamb" is "kebes" כֶּ֫בֶשׂ , specifically "a ram of the first year old enough to butt". In John the Baptist's inspired word there is also here the prophetic suggestion of Jesus' authority to "dominate".
See Strong's number 3532 כֶּ֫בֶשׂ "kebes" (lamb), "a ram of the first year old enough to butt" ("kebes"), metaphorically a member of the flock of the Lord in his first year of authority.
Psalms 79:13; 95:7; 100:3.
Compare Ezekiel 34:11-16 "in the day when he is among his sheep" (KJV)

"tenth hour of the day"

John 1:20
Not ten o'clock in the morning, which would have been the "fourth hour of the day".
The Jews numbered the hours of the day from sunrise, from about 06:00. Compare Matthew 20:3-9; 27:45-46; Mark 15:25, 33-34; Luke 23:44; John 4:6 noon; Acts 2:15; 3:1. The Jews also similarly numbered the hours of the night from sunset, from about 18:00.
See Acts 23:23 third hour of the night (about 9:00 pm, 2100 hrs.)
Applying American cultural meanings to Semitic expressions is a common mistake of those novice Bible students who have been taught to read the English translation of the scriptures only according to the "simple, plain and obvious" surface meaning of the words on the printed page in front of them, as if English is the original language of the Bible. See Eisegesis.
Serious Bible students learn to read the "simple, plain and obvious" meaning of the Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek words of the older Bible manuscripts, within the historical and cultural context of the times in which the scriptures were first written, according to the understanding of those to whom the scriptures were first addressed. This is what exegetes call the literal sense of the scriptures. See Historical-critical method (Higher criticism)#The literal sense of scripture

"Cephas' (which means Peter, being interpreted Rock: both Cephas in Aramaic and Peter in Greek mean Rock or Stone)"

John 1:42b amplified
The Greek word rendered as "a stone" here in the King James Bible is listed under "STONE" in Strong's Concordance as keyed to number 4074 Πέτρος Petros—the only entry so keyed under the heading STONE.
All other NT entries under this heading in Strong's are keyed to 3037 λίθος lithos (36 times), 3034 λιθάζω lithazo (4), 3035 λίθινος lithinos (3), 3036 λιθοβολέω lithoboleo (1), 5586 ψήφος psephos "pebble" (2), 2642 καταλιθάζω katalithazo "stone-down" to death (1), 2991 λαξευτός laxeutos "rock-quarried"—hewn in stone (1)
The King James translators of John 1:42 were careful to avoid the more literal translation of Πέτρος Petros as "Rock", because of its doctrinal significance in apparent support of the Catholic position that the Church is founded by Christ on the Rock of Peter the Apostle, and they read petros as "stone", which Protestant apologists explain as meaning lithos or psephos instead, as simply synonyms for petros, identical in meaning, but profoundly different from petra. They also explain the grammar of Matthew 16:18 "on this rock I will found my church" as pointing to Jesus, not Peter, or to the Faith revealed by the Father to Peter, not to Peter himself.
However, according to New Testament Greek scholars, the actual Greek grammar of this phrase as spoken by the Lord in Matthew 16:18 is clearly directed to Peter as the subject of "on this rock"; it was not spoken by Jesus as referring to Himself.
καὶ ἐπὶ ταύτῃ τῇ πέτρᾳ kai epi tayte te petra. The emphasis is on ΤΑΎΤῌ teyte, which grammatically points to Peter (not to Jesus). See the interlinear Greek text of Matthew 16:18.
To insist that Jesus is referring to himself here would violate the Greek grammar of this passage and contradict His apparent meaning. The alternate interpretation of "this rock" as the Divinely Revealed Faith expressed by Peter, his saying, and not Peter himself, likewise has no grammatical support, for the same linguistic reasons. As Jesus does not say, "on thee I will build my church", so likewise Jesus does not say, "on this saying (truth) I will build my church" (compare Mark 7:29, "For this saying, go your way...", and Matthew 15:28, "O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you..."). The literal meaning of the Greek text supports neither of these interpretations: neither "Jesus" himself, nor the "faith" of Peter, is the subject of the phrase καὶ ἐπὶ ταύτῃ τῇ πέτρᾳ—it points to Peter (not to Jesus). God made Simon "Rock". "I tell you, You are rock and on this rock I will build my church."
To twist the literal meaning of this statement into a different interpretation in violation of the context of its Greek grammatical syntax and apparent semantical import and read into it a meaning that is not self-evident is to risk self-destruction. 2 Peter 3:15-18 (compare the King James Version).
See Eisegesis and Apostolic succession.
In Biblical Hermeneutics as in empirical science the principle of Occam's razor is as valuable a guide to interpretation of a text as it is to the formulation of a scientific hypothesis. That interpretation of the literal sense of scripture which makes the fewest possible assumptions is held as probably the most valid exegesis of the text. Key too is the importance of the physical setting, the sitz im leben, for an accurate understanding of the meaning of the words spoken to Peter in Matthew 16:18 as to Nathanael in John 1:47. In both settings Jesus speaks in the hearing of his disciples in the third person of address to the individual for the benefit of them all instead framing his words in a directly personal form as to one person alone. He does not say to Nathanael, "I see you are a true Israelite. There is no guile in you." Instead, he proclaims and extols him before them all as an example to be honored and respected as a man of integrity, one in whom He himself has confidence, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile [no hypocritical deceit]." John 1:47. He is speaking directly to Nathanael, but for them all to hear. He does not say to Peter privately, "Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you. I tell you, On you I will build my church." Instead, in the presence of all his apostles, he proclaims and honors Simon above them all as the one singularly blessed by God, the Father Himself, saying, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, You are Rock, and on this Rock I will build my Church, and the powers of Death shall not prevail against it!" Matthew 16:17-18. He does not say this to any other apostle, but he says it for all of them to hear. Peter is the only one to whom Jesus says, "I have prayed for you [σοῦ second person, singular, personal pronoun] that your [σου singular] faith may not fail; and when you [σου singular] have turned again, strengthen [singular σου] your brethren." Luke 22:32 interlinear. He is also the only apostle to whom Jesus says, "Feed my lambs.... Feed my rams.... Feed my sheep...." John 21:15-17 (other translations, "my sheep.... my sheep.... my sheep."). He does not say this to any other apostle. These are undeniable facts of the Biblical text itself. However, the doctrinal significance of these statements within the settings in which they are delivered by the Lord are variously and widely interpreted, and controverted, often in contradiction to both the grammar of these texts and their immediate context, and even to the text of the Bible as a whole (see Proof text). There is no universal consensus that these texts actually set Peter in recognition above the other apostles in dignity and authority. Opinions regarding textual interpretation of their actual meaning, as with other contested texts, is based on doctrinal beliefs rooted in contrasting denominational dogmas and traditions of interpretation, not on the words of the Bible alone.
The word "rock" in the King James Bible NT is listed under "ROCK" in Strong's Concordance as keyed only to number 4073 πέτρa petra (13 times). John 1:42 is not listed under ROCK in Strong's Concordance, because the KJV translation reads "a stone" instead of "rock", number 4074 πέτρος petros.
(See multiple versions of John 1:42.)
Both Πέτρος Petros (masculine) and πέτρα petra (feminine) mean "rock (cliff), (huge) rock, (large) boulder. The Aramaic cephas means (big, great, large) "rock", "rock face" (cliff), "mass of rock". Cephas and Petros and petra "rock, boulder or cliff" have not the same meaning as lithos or psephos, "stumbling-stone", "a rock, stone or pebble".
Compare
Strong's G4074 Πέτρος Petros and
Strong's G4073 πέτρa petra with
Strong's G3037 λίθος lithos.
Protestant Greek scholars D.A. Carson and Joseph Thayer admit there is no distinction in meaning between petros and petra in the Koine Greek of the New Testament: "petros" is simply the masculine form of the feminine form "petra", both having the same meaning.
—Joseph H. Thayer, Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1996), 507.
—D.A. Carson, "Matthew," in Frank E. Gaebelein, ed., The Expositor's Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1984), vol. 8, 368.
Compare the following scriptures
See article Patrick Madrid: Bam! Bam! The "Pebbles" Argument Goes Down! — By Tim Staples. Source: Envoy Magazine. Copyright 1997-2009 (patrickmadrid.com).
There are two traditions of interpretation of these texts regarding their relevancy to Apostolic succession, and in particular their relevancy to the doctrine of Petrine primacy, neither one of them found in the Bible:
  • scripture [the Bible] does not explicitly support and teach it.
  • scripture [the Bible] does not explicitly oppose and condemn it.
See sola scriptura. At issue is the question of which interpretation actually represents "the mind of Christ" 1 Cor 2:12-16; John 6:28-29; John 20:21-23; 1 John 4:14.
There are two traditions of interpretation of the benefits bestowed by God through the ministry of the apostles:
  • the tradition that those graces and benefits extended by Christ to the first generation of Christians through the ministry of the apostles were unique, and were not intended by God to be extended to subsequent generations of believers after the completion of the Bible and its continued preservation as the sole rule of faith and practice by the Holy Spirit—they had advantages then that we do not have now.
  • the tradition that those graces and benefits extended by Christ to the first generation of Christians through the ministry of the apostles continued after the Apostolic Age, and continue to be extended by the Lord to all subsequent generations through the apostolic ministry of the church together with the completion of the Bible and its preservation through the unfolding of the apostolic tradition preserved by the interpretation of the magisterium under the guidance of the Holy Spirit—through the unfolding of truth by the Holy Spirit through the centuries we have advantages now that the first generation of Christians did not have then.
Compare multiple commentaries on John 1:42
and multiple commentaries on Matthew 16:18.

"Nathanael"

John 1:45
Mentioned only in John's Gospel.
he is not mentioned by name in the Synoptics (Matthew, Mark, Luke) in the listing of the Twelve Apostles.
Many scholars identify Nathanael with the apostle Bartholomew, whom John does not mention. His full name is thought to be Nathanael Bar-Tolmai (Aramaic son of Tolmai: Nathanael Bar-tholomew). See the following articles:
If Nathanael is not in fact the name of the apostle Bartholomew, one of the Twelve, but a different man instead, he may have been one of those many disciples in John 6:66 who "drew back and no longer went about with him". But this is unlikely, since Nathanael is with the apostles, Simon Peter, Thomas, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples at the sea of Tiberias after the resurrection of the Lord. John 21:2.
The word of Jesus in John 1:51 "you will see" (Greek ὑμῖν , ὄψεσθε , hymin , opsesthe , "you, see", "you, [you will] see") has been interpreted varyingly (1) as (singular) addressed directly to Nathanael personally (2) as (plural) addressed in general to all of the apostles present with him. See
interlinear text of John 1:51
Ἀμὴν , ἀμὴν , λέγω ὑμῖν , ὄψεσθε
Amēn , amen , legō hymin , opsesthe
"Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see"...
ὑμῖν is rendered here in the biblehub.com interlinear text as directly linked to σύ second person, personal pronoun, singular (not plural). See also
multiple versions of John 1:51
multiple commentaries on John 1:51
Any Bible reading of the Greek plural form ὑμῖν hymin "you" as a singular form σύ su "you" marks that interpretation as semantically untrustworthy, and the interpreter/s as either incompetent or dishonest. See Eisegesis and Bible Translation Issues. There is no ambiguity in the Greek text. The word ὑμῖν is clearly plural.
Compare the Greek text plural forms of "you" ὑμᾶς hymas , ὑμῶν hymōn , ὑμεῖς hymeis , ὑμᾶς hymas , (and again) ὑμᾶς hymas , in interlinear texts of Matthew 5:11, 5:13 and Acts 2:33, 14:15, 17:22, as addressed directly to a group gathering, and to a crowd of people. The Strong's number keyed to ὑμῖν as 4771 σύ su singular "you" for each of these plural forms does not explicitly distinguish the plural from the singular—this misleading aspect of Strong's is one of its defects as a reference source for Bible student interpretation of the critical meaning of the Greek text. Updated editions of Strong's do direct the reader of that entry 4771 to entries 4571 sě (singular), 4671 sŏi (singular), 4675 sǒu (singular) (not very helpful); "and for the plural" to 5209 humas, 5210 huměis, 5213 humin, 5216 humōn.
The second person, personal pronoun, singular interpretation of "you" ὑμῖν hymin (that is, hymin interpreted as a second person, personal pronoun, singular "you", according to the biblehub.com link to Strong's 4771 σύ su) as "you" addressed by the Lord directly to Nathanael as to one individual in the hearing of the other disciples present with him does not absolutely exclude them from the promise he made to Nathanael, for they as present and listening might reasonably infer that he thus implied that they "all" ὑμῖν hearing these words (and every follower of the Lord as well) would be so blessed.
While this "second person, personal pronoun, singular" reading of the plural ὑμῖν might be considered by some interpreters to be a somewhat reasonable interpretation, and therefore so interpreted by them that the word spoken in particular to Nathanael in the hearing of them all might seem as if it was legitimately understood implicitly by Nathanael and the disciples and by the hearer and reader of the Gospel in ages to come as also indirectly addressed simultaneously to the other disciples as well, this interpretation does not justify translators' eisegetically reading the meaning of the singular word "you" σύ into the text as a particular meaning of the plural "all of you" ὑμῖν in their commentaries—"the formidable superficial difficulty in the common reading, which declares that from the moment when the Lord spake, Nathanael should see what there is no other record that he ever literally saw" (Pulpit Commentary). The average intelligent reader who does not already know that the word "you" in the Greek here in John 1:51 is explicitly plural in tone and intent can already understand by inference the possible broader application of the Lord's word to Nathanael as (perhaps) metaphorically addressed implicitly also to "all" the others there, and to every devout and humbly honest believer in him to this day, as the Lord sent by the Father, without being misled by the unnecessary and wholly arbitrary decision of some translators to falsely change the meaning of the plural form of the word of the text ὑμῖν into a singular reading σύ as individually addressed in particular to Nathanael alone.
The reading of an ambiguous plural/singular "you" in any vernacular translation leaves open the question of whether Jesus actually (a) made a promise of special privilege to be given to Nathanael in particular, because of his integrity as a "true Israelite", to provoke the others to imitate his honest openness to truth, or whether (b) Jesus through his word to Nathanael suggestively made this promise indirectly also to all believers who by honest faith, hope and charity readily perceive him as the Son of man, the King of Israel, because of the signs of what he said and did as testified by the actual eyewitnesses of his glory (2 Peter 1:16-21; Mark 16:14).

"On the third day".

John 2:1
The Jews named the days by number: Sunday was the first day, Monday was the second day, Tuesday was the third day: this was the ordinary meaning.
John 1:29, 35, 43: each verse states, "The next day", and these number three days. John 2:1 states, "On the third day". The ordinary meaning would be Tuesday, and from the context was the same day Nathanael was brought to Jesus; the ordinary meaning without reference to the weekday would also be that it was simply the third day after the Pharisees asked John why he was baptizing (John 1:24-28), and this "third day" may also have been the third day of the week.
Allegorically this is also a significant textual reference to the third day when Christ the Bridegroom rose from death, when he inaugurated the everlasting Marriage Feast of the Lamb. Compare John 3:29, Revelation 19:9.

"invited to the marriage, with his disciples".

John 2:2
Since they too had been invited with Jesus, his disciples were already known.

"interceded"

An amplification of John 2:3.
This does not automatically mean that Mary fully expected her Son to perform a miracle. It does mean that she had compassion on the bridegroom and bride and their families and guests, and she sought to make Jesus aware of their need with the expectation that he would certainly act on their behalf. This is why she said to the servants, "Do whatever he says." This obedience of the servants suggests that both Mary and Jesus were held in respect in Cana.
Mary's words are also the inspired message of the whole Bible as the written word of God condensed into a single commandment. In light of the message of all the prophets, Mary is here shown to be a prophet.

"Woman, what does that have to do with you and me?"

John 2:4a
KJV "Woman, what have I to do with thee?"
RSV "O woman, what have you to do with me?"
ISV "How does that concern us, dear lady?" (International Standard Version)
See multiple versions of John 2:4.
See interlinear text of John 2:4.
Greek text τί ἐμοὶ καὶ σοί, γύναι.
The word "γυναι," gynai, in this context, is a respectful form of address to a woman, in some instances conveying even tender, loving and compassionate regard.
Compare Matthew 15:28; Luke 13:12; John 4:21; 8:10; 19:26; 20:13; 20:15
—"woman" to the daughter of Abraham loosed from her infirmity; "woman" to the Samaritan embracing the higher faith; "woman" to the sinner whom He does not condemn; "woman" to his mother from the cross; and "woman" to Mary Magdalene in tears.
Here, the Greek text of John 2:4 "τι εμοι και σοι" (literally, "what you and me"—"what (is this to) you and me")—is not a refusal. Nor is the situation dismissed as an irrelevant distraction, or even as a situation having nothing to do with the importance of his mission. Christian believers implicitly understand that events involving the Lord Jesus are not accidental, having no purpose, that there is nothing for which he is unprepared. This lack of wine was for the glory of God, as was the situation of the man born blind (John 9:1-3 and the following verses 9:4–10:21). The Lord includes his mother with him in the intimacy of their solemn consideration of the important mission before him, of which she has certainly some substantial degree of prior awareness (see Luke 1:31-33, 41-45; 2:8-19, 48-51)—and he, already knowing what he would do (compare John 6:5-6), and that his glory would on this occasion become evident (John 2:11), in a teachable moment is asking his mother in the hearing of his disciples if she is if fact aware of how this situation does involve her and him, and is in fact actually relevant to them both and to his work (do you understand how this concerns us? are you fully aware of what this will irrevocably set in motion?), and in fact is indirectly and implicitly asking her if she remembers the word of the prophet Simeon to her in the temple and if she is fully aware of how much this situation will involve the beginning of the inevitable resultant reaction of the Jewish authorities to his signs and will most certainly result in anguished pain to herself (as foretold to her in Luke 2:34-35) and the triumphant fulfillment of his final hour and the completion of his work (John 12:27-28; 13:31-32; 17:20-24; 19:28-30; Luke 1:32-33). She immediately grasps that he is about to do something extraordinary, saying, "Do whatever he tells you." Jesus himself, being ready, does not hesitate to act.
See multiple commentaries on John 2:4.
It is of interest to the honest conservative Christian historian and scholar that Matthew Poole's Commentary on John 2:4 states, "He hath also hereby taught us, that the blessed virgin is not to be preferred before her Son (as the papists do)." Informed neutral observers of the religious scene can see that even during the historical period in which Poole wrote his Commentary this is an example of misrepresentation, a misleading falsehood which he no doubt believed (see also polemic and libel). That the "papists" (Catholics) do not in fact actually "prefer Mary before Jesus" is demonstrated by the fact that even fundamentalists and atheists are aware that Catholic and Orthodox celebrations of Mary's birth (September 8) and Assumption of Mary (August 15) are minor compared to the obviously evident intensity of the worldwide international solemnities of Catholic and Orthodox celebrations of Jesus as Lord and Redeemer in Advent and Lent and at Christmas and Easter and Pentecost; and by the fact that even the 16th century Catechism of the Council of Trent, the "Roman Catechism", emphasizes the importance of Jesus as Lord and Mediator over Mary's role as an intercessor with her Son
Catechism of the Council of Trent, Part I: The Creed, Articles II–VI (pages 14-51); Part IV (pages 291-360): The Lord's Prayer, To whom we should pray (page 301).
This is reiterated in the 20th century Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), in particular paragraph 970, within the context of Part One, Article 2, Paragraph 6 "Mary–Mother of Christ, Mother of the Church", and in the Vatican II document Lumen Gentium, 52-69 "The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God in the Mystery of Christ and the Church"—scroll down to the middle of the page.
In the worship service of the Eucharist called the Mass, the prayers and consecration at the altar are offered to God the Father, not to Mary—offered "through Him, with Him, in Him", that is, through, with and in Jesus Christ the Lord the Only-Begotten Son of God "consubstantial" with the Father. Catholics at the start of the service confess to God that they are sinners, and they ask "Blessed Mary Ever-Virgin, all of the angels and saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God"—and the priest responds with the prayer, "May Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life. Amen." (Compare Matthew 22:31-32; Hebrews 12:21-24.)
This does not sound like the papists "prefer Mary before Jesus", especially when the documents cited here explicitly state that Jesus is the only Mediator, the one Mediator.

"firkins" and "metretes".

John 2:6
A firkin (KJV) is the Greek Attic amphora, equivalent to the Hebrew bath, which was a measure for liquids containing about 8 7/8 gallons. Metretes are equivalent to baths.
2 to 3 metretes (WEB) is about 20 to 30 U.S. gallons, or 75 to 115 liters.
See Strong's number 3355

"signs"

John 2:11a
A sign in the Bible is much more than a miracle. It has a far greater significance as an event which unmistakeably involves an immediate and powerful action of God designed to reveal His character or purposes.
See Holman Bible Dictionary: Miracles, Signs, Wonders.

"glory"

John 2:11b
Divine authority and power. Greek δόξα doxa "glory, honor" (see Strong's number 1391).
In Matthew 17:1-8; Mark 9:2-8; Luke 9:28-36 during the Transfiguration of Jesus, his glory δόξα was also manifested as a visible, radiant light like the sun. See also 2 Peter 1:16-18.
Compare δοκέω dokeo, Strong's number 1380.

"and his brethren"

John 2:12
His relatives.
See the following:
The Brethren of the Lord, J. B. Lightfoot, 1865, Commentary on the Epistles of St. Paul, Dissertation.
Dr. J. B. Lightfoot (librarything.com), a listing of 54 works available, including The Brethren of the Lord.
Dr. Lightfoot (a Protestant) discusses in detail the Epiphanian, the Helvidian, and the Hieronymian ("hahy-er-uh-nim-ee-uhn" = Jerome / Jeromian / Ieromian) theories of the relationship of the brothers of the Lord.
  • The Epiphanian theory of Epiphanius of Salamis (c. 315-403) maintains that no blood relationship existed; that these brethren were in fact sons of Joseph by a former wife, before he espoused the Virgin; and that they are therefore called the Lord's brethren only in the same way in which Joseph is called His father, having really no claim to this title but being so designated by an exceptional use of the term adapted to the exceptional fact of the miraculous incarnation.
  • The Helvidian theory, advanced by certain persons (such as Tertullian, who does not directly discuss the issue, and in particular, Helvidius, who lived in Rome at the time of Jerome toward the close of the fourth century) argues that the obvious and most literal meaning of the term was the correct meaning, and that these brethren were the Lord's brethren as truly as Mary was the Lord's mother, being her sons by her husband Joseph (uterine relationship, born from her womb from the seed of Joseph by natural marital conception).
  • The Hieronymian theory, proposed in or about the year 383 by Jerome, who, at the instigation of 'the brethren', wrote a treatise in reply to Helvidius, in which he maintains that the Lord's brethren were His cousins after the flesh, being sons of Mary the wife of Alphaeus and sister of the Virgin. Jerome dismisses the theory of Helvidius as "a monstrous impiety", as implying that Joseph immediately had sexual relations with Mary as soon as Jesus was born.
Dr. Lightfoot asserts in his dissertation, The Brethren of the Lord (1865), that the most devastating argument against the Helvidian theory is to be found in the prevailing first century Jewish cultural bonds of the most paramount and inviolable filial duties toward parents rooted in "the most sacred ties of natural affection"
(Exodus 20:12; Leviticus 19:2-3; Deuteronomy 21:18-21; 27:16; Proverbs 19:26; 30:11 and 17; Ecclesiasticus 3:1-15; Mark 7:6-13)
and in Jesus' entrusting of his mother to the son of another woman, the son of Zebedee, as if she had no other children to care for her, in John 19:25-27: Dr. Lightfoot says:
"But one objection has been hurled at the Helvidian theory with great force, and as it seems to me with fatal effect, which is powerless against the Epiphanian. Our Lord in His dying moments commended His mother to the keeping of St. John; ‘Woman, behold thy son.’ The injunction was forthwith obeyed, and ‘from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home’ (John 19:26,27). Yet according to the Helvidian view she had no less than four sons besides daughters living at the time. Is it conceivable that our Lord would thus have snapped asunder the most sacred ties of natural affection? The difficulty is not met by the fact that her own sons were still unbelievers. This fact would scarcely have been allowed to override the paramount duties of filial piety."

Compare the Conservative Bible text (conservapedia.com):

And this is the testimony John gave to the priests and Levites, who had been sent by the Jews from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?" And John did not deny who he was, but confessed, and told them, he was not Christ. And they asked him, "Then what are you? Elijah?" And he said, "I am not." They asked, "Are you another prophet?" And he answered, "No." So they said to him, "Who are you, what shall we tell the people who sent us. What have you to say for yourself?" He said, "I am the voice crying in the wilderness, 'Straighten out the path of the Lord,' just as the prophet Isaiah said." And so they asked him, "Why do you baptize people, if you are not Christ, nor Elijah, nor another prophet?" John answered them, "I baptize with water, but there is one among you who you do not know," "and it is he, who is coming after me, who existed prior to me, whose shoe's laces I am not worthy to untie." These things happened in Bethabara, beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.

The next day, John saw Jesus coming to him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, which lifts and carries away the sin of the world." This is the man I have spoken of when I said, "After me will come a man who existed prior to me, for he was before me. I did not know who he was, yet I have come to baptize with water so that He could be revealed to Israel." And John testified "I saw the Spirit come down like a dove out of heaven, and it stayed upon Jesus." "I did not recognize him at first, but he who sent me to baptize, he said to me, 'The man whom you will see the Spirit descend upon, and remain on, that man is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.'" "I saw these things, and testify that this is the Son of God." The next day, John stood again with two of his disciples; and looking upon Jesus as he walked, he said, "Behold! The Lamb of God!" And the two disciples heard this, and they followed Jesus. Jesus turned, and saw them following him, and said to them, "What do you seek?" They said to him, "Rabbi, where do you live?" He said to them, "Come and see." They came, and saw where he lived, and stayed with him that day, for it was 10 o'clock. One of these two disciples, who had heard John speak, and followed Jesus, was Andrew, brother of Simon Peter. He first found his brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah, the Christ!" Andrew brought Simon Peter to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, "You are Simon, son of Jonah: you shall be called Cephas, the rock (Peter)."

The following day, Jesus went forth into Galilee, and finding Phillip, he said to him, "Follow me." Phillip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Phillip found Nathaniel, and said to him, "We have found him, him of whom Moses and the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, son of Joseph." Nathaniel said to Phillip, "Can any good thing come from Nazareth?" Phillip replied, "Come and see." Jesus saw Nathaniel coming to him, and said of him, "Look! An Israelite indeed, who is incapable of deceit." Nathaniel said to him, "How do you know me?" Jesus answered, saying "Before that Phillip called upon you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you." Nathaniel answered and said, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God, the King of Israel." Jesus replied to him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' you believe? You shall see greater things than this." And Jesus continued to Nathaniel, "Truly I tell you, you shall yet see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son, a human being."

Two days later, there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus, and his disciples, were invited to the wedding. When they wedding party wanted wine, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." Jesus said to her, "Dear woman, it is not my time yet. How is this any of our concern?" His mother said to the servants, "Do what he tells you to do." So there were placed six large stone pots, used for washing at Jewish feasts, and these could contain about twenty gallons each. And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, "Carry them out now to the host of this feast." And so they did. When the host of the wedding feast tasted the water, it had been made into wine, and he did not know where the wine had come from (though the servants knew), and so the host of the wedding feast called the groom, And said to him, "One usually serves his good wine at the beginning of a feast, and when all have drank their fill, then his cheaper wine. But you have kept your good wine for last!" This was the first of the miracles Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and by doing showed his glory, and so his disciples believed in him.

After this, he went down to Capernaum, with his mother and brothers and disciples. They stayed there for only a few days.

Nine

Chapter 9 Bible texts

The Passover of the Jews was at hand, the days of Unleavened Bread, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. He found in the Temple those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, and the changers of money sitting. He made a whip of cords, and threw all out of the Temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and he poured out the changers’ money and overthrew their tables. To those who sold the doves, he said, “Take these things out of here! Do not make my Father’s house a marketplace!

His disciples remembered that it was written,

“Zeal for your house will eat me up.”

The Jews therefore answered him, “What sign do you show us, seeing that you do these things?”

Jesus answered them, “Destroy this Temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

The Jews therefore said, “It took forty-six years to build this Temple! Will you raise it up in three days?”

But he spoke of the Temple of his body. When therefore he was raised from the dead, his followers, his disciples remembered that he said this, and they believed the Scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.

Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in his name, observing his signs which he did. But Jesus did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people everywhere, and because he did not need for anyone to testify concerning mankind; for he himself knew what was in man.

Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. The same came to him by night, and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a Teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do, unless God is with him.”

Jesus answered him, “Most certainly, I tell you, unless one is born anew, he cannot see God’s Kingdom.”

Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?”

Jesus answered, “Most certainly I tell you, unless one is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter into God’s Kingdom. That which is born of the flesh is flesh. That which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born anew.’ The wind blows where it wants to, and you hear its sound, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Nicodemus answered him, “How can these things be?”

Jesus answered him, “You are the Teacher of Israel, and do not understand these things? Most certainly I tell you, We speak that which We know, and testify of that which We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness. If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?”

After these things, Jesus came with his disciples, Peter, John, Andrew, Philip, and Nathanael, into the land of Judea. He stayed there with them and baptized. John also was baptizing in Enon near Salim, because there was much water there. They came, and were baptized; for John was not yet thrown into prison. Therefore a dispute arose on the part of John’s followers with some Jews about purification. They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, he baptizes, and everyone is coming to him.”

John answered, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. You yourselves testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before him.’ He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. This, my joy, therefore is made full. He must increase, but I must decrease.”

But Herod the tetrarch, being reproved by him for Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for all the evil things which Herod had done, added this also to them all, that he shut up John in prison. For Herod himself had sent out and arrested John, and bound him, and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. For John said to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her”; for he had married her. For John said to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”

When Herod would have put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet.

Herodias set herself against him, and desired to kill him, but she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and kept him safe. When he heard him, he did many things, and he heard him gladly.

Therefore when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more followers, more disciples than John (although Jesus himself did not baptize, but his disciples), when Jesus heard that John was delivered up, he left Judea and departed into Galilee.

He needed to pass through Samaria. So he came to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son, Joseph. As it is written,

“I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow.”

Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being tired from his journey, sat down by the well. For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. It was about the sixth hour of the day, about noon, twelve hundred hours military time.

A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.”

The Samaritan woman therefore said to him, “How is it that you, being a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?”

(For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)

Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”

The woman said to him, “Sir, you have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. So where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our father, Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his children and his livestock?”

Jesus answered her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never thirst again; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”

The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I do not get thirsty, neither come all the way here to draw.”

Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.”

The woman answered, “I have no husband.”

Jesus said to her, “You said well, ‘I have no husband,’ for you have had five husbands; and he whom you now have is not your husband. This you have said truly.”

The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.”

Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour comes, when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, will you worship the Father. You worship that which you do not know. We worship that which we know; for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to be his worshipers. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah comes, he who is called Christ. When he has come, he will declare to us all things.”

Jesus said to her, “I AM—the one who speaks to you.”

At this, his disciples came. They marveled that he was speaking with a woman; yet no one said, “What are you looking for?” or, “Why do you speak with her?” So the woman left her water pot, went away into the city, and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything that I did. Can this be the Christ?”

They went out of the city, and were coming to him. In the meanwhile, the disciples urged him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.”

But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.”

The disciples therefore said to one another, “Has anyone brought him something to eat?”

Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months before the harvest?’ Behold, I tell you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, that they are white for harvest already. He who reaps receives wages and gathers fruit to eternal life; that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true, ‘One sows, and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”

From that city many of the Samaritans believed in him because of the word of the woman, who testified, “He told me everything that I did.” So when the Samaritans came to him, they begged him to stay with them. He stayed there two days. Many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of your speaking; for we have heard for ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.”

After the two days he went out from there and went into Galilee. Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee. He withdrew into Galilee, for Jesus himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country. So when he came into Galilee, the Galileans received him, having seen all the things that he did in Jerusalem at the feast, for they also went to the feast. Jesus came therefore again to Cana of Galilee, where he made the water into wine.

There was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum, a full day's journey from Cana, more than twenty-six miles. When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to him, and begged him that he would come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. Jesus therefore said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders, you will in no way believe.”

The nobleman said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.”

Jesus said to him, “Go your way. Your son lives.”

The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way. As he was now going down, his servants met him and reported, saying “Your child lives!

So he inquired of them the hour when he began to get better. They said therefore to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour, the fever left him.”

The seventh hour is one o'clock in the afternoon, thirteen hundred hours military time. So the father knew that it was at that hour in which Jesus said to him, “Your son lives.” He believed, as did his whole house. This is again the second sign that Jesus did, having come out of Judea into Galilee.

And news about him spread through all the surrounding area. He Taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.

John 2:13–3:12
John 3:22-30
Luke 3:19-20
Matthew 14:3
Mark 6:17
Matthew 14:4
Mark 6:18
Matthew 14:5
Mark 6:19-20
John 4:1-2
Matthew 4:12a
when Jesus heard that John was delivered up
John 4:3-5
Genesis 48:22
John 4:6a, 8, 6b-7, 9-43
Matthew 4:12b
he withdrew into Galilee
John 4:44-46a
Luke 4:14a
John 4:46b-48
—LXX Wisdom 8:8; 1:2-3; 13:8-9
John 4:49-54
Luke 4:14b-15

Compare
World English Bible text
Greek original text
Latin Vulgate text
NRSV text
Scofield Reference Bible (1917 Edition)
Conservative Bible text
multiple versions of any verse
multiple commentaries any passage
interlinear Bible: Hebrew, Greek, English
Bible maps (click initial letter of place name)
Bible Encyclopedias: Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature (studylight.org)
Catholic Encyclopedia Catholic Online (catholic.org)
Hebrew Calendar Converter See exact equivalents of Gregorian Calendar dates.

—in Gregorian Calendar click the cursor in the day, month, or year fields, to highlight selection,
then use [Backspace ←] and [←] [→] right and left arrow keys in the day and year fields,
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Table of Old Testament quotes in the New Testament, in English translation, Joel Kalvesmaki 2013 (kalvesmaki.com)

List of 300 Septuagint Old Testament quotations in the New Testament, by Steve Rudd 2017 (bible.ca)

Table of LXX quotes and allusions in the New Testament


Church History (Eusebius): The Ecclesiastical History Of Eusebius Pamphilus: Bishop Of Caesarea, In Palestine (newadvent.org)

The Works of Flavius Josephus William Whiston, Translator, 1737 (sacred-texts.com)

Suetonius: Twelve Caesars: The Lives of the Twelve Caesars by C. Suetonius Tranquilus; To which are added His Lives of the Grammarians, Rhetoricians, and Poets. The Translation of Alexander Thomson, M.D., Revised and corrected by T. Forester, Esq., A.M. (Gutenberg.org)

Tacitus: The Annals, Written 109 A.C.E. Translated by Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb

Sextus Aurelius Victor: Epitome De Caesaribus (roman-emperors.org)

Eutropius: Breviarium - Eutropius's Abridgement of Roman History (tertullian.org)

Cassius Dio: Roman History Epitome (penelope.uchicago.edu)

Early Christian Writings A.D. 30 through 380 (earlychristianwritings.com)
See Biblical Canon and Apocrypha.


"The Passover of the Jews was at hand, the days of Unleavened Bread"

John 2:13
The phrase here in John "The Passover of the Jews" has been amplified as being "the days of Unleavened Bread" in consistent harmony with the text of the Bible itself.
Compare Matthew 26:17; Mark 14:12; Luke 22:1, 22:7; John 18:28. See Luke 2:41-43 KJV "Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover...And when they had fulfilled the days..." (note the plural ! )
Several biblical interpretations regarding the problem of reconciling the time and date of Passover with the time and date of the Last Supper and the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, are carefully examined here as briefly as possible.
Because Moses set forth the Feast of Passover as the day immediately preceding the days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12), many students of the Bible and various commentators have mistakenly interpreted the first century New Testament mention of Passover as being strictly limited to one day only, an eisegetical assumption which does not take account of the context of the whole of the Bible (Deuteronomy 16:1-8; Exodus 12:18-20 note the plural ! ) and betrays an ignorance of first century Jewish culture which called the feast of Unleavened Bread Passover and Passover Unleavened Bread.
Their erroneous misperception of the meaning of the "days of Passover of Unleavened Bread" in the first century as being "one day only", and the sunset twilight beginning of the Jewish day as being at the end of the same day instead—as if this is the true literal sense of scripture (it isn't)—has falsely presented them with apparently insoluble (and unnecessary) textual critical problems of the particular dating of the Lord's Supper on the night of His betrayal and arrest before the morning of His being brought to the praetorium to stand before Pilate—"and they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover." John 18:28b (KJV).
They assume that John is testifying that the Jews had not yet eaten the Passover lamb (Exodus 12:5-10), that he claims the day of Passover had not yet arrived, indicating that it would take place later that evening after sunset, after the crucifixion, at the end of the day that Jesus was executed, after He was laid in the tomb, and that the Passover would be celebrated that evening at the beginning of the next day according to the Jewish reckoning of the beginning of a day after sundown, followed by the night and then the morning of Passover. Liberal critics of the Bible readily point to this superficially apparent discrepancy as "proof" that the Bible taken together in all of its parts as a whole is inconsistent and contradicts itself, and that John cannot be reconciled with Matthew, Mark and Luke.
Some apologists attempt to present the "Passover of Jesus" as not being the official night of the observance of the Passover among the Jews, but that instead, because of His foreknowledge that he would be crucified, he observed "by way of accommodation" the ritual form of the Passover seder as an "anticipation" of the feast, "because he would not be able to observe it the next evening after sunset, when he was in the tomb." They reason that if He is Lord of the sabbath, He is Lord of the Passover (Matthew 12:8; Mark 2:28; Luke 6:5; John 5:16, 18), and therefore that He had divine authority apart from the Law of Moses to celebrate, with his own disciples, an extraordinary form of the memorial of the true Passover seder on a different day, apart from the official day of the annual Passover of the Jews, in "violation" of the Law of Moses.
The Bible plainly says it was the Passover when Jesus "sat down with the twelve" and "desired with desire to eat this passover with you". But these apologists in their commentaries say that if John is correct it could not have been the actual evening of the annual Jewish Passover—the Bible says it was, they say it was not. They point to John 18:28 where (according to their interpretive reading) they claim he declares "the Jews had not yet eaten the Passover". (See commentaries on John 18:28.) But no text of the Bible says, "not yet eaten". Their hermeneutical position is a contradiction of scripture as a whole and of the whole of consistent Christian tradition traceable back to the first century and the Church Fathers of the second through the fourth centuries. Moreover, they read a conflicting essential contradiction between John and the Synoptics which is only apparent and without any foundation in reality because they are reading into the text what is not there (eisegesis), and in doing so present a Bible that according to their judgment is not the infallibly inerrant word of God, but a collection of the conflicting and unreliable opinions of men who invented their narratives in their struggle with unreliable fading memories of those times to explain their faith in Jesus long after the events had occurred. Proof texts are used to disprove the Bible.
But God as the overriding infallible Author Who inspired the Four Gospels—the God "that cannot lie" (Titus 1:2)—is One Who "cannot contradict himself" (2 Timothy 2:13). This is Christian doctrine.
It is God the Holy Spirit Himself Who actually did "bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you" (John 14:26). There is in fact no real contradiction between John, and Matthew, Mark and Luke. Every exegesis of the literal sense of scripture must, of necessity, to be valid, carefully take account of the whole of the historical context, the cultural context, the normal mode of expression of the time of writing and the intent of the author within the context of the whole of the Bible, and just as importantly, take into account what the text does not say. When this is not done, erroneous conclusions and misleading inferences can be drawn, inadvertently introducing superficially apparent, difficult problems of interpretation, where none actually exist, difficulties which could have been avoided with reasonable care and a decent respect for the material.
Especially perplexing to students of scripture is the false misrepresentation in Exodus 12:6 of the "two twilights"
—or more accurately, the "two evenings" ( בֵּין הָעַרְבַּיִם ben haarbayim "between the two evenings", dual in phrase)—
of the fourteenth day of the month "at evening" as being two distinctly different evenings separated by a period of about 24 hours, as at the beginning and the ending of the day, and, consequently, the time of the sacrifice of the Passover lamb "between the two evening twilights" is misrepresented as being midday at noon or midafternoon of the fourteenth day of the month, instead of being represented in accordance with the Semantics of a properly informed reading in the biblical text of the true Jewish semitic meaning of the normal terminology of the ordinary daily first and second "twilights", "the two evenings", as actually being a reference to the single sunset after the end of the thirteenth day of the month marking the beginning of the fourteenth day of the month "in the evening", according to the ancient traditional Jewish reckoning of the beginning of the day "at evening",
  • first, the early evening of the approaching sunset in very late afternoon after the end of the thirteenth day as the first evening or "twilight" of the beginning of the fourteenth day, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, and
  • second, the later evening twilight of the beginning of the same day, at the moment the last light of the sun disappears, as the second evening or "twilight dusk", signifying the beginning of the fourteenth day and the commencement of the Passover seder,
and the additional misrepresentation of the "twilight dusk" of the fourteenth day of the month of Abib/Nisan "at evening" as being at the end of the fourteenth day of Abib/Nisan beginning the fifteenth day, instead of this evening twilight "between the two evenings" being represented according to the literal sense of the actual biblical and ancient Jewish intent and meaning as the period after the end of the thirteenth day of Abib/Nisan in the evening, as actually being in reality the "two evenings or twilights" at the beginning of the fourteenth day of Nisan "at evening" when the Passover lamb was to be sacrificed and roasted and eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. No flesh was to remain in the morning of the fourteenth day of the month (Exodus 12:8-10; Leviticus 23:5-6; Numbers 28:16-17; 33:3).
This misrepresentation of the late afternoon/evening of the fourteenth of Nisan at twilight as being at the end of the fourteenth day and the beginning of the fifteenth day is an error based on ignorance. The Jewish day begins "at evening", it does not end "at evening"—the Old Testament day never ends "at evening" ! —it begins "at evening" and continues on into the morning of the same day (Genesis 1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31 "the evening and the morning"). The Passover lamb was to be killed and eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs the fourteenth day of the month of Abib/Nisan "at evening"—at the beginning of the fourteenth day of the month "at evening". Whatever remained of the flesh of the lamb left over until the morning of the fourteenth was to be burned.
After the whole day of the fourteenth day of the month—beginning "at evening" of the fourteenth day of the month, followed by nightfall of the fourteenth day of the month, and the dawn of the morning of the fourteenth day of the month, through the midday and midafternoon of the fourteenth day of the month—after the whole day of the fourteenth day of the month was finally completed and came to its end in the late afternoon of the fourteenth day of the month—the following fifteenth day of the month ("the next day") likewise began afterward in the same way, in the very late afternoon "at evening" with the feast of Unleavened Bread followed by the morning and the midday of the fifteenth day of the month, when the Jews continued to eat unleavened bread and sacrifices "from the flock or the herd" to the twenty-first day of the month "at evening".
According to Exodus 12:6, the Passover lamb was to be taken and set apart for a whole family or household (traditionally a minimum of 10 persons, a "minyan" of 10) and kept alive four days (Nisan 10, 11, 12, 13), from the beginning of the tenth day at evening (after the end of the ninth day of the month beginning in the late afternoon/evening at sunset before nightfall) up until / up to / before / precedingHebrew עַד ʻad "up until" (KJV) the beginning of the fourteenth of Abib/Nisan "at evening" (up until the end of the thirteenth day of the month before the onset of the late afternoon/evening just before sunset) and killed in the evening, "between the two evenings", at the beginning of the fourteenth day (not after its beginning ! ), during the late afternoon/evening that begins the fourteenth day of Abib/Nisan (after the end of the thirteenth day of the month before the onset of the late afternoon/evening just before sunset beginning the fourteenth day), and then "They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it." Exodus 12:8. (And all leaven was to be removed from the houses and tents and buildings of the Israelites Exodus 12:18).
See When Does the Jewish Day Begin? Rabbi David Sperling (yeshiva.co) ("at sunset or at nightfall"?). See Genesis 1:5 and interlinear text of Genesis 1:5, and Exodus 12:6 and interlinear text of Exodus 12:6. Read from right to left .
Later, to accommodate the enormous number of lambs to be sacrificed for the people at the temple in Jerusalem—about 3 million persons who were ritually clean, not including a multitude of others in the city, according to Josephus, the Jewish historian of the first century, Wars 2.14.3—of necessity the Passover began to be sacrificed at noon of the thirteenth day of the month (as the virtual arrival of the festival on "the eve" of the fourteenth day), and the sacrifices continued in the temple one after another in the hundreds of thousands for the millions of worshipers without pause over a period of hours through the entire afternoon up to an hour before sunset, instead of waiting for later, during the interval "between the two evenings", the interval of about 2 hours when they afterward went and made preparation for the eating of Passover—this period of attending all afternoon to the business of getting all things ready on the afternoon of the thirteenth of Nisan on the eve of the fourteenth, the time required for sacrificing for the millions of Jews all of the unblemished lambs by the hundreds of thousands for the Passover seder, and the anticipatory removal of all leaven from their houses beforehand (lest any particle of leavened food be overlooked), this time when the day for sacrificing the Passover lamb was at hand, was regarded by the Jews by way of anticipation as the virtual arrival of "the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the passover lamb had to be sacrificed" Luke 22:7. "And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the passover lamb, his disciples said to him, 'Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?' " Mark 14:12. "Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, 'Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the passover?' " Matthew 26:17. (RSVCE)
(Similarly, in activities of anticipatory preparations of decorating and shopping days beforehand, Christians generally regard the entire 24th day of December in the secular western Gregorian Calendar as the virtual arrival of Christmas on Christmas Eve even before sunset, and begin to celebrate the arrival of Christmas Day in their churches even before midnight. And the greater majority of Christian believers throughout the major denominations of Christianity generally do the same with vigil celebrations of Easter Sunday, with baptisms and the Eucharist, often beginning as early as Saturday midafternoon.)
There are many who do not understand how the day preceding the fourteenth day of the month could possibly be regarded by any reasonable person as the arrival of "the first day of Unleavened Bread when the Passover lamb was sacrificed"—when they "can plainly see for themselves" that the Bible explicitly commands the Jews to sacrifice the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the month at evening ("obviously at the end of the day! ") "between the two twilights", not on the preceding evening of the thirteenth day of the month, which they implicitly assume ends at midnight 00:00 hrs ("of course ! "). They mistakenly assert with unquestioning confidence and without any foundation whatever the falsehood that
–the evening and nightfall of the Jewish day is at the end of the day, not at the beginning,
–that the Passover lambs were sacrificed in the temple on the fourteenth day of the month during the day as the preparation of the Passover, beginning at noon or midafternoon midway between the two evenings at the beginning and end of the fourteenth,
–that the annual Passover seder was then celebrated at the close of the fourteenth day of Abib/Nisan, at the end of the day beginning at sunset the late afternoon/evening of the fourteenth day of Nisan, as at the end of the fourteenth day of the month at sunset "between the two evenings" of that day, with the second evening of the day, as being the end of the fourteenth day of Abib/Nisan (14), and the approach of the beginning of the fifteenth day at night
–and that the nightfall after sunset at dusk that day "when three medium stars appear" is the beginning of the next day, the fifteenth day of Abib/Nisan (15), or that midnight after the fourteenth is the beginning of the next day, the fifteenth
–and they reason that the fifteenth day of Nisan as "the next day" in the morning through midday and all afternoon is therefore the day of Passover every year. This is not correct.
The fourteenth day of the month Abib/Nisan by Jewish reckoning begins very late in the afternoon "at evening" with the approach of sunset and the preparations for the eating of the Passover lamb and continues through sunset and late evening dusk and nightfall with the celebration of the Passover seder when the Passover lamb is eaten with bitter herbs and unleavened bread and all through the night-long vigil through dawn and morning and all day long through the midday eating of the Passover sacrifice from the flock or the herd (chagigah) and early afternoon and midafternoon of the fourteenth day of the month up to very late afternoon/early evening ending the fourteenth day of Abib/Nisan and finally the approach of sunset very late in the afternoon with the beginning of the next day, the fifteenth day of the month "at evening".
The first day of Passover is the fourteenth day of the month beginning "at evening" with the Passover seder and extending 24 hours from sunset to sunset, and the beginning of the fifteenth day of the month "at evening". (Read carefully with close attention every detail of the account of Exodus 12.)
According to John 18:28 (KJV) "Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of judgment: and it was early; and they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover." This does not mean that they had not yet eaten the Passover the preceding evening before Jesus was seized, bound and brought before Annas (John 18:12-13). The Jews "eat the Passover" every day of the eight days of Passover called Unleavened Bread.
Unleavened Bread and Passover was then and now a period of eight days, beginning the fourteenth day of the month "at evening" as the beginning of the fourteenth day, not the end, through the twenty-first day "at evening". Compare Deuteronomy 16:5-8
(Passover, one day - six days, six - the seventh day, one. = 1 + 6 + 1 = 8).
See Exodus 12:14-20 "In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, and so until the twenty-first day of the month at evening"; also Ezekiel 45:21; and Talmud - Mas. Pesachim 2a-121b.
The Passover was eaten for eight days (14-21 Nisan, inclusive), a fact evident from a plain reading of almost all of the authentically Jewish rabbinical literature and online sites which describe the observance of Passover to this day—beginning the first day with unleavened bread, and continuing seven days of unleavened bread, the whole time of Passover, when "they ate the Passover". Josephus, Antiquities 11.4.8; 14.2.1; 17.9.3, describes Passover as a feast of several days. The Jews in John 18:28, having already partaken of the Passover Seder in the evening at the twilight beginning of the fourteenth day of Nisan, and before Jesus was arrested, in the morning when they came to the Praetorium were seeking to remain ritually pure for the midday "chagigah" Passover sacrificial meal at which they continued to "eat the Passover" of 14 Nisan "from the flock or the herd", and to remain ritually pure without interruption into the second day of Passover, 15 Nisan, which occurred that year on the seventh day of the week, Saturday, the sabbath, the second day of Passover, making that sabbath a "high day"—"for that sabbath day was an high day" John 19:31—so that they might continue to "eat the Passover" that day also without defilement "from the flock or the herd" (Deuteronomy 16:2), for the entire period of the eight days of "the feast of unleavened bread, called the passover" (Luke 22:1). Compare the commandment regarding prohibitions of uncleanness in Leviticus 22:3 in the context of Leviticus 21:6–22:9.
It is true that, if they had entered the Praetorium and been ritually defiled in doing so (see also the listing of actual Gentile uncleanness in 1 Peter 4:3; Romans 1:18-32), then according to Leviticus 11–15 they would have been only "unclean to evening", and could even have "bathed in water and be unclean to evening". After sunset they would be ritually clean again and could eat the Passover undefiled. Even if they had been defiled the day Jesus was sentenced, executed, died and buried in a tomb, the defilement of entering the judgment hall of the pagan would not have continued past evening, so that in any case they would have been able to "eat the Passover" after sunset at the beginning of the sabbath day. It would be a matter of pride that at no time during the festival days of Passover did they in any way ritually defile themselves, or allow themselves to be ritually defiled, but continued in unbroken seamless ritual purity, without any interruption, to "eat the Passover".
Compare Chagigah: Jesus' Last Supper Timing (bibletopicexpo.wordpress.com)—the author of this article assumes that the evening of the fourteenth day of Nisan is the end of the day and the beginning of the fifteenth day of Nisan, that Passover is the fifteenth day of the month, and that the Passover meal was celebrated at the end of the fourteenth day as the beginning of the fifteenth day of the month at evening.
The term "the preparation" among the Jews designates the sixth day of the week, Friday, as the day of preparation for the sabbath, every week. When "an high holy day" falls on the seventh day of the week, on the sabbath, that sabbath is "an high day". According to the actual text of John 19:14 "it was the preparation". This parallels Mark 15:42 "it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath"—Luke 23:54 "And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on"—Matthew 27:62–28:1 "In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week" (Sunday)—for this reason, from these passages of scripture in the Bible itself, the Crucifixion of the Lord has been celebrated on Good Friday, the day before the sabbath. From this we can understand that "the preparation of the passover" was "the preparation" (day) during the seasonal time "of the Passover". It was not the day before the first day of Unleavened Bread called the Passover which had already begun the preceding evening, it was not the day of preparing for the coming feast of the Passover, of making preparations to begin the celebration of Passover that evening at sundown, but was in fact the day of the Passover itself, the first day of the feast of Unleavened Bread,
(Matthew 26:17; Mark 14:12-16 "and they made ready the passover"),
which began in the evening at sunset twilight of the night that He was betrayed in the Garden of Gethsemane and ended with him laid in the tomb before the following sunset twilight with the beginning of the sabbath. Other days were designated in the Law of Moses as sabbaths (Leviticus 23), but they did not always occur on "the seventh day of the week" (Saturday). Moreover, Jesus was "raised the third day"
(Matthew 17:23; 20:19; 27:64; 28:6; Mark 9:31; 10:34; Luke 13:32; 18:33; 24:7, 21, 46; Acts 10:40; 1 Corinthians 15:4),
and this "third day" was in fact Sunday "the first day of the week", Mark 16:9, the day after the sabbath, Matthew 28:1; Luke 23:54–24:7; John 19:40–20:1.
Christians have been divided over the year of the Crucifixion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus. Two years have been proposed: A.D. 30 and A.D. 33.
In A.D. 33 the day of Passover began Thursday evening 31 March at sunset, extended through the night of vigil and continued into the morning and all day Friday 1 April of the day of preparation, to sunset Friday when the sabbath of 2 April began at sunset twilight—31 March at sunset / 1 April all day A.D. 33—13 Nisan at sunset twilight beginning 14 Nisan A.M. 3793.
This was not true of A.D. 30. In A.D. 30 the Passover did not begin sunset twilight Thursday continuing on through the night to morning and all day to sunset Friday, but began sunset Tuesday 2 April continuing on through the night into morning and all day to sunset Wednesday 3 April—2/3 April A.D. 30 / 13/14 Nisan A.M. 3790. "The third day" would have been Friday, the sixth day of the week, not the first day of the week. The evidence does not appear to support A.D. 30 as the year when Jesus was crucified and rose from the dead.
Jesus actually celebrated the official day of Passover beginning at sunset of the night he was betrayed, as the Bible says He did, "Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end." John 13:1. "With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you" Luke 22:15. If the year was indeed 33 as many believe, Jesus rose from the dead Sunday 3 April A.D. 33.

"We know that you are [a] Teacher come from God..." [Nicodemus]
"Are you [the] Teacher of Israel...?" [Jesus]

John 3:2 and 10.
The Hebrew word "rabbi" means "teacher", from the Hebrew "rab" meaning "great one".
See Strong's numbers
4461 Ραββί rabbi "an official title of honor, Master"
7229 רִב rab "captain, chief, great, lord, master".
Compare Malachi 2:4-7; Romans 2:17-24; and Matthew 23:5-10 you have one teacher; John 14:23-26 the Holy Spirit will teach you; 1 Corinthians 12:27-30 some are appointed teachers; Hebrews 5:12-14 you should be teachers; James 3:1 let not many of you become teachers.
"miracles"—"for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him."
John does not specify what miracles Jesus had performed "in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast", only that "many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did" (John 2:23)
"We know" John 3:2—Nicodemus, in his dignity as an established rabbi and a distinguished member of the Sanhedrin, may have been referring to himself by the majestic plural singular form "we" in his own sincere acknowledgement of Jesus' divinely appointed authority as a prophet—"Rabbi, We know that you are a Teacher come from God." While this is certainly his own personal conviction, it has also been understood that in saying "we" he was also representing himself as not alone in his perception of Jesus as "a Teacher come from God", and that other high ranking rulers of the Jews among the rabbinical Pharisee party in the Sanhedrin (among them Joseph of Arimathea "a respected member of the council" Mark 15:43) shared his perception. It is significant that a high-ranking ruler and rabbi in the Sanhedrin addressed Jesus as "Rabbi", an honorific title of great respect, the Man whom many of the Jews (the scribes and Pharisees and the priests among the Sadducees) also later dismissed as uneducated, a man of no learning, "How knoweth this man letters, having never learned" John 7:15.
"The Teacher of Israel" ? . The commentaries are divided. This may indicate that Nicodemus was a Tana who held the chief rabbinical position of president of the Sanhedrin; or that Jesus may be addressing Nicodemus as an individual who is representative of the whole collective body of the chief doctrinal teaching and ruling religious authority of the people of Israel, a "college of rabbis" as teacher of Israel.
In the Greek text, where Jesus says, "You"—"You are the teacher of Israel"?—the word translated "You" in this passage is the Greek Σὺ Su "Sy", second person, personal pronoun, singular ("you, yourself"). It is not the second person, personal pronoun, plural Ὑμεῖς hymeis, "You all" ("y'all ! ").
The title "Rabbi" has been likened to the equivalent of a modern title of D.Div (Doctor of Divinity), which includes doctoral studies qualifying one for Th.D (Doctor of Theology) and Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy).
Compare the modern title and authority of
Chief Rabbinate of Israel.
The Era of Jesus and Nicodemus and the Second Temple rebuilt by Herod, A.D. 10-80 of the Christian Era CE, was the era of the Rabbins Hillel and Shammai and Gamaliel, the beginning of the era of the first generation of Tannaim in Israel, the First Generation of the Teachers of the oral law, a time of great intellectual and philosophical ferment among the Jews, which included Philo and Josephus.
See Tannaim and Amoraim - Jewish Encyclopedia (jewishencyclopedia.com)
See commentaries on
John 3:2 and 3:10
Matthew 23:8 and 23:10
Compare Matthew 19:17; Mark 10:18; Luke 18:19
and
Matthew 12:35; 13:38; 25:23; Luke 8:15; Romans 5:7; Ephesians 2:10.

"We speak that which We know, and testify of that which We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness."

John 3:11
The first occurrence in which Jesus uses the "majestic plural" form 'We' and 'Our' as the Lord.
Compare the possibility that this meaning is also included in the following texts "we", "us", "our":
Matthew 17:27; 20:18; Mark 4:30; 10:33; Luke 18:31; 22:8; John 14:23.
The "we", "us", and "our" in some of these texts also applies by extension to members of the body of Christ through "teaching by example" (see John 13:15 and 1 Corinthians 10:32; Matthew 10:25; Acts 1:8; 9:1-5; John 3:11). The leadership of the Church can say with Christ to the world, "We speak that which we know, and faithfully testify to what the eyewitnesses and ministers of the word from the beginning have seen and heard, and you do not receive our witness."
Saint Paul also apparently uses the "royal we" in several of his epistles as an expression of his authority as an ambassador of Christ, for example, in 1 Thessalonians 2:17–3:5, with reference to Acts 17:14-20; and in Galatians 1:6-10; 2 Corinthians 1:23-24; Colossians 1:24-29. "As we have said before, so now I say again"—"we wanted to come to you, I, Paul, again and again, but Satan hindered us"—"when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left behind at Athens alone"—"it was to spare you that I refrained from coming to Corinth. Not that we lord it over your faith; we work with you for your joy, for you stand firm in your faith. For I made up my mind not to make you another painful visit"—"I became a minister according to the divine office which was given to me for you...Him we proclaim, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man mature in Christ. For this I toil, striving with all the energy which he mightily inspires within me."
See the following:

"Most certainly, I tell you, unless one is born anew"

John 3:3
"anew", Greek ἄνωθεν anothen, also means "from above".
See Strong's number 509 ἄνωθεν: "from above, again, from the beginning (the very first), the top."
Compare multiple versions of John 3:3

John 3:13-21, 31-36 omitted

In the redaction of the texts of the four Gospels here in this Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version) these texts in John's Gospel have been rearranged in their sequence within the narrative and moved to the Chapter One Prologue of this Harmony of the Gospel.
According to the majority of biblical scholars, including Erasmus, Rosenmüller, Kuinoel, Paulus, Neander, Tholuck, Olshousen, Maier, and many biblical translators, these portions of the text of the Gospel According to John are inspired commentary from the Holy Spirit written by John himself, so that John 3:13-21 was not spoken by Jesus to Nicodemus, and John 3:31-36 was not spoken by John the Baptist to the Jews, but these passages were written by John as true testimony and a message of exhortation addressed directly to his audience, to all the hearers and readers of his account of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The wording of John 3:13-15 expresses the ascension of the Son of Man as an already accomplished fact:
"No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended out of heaven, the Son of Man, who is in heaven. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life."
When he spoke to Nicodemus by night the Son of Man in his human nature was not yet in heaven. Compare John 20:17: "I have not yet ascended to the Father". The statement in John 3:13-15 that the Son of Man must be "lifted up" refers to the mission of Christianity and of the Church from the very beginning of the preaching of the Gospel in the first century, the charge to lift up Jesus in accordance with the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-19), to exalt him in the eyes of every creature in heaven, on earth and under the earth, as the one Lord and Savior of the world and the only-begotten Son of God, his incarnate Word. According to this reading of the text, John testifies that the Son of Man, who was lifted up on the cross, must be exalted, lifted up in the sight of all, just as Moses lifted up the bronze serpent in the wilderness, in an ongoing and continuous present testimony before the whole world, as the sign and source of salvation from eternal death, so that all who look on him will live (see Galatians 3:1 and article Crucifix, also John 6:40 and article Transubstantiation). Most recent translations do not include the text "who is in heaven", which is not found in the earlier complete manuscripts of John's Gospel; but the following statement is found: "No one has ascended into heaven (past tense) but he who descended out of heaven, the Son of Man".
According to the Expositor's Greek Testament, John 3, commentary on John 3:16, the Greek aorist and perfect tenses of this passage forbid referring the words directly to Jesus himself. On His lips the present tense would have been more natural and it is not used in this passage of the Gospel. To John, looking back on the finished story, aorists and perfects are the natural tenses of speech as addressed near the end of the first century to John's present hearers and readers long after the resurrection and ascension of the Lord Jesus into heaven, and these are used in this passage. Accordingly, John 3:13-21 and 31-36, and other passages which read in Greek likewise, as inspired commentary attributable to the apostle John, are placed in Chapter One of this Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version) together with other New Testament texts as part of an extensive redacted Prologue introducing the message, mission, and person of Jesus Christ.
See the following:
John 3:16 clearly contradicts the Calvinist doctrine of predestination and especially the doctrine of Limited Atonement. "God so loved the world". He does not say, "God so loved the predestined elect".
ἠγάπησεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν κόσμον
egapesen ho Theos ton kosmon
(word-for-word) "loved - God the world"
This is also found in the statement of 2 Peter 3:9: "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise; as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Compare Revelation 22:17, "and whosoever will...". Every human being is included in the universal (catholic) plan of salvation through the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. God "commandeth all men everywhere to repent" Acts 17:30. The Holy Spirit said to Peter, "What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common." And Peter said, "God hath shewed me that I should not call any man common or unclean." Acts 10:15b, 10:28b. KJV. See also John 6:37, "...and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out."
This is especially strong in Paul's undeniable declaration in Romans 5:18:
"Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life." KJV.
This is Unlimited Atonement. Jesus Himself said,
"And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me." John 12:32 KJV.
This is the word of the Lord. No one is excluded. This contradicts the Calvinist doctrine of Irresistible Grace and teaches that every human soul has free will to accept or to resist the universal grace of salvation poured out on all.
(See the warning in John 12:48.)

"It was about the sixth hour of the day, about noon"

John 4:6
More literally, "It was about the sixth hour."
KJV "and it was about the sixth hour."
The Jews and the Romans of the first century of the Christian Era (CE) reckoned the "hours of the day" as from sunrise, and the hours of the night as from sunset (which the Jews reckoned as the beginning of the next day "in the evening" before nightfall and the dawning of the day and its morning). At the Vernal and Autumnal Equinox, when day and night are equal in length, the hours of the day were reckoned beginning at sunrise, about 0600 hours military time, from six o'clock in the morning, at the end of the fourth watch at the twelfth hour of the night, when the hours of the day begin to be reckoned. The first hour of the day was about 6 am to 7 am, the third hour from about 8 to 9 am, the sixth hour from about 11 am to noon, the seventh hour from about noon to 1 pm, the ninth hour about 2 to 3 pm, the tenth hour about 3 to 4 pm, the eleventh hour of the day about 4 pm to 5 pm, and the twelfth hour of the day ended at sunset, at the beginning of the first watch of the night, beginning with the first hour of the night, until the third hour of the night at about 8 to 9 pm when the first watch ended with the changing of the guard, of the watchmen, of the watch (see Isaiah 21:11-12; Psalm 127:1; Song 3:3; 5:7; Matthew 14:25; Luke 12:38). The second watch of the night was from the ninth hour to the twelfth, the fourth watch from about 3 am to sunrise.
In the first century, the "sixth hour of the day" was not 6 o'clock in the evening (which would have been the twelfth hour of the day and the beginning of the first watch of the night). It was about six hours after sunrise, near noon, at the time of the heat of the day. Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and North African peoples normally rest during the heat of the day in summer, from about noon, or shortly thereafter (1 pm), to about 3 pm, from the seventh to the tenth hour of the day. Latin countries such as Spain and Mexico call this period of rest "siesta". The women of a community normally gathered to draw water from the community well or from the nearest flowing stream or river at dawn and at sunset, at the coolest time of the day. The Samaritan woman at the well of Sychar in Samaria came to get water at a time when the women of her community would not be there. Jesus rested there in the shade of the trees at the beginning of the heat of the day while his disciples went into the city to purchase food.
See Daily Bible Study: Hours of the day, by Wayne Blank (keyway.ca)
See commentaries on John 4:6 and 4:7

"living water"

John 4:10b.
Greek ὕδωρ ζῶν hydōr zōn (literally) "water living"—in the physical sense of fresh cool water, moving water, flowing water, gushing water; in the spiritual sense of life, vitality, renewal, refreshment, consolation, light, eternal youth, dynamic living grace from God, the inexhaustible, eternal source of life, who comes to dwell in those who love him and keep his word (John 14:23).
See Strong's number 2198 ζάω zaō.
Such "living" water is greatly desired for its flavor, coolness and refreshing effect—unlike stale, sometimes even stagnant, well water collected from the seep of water percolating through the water table below ground and from seasonal rains and stream runoff flowing over decaying vegetation into ponds frequented by livestock and wild animals, and stored standing, without oxygenating agitation, in cisterns, and reservoirs constructed of quarried stone or masonry, tanks and chambers and pools enclosed and protected by shade to minimize evaporation, and brought and poured into huge stone jars having capacities of several gallons in houses (John 2:6).
See interlinear text of John 4:10.
Compare multiple commentaries on John 4:10
Water is also a biblical metaphor for teaching and doctrine, either true, or false, refreshingly sweet, or bitterly poisonous, giving (pouring out) life, or giving (pouring out) death. Compare Psalm 1:1-3; Proverbs 25:25; Isaiah 1:21-22; 2:3; 11:9; 65:13-14; Jeremiah 2:13; 8:14; 9:13-16; 23:15-16; Amos 5:23-24; Habakkuk 2:14-16; Zechariah 14:8-9; John 7:37-38; Revelation 7:17; 8:10-11; 12:15-16; 16:4-7; 22:1-2.
See Sirach 24:30-34: "I went forth like a canal from a river and like a water channel into a garden. I said, 'I will water my orchard and drench my garden plot'; and lo, my canal became a river, and my river became a sea. I will again make instruction shine forth like the dawn, and I will make it shine afar; I will again pour out teaching like prophesy, and leave it to all future generations. Observe that I have not labored for myself alone, but for all who seek instruction." (RSVCE) See parallel text Douay-Rheims Ecclesiasticus 24:40-47 (Latin Vulgate). See also King James Bible Ecclesiasticus chapter 24 (kingjamesbibleonline.org)
Compare John 7:37-39a: "On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and proclaimed, 'If any one thirst, let him come to me and drink. He who believes in me as scripture says, out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water.' "
Here (after John 4:10b), Jesus says to the woman, "Every one who drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; the water that I shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:13-14.
Many scholars have noted that John 7:38 cannot be certainly identified as a quotation from any known text from the Old Testament. This Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version) does not punctuate John 7:38 as a citation of an unknown OT text, but rather as the promise of the Holy Spirit to be given to those who believe in Jesus as scripture has commanded (Deuteronomy 18:15-18)—the promised eternal life welling up within them, given to those who love God and believe in Him Whom He has sent, in accordance with the promise Jesus made in John 4:10b, and afterward testified as fulfilled in those who believe the Gospel in 1 John 2:27.
(See Jeremiah 31:31-34; 32:38-41; and again Sirach 24:32-33, "I will again make instruction shine forth like the dawn, and I will make it shine afar; I will again pour out teaching like prophesy, and leave it to all future generations.")

"I AM [he]—the one who is speaking to you."

John 4:26.
"I AM" Greek ἐγώ εἰμι (ego eimi). This ἐγώ εἰμι is also the Greek translation of the Tetragrammaton of God's NAME in the Septuagint Old Testament.
The word "he" ("I am he") is not present in this text in Greek and has accordingly been removed from the redacted text of this Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version). The word "he" has often been added to the text here, and also to other "I Am" texts, by many translators including the KJV translators, to "correct" the Greek text, ostensibly as a "dynamic" form of translation of the meaning of Jesus' own words according to their own understanding and interpretation (reading) of the text. (See Eisegesis). In doing so, they have obscured the fuller significance and deeper meaning of the words of Jesus Christ who is the Great I AM made flesh. See Revelation 22:18-19.
See "I AM" Sayings in the Fourth Gospel, compiled by Felix Just, S.J., PhD.

It is better to adjust our understanding to the scriptures, than to adjust the scriptures to our understanding. – Michael Paul Heart

"a full day's journey from Cana, more than twenty-six miles."

Amplification of John 4:46.
A distance by road of 26.5 miles, according to Distance between Capernaum and Cana in Israel (bing.com)
See also Cana, Israel, and Capernaum, Israel (distancebetweencities.net)

"Unless you see signs and wonders, you will in no way believe."

John 4:48
An allusion to the following Septuagint texts:
LXX Wisdom 8:8 "foreseeth signs and wonders"
LXX Wisdom 1:2-3 "For he will be found of them that tempt him not; and sheweth himself unto such as do not distrust him. For froward thoughts separate from God"
LXX Wisdom 13:8-9 "For if they were able to know so much, that they could aim at the world; how did they not sooner find out the Lord thereof?"
Compare Matthew 12:39; 16:4; Mark 8:12; Luke 11:29—"an evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign"

Compare the Conservative Bible text (conservapedia.com):

When the Jews' passover was at hand, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. He found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers, all sitting. Jesus made a whip out of small ropes, and drove all these people out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen, and poured out the money changers' money, and knocked over the tables. And said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away; do not make my Father's house a house of business." And his disciples remembered that it was written, "The zeal of your house has eaten me up." The Jews responded to Jesus, "What sign can you show to us, that might justify your actions to us?" Jesus answered, saying, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will rebuild it." Then the Jews said, "It took forty-six years to build this temple, and you would rebuild it in three days?" But He meant the temple of his body. That is why, when He was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this to them, and they believed the scripture, and the things which Jesus had said. When He was in Jerusalem at passover, on the feast day, many believed in Him superficially, when they saw the miracles which He did. But Jesus himself had no confidence in them, because he understood all people, and did not need anyone to explain to him what people are like. He already knew.

There was a man from the Pharisees by the name of Nicodemus, who was a leader of the Jews: This man came to Jesus at night, and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher sent from God: for no man could do the miracles that you do, unless God was with him." Jesus answered him, saying "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Nicodemus said to him, "How can a person be born when he is old? Can he enter again into his mother's womb, and be reborn?" Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a man is born from water and from the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born from flesh, is flesh; but that which is born from the Spirit is spirit. So you should not be surprised that I say to you that you must be born again. The wind blows where it likes, and you may hear the sound of it, but you cannot say where it originated nor where it will end up: this is how it is for everyone born from the Spirit." Nicodemus replied, saying to Him, "How can these things be true?" Jesus answered, saying to him, "You are a teacher of Israel and you do not know these things? Truly, truly, I say to you, that we speak of things we know, and speak of things we have seen, and yet you do not believe us. I have told you of earthly things, and you do not believe me. How, then, will you believe if I tell you of heavenly things? No man has gone up to heaven except He that came down from heaven - the Son, a human being. As Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, just in this way must the Son, a human being, be lifted up, That he who believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the people of the world that He gave His Only Son, so that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.

For God did not send his Son to mankind to condemn it, but to save it. He who believes in Him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the condemnation: that light came into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light, because their actions were evil. For all those who do evil things hate the light, and avoid coming to the light, to avoid judgment of their actions. But he who lives the Truth walks within the light, so that his actions may be clearly seen, because they have been done through God." After these things, Jesus and his disciples went into the land of Judea, and there he met with them, and baptized. And John was also baptizing, in Aenon, near Salim, because there was a good deal of water there, and they came, and were baptized. This was when John had not yet been imprisoned. There arose a question between some of John's disciples, and the rest of the Jews, about purification. So they came to John, and said, "Rabbi, he that was with you beyond Jordan, to whom you bore witness, now he is baptizing, and all the men are going to him." John answered them, saying, "Everything that a person receives is given to him from heaven. You yourselves can verify that I said I was not the Christ, but the one who precedes Him. The one who has the bride is the groom, but the best man, who stands by him and hears him, rejoices because of the grooms voice: this is why I am now joyed. He must continue to increase, and I must continue to decrease. Jesus, who comes from above is above all, while I who am of the Earth am earthly, and my words are not from Heaven. God is above all." And what He has seen and hears He is continuing to testify; but nobody receives His testimony. Whoever who fully accepted His testimony gave a stamp of approval to this: that God is truth. For the One God sent speaks the very words of God, because God did not give Him just a portion of the Spirit. The Father loves the Son, and has given Him authority over everything. He who thoroughly believes in the Son has eternal life, while he who does not believe in the Son will not, but will instead face the full anger of God.

Herod the governor, having been reprimanded by John for his immoral marriage to Herodias, his brother Philip's wife and for all the other evils he had done Added an even greater sin by shutting John up in prison.

Herod Antipas had earlier had John arrested, put under restraint, and put in prison for the sake of Herodias, the wife of his brother Herod Philip,

For it had been Herod who had sent his men to capture and imprison John on account of his brother Philip's wife, Herodias, who he had married.

because John used to tell him, "You may not have her for a wife."

John used to tell Herod, "It is against the law for you to marry your brother's wife."

He wanted to have him executed, but he was afraid of the crowd, because they considered him a prophet.

And so Herodias was hostile to John, and she would have killed him had she been able. Herod actually was afraid of John, realizing that he was a just and holy man, and followed John's preaching closely. Herod couldn't always understand what John said, but he was glad to listen.

As soon as the Lord perceived that the Pharisees had found out that Jesus now had made and baptized more disciples than John, (although Jesus did not do the actual baptizing Himself; His disciples did that), He left Judea, and went back into Galilee,

Now when Jesus had heard that John had been arrested,

He left Judea, and went back into Galilee, but to get there, He had to pass through Samaria. During this trip he stopped at the Samarian city of Sychar, near a plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.

"And I have given you the mountain-slope ahead of your brothers, the slope I captured from the Amorites with my sword and my bow."

Jacob's well was there, so at about six o'clock in the evening, as Jesus, who was tired from the journey, was sitting wearily at the well,

(for His disciples had gone into the city to buy food).

a Samaritan woman arrives to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Could you give me something to drink?"

The Samaritan woman answered him, "How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for something to drink? Jews do not associate in any way with Samaritans. Jesus answered and said to her, If you had perceived the gift of God, and who it is that said to you, 'Could you give me something to drink', you would have asked him and he would give you living water. The woman responded to him, "Sir, you do not even have a bucket, and the well is deep. So where are you getting the living water?" Are you greater than our forefather Jacob, who gave us this well, and drank from it himself, along with his sons and his cattle? Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks from this well-water will get thirsty again. Not only will whoever drinks from the water that I give him never get thirsty again, but that water will become a fountain gushing up inside of him forever. And the woman says to Him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I will neither thirst nor have to come back here to draw water again. Jesus says to her, "Return to the city, call your husband, and then come back here." The woman answered and said, "I do not have a husband." Jesus responded, "Your response, that you have no husband, was an honest one." "Because you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. In that, you spoke truthfully." The woman responded to him, "Sir, I see that you are a prophet. Our forefathers worshiped in this mountain, and you Jews say that Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship. Jesus says to her, "Dear woman, believe me that the hour is coming when you Samaritans will not worship the Father in either this mountain or in Jerusalem. You Samaritans do not know what you are worshiping. We Jews know what we are worshiping, because salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, in fact, it's already here, when true worshipers will worship the Father in both spirit and truth, for these are the kind of worshipers the Father really wants. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must do so in spirit and in truth. The woman responded, "I know that the Messiah, also called Christ, is coming; when He comes, He will reveal everything to us." Jesus said to her, "I, the one speaking to you, am he." At that very moment his disciples arrived and were astonished that he spoke with a woman, but no one dared ask "What do you want?" or "Why are you talking to her?" The woman just dropped her bucket, rushed back into the city and told the people, "Come and see a man who described to me everything I have ever done. Could this be Christ? Then they went out of the city and were heading toward him. While this was going on, His disciples were begging Him, saying, "Rabbi, you must eat." But He responded to them, "I have food to eat that you do not know about." So the disciples said to one another, "Has anyone brought Him something to eat?" Jesus said to them, "My food is dedicating my life to doing the will of the one who sent me and completing His work. Don't you say, 'there are still four more months until the coming harvest?' Well, I say to you, 'open your eyes and look around, for the fields are ready for harvest now.' And the one harvesting receives wages as well as gathering fruit into eternal life so that both the one planting and the one harvesting may rejoice together. 'One plants and another harvests' is an accurate saying in this situation. I sent you to harvest a crop from a field you did not work; others have worked those fields, and you are benefiting from their hard work. And many of the Samaritans from that city believed in Him because of the account of the woman, who testified that, "He told me every single thing I did." So when the Samaritans came to Him, they begged Him to be their guest for a while, and so He stayed there for two days. Many more believed because of His preaching, and they said to the woman, "Our faith is no longer because of what you were saying, but because we have heard Him for ourselves, and we now know that this man is truly the Christ, the Savior of the world." After spending two days there, He left and went on to Galilee.

he went away into Galilee;

All of this was because of what Jesus Himself confirmed, that a prophet is not valued in his own town. In contrast to Judea, when He went into Galilee, the Galileans accepted Him, because they had gone to the feast and had seen for themselves all the things He did in Jerusalem during the feast.

Jesus then returned with the power of God to Galilee,

So Jesus arrived once again in Cana of Galilee, the place where He made the water wine. There was, at this time, a government official in Capernaum whose son was sick. When the official heard that Jesus was arriving from Judea to Galilee, he sought Him out and begged Him to come to Capernaum and heal his son, because he was close to death. Then Jesus snapped at him, "Unless you people see miracles and signs, you will never believe." The nobleman responded to Him, "Sir, please come before my child dies." Jesus said to him, "Go home. Your son lives." The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and started for home. Not long after this, as he was traveling, his servants ran into him and reported, saying, "Your son lives." So he asked them the precise moment when he began to feel better, and they told him, "His fever broke yesterday, at 1 pm." Then the father realized that this was the same moment when Jesus said to him, "your son lives," so both he and his entire house believed. Now this was the second miracle Jesus did after returning from Judea to Galilee.

and his reputation spread throughout the region. Jesus taught in the synagogues, with the unique glory of God.

Ten

Chapter 10 Bible texts

Now after John was taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Good News of God’s Kingdom, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and God’s Kingdom is at hand! Repent, and believe in the Good News.”

He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. He entered, as was his custom, into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. The book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. He opened the book, and found the place where it was written,

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the broken hearted, to proclaim release to the captives, recovering of sight to the blind, to deliver those who are crushed, and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”

He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began to tell them, “Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

All testified about him, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth, and they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”

He said to them, “Doubtless you will tell me this parable, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done at Capernaum, do also here in your hometown.’ ”

He said, “Most certainly I tell you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. But truly I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut up three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land. Elijah was sent to none of them, except to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. There were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed, except Naaman, the Syrian.”

They were all filled with wrath in the synagogue, as they heard these things. They rose up, threw him out of the city, and led him up to the brow of the hill that their city was built on, that they might throw him off the cliff. But he, passing through the middle of them, went his way—the greatest among them did not grasp him, they could not hold him.

Leaving Nazareth, he came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying,

“The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, toward the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, the people who sat in darkness saw a great light, to those who sat in the region and shadow of death, to them light has dawned.”

From that time, Jesus began to preach, and to say, “Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”

He was Teaching them on the Sabbath day, and they were astonished at his Teaching, for his word was with authority.

Passing along by the sea of Galilee, walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon, two brothers: Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.

He, Jesus, said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you into fishers for men.”

Immediately they left their nets, they immediately left their nets and followed him.

Going on a little farther from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John, his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. Immediately he called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father; they left their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired servants, and went after him, and followed him.

They went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath day he entered into the synagogue and Taught. They were astonished at his Teaching, for he Taught them as having authority, and not as the scribes.

Immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon, according to what is written, “To the pure, all things are pure; but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their mind and their conscience are defiled. They profess that they know God, but by their deeds they deny him, being abominable, disobedient, and unfit for any good work”; and he cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Ah! what have we to do with you, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are: the Holy One of God!

Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!

When the demon had thrown him down in the middle of them, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, he, the unclean spirit, came out of him, having done him no harm. They were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new Teaching? For with authority he commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him!

Amazement came on all, and they spoke together, one with another, saying, “What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!

The report of him went out immediately everywhere. News about him went out into every place of the surrounding region, into all the region of Galilee and its surrounding area.

Immediately, he rose up from the synagogue, and when they had come out of the synagogue, they came and entered into Simon’s house, the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. (The house was next door to the synagogue.) Now Simon’s wife’s mother lay sick with a fever, and immediately they told him about her: Simon’s mother-in-law was afflicted with a great fever, and they begged him for her. He came and stood over her and rebuked the fever, and took her by the hand, and raised her up; and it left her, the fever left her. Immediately she rose up, and she served them.

When the sun was setting, at evening, when the sun had set, all those who had any sick with various diseases brought them to him; they brought to him all who were sick, and those who were possessed by demons. All the city was gathered together at the door. He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons, and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them. Demons also came out of many, crying out, and saying, “You are the Christ, the Son of God!

Rebuking them, he did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew him. He did not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Christ, the Anointed One of God.

Early in the morning, while it was still dark, he rose up; and when it was day, he departed and went out into an uninhabited place, a deserted place, and prayed there. Simon and those who were with him searched for him. They found him and told him, “Everyone is looking for you.”

He said to them, “Let us go elsewhere into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because I came out for this reason.”

And the multitudes looked for him, and came to him, and held on to him, so that he would not go away from them. But he said to them, “I must preach the good news of God’s Kingdom to the other cities also. For this reason I have been sent.”

He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, preaching and casting out demons.

Mark 1:14-15
Luke 4:16-31a
—LXX Isaiah 61:1
Matthew 4:13
Luke 4:31b
Matthew 4:14-17
Luke 4:32
Matthew 4:18
Mark 1:16-17
Matthew 4:19
Mark 1:18
Matthew 4:20
Mark 1:19
Matthew 4:21
Mark 1:20
Matthew 4:22
Mark 1:21-24
Luke 4:33a
Titus 1:15-16
Luke 4:33b-34
Mark 1:25
Luke 4:35
Mark 1:26-27
Luke 4:36-37
Mark 1:28-30
Luke 4:38-39
Mark 1:31
Luke 4:40
Mark 1:32-34a
Luke 4:41
Mark 1:34b-35
Luke 4:42a
Mark 1:36-38
Luke 4:42b-43
Mark 1:39

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Greek original text
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Scofield Reference Bible (1917 Edition)
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interlinear Bible: Hebrew, Greek, English
Bible maps (click initial letter of place name)
Bible Encyclopedias: Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature (studylight.org)
Catholic Encyclopedia Catholic Online (catholic.org)
Hebrew Calendar Converter See exact equivalents of Gregorian Calendar dates.

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Table of Old Testament quotes in the New Testament, in English translation, Joel Kalvesmaki 2013 (kalvesmaki.com)

List of 300 Septuagint Old Testament quotations in the New Testament, by Steve Rudd 2017 (bible.ca)

Table of LXX quotes and allusions in the New Testament


Church History (Eusebius): The Ecclesiastical History Of Eusebius Pamphilus: Bishop Of Caesarea, In Palestine (newadvent.org)

The Works of Flavius Josephus William Whiston, Translator, 1737 (sacred-texts.com)

Suetonius: Twelve Caesars: The Lives of the Twelve Caesars by C. Suetonius Tranquilus; To which are added His Lives of the Grammarians, Rhetoricians, and Poets. The Translation of Alexander Thomson, M.D., Revised and corrected by T. Forester, Esq., A.M. (Gutenberg.org)

Tacitus: The Annals, Written 109 A.C.E. Translated by Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb

Sextus Aurelius Victor: Epitome De Caesaribus (roman-emperors.org)

Eutropius: Breviarium - Eutropius's Abridgement of Roman History (tertullian.org)

Cassius Dio: Roman History Epitome (penelope.uchicago.edu)

Early Christian Writings A.D. 30 through 380 (earlychristianwritings.com)
See Biblical Canon and Apocrypha.


"The Spirit of the Lord is on me...to deliver those who are crushed"

Luke 4:18
Luke quotes the Septuagint text of Isaiah 61:1.

"what we have heard you did at Capernaum".

Luke 4:23
Luke's Gospel does not directly relate what Jesus did at Capernaum. See Luke 4:1-15, which simply states that "a report concerning him went out through all the surrounding country."
This redaction or Harmony of the Gospel, placing the Gospel of John and the Gospel of Luke in sequence, as here at the beginning of Jesus' ministry, resolves for the reader of Luke the question of what Jesus had done at Capernaum.

"the greatest among them did not grasp him, they could not hold him—(or, alternatively) the strongest among them were not able to hold him".

See Luke 4:30
This is an amplification of the phrase "passing through the middle of them", based on the Greek word διελθὼν dielthon in the Greek text of Luke 4:30 αὐτὸς δὲ διελθὼν διὰ μέσου αὐτῶν ἐπορεύετο: "passing through the midst" δὲ διελθὼν διὰ μέσου de dielthon dia mesou.
Many read this as a miracle like that of Jesus' resurrection body passing through solid walls or locked doors (John 20:19, 26; Luke 24:36-37). There is no indication from the text itself that Jesus passed through their bodies, only that he passed through the midst of the crowd. Texts of scripture can often be better understood when the reader notes what the text does not say. It does not say they reacted with astonishment, fear or terror at a manifestation of supernatural or divine power (see Matthew 9:7; Mark 2:12; Luke 5:26; John 18:6). It does not say they fell silent and became still. It only emphasizes that he passed through their midst and went away.
Compare Judges 15:14, 16:9 and 14. "I will go out as at other times and shake myself free." (16:20)
Village carpenters in first century Palestine such as Jesus and Joseph often did the work of blacksmiths. Jesus is traditionally known as a “carpenter” (Mark 6:3) or the “son of a carpenter” (Matthew 13:55). Yet the Greek word used here, τέκτων tekton, carpenter, also has the broader meaning of a builder, including a mason, or a maker of tools for farmers, including plows and yokes (multiple commentaries on Mark 6:3). Few Christians imagine Jesus as a man of ordinary appearance having great strength with a reasonably powerful muscular physique. When Pilate was informed that Jesus had already died he was surprised (Mark 13:44), a reaction most probably due to the impression the Roman had of Jesus physically as a man, even after he had been scourged.
"But passing through the midst of them":
Greek διελθὼν dielthon. See Strong's Concordance entry "PASSING", Luke 4:30, linked to Strong's number 1330, dierchomai ("pass [through]"): traverse, pierce through. This suggests some degree of determined effort.
Greek διὰ μέσου dia mesou.
See Strong's Concordance entry "THROUGH", Luke 4:30, linked to Strong's number 1223, dia: through:—denoting the channel of an act, course, direct [movement, piercing] through, dividing [into two or more parts].
See Strong's Concordance entry "MIDST", Luke 4:30, linked to Strong's number 3319, mesos: middle:—among [them], between [them], midst [of them].
Jesus passed or traversed through the middle of them, Jesus passed or traversed among them, Jesus passed or traversed between them.
Compare multiple commentaries on Luke 4:30.

"...in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon...according to what is written...to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure"

Mark 1:23-24; Luke 4:33-34; Titus 1:15-16.
Many rigorously documented authentic cases of genuine demonic possession which cannot be explained away either psychiatrically or psychologically as diagnosable forms of mental illness demonstrate that in some previously unrecognized cases the afflicted person often seems normal enough, and may ordinarily be simply perceived as perhaps "a bit eccentric, somewhat odd, but otherwise O.K.", until confronted with the presence of something holy or someone filled with the purely radiant Spirit of God, which evil spirits cannot endure. The reaction can be quite dramatic.
Mark 1:23 says, "Immediately (Greek εὐθὺς euthys) there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit." This reading of the Greek text can give the reader the impression that this man suddenly burst into the gathering.
See interlinear text of Mark 1:23.
Compare multiple versions of Mark 1:23 with multiple Greek manuscript texts.
Luke 4:33 says, "And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon." This reading of the Greek text in Luke gives the reader a different impression.
(In the KJV, based on the Textus Receptus, Mark 1:23 more exactly parallels Luke 4:33 and does not include a reading of "immediately" εὐθὺς but entirely omits it, because it is not in the Textus Receptus.)
Since the man in the synagogue was among the congregation—"in the synagogue"—and no one seemed to be disturbed by his presence there before Jesus spoke to the gathering "with authority", it is possible that the man in the synagogue was not normally disruptive, and only seemed to others to be simply one of those individuals who habitually participate in regular religious gatherings, but who basically shows little respect for religion or for ministers and preachers and people of virtue, and toward anyone else they regard as "holier-than-thou" hypocrites. He could have been an ordinary laborer or even a business man in the community.
The phrase "suddenly in the synagogue" does not in the Greek text of Mark mean that the man suddenly entered. The structure of Greek syntax here indicates that the man in the synagogue suddenly made the verbal outburst, a behavior which the congregation did not expect. This man who seemed to be normal, immediately perceived who Jesus is, and he reacted strongly. (Compare various commentaries on Mark 1:23.)
Judas Iscariot is an example of someone whom Satan Itself entered (spirit-beings have no gender), and yet Judas acted like a normal person, Luke 22:3-6; John 13:26-29. John himself comments that Jesus had already indirectly indicated that Judas was "a devil", and that he was "a thief" who actually cared nothing for the poor, John 6:71; 12:4-6.
Similarly, Ananias' heart was filled with Satan, but he too acted like a normal person, Acts 5:3.
Seemingly normal people who usually appear to simply regard the moral content of genuine religious practice and devotion to God with tolerant, "hard-headedly practical" attitudes of vaguely sneering contempt and disdain, while still professing to be regular members of the religious faith-based community (denomination), are occasionally, in some very few cases, suddenly and unexpectedly found to be undeniably afflicted with evil spirits, who loathe goodness and piety—who sometimes even paradoxically characterize with verbal jibes all corporal and spiritual works of mercy as being at their very root probably acts "of the devil" performed with evil intent (compare Matthew 12:22-37). These unhappy individuals normally seem somewhat unnaturally devoid of any degree of ordinary tender compassion and mercy toward others, rather unforgiving, sternly practical, coolly professing to have only ordinary common sense, even while they are generally polite in a conventional sense in public toward casual acquaintances, business associates (if any) and their own social circle of occasional friends who admittedly confess they don't know them very well. They are not always persons who can be characterized in general as people of ill-will, or as being totally unsympathetic. Even leaders of organized crime love those who love them, to a certain extent. (See Luke 6:32-34; Matthew 5:46-47.) This does not mean that every person who acts this way has an unclean spirit that needs to be cast out by exorcism. But it is possible that some few of them do. Real discernment is needed.
They can appear only to be rigidly intolerant of people who disagree with their abnormally harsh and unforgiving sense of morality and justice in the name of God, persons who claim, as a justifiable pretext, their own distorted interpretation of the biblical principle of "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth", persons who claim for themselves the right and even moral duty to judge and condemn others. The biblical passage they are invoking applies only to the appointed judges of the community who hear evidence in cases brought before them in a duly constituted, legitimately established court of law. Private citizens who presume to pass judgment and inflict punishment on those they condemn as guilty apart from the decision of the legitimately constituted court of judgment recognized by the government and the people of God are themselves guilty of manifesting wickedness, and according to the Law of Moses they deserve to die for the sin of presumption. Exodus 21:22-25; Deuteronomy 17:9-12; Matthew 7:1-5; 18:15-20; 23:23; John 7:24; 1 Samuel 16:7; 1 Corinthians 5:12–6:9; Isaiah 14:12-20. This does not mean that every person who acts this way has an unclean spirit that needs to be cast out by exorcism. But it is possible that some few of them do. Real discernment is needed.
A few will go so far as to sometimes invoke this principle as justification for their own unlawful, immoral taking personal revenge for imagined personal injury, or in general as "standing against" imagined outrages committed against a godly society by "impure elements" identified as "enemies", and yet show themselves to be inexplicably lacking the ordinary qualities of what is called "humanity". This is profoundly different from the compassionate mercy of admonishing sinners to avoid offending God and repent to be saved from the wrath to come (Matthew 5:7-10; Romans 1:18; 1 John 3:4-10; Matthew 25:40-46). They are strangely without mercy. No one can reason with them. If they do not appear to resort directly to overt violence against property and persons, they can be among those who seem relentlessly driven to resort to persistently repetitive malicious prosecution through what is today termed "vexatious litigation" to unreasonably persecute devoutly humble persons whose behavior and good works simply annoy them (see Wisdom 2:10-24). Some of them exhibit an icy calm to present an impression of being completely reasonable in their coldly pitiless, amoral, basically inhuman demands; but some of them will hypocritically protest with grief-stricken emotional tones that they, or others, are being oppressed by the moral position of those they oppose. However in their claim to be reasonable their argument appears, on close examination, to actually have no basis drawn from an objectively fundamental foundation of benevolent morality or goodness, and has instead all the elements of specious reasoning ultimately tending toward a culture of moral relativism, promoting a policy of pointlessly unsatisfying self-gratification, frustrated desires, misery and death. Many of them are "blind leaders of the blind" (Matthew 15:14). They do not care to perceive the evil they do. They often demand tolerance of their own views while refusing to be tolerant toward others who disagree with them. This does not mean that every person who acts this way has an unclean spirit that needs to be cast out by exorcism. But it is possible that some few of them do. Real discernment is needed.
They can also conversely be among those obstructive individuals who seem relentlessly driven to be the more extreme among those who appear to see no good in honest attempts at genuine social and moral reform in the face of culturally and governmentally tolerated injustice and corruption, and who do all that they can to discourage whatever reasonably founded, soundly considered measures are proposed, as being "useless", even "harmful to the stability and safety of the community". They patiently and persistently resist every reasoned appeal to them to be more reasonable. This does not mean that every person who acts this way has an unclean spirit that needs to be cast out by exorcism. But it is possible that some few of them do. Real discernment is needed.
But when they are among those anonymous crowds of private individuals in normal communities who do not publicly manifest either activism or obstructionism, in either case, if such persons do indeed have an unclean spirit, they can be individuals who seem quiet, but pleasant enough and no problem, generally "keeping their opinions to themselves", polite and cooperative, who "get along with others", occasionally somewhat "moody", and who appear to betray no overt socio-pathological tendencies—until they suddenly inflict shocking violence without any apparent warning or motive whatever, presenting only a totally inexplicable mystery as to why they did it, a mystery that may never be solved even with profound in-depth research and analysis by teams of experts in mental and criminal deviant behavior. In other cases of appallingly incomprehensible hypocrisy they engage in unimaginable long-term secret depravity and forms of unspeakable cruelty not detectable by outside observers in the community, all the while presenting themselves as good and decent, well-balanced citizens of the community, until their perversions and hidden activities are accidentally exposed. They are probably incited by evil spirits who eagerly take advantage of people's unexamined, undisciplined, non-directed physical, emotional, even mental passions, passions not dedicated in a humble commitment of obedient submission in merciful love to God who is loving, merciful, compassionate, kind and forgiving to repentant sinners, provoking them instead to intoxicating extremes of opinion, and belief, and in some cases inducing obsessive thinking leading finally to murderous violence against the innocent. Such actions in many instances cannot be explained apart from the existence and action of evil spirits. If evil spirits are not actually inhabiting their victims by genuine possession of their bodies, they otherwise inflict oppressive mental and emotional influence to incite them to commit evil by inducing obsessive patterns of behavior and delusional imaginings and erroneous beliefs. Their victims are almost always consumed by the vices of pride, envy, anger, wrath, lust, indolence, stubbornness, greed, and sometimes gluttony (in the sense of a passion for excess of sensation when more is never enough, whether physical, emotional or mental obsessiveness). "Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion seeking anyone whom he might be able to consume (devour)." 1 Peter 5:8. This does not mean that every person who acts this way has an unclean spirit that needs to be cast out by exorcism.
There have been cases where innocent persons have been violently possessed against their will. We can see some of these in the Gospels. For example, the woman in the synagogue who was bent over and could not stand up straight, whom Jesus revealed had been bound by Satan for eighteen years up to that moment (Luke 13:11-16). In those known instances where persons have been previously somewhat sinful but not notoriously so, and then have suddenly become unaccountably far worse, with or without the influence of drugs and alcohol, the evil spirit or spirits have attacked and made an already bad situation much worse, having suddenly found an individual, already willfully disposed to sin, who is ready to welcome a much greater evil, but who did not bargain for such an overwhelmingly malevolent increase in wickedness, far beyond the bounds of what that individual had ever believed themselves capable of or expected. The evil spirits either take over ordinary sinners' lives by inducing strong impressions, delusions and physical sensations and by these means with unrelenting pressure eventually dominate the sinfully cooperative will, or they aggravate and inflame the ordinary willful tendencies of the average worldly sinner to eagerly embrace greater, and ever-increasing depths of wicked depravity to an unnatural degree of overwhelming intensity which the sinner never believed possible for himself or herself, with the subtly infused false promise of potential for even greater pleasure and unimaginably immense personal satisfaction. Some persons have confessed to making a compact with the Devil, or of selling their souls to do evil, in order to gain something that they have greatly desired. When they have perpetrated evil in order to obtain something ordinarily considered by the vast majority of worldly mankind to be desirable as a good, for themselves or for society in general, they have been deceived into believing that the end justifies the means to reach it, even if it includes destroying themselves and as many other innocent persons as possible as a form of ultimate self-sacrifice to advance their cause and to punish and rid the world of those who will not and cannot agree with them, either violently or by degrees slowly and insidiously.
See Pragmatism and Utilitarianism.
Compare Demagogue, Ethnocentrism, Intolerance and Racism, with Fascism and National Socialism, Totalitarian twins and Police state, and with Wahhabism.
An entire people and culture can be demonically possessed, and some individuals within them more intensely so. See Matthew 12:43-45; John 8:42-47; 12:31; 1 John 5:19; and multiple commentaries on Daniel 10:13.
But the miserably unhappy hidden condition of those anonymous, seemingly ordinary citizens who normally betray no such outwardly obvious indication of being themselves actual victims of demonic possession can suddenly be exposed by the strong reaction of the oppressing evil spirit to the presence of a genuinely holy representative of Almighty God. They can show an intense apparent awareness of what no one else present could possibly know by ordinary means. This appears to be the case with the man who suddenly shouted against Jesus in the synagogue.
However, people like these just described are not automatically in every instance therefore proven to be possessed by evil spirits, or are being strongly incited to hold opinions against piety, devotion and holiness by unclean devils or by Satan Itself. Most of them quite frankly are of themselves and through their own fault sinners, even coldly wicked sinners and religious hypocrites, without necessarily being ipso facto possessed by unclean spirits. Only those among them, who suddenly and unexpectedly react strongly and vehemently with aversion, to the immediate presence of a consecrated devout and holy representative of the Lord, who is not dressed in any special garb or otherwise carrying some mark of sacred ministry—or who suddenly and unexpectedly react strongly and vehemently with aversion to the hidden nearby presence of a truly blessed holy object (Acts 19:11), whose silent, specifically intended, special purpose, by the grace of God, is solely to help dispose persons to come to a greater love of God and man, to open their hearts to welcome His help, and incite them to merciful acts of kindness and holy worship of the Lord—those who react strongly with sudden and vehement aversion to the unseen, hidden presence of the holy blessing of God located there in the same room with them are probably being influenced by an unclean spirit.
Most ordinary sinners seem to have no real interest in conversations about healthy, practical forms of holiness and down-to-earth compassion for the poor, the sick, and the disabled. This does not mean that every person who acts this way has an unclean spirit that needs to be cast out by exorcism. But people with an unclean spirit always have an aversion to conversations about healthy, practical forms of holiness and down-to-earth compassion for the poor, the sick, and the disabled. They will avoid being in the presence of what is holy and pure, and if they cannot, they will do whatever they can to defile it. This is part of the prudent discernment of a possibly genuine condition of demonic influence not marked by apparent signs of mental or physical illness. Only a very careful, and very thorough, investigation, eliminating entirely as it will natural causes due solely to mental illness, personal trauma, emotional disturbances, chemical abuse, can finally discern a genuine condition of demonic influence. This does not in every case absolutely absolve every and all demonically dominated persons of personal culpability for their abhorrence of what is holy and pure. Some of them by already choosing a sinful lifestyle have willingly cooperated with evil even before they were possessed—in such cases unclean spirits have grossly intensified the evil.
An enslaved victim of evil domination can be healed and set free by an authentic exorcism rightly performed and empowered by God Himself acting through his legitimately authorized representative.
C. S. Lewis (The Screwtape Letters) said that our race can make two serious and fundamentally opposite errors regarding the Devil and evil spirits:
  • to disbelieve in them altogether
  • to believe, and have an unhealthy and excessive interest in them
Complicating the issue are two different situations:
  • on the one hand, those cases of desperate attention-getters who subconsciously seek to imitate the known actions of persons demonically possessed, who are gravely disappointed or even angrily outraged when told after careful discernment that they are not really possessed and do not need an exorcism performed but do need counselling and/or medical treatment,
    together with those cases of other individuals who, if they have never behaved this way before, decide to attend a prayer meeting, or a gathering focused on "deliverance ministry" featuring exorcism for unhappy sufferers of various ills, and being influenced by what they hear and see seize the opportunity to relieve their intolerably drab, anonymous, obscure and seemingly inconsequential existence by imitatively manifesting in the midst of a public gathering signs of apparent demonic possession in order to be the intense focus of a dramatic public exorcism, who are not in fact possessed, but who have suddenly convinced themselves that they too must be possessed, who might or might not be mentally ill, and
  • on the other hand, those carefully documented cases which have repeatedly and conclusively demonstrated the fact that many persons who actually do harbor evil spirits are usually unaware of it before conclusive evidence of their presence is discovered, and some cases demonstrate the reality that the evil spirit inhabiting the victim does not always manifest symptoms of illness, or unexpected vocalizations or bizarre behavior causing a complete loss of conscious awareness during such manifestations, and other cases in which the unclean spirit does not seize complete control of the victim's body, but can take involuntary control of parts of the victim's body against their will—for example, partial paralysis of limbs, intermittent episodes of partial blindness or complete and permanent blindness, deafness, speech impairment, rashes, peculiar skin eruptions, boils, fevers, chills, involuntary spasmodic movements, unexplainable disabilities resulting in unemployment or inability to care for oneself, "blackouts", amnesia, all without any apparent physiological origin or ordinarily diagnosable observable pathology according to nature. Job 2:7; Exodus 12:23; Luke 13:11 and 16; 1 Timothy 1:20 and 1 Corinthians 5:5; 10:10; Mark 1:26; 3:10-11; 5:2-5 and 8; Mark 9:20-27; Matthew 12:43; Acts 16:16; Acts 19:16; Luke 6:18; 7:21—compare the experience of Saul king of Israel, 1 Samuel 16:14-16 and 23; 18:10-11; 28:3-13; also Saul's behavior 1 Samuel 18:6-29; 19:9-15; 22:11-19; 24:16-17.
Careful research of case after case of proven demonic possession has demonstrated that evil spirits cannot actually touch the personal will of their victims. The invisible oppressing spirit has made itself a constant companion, attaching itself to its target like a loathsomely vile parasite, often without the victim's knowledge (1 Corinthians 15:33). The victim is like a city under siege. Possession can take the undramatic obscure form of unrelenting depression or obsession without evidence of any physical genetic or pathogenic origin, and may never feature public episodes of bizarre or suddenly unexpected speech and behavior which superficially resemble Schizoid personality disorder, Tourette's syndrome or epileptic siezures. Many victims of oppression by evil spirits are afflicted with unrelieved anxiety, dread, inexplicable feelings of intense guilt, sensations of impending catastrophe, fears of contamination, or with a stupefying malaise or inertia characterized by a profound lack of energy or a total lack of any interest in ordinary daily human activities or personal hygiene or by a constant need to sleep, or a constant state of restless activity, or a condition falsely resembling obsessive compulsive disorder, PTSD, Alzheimer's disease, the effects of traumatic brain injury, or continuous obsessive agitation over endless projects which deprive the victim of adequate sleep and healthy social interaction (a defilement Jesus called "folly"), all of which are strangely unfocused, oddly generalized, unexpectedly without any discernable cause or reason, defying clear diagnosis, and which are persistently and mysteriously unresponsive to aggressive medical treatment and probing in-depth counselling, but are undramatic cases of genuine suffering. There are many documented cases of oppression by unclean spirits which do not in any way present episodes of inexplicable speech and bizarre behaviors of the kind made infamous by sensation-seeking novels and films about evil demonic entities and demonic possession as forms of "entertainment" (for example, William Peter Blatty's, The Exorcist, and The Rite (2011), starring Anthony Hopkins, based on Matt Baglio's factual book The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exorcist).
In those episodes in which the oppressive evil spirit intensifies the attack and does seize complete control of the victim's body, the victim's human mind and will are rendered inert and inoperative, and, after the oppressive and dominating evil spirit concludes the attack, without truly releasing the victim by lifting the siege and actually departing, the victim is afterward utterly unaware of the bizarre physical and verbal (if any) behavior of those moments, and these episodes of attack can happen repeatedly and will continue, and the sense of oppression continues, until the evil spirit is forced to depart by the holy power of God the Father through Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit of the Lord poured down from heaven in compassionate answer to humble prayer invoking divine mercy on the victim. It is Christ who compels the unclean spirit to depart, not the self-assumed authority of the exorcist who claims to be acting in his name, saying, "I bind thee" and "I take authority over thee" and "I cast thee out", a potentially disastrous situation in which claiming spiritual dominance by telling demons where to go degenerates into a personal power play and turns what is supposed to be a sacred ministry into an egotist’s playground.
Compare this confidently arrogant attitude to the humility of St. Michael the archangel in Jude 9
See also multiple commentaries on Jude 9.
Aggressive, violent and extreme physical force intentionally inflicted on the body of the victim, including cruel forms of restraining the victim by methods that identically resemble the sado-masochistic perversion called "bondage", is never in fact necessary to drive it out, and cannot drive it out, since a spirit is not a material being that can be affected or injured by physical assault. Such extreme physical measures only result in degrading, humiliating, painful injury to the victim, causing severe mental, emotional trauma and shock, even death—such viciously cruel and lethal "exorcisms" done by individuals claiming for themselves authority to act "in the name of the Lord" are outstanding examples of Satanic blasphemy, and may actually be signs that the "exorcist" is the one possessed by an unclean spirit (if he or she is not instead actually mentally ill), and not the innocent victim of the "exorcism". (2 Corinthians 11:12-15).
According to the Bible, unclean spirits were driven out with a word, and by prayer and fasting, joined to confident faith in the power and goodness of God, and by gently with reverence laying holy hands on the victim. (See Matthew 8:16; 17:19-21; Mark 16:17; Luke 4:36; Acts 5:12; 9:17; 14:3; 16:18; 19:11-12; 28:8; 1 Timothy 2:8; 1 Peter 2:9. Compare Mark 11:22-25; 1 John 5:14-18; especially John 14:23; Ephesians 2:10; 1 Peter 5:6-11.)
In those actual cases of undramatic and hidden possession which appear limited solely to the torment of unrelenting oppression and depression, without actually being otherwise proven to be demonstrable clinical forms of illness and without apparent clinical episodes of any central nervous system disorder, experiences of peaceful relief are either inexplicably short-lived or totally non-existent, and finally the affliction cannot be cured without a genuine complete exorcism of the oppressing evil spirit.
Unfortunately there are independent predatory "quack" practitioners claiming to be expert in "methods of spiritual warfare" who notoriously take advantage of the condition of mentally and emotionally afflicted individuals who are not in fact truly possessed, and mislead them in order to perform dramatic imitations of exorcisms and physical healings of diseases and afflictions which they attribute to evil spirits as the cause, to gain followers and fame and wealth (see especially 1 Timothy 6:9; Romans 2:24; 2 Corinthians 11:13; 2 Timothy 3:6; 2 Corinthians 11:14 and 2 Corinthians 11:15)—who publish books and conduct seminars promoting dangerously presumptive attitudes of spiritual invincibility which appeal to pride and prompt their disciples with ill-advised counsel to unwittingly place themselves in situations where they are actually woefully unprepared and at terrible risk of being themselves unexpectedly dominated by genuine evil spirits who do not recognize them as having any kind of spiritual authority to act in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ (see Acts 19:13-16)—clever charlatans who take every opportunity to promote themselves as prophets with a revolutionary new mission from God to denounce authentic medicine and religion along with their harsh blanket denunciations of whole churches and denominations and legitimate church leaders, attacking those who have shown good faith in genuinely promoting the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and who have honestly manifested over and over again obviously evident signs of their own authentically anointed ministry as being overall and generally on the whole truly led and taught by the guiding hand of the Holy Spirit of God.
Compare Mark 9:38-40; Luke 9:49-50; and also Matthew 12:30.
See Mark 16:17-18; John 14:12; Acts 4:29-30; 1 Corinthians 12–14; Ephesians 2:1-10 "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."
Interview with an Exorcist, by Wesley Barnes, Beliefnet (beliefnet.com), page 2
Interview with an Exorcist, by Wesley Barnes, Beliefnet (beliefnet.com), page 3
Interview with an Exorcist, by Wesley Barnes, Beliefnet (beliefnet.com), page 4
–Religious Background (of multiple religions' approach to possession)
–Psychological Perspective (discerning psychological disturbances from actual demonic possession)
–Media Representation
–Dissociative Identity Disorder
–Tourette Syndrome
–Schizophrenia
–Exorcism.
"Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you." Philippians 4:8-9.

"have you come to destroy us?"

Mark 1:24
Compare:
John 11:47-48 "destroy our nation", and
Matthew 12:43-45 and
Luke 11:24-26.
He is seeking to incite the congregation against Jesus by apparently charging him with being a self-promoting potential threat to the stability and security of their own community and nation by "pretending" to be a messianic figure fomenting rebellion. It was true that Jesus had come to destroy the power of Satan and his legions who prowl about the world like a roaring lion seeking the ruin of souls, and it is true that Jesus is the Holy One of God. The evil spirit was striving to make these facts be perceived as evil threats and as lies opposing the will of God.

"(The house was next door to the synagogue.)"

This is an amplification of the redaction of Mark 1:29 and Luke 4:38 "And immediately he left the synagogue, and entered the house of Simon and Andrew"—"And he arose and left the synagogue, and entered Simon's house".
This is based on the ancient tradition which has been constantly preserved in Capernaum, also on current archaeological evidence of the past century which appears to support it.
See article Bible History Daily: The House of Peter: The House of Jesus in Capernaum? Biblical Archaeology Society Staff 03/29/2011

Compare the Conservative Bible text (conservapedia.com):

He returned to his hometown of Nazareth and customarily went to the synagogue on the Sabbath. He rose to recite the reading. Jesus was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. Jesus opened it to the place where it was written: The Spirit of the Lord is with me, because he has chosen me to preach the gospel to the poor; he has sent me to heal the sorrowful and to preach freedom for the captives, and restore sight to the blind, to free those who have been subjugated, to preach in the Lord's favored year. Jesus closed the book and returned it to the minister, and sat down. But everyone in the synagogue was staring at Him. Jesus then declared, "This scripture was fulfilled by my reading it to you." The congregation marveled at His eloquent words. But then they murmured, "Isn't He merely Joseph's son?" Jesus replied, "You will surely surely this proverb, 'Physician, heal yourself, and perform the works here that we heard you did in Capernaum.'" Jesus continued, "Truly I tell you, no prophet is believed in his hometown. To tell the truth, there were many widows in Israel during Elijah's era, when there was a drought for three and a half years and a terrible famine swept the land, yet God sent Elijah to none of the widows, except a woman in the city of Sarepta in Sidon. There were also many lepers in Israel during Elijah's time, yet none of them was cured, except Naaman the Syrian. But the congregation in the synagogue became furious at hearing this and they rose to expel him from the city, and took him to the edge of the city cliff in order to throw him off face down. But Jesus slipped through the crowd to continue his work. He arrived at Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and taught on the Sabbath days.

And leaving Nazareth, he came and settled in Capernaum, which is on the seacoast, near the border between the tribal lands of Zebulun and Naphthali, in order that the words might be fulfilled that were spoken by Isaiah the prophet, who said, "The land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphthali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan River, Galilee of the Gentiles; "The people that sat in darkness saw a great light; and to them that sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned." From that moment Jesus began to preach, and to say, "Change your hearts, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

People marveled at His preaching, for His logic was compelling.

Now Jesus, as He walked by the sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon, called Peter, and his brother Andrew, as they were casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.

As He was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen, And Jesus said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men."

And he told them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of people."

Dropping their nets at once, they followed him.

And immediately they left their fishing nets behind and followed Him.

When He had traveled a little further, He saw James, the son of Zebedee, and John, his brother, who were also in their boat, mending their nets.

And going on from that place, He saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee, and his brother John, in a boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets; and He called them.

He called to them, and they left their father Zebedee and his crew aboard the boat, and went with Jesus.

And immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.

They went into Capernaum and as soon as He arrived He entered the synagogue on the holy day to teach. There, the listeners were astonished by his doctrine, for He taught as a man of great authority, not as a scribe. A man with an evil spirit was in the synagogue.

In the synagogue a man possessed with the devil

To the pure, all things are pure; but to them who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure: even their mind and their conscience are defiled. They claim they know God, but in their deeds they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and against every good thing.

shouted out in a loud voice, "Leave us alone! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Did you come to destroy us? I know who you are: the Holy Son of God.

He shouted, "Leave us alone, Jesus of Nazareth, for we're none of your business. Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God."

Jesus then scolded the spirit, and said, "Stop moaning and pull out of him."

But Jesus reprimanded him, "Shut up and leave him." The devil then tossed the possessed man and left him, without hurting him.

The evil spirit was then ripped away from the possessed man, cried out in a loud voice, and left him. The bystanders were all amazed, and asked each other, "What is happening? Is this a new doctrine? He acted with authority in ordering the evil spirits, and they obeyed him!"

The crowd was completely amazed, and clamored, "What a message is this! With power and authority He ordered the spirits of the devil to leave, and they did. Jesus quickly became famous throughout the countryside.

The news about Jesus spread immediately throughout Galilee.

Next Jesus left the synagogue, and entered Simon's house.

As soon as Jesus's group left the synagogue, they entered the home of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.

But Simon's mother-in-law was in bed sick with a fever, and Jesus was told.

Simon's mother-in-law had a high fever, and they sought Jesus for her.

Jesus stood over her, and ordered the fever to leave, and it did. Immediately she got up and waited on them.

So he came and, taking her by her hand, helped her stand up; and when she did the fever immediately passed, and she served the others.

By sunset, all the sick with a variety of diseases were brought to Him, and He cured all of them in laying His hands on each one.

At sundown the people brought to Jesus many sick people, and many demon-oppressed people, And all the city's people gathered at His door.

Jesus healed many who were diseased, and He threw out many demons; he commanded the demons to be silent, and they obeyed because they knew Jesus as God.

Meanwhile demons rushed out of many people, screaming, "You are Christ the Son of God!" But Jesus ordered them to shut up, because they knew He was Christ.

In the early morning, long before dawn, He left to pray by himself.

At the end of the day, Jesus left for a deserted place,

Simon and the others followed Him, And upon finding him they said, "Everyone is looking for You." Jesus replied, "Let us travel to the other towns, so I may preach in them too, for that is the reason I came."

but the people came after Him to be with Him, and kept Him from leaving them. So Jesus said to them, "I must preach the gospel to other towns too; this is my mission.

And he preached in the synagogues and threw out demons throughout Galilee.

Eleven

Chapter 11 Bible texts

He was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee. Jesus went about in all Galilee, Teaching in their synagogues, preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people. The report about him went out into all Syria. They brought to him all who were sick, afflicted with various diseases and torments, possessed with demons, epileptics, and paralytics; and he healed them.

While he was in one of the cities a leper came to him, begging him, kneeling down to him, and saying to him, “If you will it, you can make me clean.”

Being moved with compassion, he stretched out his hand, and touched him, and said to him, “I will it. Be made clean.”

When he had said this, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was made clean. He strictly warned him, and immediately sent him out, and said to him, “See you say nothing to anyone, but go show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing the things which Moses commanded, for a testimony to them.”

But he went out, and began to proclaim it much, and to spread about the matter, so that Jesus could no more openly enter into a city, but was outside in desert places. People came to him from everywhere. Great multitudes from Galilee, Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and from beyond the Jordan followed him.

Seeing the multitudes, he went up onto the mountain. When he had sat down, his followers, his disciples came to him. He opened his mouth and Taught them, saying, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

“Blessed are you when people reproach you, persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven. For that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

“You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt has lost its flavor, with what will it be salted? It is then good for nothing, but to be cast out and trodden under the feet of men. You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do you light a lamp, and put it under a measuring basket, but on a stand; and it shines to all who are in the house. Even so, let your light shine before men; that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

“Do not think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I did not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For most certainly, I tell you, before heaven and earth pass away, not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law, before all things are accomplished. Whoever, therefore, shall break one of these least commandments, and Teach others to do so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever shall do and Teach them shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, there is no way you will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.

“You have heard that it was said to the ancient ones,

“ ‘You shall not murder;’

“and

“ ‘Whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’

“But I tell you that everyone who is angry with his brother without a cause will be in danger of the judgment. Whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ will be in danger of the council. Whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of Gehenna.

“If therefore you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are with him on the way; lest perhaps the prosecutor deliver you to the judge, and the judge deliver you to the officer, and you be cast into prison. Most certainly I tell you, you shall by no means get out of there, before you have paid the last penny.

“You have heard that it was said,

“ ‘You shall not commit adultery;’

“but I tell you that everyone who gazes at a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart. If your right eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it away from you. For it is more profitable for you that one of your members should perish, than for your whole body to be cast into Gehenna. If your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off, and throw it away from you. For it is more profitable for you that one of your members should perish, than for your whole body to be cast into Gehenna.

“It was also said,

“ ‘Whoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorce,’

“but I tell you that whoever puts away his wife, except for the cause of sexual immorality, makes her an adulteress; and whoever marries her when she is put away commits adultery.

“Again you have heard that it was said to the ancient ones,

“ ‘You shall not make false vows, but shall perform to the Lord your vows,’

“but I tell you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God; nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Neither shall you swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes’ and your ‘No’ be ‘No.’ Whatever is more than these is of the evil one.

“You have heard that it was said,

“ ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’

“But I tell you, do not resist him who is evil; but whoever strikes you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also. If anyone sues you to take away your coat, let him have your cloak also. Whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and do not turn away him who desires to borrow from you.

“You have heard that it was said,

“ ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’

“But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you, that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? If you only greet your friends, what more do you do than others? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

“Be careful that you do not do your charitable alms-giving before men, to be seen by them, or else you have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Therefore when you do merciful deeds, do not sound a trumpet before yourself, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may get glory from men. Most certainly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you do merciful deeds, do not let your left hand know what your right hand does, so that your merciful deeds may be in secret, then your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

“When you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Most certainly, I tell you, they have received their reward. But you, when you pray, enter into your inner room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. In praying, do not use vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their much speaking. Therefore do not be like them, for your Father knows what things you need, before you ask him. Pray like this: ‘Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. Let your Kingdom come. Let your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors. Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. Amen.’

“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

“Moreover when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with sad faces. For they disfigure their faces, that they may be seen by men to be fasting. Most certainly I tell you, they have received their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head, and wash your face; so that you are not seen by men to be fasting, but by your Father who is in secret, and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you.

“It is more blessed to give than to receive. Do not lay up treasures for yourselves on the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consume, and where thieves do not break through and steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

“The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is evil, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Mammon. Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious for your life: what you will eat, or what you will drink; nor yet for your body, what you will wear. Is life not more than food, and the body more than clothing? See the birds of the sky, that they do not sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns. Your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of much more value than they?

“Which of you, by being anxious, can add one moment to his lifespan? Why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They do not toil, neither do they spin, yet I tell you that even Solomon in all his glory was not dressed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today exists, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, you of little faith?

“Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What will we eat?’, ‘What will we drink?’ or, ‘With what will we be clothed?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first God’s Kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Each day’s own evil is sufficient.

“Do not judge, so that you will not be judged. For with whatever judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with whatever measure you measure, it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the wooden beam that is in your own eye? Or how will you tell your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye;’ and behold, the beam is in your own eye? You hypocrite! First remove the beam out of your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck out of your brother’s eye.

“Do not give that which is holy to the dogs, neither throw your pearls before the pigs, lest perhaps they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

“Ask, and it will be given you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives. He who seeks finds. To him who knocks it will be opened. Or who is there among you, who, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, who will give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! Therefore whatever you desire for men to do to you, you shall also do to them; for this is the law and the prophets.

“Enter in by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter in by it. How narrow is the gate, and restricted is the way that leads to life! Few are those who find it.

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves. By their fruits you will know them. Do you gather grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree produces good fruit; but the corrupt tree produces evil fruit. A good tree cannot produce evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not grow good fruit is cut down, and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them. Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven; but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will tell me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many mighty works?’ Then I will tell them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you who work iniquity.’

“Everyone therefore who hears these words of mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, who built his house on a rock. The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

“Everyone who hears these words of mine, and does not do them will be like a foolish man, who built his house on the sand. The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”

When Jesus had finished saying these things, the multitudes were astonished at his Teaching, for he Taught them with authority, and not like the scribes. When he came down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.

Behold, a leper came to him and worshiped him, saying, “Lord, if you will it, you can make me clean.”

Jesus stretched out his hand, and touched him, saying, “I will it. Be made clean.”

Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Jesus said to him, “See that you tell no one, but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

Luke 4:44
Luke 5:12-15
Matthew 4:23-24
Mark 1:40-45
Matthew 4:25–6:18
Acts 20:35b
Matthew 6:19–8:4
—LXX Sirach 29:11-12

Compare
World English Bible text
Greek original text
Latin Vulgate text
NRSV text
Scofield Reference Bible (1917 Edition)
Conservative Bible text
multiple versions of any verse
multiple commentaries any passage
interlinear Bible: Hebrew, Greek, English
Bible maps (click initial letter of place name)
Bible Encyclopedias: Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature (studylight.org)
Catholic Encyclopedia Catholic Online (catholic.org)
Hebrew Calendar Converter See exact equivalents of Gregorian Calendar dates.

—in Gregorian Calendar click the cursor in the day, month, or year fields, to highlight selection,
then use [Backspace ←] and [←] [→] right and left arrow keys in the day and year fields,
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Table of Old Testament quotes in the New Testament, in English translation, Joel Kalvesmaki 2013 (kalvesmaki.com)

List of 300 Septuagint Old Testament quotations in the New Testament, by Steve Rudd 2017 (bible.ca)

Table of LXX quotes and allusions in the New Testament


Church History (Eusebius): The Ecclesiastical History Of Eusebius Pamphilus: Bishop Of Caesarea, In Palestine (newadvent.org)

The Works of Flavius Josephus William Whiston, Translator, 1737 (sacred-texts.com)

Suetonius: Twelve Caesars: The Lives of the Twelve Caesars by C. Suetonius Tranquilus; To which are added His Lives of the Grammarians, Rhetoricians, and Poets. The Translation of Alexander Thomson, M.D., Revised and corrected by T. Forester, Esq., A.M. (Gutenberg.org)

Tacitus: The Annals, Written 109 A.C.E. Translated by Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb

Sextus Aurelius Victor: Epitome De Caesaribus (roman-emperors.org)

Eutropius: Breviarium - Eutropius's Abridgement of Roman History (tertullian.org)

Cassius Dio: Roman History Epitome (penelope.uchicago.edu)

Early Christian Writings A.D. 30 through 380 (earlychristianwritings.com)
See Biblical Canon and Apocrypha.


"He was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee." Γαλιλαίας
"He was preaching in the synagogues of Judea." Ίουδαίας

Luke 4:44
The Greek manuscript evidence is divided. There are corresponding differences in Biblical translations and versions. See multiple versions of Luke 4:44.
Ίουδαίας Judaias
—Nestle Greek NT 1904 - Westcott-Hort 1881
—NIV NLT ESV BSB BLB NASB CSB CEV NET GWT NAS1977 - Catholic RSVCE 1966 NAB 1986 NABRE 2011 (notes on Luke 4:44 say, "Other ancient authorities read Galilee".)
Γαλιλαίας Galilaias
—RP Byzantine M-T 2000 2005 - Greek Orthodox Church 1904 - Tischendorf 8th ed. - Scrivener's TR 1894 - Stephanus TR 1550 1894
—KJV HCSB ISV NHEB ABPE Jub2000 KJ2000 AKJV DBT ERV WBT WNT WEB YLT - Catholic Douay-Rheims (D-R)
See parallel translation comparison Luke 4:44.

"If you will it, you can make me clean...I will it. Be made clean."

Luke 5:12-13
Compare Matthew 8:2-3, end of this chapter.
The Greek word here in both texts is θέλῃς thelēs, Strong's number G2309 θέλω thělõ "to will, wish, desire, be willing, intend, design".
Greek Luke 5:12-13
12 Καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ εἶναι αὐτὸν ἐν μιᾷ τῶν πόλεων καὶ ἰδοὺ ἀνὴρ πλήρης λέπρας· καὶ ἰδὼν τὸν Ἰησοῦν, πεσὼν ἐπὶ πρόσωπον ἐδεήθη αὐτοῦ λέγων· Κύριε, ἐὰν θέλῃς δύνασαί με καθαρίσαι. 13 καὶ ἐκτείνας τὴν χεῖρα ἥψατο αὐτοῦ εἰπών· θέλω, καθαρίσθητι. καὶ εὐθέως ἡ λέπρα ἀπῆλθεν ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῦ. (emphasis added)
Greek Matthew 8:2-3
2 Καὶ ἰδοὺ λεπρὸς ἐλθὼν προσεκύνει αὐτῷ λέγων· Κύριε, ἐὰν θέλῃς, δύνασαί με καθαρίσαι. 3 καὶ ἐκτείνας τὴν χεῖρα ἥψατο αὐτοῦ ὁ Ἰησοῦς λέγων· θέλω, καθαρίσθητι. καὶ εὐθέως ἐκαθαρίσθη αὐτοῦ ἡ λέπρα. (emphasis added)
See parallel translations of Luke 5:13 "I will"
and interlinear text of Luke 5:13
See parallel translations of Matthew 8:3 "I will"
and interlinear text of Matthew 8:3
The reading of some Bible versions of thelos / thelo as "want to" is weak, as if it simply meant "good-will", a general inclination or personal disposition to do something, that is, "if you happen to be favorably disposed", "if you'd like to"—it does not convey the power of directly "willing" something with a focused, purposeful intent, with dominant, ruling authority, nor does it convey the firmness of the faith of the leper in the power of Jesus' will—"If you will"—" I will this, now !." The centurion in Matthew 8:5-13 and the government official in John 4:46-53 had the same confidence in the authority of Jesus' will.
There is here in this "will" an implicit allusion to Genesis 1:3-27.
Compare Mark 9:22-24 "if thou canst" / "if you can" Greek δύνῃ dynē "be able" "have power".

"he stretched out his hand and touched him"

Luke 5:13
The Law of Moses prohibited touching anything or anyone unclean, and whoever did so deliberately was both unclean and cursed by God.
See the following texts
2 Corinthians 6:17 and Isaiah 52:11,
"touch not the unclean"
Leviticus 13:44-46
"he is a leprous man, he is unclean"
Numbers 19:22
"whatever the unclean person touches shall be unclean, and any one who touches it shall be unclean"
Leviticus 5:3,
"if he touches human uncleanness...he shall be guilty"
Leviticus 11:43-45
"you shall not make yourselves abominable"
Numbers 19:20
"the man who is unclean and does not cleanse himself, that person shall be cut off from the midst of the assembly"
Numbers 15:30
"the person who does anything with a high hand, whether he is a native or a sojourner, reviles the LORD, and that person shall be cut off from among his people."
Deuteronomy 29:20-21 KJV
"The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man".
Leviticus 13 and 14
"leprosy...is unclean"
Numbers 5:1-4
"The LORD said to Moses, 'command the people of Israel that they put out of the camp every leper...putting them outside the camp, that they may not defile their camp, in the midst of which I dwell"
Deuteronomy 24:8
"in an attack of leprosy, to be very careful to do according to all that the Levitical priests shall direct you"
Numbers 35:34
"you shall not defile the land in which you live"
Leviticus 15:31
"keep the people of Israel separate from their uncleanness, lest they die...by defiling my tabernacle that is in their midst",
Leviticus 20:7-8
"consecrate yourselves and be holy",
Leviticus 20:26
"for I the LORD am holy, and have separated you"
Deuteronomy 27:26
"Cursed be he who does not confirm the words of this law by doing them".
If Jesus were only a man he could have done nothing (John 9:33). Any ordinary Jew who deliberately touched any unclean leper defiantly broke the law of Moses, deliberately made himself abominable, unclean, and thus showed that he was a man who sinfully defied God, ipso facto immediately cutting himself off from the assembly of the people of God (Latin latae sententiae), and thus demonstrated beyond any reasonable doubt that he was under the curse of God. Compare Deuteronomy 29:10-15, 19-21.
Jesus deliberately touched people who were unclean, with unclean diseases, who had unclean spirits, and he was touched by people who were unclean—he even touched dead corpses.
(Matthew 4:24; 9:35; Mark 1:32-34; Luke 7:14-17 with Lamentations 4:14-15 and Numbers 19:14-22; Numbers 9:6-12 with Luke 11:44 and commentaries.)
According to the law of Moses this made him unclean, and cursed. (The fact that Jesus was crucified "on the tree" also made him unclean, and a curse, according to the law. Galatians 3:10-14.)
Throughout the Tanakh and the Talmud only the LORD God made anyone clean and holy. (The reader is invited to carefully search this, to see if this is so. Acts 17:11-12; John 5:39-47.)
By actually making the unclean leper clean, Jesus demonstrates that he is God and man, the LORD "who makes you clean" (Leviticus 16:30; 20:8; Jeremiah 33:8; Ezekiel 36:25-26, 29, 33; Exodus 15:26 "...for I am the LORD that healeth thee").
See also the article
Sanctification In The Old Testament (internetbiblecollege.net) pdf.
The prophet Elisha only told Naaman the Syrian, a leper, to wash in the Jordan River, but he did not claim to have cleansed him of leprosy (2 Kings 5).
The Levitical priests, upon examination of anyone who had become clean of leprosy, were authorized to declare that anyone formerly afflicted with leprosy was now clean, but they themselves did not cleanse anyone of leprosy. In the ritual sacrifices they offered for cleansing it is the LORD God of Israel who cleanses and forgives them in accepting their ritual sacrifices and offerings—the ritual offerings themselves did not cleanse them within, and certainly not from the uncleanness of leprosy (Hebrews 10:11; Psalm 51; Leviticus 1:4; 19:5; 19:21-22; 22:19-25; 22:29). See
In the Gospel, Jesus is the one who personally and directly makes lepers clean (see also Luke 17:11-19). This is evidentiary testimony from eyewitnesses (Luke 1:1-2), based on the Jewish scriptures, that Jesus Himself is the LORD God of Israel Who alone cleanses from disease and sin. See Psalm 103:2-3; Jeremiah 33:8; John 12:40; Matthew 10:8; Mark 16:17-18; James 5:14-16.
Online searches for explicit accounts of miraculous cures of leprosy (including Hansen's Disease) after the time of Jesus have to date yielded no results or findings, either legendary or documented, by any Christian church, sect, or denomination, Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant or Independent, through miraculous touch or answer to prayer or intercessions or relic or blessed cloths or going to any miraculous site or shrine. (attempts made 5/29/2019).
Compare the following:

"You are the light of the world"

Matthew 5:14
But Jesus is the light of the world ! John 9:5
Compare
John 5:33-35
Acts 13:47
Ephesians 5:8-14
1 Thessalonians 5:5
Daniel 12:3
Compare also
John 1:4, 9; 3:19; 20:21
all of 1 John, especially 1 John 4:14
"And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world."
"As the Father has sent me, even so I send you."
"He who hears you hears me" Luke 10:16
The disciples of Jesus (Matthew 5:1; John 20:19-23) are sent as the saviors of the world (see Obadiah 21). The disciples of Jesus are the light of the world (instead of Jesus?). Compare Philippians 2:14-15; Ephesians 3:9-10; 1 Timothy 3:15; James 5:19-20; 1 John 5:16; Luke 12:35-40; Matthew 13:37-43 "Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father".
Matthew 5:14 illustrates how specious interpretations of scripture, proof texts and cherry picking words of particular passages, in support of polemical arguments against particular doctrines often implicitly results in the formation of heretical positions which ultimately set the Bible against itself, in fundamental contradiction to the whole proven tradition of Christian understanding of sound biblical interpretation, and by erroneous eisegetical readings and commentaries based on specious reasonings they turn the Bible into a lie (falsehood), as already expressed in Jeremiah 8:8-9; 2 Timothy 2:14-18; 2 Peter 3:15-18 (Cafeteria Christianity). Contradictions can be seen where none exist. What is in fact included within the whole of truth is often excluded by a narrow reading as opposed to the truth. This kind of eisegetical reasoning when noticed must be avoided and rejected entirely, together with all such sources publishing such falsehoods in claiming to be based solidly on sola scriptura, but by such inconsistencies of reasoning prove they are not founded on scripture, and therefore cannot have the mind of Christ (1 Timothy 6:4-5; 2 Timothy 2:14-16. The following exercise illustrates their error.
Compare the following texts of scripture:
Matthew 5:14 "You are the light of the world".
—Which one is the light of the world?
1 Timothy 2:1 "I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings be made for all men" and 1 Timothy 4:16 "you will save both yourself and your hearers." and James 5:20 "whoever brings back a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul"
—Is there one mediator, intercessor and Savior, or many mediators, intercessors and saviors?
Ephesians 2:20 "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets" and Matthew 16:18 "And I tell you, you are "Rock", and on this rock I will build my church" and Revelation 21:14 "And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb"
—Is there one foundation, or many foundations?
1 John 2:1 "Jesus Christ the righteous" and 1 John 3:7 "He who does right is righteous, as he is righteous" and Matthew 25:34-40 "Then the righteous will answer him..."
—The Bible says without any qualification that no one is righteous, so how can anyone be righteous, including Jesus? But if Jesus and the saints are righteous, and the Bible says they are, how then can the Bible say "no one is righteous, no, not one"?
Jeremiah 2:34 "the lifeblood of the guiltless poor" and Matthew 12:7 "if you had known what this means, 'I desire mercy, and not sacrifice', you would not have condemned the guiltless."
—Is any human being guiltless? or is it that the guiltless are not sinners?
Luke 14:10 "Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee." and Revelation 3:8-10 "Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee" and Galatians 5:13 "by love serve one another" and Hebrews 13:17 "Obey them that have the rule over you" and 1 Peter 2:17 "Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the emperor."
—Jesus said to worship God and serve only him, but he also told men who are creatures how to be worshiped, and that he would make men worship at the feet of those men he loves, men who are creatures, and Paul told the Galatians (creatures) to serve each other, and Peter told Christians to honor all men (creatures) and also the emperor (βασιλέα) a creature whom the Romans worshiped as a god—doesn't that take away from the worship and honor due to God alone and command the committing of idolatry?
  • Consider the apparent contradiction of the command of God to not touch the carcasses of unclean animals that "walk on paws" (this includes badgers), and the command of God to cover the holy Tabernacle with the skins of unclean animals in the midst of the encampment of Israel, and then the command of God to remove everything unclean so that nothing unclean may be found within the encampment of Israel. For a detailed discussion of this apparent contradiction see the article Badger skins (Bible).
—The New Testament says the sacrifices of the law of Moses can never take away sins.Hebrews 10:1-11
—The Bible in the Old Testament says without any qualification that the sacrifices of the law take away sins, but in the New Testament it contradicts itself because it says without any qualification that they never did.
This kind of fundamentalistic "either/or" reasoning is devoid of intelligence. This is the kind of specious reasoning which takes any one particular statement of scripture as an absolute doctrinal truth isolated in contrast and in opposition to others, apart from the whole of the context of the Bible and 20 centuries of developing understanding of the unity of the Christian faith, and sees only contradiction, because "the Bible says so", but sees no apparent resolution of the dilemma of discrepancy, because the entire Bible is supposed to be the truth of God. See Law of Non-Contradiction "Two truths cannot contradict one another". Compare Paradox. See also Relativism, Casuistry, Sophistry and Polemic.
Conservative Christian believers who believe the Bible is the inspired word of God expressed in human language believe that the Bible does not lie or contradict itself, because God the Author cannot lie or deny Himself. Compare
2 Timothy 3:16-17 "all scripture is inspired by God";
Titus 1:2 "God, who cannot lie";
John 10:35 "scripture cannot be broken".
Apparent contradictions in the Bible cannot simply be ignored in hope that no one will notice and the problem will go away (Cafeteria Christianity). For some Bible readers the apparent dilemma finally becomes unavoidable, and the apparently inescapable difficulties seen can become a real crisis of faith. These apparent contradictions disappear when read within the context of the whole of the Bible, within the whole history of the understanding (mind) of the community of the whole body of Christ. This is what is called the sensus fidelium, the "sense of the faithful", according to discernment of the truth contained in divine revelation. It is not identical with the meaning of what is called a consensus of the majority based on polls of public opinion. See Apostolic succession (Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, etc.). Catholics in addition to this also have recourse to the Magisterium. Protestants look to the Reformation tradition based on the principles of the Five Solas.
See Christianity
See also the following article:
The Catholic understanding of sensus fidelium is explained in the following article:
The Orthodox understanding of the essential sense of the ecumenical Christian faith is explained in the following article:
The contrasting texts in the exercise above all appear to contradict, absolutely—but only when the consistent tradition of the interpretation of the body of Christ, the church, the "mind of Christ" handed down from the time of the apostles, is rejected, in favor of independent, individualist interpretations formulated (a) according to the unguided intellect of uninformed Bible readers concentrating on the apparently "simple, plain and obvious meaning of the words" of the text, or (b) according to scholarly theologians, and researchers who have divorced themselves from the past and are standing apart from the whole community of the body of Christ, by isolating passages of scripture, even whole books of scripture, from the context of the Bible as a whole. 1 Corinthians 2:11-16 "we have the mind of Christ". "Their own opinion has misled many" Sirach 3:24 (see 2 Peter 3:16-17 and 2 Peter 1:19–2:1).
Speciously apparent contradictions in the biblical text have been seen by some as providing sufficient ground for a willing pretext, or (unfortunately) an unwilling pretext, or opportunity for apostasy from the faith. Many have been so scandalized by what they think are inconsistencies in the Bible that they have decided that Christian belief is wrongly founded on falsehoods and myths without any basis in reality and therefore cannot be true ("so why should we believe it?"). The majority of Christian apologists could easily cite the parable of the sower of the seed, and the meaning of "Satan" as "accuser, faultfinder", the Devil, "the birds of the air" taking away the word (Matthew 13:18-30). This is evident in those Christians and non-Christian observers who find fault with Christians in general, with their pastors and ministers, with the preaching of the sermon or homily, with the way the Bible is read in church, with the reasoning of Christian apologists, and with all sorts of other things in Christianity, either with things in particular, or things as a whole. The word of truth when they hear it is taken away from their heart by the "nitpicking" accusations of a spirit of faultfinding. The word is taken away by the Accuser of the Brethren.
There are Christians who place their faith solely in Christ and the truth of the Bible alone without relying on the Church or any scholarly research (sola spiritu), and there are Christians who place their faith in Christ and the Church alone without feeling the necessity of relying solely on understanding the truth of the Bible to confirm their faith. There are also those hypocritical individuals who are comfortable in being nominal believers for whom doctrine is simply a casual matter of opinion and indifference, like those careless individuals who are Catholic in name only, who believe the Bible does not actually need to be true, who see no need for debate over its meaning, content to be "reasonably moral citizens" who go to church when it is convenient, who pray from time to time when it occurs to them, and are untroubled by apparent inconsistencies and contradictions. They indirectly support the social gospel without being activists and implicitly accept a vague and indefinite form of preterism. For them a culturally rich Christianity is esthetically pleasing; intellectually, morally, and emotionally satisfying. The simple faith of those untroubled by "contradictions" rests on the belief that ultimately all mysteries will be revealed in heaven. Psalm 131. Compare Eternal security (salvation).
Those whose faith dismisses, even strenuously resists, on doctrinal principle, all appeals to supportive arguments based on reasonable logic and scholarly research outside of the Bible, in defense of the reasonable truth of Christianity, are said to have "blind faith". They are presented by liberal skeptics as evidence of the "ignorant stupidity" of Christian belief (Nutpicking). But the adherents of "blind faith" Christianity represent only a small minority among Christian believers in the truth of the Bible and the claims of the Christian faith of the apostles. They have been misled (Matthew 22:29; Mark 12:24). They claim to know the Bible, but they do not know the Bible. They utterly ignore (disobey, don't believe) the scripture that says, "and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you" (1 Peter 3:15). They stand on the simple, uncomplicated truth that all scripture is inspired of God for training in righteousness that the "man of God" may be complete, equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17). It is enough for them to read it. But in their unconscious pride of being "plain and simple" believers, "unlike those who have been misled by the relativism of academically trained intellectuals who 'ipso facto' heed deceitful spirits and doctrines of devils" (1 Timothy 4:1), they are unaware of the very real danger of the possibility that, being deliberately ignorant, they can unintentionally "wrest" (twist) the scriptures to their own destruction (2 Peter 3:16-17). When confronted with what seem to be apparently contradictory inconsistencies in the Bible, and not knowing how to answer, and finally believing that there is no answer, they may lose their faith and fall away (Hebrews 6:4-8; 10:23-31), because they have no confidence in the intelligent scholarship and research of academics and theologians with university degrees who do believe in the inerrantly inspired truth of the Bible, and have thus deprived themselves of the possibility of having any recourse to informed, knowledgeable insights and answers in defense of the truth. Satan has gained advantage over them because they have been kept ignorant of his designs by their own ignorant teachers who in many cases are perhaps not deliberately and personally at fault, and are innocently ignorant even though intelligent, having been themselves ignorantly taught by their own teachers, whom they trusted, who likewise trusted those who taught them before them, all the way back to those who first decided to do away with intelligent understanding as being inherently fraught with danger, who reject intelligence as being hostile to the purely innocent simplicity of faith alone, sola fide (Matthew 15:14;2 Corinthians 2:11). They can "fall away from Christ" when they cannot "give a reason for the hope that is in them", based solely on their belief in the truth of the Bible, when confronted by apparent contradictions of inconsistency within it, and they know not what to do. This is tragic. Satan (Accuser, Faultfinder) has snared them by their own ignorance and they have fallen into Its trap. But if in the midst of their innocent ignorance and confusion they truly desire to know the truth, God will not finally abandon them, and he will ultimately bring them to Himself (Matthew 7:7-11; Acts 18:24-28). See Invincible ignorance.
The Christian teaching that scripture does not contradict itself, that it is illicit and wrong to interpret it that way, is not explicitly found in any written text of the Bible, but it is an implicit part of apostolic oral tradition (2 Thessalonians 2:15).
There are many competent verse-by-verse biblical commentaries available in print and online which deal with internal consistency of the Bible regarding particular passages that appear to contradict or to be contradicted by other passages. Most of them offer traditional Christian understandings of how apparent contradictions are in reality only superficial misinterpretations of interpretive readings based on a lack of sufficient knowledge—in-depth extra-biblical knowledge of Hermeneutics and legitimate, faith-based Higher Criticism—knowledge which is not provided by the Bible itself as a whole, but which provides means to discern the true literal sense of scripture. They ably demonstrate that these apparently contradictory texts are in fact verses and passages known to experts in biblical criticism to be reconcilable and resolved without any contradiction, primarily because within the context of the whole teaching of the Bible there is actually no real conflict or contradiction of meaning between them. This is part of the profoundly consoling spiritual work of mercy called "counselling the doubtful" (see Corporal and spiritual works of mercy). James 5:19-20.
But not all biblical commentators offer individual explicit commentary on particular difficulties of particular verses and texts which might or might not appear to be contradictory, but only indirectly touch on them, or simply pass over them in silence without specifically addressing the particular issue the inquiring reader might wish to find resolved or examined. The inquiring student and Bible reader can occasionally come away unsatisfied and unexpectedly disappointed with available commentaries and Bible dictionaries.
Those few independent, liberal biblical scholars and textual critics in the field of Higher Criticism, who do not believe in the inspired and inerrant unity of the biblical text, often (but not always) regard the results of successful harmonization of scriptural "difficulties" by conservative biblical scholars, results submitted by those researchers who are in full accordance with Christian doctrine and dogma, as unconvincing, dishonest denials of facts presenting what liberal scholars see as "undeniably" opaque mysteries involving unsolvable difficulties. It is a fact that researchers can reach radically different interpretations when confronted with the same identical textual evidence (Cognitive bias; Confirmation bias; Prejudice; Enmity; Invincible ignorance; Fallacy of invincible ignorance). Compare Romans 14:1.
The interested reader is invited to see how the following commentaries have resolved (if they have) the few examples of apparently contradictory texts listed above.
An excellent example of apologetic writing in defense of the internal consistency of the Bible is John Grigg Hewlett, D.D. Bible difficulties explained (1860) (pdf text available free at Bible difficulties explained epub download free)
See also Solutions to Bible "Errors" (defendinginerrancy.com)
Conservative Christian historians and apologists are mindful of this statement by John Eck addressed to Martin Luther, in the year 1521:
"...there is no one of the heresies which have torn the bosom of the church, which has not derived its origin from the various interpretation of the Scripture. The Bible itself is the arsenal whence each innovator has drawn his deceptive arguments. It was with biblical texts that Pelagius and Arius maintained their doctrines. Arius, for instance, found the negation of the eternity of the Word—an eternity which you admit, in this verse of the New Testament—Joseph knew not his wife till she had brought forth her first-born son; and he said, in the same way that you say, that this passage enchained him. When the fathers of the council of Constance condemned this proposition of John HussThe church of Jesus Christ is only the community of the elect—they condemned an error; for the church, like a good mother, embraces within her arms all who bear the name of Christian, all who are called to enjoy the celestial beatitude."
Life of Luther (Luther by Martin Luther)(law2.umkc.edu)
Compare this article: During the millennial kingdom, will there be animal sacrifices? - Compelling Truth: End Times (compellingtruth.org) The author of this article says, "Yes", because the Bible says so. (See Chiliasm and Sola spiritu.)

"good works"

Matthew 5:16
See Ephesians 2:10 and Romans 1:17 with Ephesians 2:8-9; James 2:14-26. See 1 John 3:7 and 3:10
Compare Antinomianism and Eternal security (salvation).
According to the teaching of Jesus, those who do not do good works will be condemned. Matthew 25:31-46; Revelation 19:6-9 and Matthew 22:11-13.
He does not ask if they read the Bible, went to church, prayed, had faith, or what doctrine they professed, or what religion they belonged to. The one reality by which he judges all is the testimony of their works, Revelation 22:12; 20:11-15; 2:2-5, 19, 26; 3:2, 8, 15-16. The work of God is to believe in the One He sent (John 6:29), keep his commands (John 14:21-24; Matthew 7:21-23), and "walk as he walked" (1 John 2:4-6; 3:14-18) by "going about doing good and healing all that were oppressed by the devil" (Acts 10:36).
See Corporal and spiritual works of mercy.

"not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law, before all things are accomplished."

Matthew 5:18
In Judaism itself this has already occurred, with the changes made to the Hebrew text of the Tanakh transmitted by the Masoretes in A.D. the fourth, fifth and sixth centuries, which removed all intoned readings favoring Christian interpretations and replaced particular individual words that supported Christian doctrine about Jesus as the true Messiah and salvation in him—these passed from the law through diacritical marks added to the text and alterations made by the Masoretes (Jeremiah 8:8 see Bible: the melodies of the Old Testament). However, the earlier pre-Masoretic Hebrew text is attested by the extant ancient translations in manuscripts made before the establishment of the Masoretic Text, for example the LXX and the Vulgate.
Through the work of faithful Christian scholars, and copyists in scriptoriums, both east and west, and the finding and preservation of manuscripts such as the Dead Sea scrolls, "not one jot or one tittle" (KJV) has actually passed from the law.

"Raca / Raqa"

Matthew 5:22
An Aramaic term of violent, verbal abuse, obscure today. It was an extremely insolent insult, expressing malignant contempt for another human being.
Equivalent to U.S. saying, "You filthy [insert obscene word]", "You piece of ---", or an intensely emphatic, loud, "Damn you!".
See multiple commentaries on Matthew 5:22.
The meaning of this term is comparable to the sentiment in Acts 22:22: "Away with such a fellow from the earth; for it is not fit that he should live!" (KJV) The dynamic equivalent translation is, "Get rid of such scum! He does not deserve to live!"

"You fool!"

Matthew 5:22
A personal judgment of moral-ethical condemnation. Here it implies rash judgment on the part of the speaker, based on a feeling of personal outrage and irreconcilable hostility (enmity) toward another person.
In first century Palestine, using the word "fool" against a man was to judge him as having utterly no redeeming qualities, no intelligence or good sense, no ethical principle, as being too stupid and unwilling (or unable) to change, and by default and ingrained disposition a problem in the community for "decent people", and therefore an unholy enemy of God, and most certain to be condemned to eternal damnation. Examples are unscrupulous and conniving lawyers and politicians, criminals, violent and abusive persons, irreligious and self-destructive individuals, who are in danger of provoking divine judgment on themselves. See Psalms 14:1, 49:10, 92:6-7; Psalm 53; Proverbs 1:7-26; Ecclesiastes 10; and Jeremiah 13:23; Deuteronomy 21:18-21; also Luke 18:9-14, and Romans 1:18–2:24, 3:10-18.

"and if any one forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles".

Matthew 5:41
A Roman infantryman stationed in the provinces might compel a non-citizen of Rome to carry his backpack for him for one Roman mile, under Roman law and regulation. Jesus urges His followers, in this and other cases, to offer double what another person demands.

"You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’"

Matthew 5:43
A combined saying from the following passages in the Old Testament:
Leviticus 19:18
Psalm 139:21-22
Amos 5:15a "Hate evil, and love good..."

"that they may get glory from men. Most certainly I tell you, they have received their reward."

Matthew 6:2
Their primary purpose is to appear righteous, to get glory from men, not to pray to God (which is only incidental to their purpose). To be seen praying is only a means to an end, to be praised by an audience, to gain advantage for themselves by cultivating a reputation (Matthew 23:5-7). They think that God will be compelled to honor them as well, because they outwardly praise His name. They make themselves the primary object of honor, not God. The same intent is seen in the ostensibly righteous objection that money spent of the purchase of things donated in honor of the Lord ought to have been given instead to the poor John 12:4-6 "This he said, not that he cared for the poor but because he was a thief".
Parallel Matthew 6:5 "alms...that they may be seen by men...they have received their reward.", 6:16 "that they may be seen by men to be fasting...they have received their reward"; 23:5-7. Compare 1 Timothy 6:4-10 "imagining that godliness is a means of gain"; Luke 16:14-15 "who were lovers of money"; Josephus Ant. 20.9.2 [205-207] "the high priest Ananias...he was a great hoarder up of money..." (scroll down from chapter one to chapter nine and locate paragraph 2).
"they have their reward", their desire to be seen.
That is their primary reward, their hope. They have achieved their whole end, that is their goal. No further reward remains to them. The additional praise they expect as a result of being seen may not always follow (not all Jews admired them, because of their reputation for pride [Ant. 20.9.2], and their arrogant contempt for the common people who did not know every detail of the Torah John 7:49), but they have what they desired, to be seen by an audience (1 Timothy 6:3-10). The interpretation of Jesus of the real meaning of genuinely good works as the works of evildoers in Matthew 7:21-23 is clearly explained, "I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers." Those who prophesy in Jesus' name, cast out demons in his name, and do many mighty works in his name, "to be seen by men", are not doing these good things for the glory of God, or from a motive of compassion, but for their own reputation and glorification. Their hearts are not right with Him (John 5:42 and Acts 8:21). They are not in fact actually "DO-ing the will of my Father who is in heaven", but their own will. Whatever real good they do is incidental to their true purpose, to serve their real ends. (see Matthew 25:34-46; Sirach 14:7.)
Compare 1 Timothy 5:24-25 "the sins of some are conspicuous...others appear later" and
Revelation 22:11 "let them continue", in light of Matthew 15:13-14 "leave them alone"; also
Matthew 13:24-30 "Let both grow together" and 1 Corinthians 4:5; Romans 14:10-12.
1 Corinthians 10:12; Romans 12:9-21.
Compare KJV Ecclesiasticus chapter 7.
In light of Matthew 23:15, 33 and Luke 11:39-52, many instead interpret the phrase, "they have their reward", as a warning of future judgment, "they will have the [evil] fruit of their labors", "they will get what's coming to them" or "they will be punished for their hypocrisy". But while this is undeniably and fundamentally true on the final day of judgment for unrepentant religious hypocrites, that is not the immediate lesson Jesus is teaching here. The hypocrites already have what they wanted: to be seen. He urges his disciples, his listeners, to not thus deprive themselves of the true blessing of God, but instead to honestly from their hearts glorify God by their corporal and spiritual works of mercy sincerely done in his name, with compassionate love for God and man (Mark 12:29-34), so that God Himself, pleased with them for their sincerity of heart in seeking to be like Him as faithful sons and daughters (Matthew 6:48), will openly reward them for their obedient fear and love of Him in their delighting to do good to those in need, to those in pain and despair who wish to know by visible, living, practical example the truth of God's goodness toward all mankind, by "good works"
(Matthew 5:14-16 contrast Matthew 6:1-18; see Ephesians 2:10).

"In praying, do not use vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do"

Matthew 6:7
The Greek word here is βαττολογήσητε battologesete from βαττολογέω battologeo, which comes from βάττος battos, a "stammerer", someone who stutters or uses meaningless syllables. This would apply much more to the practice of γλωσσολαλία glossolalia "speaking in tongues", than to the frequent repeating of a great prayer, such as The Lord's Prayer or The Twenty-third Psalm.
(Greek γλωσσολαλία glossolalia, from γλώσσα glossa "tongue" and λαλέω laleō "talking" or "vocalizing" (with or without any apparent meaning) speak, chat, prattle, or make a sound).
Jesus does not condemn repetitive prayer, but vain, empty, mechanical, "parroting" of prayer without any understanding or awareness of the meaning of the prayer, in imitation of the practice of pagan and gnostic cults, the mechanical rotating of Buddhist prayer wheels without thinking about the prayers, and the repetitive chanting of mantras. All of the major Christian denominations, Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, likewise condemn "empty" prayers.
Compare
Psalm 136 "his mercy endureth forever" 26 times!
1 Thessalonians 5:17 "pray without ceasing"
Hebrews 13:15 "continually offer up a sacrifice of praise"
Ephesians 5:19-20 "always and for everything giving thanks"
Colossians 3:16 "sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God"
Luke 18:1 and 18:7 (verses 1-9)
Jesus: "pray always", "constantly"
Hebrews 5:7 "in the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears"
Acts 10:2-4 "a devout man who...prayed constantly to God"
See multiple commentaries on Matthew 6:7
Also the following articles:
Repetitious prayers? (catholicbridge.com)
Prayer in the Orthodox Church (orthodoxprayer.org)
What does it mean to use vain repetitions in prayer? Got Questions (gotquestions.org)
Open Bible - 62 Bible Verses about Repetitive Prayer (openbible.info). Only about 10 of the cited passages are actually about repetitive prayer.
Compare the warnings in the following article:
NEW AGE Pathways in the church (letusreason.org)
Emerging church
Prayer wheel - Wikipedia
How to Use a Prayer Wheel - Tibet Tech (tibettech.com)
mantra - Yogapedia (yogapedia.com) "Some practitioners use mala beads to help them count and chant their mantra 108 times."
Muslim prayer beads, Damla Tonuk - Reverberations: New Directions in the Study of Prayer (forums.ssrc.org)
Prayer beads - Wikipedia
See also Rosary and Intercession
Compare Fallacy of analogy

"Give us today our daily bread."

Matthew 6:11
The actual meaning of the phrase commonly translated from the Greek επιούσιον "epiousion" (uncertainly as) "daily bread" is obscure.
The Douay-Rheims Bible reads "supersubstantial bread", from the Latin Vulgate "super substantialis". This reading, more than the common reading "daily bread", appears to some exegetes as the more probable reading of the Greek επιούσιον "epiousion". EPI - επι (beyond, outside, above) + OUSION - ούσιον, from OUSIA - ούσία, from (substance, property, possessions), from the feminine OUSA - ούσα (being, having) — Strong's numbers 3776 and 5607.
This strongly suggests a more than material food, a kind of supernatural sustaining nourishment, heavenly bread (as expressed in the hymn phrase based on this same text from Matthew 6:11: "bread of heaven, feed me 'til I want no more – here's my cup, fill it up and make me whole" — "Fill My Cup, Lord", Richard Blanchard, 1925-2004).
Compare John 6:31; Exodus 16:4, 15; Numbers 11:9; Deuteronomy 8:3; Nehemiah 9:15; Psalm 78:24-25; 105:40.
See interlinear text of Matthew 6:11
See multiple versions of Matthew 6:11
See multiple commentaries on Matthew 6:11

Omission of the words "For yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever."

Matthew 6:13—King James Bible
This phrase is not found in the best early manuscripts of Matthew 6:13. Luke does not include it (Luke 11:2-4). The early Church scholars and biblical authorities ("the Apostolic Fathers" and "early Church Fathers") who commented on the Lord's Prayer make no mention of it. Jerome does not mention it and it does not appear in his Latin translation of the Bible, the Vulgate. See

"Do not lay up treasures for yourselves on the earth ... but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven"

Matthew 6:19-20
A direct allusion to the Septuagint text,
Sirach 29:11-12.

"Mammon"

Matthew 6:24
The minor pagan deity of wealth or money, of economic financial gain and business profit. According to the Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, the word "MAMMON", in general use was a personification of riches as an evil spirit or deity.
Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, General Editors Chad Brand, Charles Draper, Archie England; Associate Editors Steve Bond, E. Ray Clendenen; General Editor, Holman Bible Dictionary Trent C. Butler; copyright 2003 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee, all rights reserved, p.1073a. ISBN: 978-0-8054-2836-0

"Are you not of much more value than they?"

Matthew 6:26
Darwinian evolution theory says we are not of more value than the birds of the air, but like them are basically no more than intelligent animals.

"Judge not"

Matthew 7:1
Jesus also said, "Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment." John 7:24
This is no contradiction.
"Judge not" in Matthew 7:1 is part of a Semitic form of expression called parallelism in which "judge not" is joined to "condemn not". Luke 6:37. The idea expressed is the same.
The passage in John 7:24 expresses a different intention of "judging rightly" as "discerning properly" according to the truth. Compare
Compare Misrepresentation and Polemic.
Also Hostile witness.

"Therefore whatever you desire for men to do to you, you shall also do to them ... Therefore by their fruits you will know them."

Matthew 7:12-20
Matthew alludes to the following Septuagint texts:
7:12 parallels LXX Tobit 4:15
7:16 and 20 both parallel LXX Sirach 27:6

"When he came down from the mountain...a leper came to him"

Matthew 8:1-2
This leper met Jesus at the foot of the mountain, and is therefore not the leper "in one of the cities" in Luke 5:12-15.

Compare the Conservative Bible text (conservapedia.com):

He then preached in the Galilean synagogues. (Luke 4:44 Conservative Bible. Compare RSVCE text of Luke 4:44: "And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.")

And Jesus traveled throughout the whole of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the Kingdom, and healing every kind of chronic illness and every kind of germ among the people. And the news of him spread throughout the whole of Syria (Province), and people brought to him the sick people having various diseases and torments, all demon-oppressed people, and mentally disturbed people, and paralyzed people, and He healed them. And great crowds of people followed Him from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea and from the far side of the Jordan River.

A leper came to him, kneeling and imploring him, saying, "If you wish it, please cure my illness." Jesus was moved by compassion, and putting out his hand to touch him, replied, "I will. Be cured." Immediately after Jesus had spoken, the leprosy departed the man, and he was cured. Jesus gave him strict orders to leave at once; And said to him, "Tell no one, but be on your way and show yourself to the priest, offering in thanks for your healing what Moses commanded. This will serve as testimony to others." But the cured man immediately announced to all what had happened, and the publicity made it impossible for Jesus to enter any city openly. He withdrew to the desert, but the people still came to him from everywhere.

After seeing the masses before Him, he ascended the Mountain, then He sat down. Those who were learning from Him, came to Him. He began His Torah to them, then, and said: Blessed are those who are not full of the themselves, for the Kingdom of heaven is theirs. Blessed are those who are grief-stricken, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they that hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the clean in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they that are persecuted for the sake of justice, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you, when men shall denounce you, and persecute you, and say everything evil against you (falsely), for My sake. Rejoice, and be very glad, because your reward is great in heaven: because they persecuted the prophets that came before you in the same manner. You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt has become bland, what shall it be salted with? It is then good for nothing, and fit only to be thrown out and trodden underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city cannot be hidden if it stands on a hill. And men do not light a candle and put it under a bushel basket, but on a candlestick; and it shines on everyone in the house. Let your light shine in this manner in front of people, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. Do not think that I have come to tear down the law or the prophets. I have not come to tear these things down, but rather to fulfil them. For I tell you truly: Until heaven and earth, not one jot or tittle shall pass from the law, in any way, shape or form, until everything is fulfilled.

And so if any person breaks even one of the least of these commandments, and shall so instruct others, that person shall be called the least in the Kingdom of heaven: but any person who does and teaches the commandments, shall be called great in the Kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your justification exceeds the justification of the scribes and the Pharisees, you cannot enter the Kingdom of heaven under any circumstances. You have heard that it was said in ancient times, "You shall not commit murder," and anyone guilty of committing murder would be liable for trial. But I tell you that any person who is angry with his brother shall be liable for trial, and anyone who says to his brother, "Airhead!" shall be liable to be brought before the council, but whoever says, "Moron!" shall be liable for the fire of hell. So if you are bringing your gift to the altar, that your brought has something against you, leave your gift in front of the alter, go away, reconcile yourself to your brother first, and then come and offer your gift. Be on good terms with your adversary quickly, while you are with him on the road; otherwise he might sometime deliver you to the judge, who will deliver you to the bailiff, and you find yourself thrown into prison. I tell you truly: you shall not come out of that prison until you have paid back the last cent.

You have heard that they said, "Do not commit adultery." But I tell you that any man who looks at a woman with desire has already committed adultery with her in his heart. But if your right eye causes you to stumble, take it out and throw it away from you: for it is better for you to have one of your body parts perish than that the whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away from you: for it is better for you to have one of your body parts perish than that the whole body be thrown into hell. It has been said, "Any man who divorces his wife should give her a bill of divorcement." But I say to you that any man who divorces his wife, or fails to marry his betrothed for any reason other than improper conduct on her part, causes her to commit adultery; and any person who marries a divorced woman commits adultery. Again you have heard that it was said in ancient times, "Do not swear falsely, but keep before the Lord any oath that you do swear." But I tell you: don't swear at all, neither by heaven, the throne of God; nor by the earth, His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, the city of the great King, nor by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your word be a simple "Yes" or "No." Anything more than that comes from evil. You have heard that it was said, "An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth." But I tell you: Don't resist evil. To whomever hits you on the right cheek, turn the other cheek to him also. And if any person sues you in a court of law, and takes your coat from you, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone compels you to go a mile with him, go with him two miles. Give to anyone who asks, and don't turn away from anyone who wants to borrow from you. You have heard that it was said, "Love your neighbor, and disregard your enemy." But I tell you: Love your enemies, bless them who curse you, do good to those who disregard you, and pray for those who treat you spitefully and persecute you, so that you may be the children of your Father in heaven. He makes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. Because if you love them who love you, what reward do you have? Don't even tax collectors do the same thing? And if you exchange polite greetings only with your brothers, what are you doing, any more than others do? Don't even tax-collectors behave this way? You should therefore be perfect, even as your Father Who is in heaven is perfect.

Be careful not to perform your acts of charity in front of men, in order to be seen by them; otherwise you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you do your duty, do not sound a trumpet before you, the way the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may have glory from men. I tell you truly: they will get what's coming to them. But when you give to the poor, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your acts of charity may be hidden, and your Father, who sees in a hidden way Himself, will reward you openly. And when you pray, don't be like the hypocrites. They love to pray when standing in the synagogues and in the street corners, so that they may be seen by men. I tell you truly: They will get what's coming to them. But you, when you pray, go into your private room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father Who is hidden, and your Father, who sees in a hidden manner, will reward you openly. And when you do pray, don't use vain repetitions, the way those of other nations do. They think that they'll be heard if they use many words. So don't be like them. Your Father knows what things you need, before you ask Him. Therefore, pray this way: "Our Father, who is in heaven, let your Name be Holy. Let Your kingdom come. Let Your will be done on earth as it is done in heaven. Give us our daily bread today. And forgive us of all our sins, just as we forgive those who sin against us. And do not lead us into testing, but keep us from the evil one. For yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. Because if you forgive men the wrongs they do, your heavenly Father will forgive you as well. But if you do not forgive men their wrongdoings, your Father will not forgive your wrongdoings either. Furthermore, when you fast, do not be gloomy, like the hypocrites. They like to disfigure their faces so that they appear to other people to be fasting. I tell you truly: they will get what's coming to them. But you, when you fast, rub your head with oil, and wash your face, so that you do not look like a man fasting to other men, but to your Father Who is hidden, and your Father, who sees in a hidden manner, will reward you openly.

'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'

(Acts 20:35b From last phrase of Acts 20:35 "I have showed you all things, how that, working in this way, you should support the weak, and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how He said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' ")

Don't store up treasures for yourselves on earth, where moths and rust make things unsightly and thieves break through and steal. But store up treasures for yourselves in heaven, where neither moth nor rust can disfigure and no thief can break in or steal. For where your treasure is, your heart will also be. The lamp of the body is the eye. So if your eye is single, then your whole body will be bright. But if your eye is evil, then your whole body will be dark. So if the light that is in you is dark, it is very dark indeed. No one can serve two masters. He will either hate the one and love the other, or else hold to the one and treat the other with contempt. You cannot at the same time be a slave to God and wealth. For this reason I tell you: stop worrying about your life, and what you will eat [or drink], or for your body, or what you will wear. Isn't life more than about food, and the body more than about clothes? Look at the birds in the sky. They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren't you much better than they are? Who among you, by worrying about it, can add one foot to his height? And why do you worry about your clothes? Look at the lilies of the field, and how they grow. They don't work or spin. And yet I tell you that even Solomon in all his glory was never clothed like one of these. So if God can thus clothe the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not clothe you so much more, you who have so little faith? So stop worrying, and saying, "What shall we eat?" or "What shall we drink?" or "What shall we wear?" For the Gentiles seek after all these things, but your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But first seek after the Kingdom of God, and His justice, and every one of these things will be added to you. So stop worrying about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. The bad things that happen today are enough to worry about today.

Stop judging others, if you do not want to be judged. For with whatever judgment you judge, you will be judged, and with whatever measure you measure out to others, it will be measured to you. And why do you behold the mote in your brother's eye, and not consider the beam in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, "Let me take the mote out of your eye", while a beam is in your own eye? Hypocrite! Throw the beam out of your own eye first, and then you will see clearly to throw out the mote in your brother's eye. Stop giving holy things to the dogs, and throwing your pearls in front of pigs, if you don't want them to trample them underfoot, and turn against you and tear you apart. Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it is opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him? So however you would want men to treat you, treat them the same way. The law and the prophets require this. Enter in at the narrow gate. The gate is wide, and the road broad, that leads to destruction, and many people go in that way, because the gate and the road that lead to life are narrow, and few people find it. Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles? In fact every good tree makes good fruit, but a corrupt tree makes bad fruit. A good tree cannot make bad fruit, nor a corrupt tree make good fruit. Every tree that does not make good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore, by their fruits you will know them. Not everyone who says to me, "Lord! Lord!" will enter into the Kingdom of heaven, but rather the one who does the will of My Father in heaven (will so enter). Many people will say to me in that day, "Lord! Lord! Haven't we told of the future in Your Name? Haven't we thrown demons out of people in Your Name? Haven't we done wonderful works in Your Name?" And then I will tell them plainly: "I never knew you. Get away from me, you who work lawlessness." So everyone who hears these things that I say, and does them, I will compare to a wise man, who built his house on a rock, and the rain came down, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house, and it did not fall, because it was founded on rock. And everyone who hears these things that I say, and does not do them, will be compared to a foolish man, who built his house on sand, and the rain came down, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house, and it fell, and fell with a great crash. And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished talking, that the crowds were amazed at His teaching, because when He taught them He spoke with and from authority, and not in the way the scribes commonly taught them.

When He had come down from the mountain, great crowds of people followed Him. And then a leper came and fell down at His feet, saying, "Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean." And He put out his hand, and touched him, and said, "I am willing. Be clean." And immediately the man's leprosy was cleansed. And Jesus told him, "Don't breathe a word of this to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the sacrifice that Moses commanded as a testimony to them."

Twelve

Chapter 12 Bible texts

When he entered again into Capernaum after some days, when he came into Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking him, and saying, “Lord, my servant lies in the house paralyzed, grievously tormented.”

Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.”

The centurion answered, “Lord, I am not worthy for you to come under my roof. Just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I am also a man under authority, having under myself soldiers. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and tell another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and tell my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

When Jesus heard it, he marveled, and said to those who followed, “Most certainly I tell you, I have not found so great a faith, not even in Israel. I tell you that many will come from the east and the west, and will sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the Kingdom of Heaven, but the children of the Kingdom will be thrown out into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way. Let it be done for you as you have believed.”

His servant was healed in that hour.

When Jesus came into Peter’s house, he saw his wife’s mother lying sick with a fever. He touched her hand, and the fever left her. She got up and served him. When evening came, they brought to him many possessed with demons. He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying,

“He took our infirmities, and bore our diseases.”

Now while the multitude pressed on him and heard the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, the lake of Galilee. He saw two boats standing by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them, and were washing their nets. He entered into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. He sat down and Taught the multitudes from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep, and let down your nets for a catch.”

Simon answered him, “Master, we worked all night, and took nothing; but at your word I will let down the net.”

When they had done this, they caught a great multitude of fish, and their net was breaking. They beckoned to their partners in the other boat, that they should come and help them. They came, and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. But Simon Peter, when he saw it, fell down at Jesus’s knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, Lord.”

For he was amazed, and all who were with him, at the catch of fish which they had caught; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid. From now on you will be catching people alive.”

When they had brought their boats to land, they left everything, and followed him.

A scribe came, and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”

Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”

Another of his followers said to him, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father.”

But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.”

When he got into a boat, his disciples followed him.

Behold, a violent storm came up on the sea, so much that the boat was covered with the waves, but he was asleep. They came to him, and woke him up, saying, “Save us, Lord! We are dying!

He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?”

Then he got up, rebuked the wind and the sea, and there was a great calm.

The men marveled, saying, “What kind of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

When he came to the other side, into the country of the Gergesenes, two people possessed by demons met him there, coming out of the tombs, exceedingly fierce, so that no one could pass that way. Behold, they cried out, saying, “What do we have to do with you, Jesus, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?”

Now there was a herd of many pigs feeding far away from them. The demons begged him, saying, “If you cast us out, permit us to go away into the herd of pigs.”

He said to them, “Go!

They came out, and went into the herd of pigs: and behold, the whole herd of pigs rushed down the cliff into the sea, and died in the water. Those who fed them fled, and went away into the city, and told everything, including what happened to those who were possessed with demons. Behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus. When they saw him, they begged that he would depart from their borders.

He entered into a boat, and crossed over, and came into his own city. Behold, they brought to him a man who was paralyzed, lying on a bed. Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, “Son, cheer up! Your sins are forgiven you.”

Behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man blasphemes.”

Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your hearts? For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven;’ or to say, ‘Get up, and walk?’ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins—” (then he said to the paralytic), “Get up, and take up your mat, and go to your house.”

He arose and departed to his house. But when the multitudes saw it, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

As Jesus passed by from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax collection post, the tax station. He said to him, “Follow me.”

He got up and followed him. As he sat in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his followers. When the Pharisees saw it, they said to his followers, his disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

When Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do. But you go and learn what this means:

“ ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’

“for I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

It was heard that he was in the house. Immediately many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even around the door; and he spoke the word to them. Four people came, carrying a paralytic to him. When they could not come near to him for the crowd, they removed the roof where he was. When they had broken it up, they let down the mat that the paralytic was lying on. Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.”

But there were some of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak blasphemies like that? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you reason these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to tell the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven;’ or to say, ‘Arise, and take up your bed, and walk?’ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic—“I tell you, arise, take up your mat, and go to your house.”

He arose, and immediately took up the mat, and went out in front of them all; so that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!

On one of those days, he was Teaching; and there were Pharisees and Teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every village of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. The power of the Lord was with him to heal them. Behold, men brought a paralyzed man on a cot, and they sought to bring him in to lay before Jesus. Not finding a way to bring him in because of the multitude, they went up to the housetop, and let him down through the tiles with his cot into the middle before Jesus. Seeing their faith, he said to him, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.”

The scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, “Who is this that speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?”

But Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, answered them, “Why are you reasoning so in your hearts? Which is easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you;’ or to say, ‘Arise and walk?’ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” (he said to the paralyzed man), “I tell you, arise, take up your cot, and go to your house.”

Immediately he rose up before them, and took up that which he was laying on, and departed to his house, glorifying God. Amazement took hold on all, and they glorified God. They were filled with fear, saying, “We have seen strange things today.”

After these things, He went out again by the seaside. All the multitude came to him, and he Taught them.

And as he passed by, he saw a tax collector named Levi, the son of Alphaeus, sitting at the tax post, and he said to him, “Follow me.”

And he arose and followed him. He left everything, and rose up and followed him.

Levi made a great feast for him in his house. There was a great crowd of tax collectors and others who were reclining with them. Their scribes and the Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?”

Jesus answered them, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

They said to him, “Why do John’s disciples often fast and pray, likewise also the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink?”

He said to them, “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them. Then they will fast in those days.”

He also told a parable to them. “No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old garment, or else he will tear the new, and also the piece from the new will not match the old. No one puts new wine into old wine skins, or else the new wine will burst the skins, and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wine skins, and both are preserved. No man having drunk old wine immediately desires new, for he says, ‘The old is better.’ ”

John’s followers and the Pharisees were fasting, and they came and asked him, “Why do John’s followers and the followers of the Pharisees fast, but your followers do not fast?”

Jesus said to them, “Can the groomsmen fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, or else the patch shrinks and the new tears away from the old, and a worse hole is made. No one puts new wine into old wineskins, or else the new wine will burst the skins, and the wine pours out, and the skins will be destroyed; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins.”

Then John’s disciples came to him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?”

Jesus said to them, “Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast. No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch would tear away from the garment, and a worse hole is made. Neither do people put new wine into old wine skins, or else the skins would burst, and the wine be spilled, and the skins ruined. No, they put new wine into fresh wine skins, and both are preserved.”

While he told these things to them, behold, a ruler came and worshiped him, saying, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.”

Jesus got up and followed him, as did his disciples.

Behold, a woman who had a discharge of blood for twelve years came behind him, and touched the fringe of his garment; for she said within herself, “If I just touch his garment, I will be made well.”

But Jesus, turning around and seeing her, said, “Daughter, cheer up! Your faith has made you well.”

And the woman was made well from that hour.

When Jesus came into the ruler’s house, and saw the flute players, and the crowd in noisy disorder, he said to them, “Make room, because the girl is not dead, but sleeping.”

They were ridiculing him. But when the crowd was put out, he entered in, took her by the hand, and the girl arose. The report of this went out into all that land.

As Jesus passed by from there, two blind men followed him, calling out and saying, “Have mercy on us, son of David!

When he had come into the house, the blind men came to him. Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”

They told him, “Yes, Lord.”

Then he touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith be it done to you.”

Their eyes were opened. Jesus strictly commanded them, saying, “See that no one knows about this.”

But they went out and spread abroad his fame in all that land.

As they went out, behold, a mute man who was demon possessed was brought to him. When the demon was cast out, the mute man spoke. The multitudes marveled, saying, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel!

But the Pharisees said, “By the prince of the demons, he casts out demons.”

Jesus went about all the cities and the villages, Teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and scattered, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his followers, “The harvest indeed is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore that the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers into his harvest.”

Mark 2:1a
Matthew 8:5-17
Luke 5:1-11
Matthew 8:18–9:13
—LXX Hosea 6:6
Mark 2:1b-12
Luke 5:17-27a
Mark 2:13
Luke 5:27b-28
Mark 2:14
Luke 5:29-32
Mark 2:15-17
Luke 5:33-39
Mark 2:18-22
Matthew 9:14-38
—LXX Judith 11:19

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Bible Encyclopedias: Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature (studylight.org)
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Table of Old Testament quotes in the New Testament, in English translation, Joel Kalvesmaki 2013 (kalvesmaki.com)

List of 300 Septuagint Old Testament quotations in the New Testament, by Steve Rudd 2017 (bible.ca)

Table of LXX quotes and allusions in the New Testament


Church History (Eusebius): The Ecclesiastical History Of Eusebius Pamphilus: Bishop Of Caesarea, In Palestine (newadvent.org)

The Works of Flavius Josephus William Whiston, Translator, 1737 (sacred-texts.com)

Suetonius: Twelve Caesars: The Lives of the Twelve Caesars by C. Suetonius Tranquilus; To which are added His Lives of the Grammarians, Rhetoricians, and Poets. The Translation of Alexander Thomson, M.D., Revised and corrected by T. Forester, Esq., A.M. (Gutenberg.org)

Tacitus: The Annals, Written 109 A.C.E. Translated by Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb

Sextus Aurelius Victor: Epitome De Caesaribus (roman-emperors.org)

Eutropius: Breviarium - Eutropius's Abridgement of Roman History (tertullian.org)

Cassius Dio: Roman History Epitome (penelope.uchicago.edu)

Early Christian Writings A.D. 30 through 380 (earlychristianwritings.com)
See Biblical Canon and Apocrypha.


"Just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I am also a man under authority"

Matthew 8:8b-9a
The reasoning of the centurion here puzzles many readers of the Bible, who ask why his being a man under military authority is relevant to his confident request for a healing of his servant. It is because they do not understand military discipline, and obedience to authority.
Because of the centurion's military duty to immediately obey without question those in command over him, he acknowledges the effective power of genuine authority. He recognizes the legitimate, powerful authority of Christ as a commander and lord to command even nature in matters of sickness and health. Roman respect for the nonpolitical, extra-legal, power of auctoritas is evident.
—See Auctoritas (dictionary.sensagent.com).
Through the analogy of his own obligation to willingly obey without hesitation those in authority over him, and of the duty of those under him to likewise obey his own commands, he expresses his confidence in the legitimacy of the evident authority of the Anointed One, and the effective power of His word of command. It is entirely natural to him that authority should be obeyed: that is the way of things and the proper order of nature. He is fully persuaded that whatever Jesus commands will be immediately obeyed, because in his eyes Jesus has the obvious dignity of full authority, innately, in and of Himself, to command obedience to his word (auctoritas). And just as by analogy a low-ranking private in military service would feel overwhelmed and unworthy of a visit by the Chief Commanding General of the Armed Forces of the United States of America in response to his petition for help, this Roman centurion declares that he is not worthy to receive Jesus under his roof. This is the same language of proper military form used by a Roman general in humble response to the emperor who announces his favor with a proposed visit to his home. Jesus responds that he has not found in Israel this kind of ready acknowledgement of the obligation of obedience to the will of God and of himself as the One sent by God. As God, the Son of God, Jesus is greatly pleased by the Roman's admirable faith in Him. As a man himself, being fully human, and especially as a Jew, Jesus acknowledges the marvel of the Roman pagan's unquestioning belief in his authority as one sent from the God of Israel.
See the following texts expressing Jesus' authority to command:
See also the parallel New Testament passages regarding legitimately ordained human authority:
Articles:

"When Jesus heard it, he marveled"

Matthew 8:10a
"marveledέθαύμασε ethaumase"—not in the sense that the Lord Jesus was suddenly shocked, surprised, astonished or amazed at the man's faith, as if this "caught Him off guard", as if Jesus was totally unaware of the faith in the man's heart before that moment. Jesus rather "admired" his "marvelous", free expression of faith in Him as "highly commendable", "profoundly impressive", an "admirable example" to others, as an instructive practical expression to his followers of "praiseworthy confidence" to be heeded and learned from. It was, in fact, an act of faith most delightfully pleasing personally to Himself as Lord, especially coming from a Gentile.
"I have not found so great a faith". From this particular mention of faith in the New Testament, we may gather that faith, belief (as well as unbelief) is in both the understanding and the will. The Lord thus characterized the centurion's faith as being the result of deliberation and free choice. Deliberation is the province of the understanding; free choice is the offspring of the will. This contradicts the firm doctrinal assertion of Calvinism that the soul has no free will to believe in the Lord, and that the gift of free will is bestowed solely on the elect alone. This requires a response based on the same inspired sacred scripture of the Bible which John Calvin cites as authoritative for the rule of faith and practice.
Jesus is both God and man, divine and human.
As a man and a devout Jew, Jesus admired the centurion's marvelous faith in his authority.
As God, Jesus was well-pleased with the centurion's faith in him. (See Luke 23:39-43)
In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit testifies that God can indeed be delighted and pleased with admirable men of faith and obedience who freely choose to honor Him with truth and good works. This is evident in the words of the following scripture passages:
Genesis 6:8-9
Numbers 14:8, 14:24
Deuteronomy 26:19
1 Samuel 13:14
1 Samuel 15:22
1 Kings 3:10; 10:9
Psalms 11:7; 18:19; 37:23; 50:23; 69:30-31; 104:34; 149:4
Proverbs 3:12; 8:30; 12:22; 15:8; 16:7
Isaiah 62:4
Jeremiah 9:24; 33:9
Micah 7:18
Philippians 2:13 and Ephesians 2:10
Hebrews 11:5; 13:16
In his Institutes of Christian Religion John Calvin teaches that man cannot please God, that human souls have no free will to choose to do what is pleasing to Him, for it is God alone who does in man whatever is pleasing to him:
(Philippians 2:13; Jeremiah 9:24).
If human beings have no free will to choose to do either good or evil they cannot of themselves merit either praise or blame, for according to Calvinist doctrine they cannot choose to do otherwise. Of themselves men and women can neither please nor displease God, though by nature they are displeasing to Him. Therefore they have no personal moral responsibility for what they do and what they fail to do. Those who actually do good by the irresistible, sovereign grace of God's election cannot of themselves merit praise as if they of their own free will choose to do good, for they only do what good He wills by his sovereign pleasure alone.
(Luke 17:10; Philippians 2:13; Revelation 4:11 KJV "for thy pleasure"; Revelation 4:11 "by thy will"; Romans 9:18-19).
Calvin reasons that if men are "dead in trespasses and sins" they are spiritual corpses, and a corpse has no will to decide to do anything, good or bad.
(Ephesians 2:1-3; Psalm 115:17; compare Ecclesiastes 9:4-10; Jude 10).
Calvinists reason that souls only act by instinct as irrational animals. They are dead in trespasses and sins. Because they have no free will, the logical conclusion is that those who displease Him by nature cannot merit any blame or personal responsibility for what they do by instinct, for they are by nature deprived of the grace of God, a sanctifying grace which in strict justice He is not obligated to bestow, and sovereignly withholds from most of them, in order to allow them to fulfill without any interference their inherently self-destructive destiny, being by nature "children of wrath" (Ephesians 2:3), for they have no free will. For this very reason Jesus should not have been amazed or astonished by the faith of the centurion—that is, if the man had no free will. Calvin adamantly insists that Jesus is the divine Son of God. He knew all men and what is in man. Calvin insists that Jesus is fully divine, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. The fulness of Deity was, is, and ever shall be in Him. The Spirit of the Father is the Spirit of Jesus, the only one who knows the Father, for all that the Father has, Jesus has. He is in the Father and the Father is in him.
(Colossians 2:9; John 1:1, 14, 18; Revelation 11:15-19; Revelation 1:4, 8; 4:8; and 1 Corinthians 2:10-16; Matthew 11:27; 2 Corinthians 3:17-18; Romans 8:9; Galatians 4:6; John 14:8-11.)
This point must be reiterated. According to the Calvinist doctrine of election nothing good that men do could possibly cause him surprise or amazement or admiration for any reason. For according to this doctrine the Lord Jesus would already know that they are acting solely according to the sovereign choice of the irresistible grace of God's election, and they cannot do otherwise. Nothing good is done by the dead will of man: "there is none that doeth good, no, not one" (Romans 3:12). The glory belongs to God alone. The doctrine of election in Calvinist theology is not based on whether the predestined elect evidently manifests the habitual practice of good or evil. What one does, either good or bad, has absolutely no bearing whatever on the Calvinist doctrine of election. Good works are evidence of the operative grace of the sovereign Lord God "who alone is good", but they are not ipso facto therefore an infallible sign of the Irresistible Grace of Election unto Salvation and Eternal life in Heaven. See Jesus is Worthy - Calvin's View of the Trinity, J. Wesley Carpenter (jesusisworthy1.wordpress.com)
Compare Eternal security (salvation) and Fatalism.
See John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion (ccel.org).
Jakob Harmenszoon (Arminianism) opposed this view in favor of the reality of free will in man. He is among those Christian (and Jewish) believers who hold that God is pleased when the human creature made in His Own Image acts righteously. They are persuaded from their reading of the scriptures that God has sovereignly made man capable by nature of choosing either good or evil and therefore human beings are able to freely choose the good, even when they are pressured by circumstance or the deceit of specious reasoning to choose evil. (Compare Job.)
Arminian Protestants are convinced that God is delighted with people that He has omnisciently seen within the body of the fallen human community struggling to do right, who defend justice and truthfulness, and are therefore regarded by Him as being truly worthy of praise, and admirable in His sight. They see the Lord as pleased with them because of their willing righteousness in freely choosing Him and seeking to do His Will, by voluntarily not resisting the available assistance of His grace. They insist from their reading of the Bible as a whole that whoever says that God is not delighted with evident deeds of righteousness in man, scripture bearing witness to them, is someone who does not know the Bible, and contradicts the Scriptures. They grieve over the influence of those scholars who by their commentaries and books promote the Calvinist doctrine of Irresistible Grace, Limited Atonement, Total Depravity of man, and denial of Free Will, in what they claim is an opposition to the evident doctrine of the Bible by turning the truth of scripture into a lie. Jeremiah 9:24; Mark 12:24
According to Arminian Protestants and Catholics and Orthodox, mankind—Adam—both men and women, have free will. Their freely chosen path of righteousness pleases the Lord, but their deeds of righteousness and goodness cannot ipso facto of themselves save them from the death merited by the collective guilt of the whole human race as heirs truly descended from guilty Adam the father of all mankind who by birth bear his name and his nature as man (Hebrew, adam).
(Genesis 5:1-2; Psalm 49:7-15; Wisdom 2:23-24; Romans 5:12-19; Hebrews 9:14-28 "to save those who are eagerly waiting for him").
Compare Pelagianism.
The Calvinist view of original sin is analogous to the pagan idea of "bad blood". The doctrine of "bad blood" holds that the (rumored) guilt of an entire family or clan or tribe or ethnic group belongs even to innocent individuals who by birth alone are members of their racial or ethnic community. The guilt of an entire family, clan, tribe, ethnic group or nation with a long-established reputation for inherent (inherited) criminal, social, religious wicked behavior, is held to belong by nature even to those innocent individuals who in contradiction of their heritage have actually demonstrated consistently that they themselves fundamentally differ in character from the bad reputation of their own whole family or tribe. They may have actually demostrated by their own personal actions that they are actually law-abiding, innocent, and morally righteous, and that they themselves as individuals do not personally deserve to be charged with having the same wicked, guilty character as the rest of their people. But however good they seem to be, because of the doctrine of "bad blood", their good deeds and evident individual character are unjustly rejected as utterly worthless and hypocritical. They are judged automatically guilty of being inherently bad because of their association with the name and bloodline of their family and people. They belong to them. They are irrevocably branded as one of them by name and nature and instinct. "Sooner or later, bad blood will out." It is inevitable. The enormous, indelible guilt of an entire people for the unforgettably monstrous outrage of unfathomable evil that they committed against all purity and goodness and decency cannot simply be overlooked, wiped out and forgotten as if it never happened. It remains. A few individuals cannot erase that wound. Every one of them is a reminder of the horror. The presence of even one of them in the community is an offense, an outrage against decency. And whatever good they do and have done personally, and the evidence of their own good deeds, and their obvious personal character in both manner and speech, in clearly having no part personally in the guilt of what their forebears or their own parents, brothers, sisters and relatives have done, this still does not absolve them of the inherent guilt of having "bad blood" in the eyes of "decent, law-abiding Christians". Even their infants and children are judged guilty "from the womb". They have the name, they have the guilt. Popular dramas set in 19th century America (such as Westerns) frequently illustrate the dynamic of various prejudices regarding "bad blood". See Racism and Xenophobia.
(Compare Psalm 58:3-4; Isaiah 1:4; Jeremiah 13:22-23; Ezekiel 18; Daniel 9:3-19; Ezra 9:6-15.)
The doctrine of original sin asserts that every descendant of Adam has inherited his guilt. Proof is seen in the fact that all human beings die because of the guilt of that sin. (Genesis 2:16-17; 3:17-19; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22). Calvin reasons that spiritual death means the spiritual power of will in mankind is dead: as a corpse has no life and no freedom of will, so mankind, dead in trespasses and sin has no spiritual life (Ephesians 2:1-3; Ecclesiastes 9:10); and as the will of any corpse is dead, so Calvin reasons that it logically follows that a spiritual corpse has no life and therefore no will. A criminal convicted of a capital crime and sentenced to death and summarily executed no longer has any will to appeal to the court and remains a guilty corpse with no free will. But Calvin's reasoning contains a fatal flaw that contradicts the Bible.
If the centurion had no free will to exercise faith in the word of Jesus (Matthew 8:10-12), then his faith was no marvel worthy of admiration or praise by the incarnate Lord. Calvinist doctrine maintains that all glory belongs to God alone. Therefore the centurion, of himself, has no faith. He is not personally responsible for his faith if he has no free will. It is a gift, an offer he can't refuse. According to Calvin, irresistible grace. He can neither accept it nor refuse it. He merits neither praise nor blame for what he does or for the faith he has in Jesus. Jesus, who is God the Son, as God, already knows what is in man. The Calvinist interpretation of the Gospel represents the Lord as illogically marveling at what God the Father does by the Spirit, the Father whom the Son alone truly knows intimately, whom God cannot possibly surprise or astonish, he who is "in the bosom of the Father" John 1:18; 7:29; 14:11; John 5:19-46.
(Luke 10:22; 1 Corinthians 2:11-16; Romans 8:9).
According to the interpretive theology of Calvinism, Jesus is thus seen marveling, not at the faith of the centurion, but at what the Father has sovereignly done with the centurion by his divine will, the Father Whom he so fully knows!
(John 5:19-20; 14:10-11; John 2:25; Hebrews 4:13-14).
If the centurion who approached Jesus has no free will, he is therefore not personally responsible for the faith he expresses, and he merits neither credit nor praise, for then God alone would be responsible, and Jesus would instead be praising himself and the Father in him and he in the Father, to whom alone glory belongs, not the centurion. The real wonder, then, if the centurion has no free will, would not be the faith expressed by the centurion, but that Jesus marveled at that faith! But if the man has free will, and is freely expressing his own personal confident trust in Christ of his own free will, by the enabling gift of God and his willing consent to the influence of that gift, which he freely embraces, he does merit praise from the Lord for his marvelous faith in personally responding to that gift.
Most Christian believers conclude that the Calvinist position, based on "proof texts" that man has no free will to exercise a praiseworthy faith in him, is fundamentally a contradiction of the Bible as a whole (Proof texting). See for example
Deuteronomy 30:19; Joshua 24:14-24; Psalm 25:12; Proverbs 1:28-30; Isaiah 1:2; 7:15-16; 56:4-5; 65:12; Ezekiel chapter 18; Malachi 1:6-14; John 5:14; 7:17; Hebrews 6:4-6; James 2:12; 5:19-20; 2 Peter 2:20-22; 3:14.
See Works by Jacobus Arminius (ccel.org).
Compare the official Catholic ("papist") doctrine on free will:
Compare the Orthodox understanding of free will:
The Gospel says that Jesus "marveled" Greek έθαύμασε ethaumase / έθαύμασεν ethaumasen—See Strong's number 2296 θαυμάζω thaumazō to wonder; by implication, to admire, to have in admiration, to marvel, to wonder at; from 2295 θαῦμα thauma:—admiration.
Jesus admired the centurion's faith.
Greek Orthodox Bible Matthew 8:10
" 10 ἀκούσας δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἐθαύμασε καὶ εἶπε τοῖς ἀκολουθοῦσιν· ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, οὐδὲ ἐν τῷ Ἰσραὴλ τοσαύτην πίστιν εὗρον." (emphasis added)
In the ordinary realm of human experience, there are people of extraordinary abilities, whose careers span decades, who are a constant marvel and source of admiration. Over time we are not entirely surprised at their admirable abilities, knowing what we can probably expect of them, but we are still amazed and we sincerely do admire them, and we marvel. Jesus was not suddenly astonished by the centurion's faith, as if he did not know his heart and was unexpectedly surprised at something entirely new; he understandably appreciated, admired and marveled at this kind of confident faith. It was a faith freely expressed, an act of free will. The Roman centurion, with his own personal moral responsibility for having freely chosen—without any irresistible spiritual compulsion or influence sovereignly imposed on him from above without his consent—freely chose to have complete faith in Jesus and the power of his word. This is Marvelous! Wonderful! Admirable! And in the face of willful resistance by the leading elders, priests, scribes and Pharisees of the Jews, by contrast, his freely offered faith is Refreshing! Consoling!
Jesus extolled his faith with praise, and also at the same time expressed a tone of sadness for the chosen people of God, whom he had irrevocably elected from the beginning, the very same elect he had irrevocably called, many of whom would be cast into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
(Romans 11:28-29; Hebrews 10:23-31; Luke 19:41-44.)
If it is true that the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable, it is also true that those on whom his irrevocable gifts and calling have been bestowed can reject them. He has not withdrawn them. They have withdrawn themselves. According to his word no one can take them out of his hand—but they can choose to depart.
(John 10:27-30; Romans 8:38-39,
John 8:31; 15:1-6; Galatians 1:6-7; Hebrews 10:35-39; Revelation 2:5, 10, 25-26; 3:2-3, 15-19).
Though nothing else in heaven or on earth can separate them from Christ, through their own fault alone they can turn away from him and be condemned.
(Hebrews 6:4-12; James 5:19-20; 1 John 5:14-16).
This is why the New Testament has so very many warnings to remain faithful, and not to fall away from the hope that is in Christ Jesus, because it is possible to fall away.
(2 Peter 3:17; 1 Corinthians 10:12; Matthew 24:45-51; John 15:4-6).
Calvinism teaches the doctrine that the elect cannot fall away. If this is true, it would mean that such warnings are unnecessary and superfluous. And if it is also true that those not elected unto salvation, whom he sovereignly allows to perish, are naturally not saved, then it would mean that such warnings are futile and likewise superfluous. Warnings in either case would therefore make no sense whatever, because they would absolutely make no difference. And by taking all scripture together in context, the Calvinist doctrine of election leads the conservative Bible believer to the logical conclusion that the Bible as a consistently unified whole of divine revelation does not support Calvinism.
(Romans 9:18; compare 2 Peter 3:9 "not willing that any should perish"; Revelation 22:17 "And whosoever will").
Thus, against Calvinist doctrine, sacred scripture teaches that it is possible to please God with admirably marvelous faith, a gift freely accepted in the heart and soul and mind, not refused. And while Arminianism teaches the doctrine that one who has been saved by grace can fall away, it also maintains that once one has fallen away from the truth it is impossible to restore that soul again. Against this doctrine too, sacred scripture teaches that the soul fallen away can be brought back and saved.
(James 5:19-20; 1 John 5:16—the "mortal sin" mentioned here meaning suicide, as distinct from the "blasphemy not forgiven in this world or the world to come". Compare commentaries on Matthew 12:32 and Romans 9:18.)
The same kind of misinterpretation of the Bible is found in the (Protestant) doctrine of Traditionalism which denies that any person is regenerated prior to or apart from hearing and responding to the Gospel. This doctrine is based on an interpretation of Romans 10:14-15 as applying strictly to individuals, and never to whole communities as in the days of the preaching of the apostles to whole assemblies of people who gathered to hear them, and converted by the thousands, hundreds and tens, with their families and children together, accepting Jesus Christ as the Savior sent by God to free them from their sins and cleanse their souls. Against this Traditionalism doctrine also—the doctrine that regeneration only follows hearing and responding to the Gospel—against this doctrine many cite what they have traditionally interpreted as Bible support for salvation through being "baptized into Christ" through the "washing of water with the word", and the fact that "even infants were brought to him to be blessed" and he received them, saying "Forbid them not", so that even infants without understanding can receive in their souls the blessing of salvation through baptism into Christ, and that this has always been the "tradition" by "word" as handed down from the apostles of the Lord, that whole "households" and "all their families" with all "your children" were baptized.
(KJV— Romans 6:3-11; 1 Peter 3:21; Hebrews 10:19-22; Acts 22:16; Ephesians 5:25-27; Acts 2:39; 11:14; 16:15, 31, 33; 18:8; Luke 18:15-17; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-15; Hebrews 13:17; 2 Timothy 2:2, 23-25; Jude 3; 2 Peter 3:14-18. —Especially Psalms 22:9-10; 58:3; 71:6; Jeremiah 1:5; Luke 1:41, 44; Acts 17:27-28; Romans 8:26; Galatians 1:15; 2 Peter 3:9)
See the following articles regarding "household salvation" and "infant baptism":
See especially Great Apostasy.
"I have not found so great a faith, not even in Israel". Commentaries are divided on the speculative possibility that the centurion (Matthew 8:5-10) may have been the first Gentile convert to manifest saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. See multiple commentaries on Matthew 8:10.
Not one of the whole nation of Israel had manifested such ready acceptance of the obvious evidence of Jesus' authority being from God as did the Roman centurion. This included even Jesus' own disciples and apostles personally drawn by Him from among the Jews. Even Nathanael was hesitant when first told about Jesus. And Thomas refused to believe what he was told without evidence he could see and touch. Compare Acts 10:1–11:18 where even Peter and the other apostles and the brethren (believing Jews) had not believed the Gentiles could repent, but afterward did believe. In contrast to the unbelief of the Jewish Christians who believed in Jesus, Cornelius and his friends and his whole household had immediately accepted Peter's words about Jesus as Lord and Savior—the Holy Spirit fell on them and they too spoke in tongues, as a sign to Peter and the brethren with him that God had also granted to the Gentiles repentance unto life! The Great Commission to the apostles to "go into all the whole world" to make disciples of "all nations" implicitly included making the Gentiles disciples and baptizing them.
(Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:45-48; John 20:21-23; Acts 1:7-8),
The apostles had not yet understood this, thinking that Jesus meant all Jews throughout the world, and therefore they themselves had not believed that God has granted even to the Gentiles repentance unto life, until they were shown by revelation of the Holy Spirit and His falling on them with the sign of tongues. "Wherefore tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe, but to them that believe not" 1 Corinthians 14:22 (KJV).
Compare Acts 18:25-26 and 19:1-7.
It is possible to have true belief and yet still need further instruction to correct the defect of ignorant unbelief, like the apostles themselves in the beginning. Tongues are therefore evidence of ignorant unbelief among believers who have true faith in Christ, but an incomplete and ignorant faith, who nevertheless still need correction and further instruction in the faith about things they do not yet believe, and perhaps have never heard before, but things which are part of the full Gospel. According to St. Paul, speaking in tongues will not convince outsiders and those without faith, who are unbelievers (1 Corinthians 14:23-25), but prophecy will: "if all prophesy...the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you." (RSVCE) (See 2 Corinthians 5:20.)
Conservative Christian believers reject every interpretation of scripture speciously adduced by some exegetes as apparently demonstrating (to them) that Jesus in his human nature was not also aware with divine knowledge, as the Prophet of God foretold by Moses
(Deuteronomy 18:15-18; John 1:19-28).
See for example John 6:5-6; also John 2:25; 1:47; 6:61, 64; 13:11; Mark 2:8; Matthew 9:4; 12:25; Luke 5:22; 6:8; 9:47; 11:17; Hebrews 4:13-14).
On the basis of the whole context of the Bible, the conservative Christian exegete can confidently say that Jesus was neither "astonished" nor "amazed" as he nevertheless "marveled" at the centurion's faith and "admired" it.
Translators who seek to defend the doctrine of Jesus' divinity and fulness of divine consciousness
(Colossians 1:19; 2:3, 2:9),
and bearing in mind the texts cited above (and others), carefully read the Greek text of the New Testament according to the technical meanings of the actual vocabulary, syntax and grammar of the Greek language, and what is termed the "semantical field" (the lexical context or thesaurus) of relevant words, by choosing allowable readings (translations) of them in favor of this truth (see Dynamic equivalence), readings which are consistent with the whole context of the Bible and the Christian faith, claiming to be bound by the meaning of the text.
Translators who disagree, who prefer interpretive readings permitted by the technical meanings of particular Greek words according to the semantical field of the Greek lexicon (dictionary, thesaurus), by choosing instead allowable definitions that they know would strongly imply to their readers that Jesus had no divine knowledge of what is in the heart of people—translators and exegetes who prejudicially reject allowed interpretive lexical readings with connotations that do support divine consciousness in Jesus, because they believe Jesus had no divine knowledge—such translators are not seeking to defend Him or the Christian faith. They too claim that they are bound by the meaning of the text (confirmation bias). 2 Peter 3:17-18.
See multiple versions of Matthew 8:10.
(Note the interesting but minor difference between texts:
ἐθαύμασε ethoumase, and
ἐθαύμασεν ethoumasen.)
Compare multiple commentaries on Matthew 8:10.
Many Bible commentators do not actually believe that the eyewitness narrative text of the Four Gospels in the Bible is true. They do not believe the promise of Jesus in John 14:26 and 16:13-14 ("forever"—"into all truth"). This is evident in the undeniable fact that many of them are convinced that Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:2-10 relate the same incident. They are not the same. Just because two similar narratives sound the same does not prove they are the same. Such an unfounded, speciously reasoned, a priori (taken for granted), ipso facto assumption is responsible for ignorant assertions of unresolvable discrepancies which immediately call into question the truthful reliability of the Gospel, discrepancies that do not in fact exist. (See Confirmation bias.) The conservative Bible scholar who takes the text seriously is sensitive to factual details related in the narrative. In Matthew 8:5-13 "a centurion came forward to him" in person. In Luke 7:2-10 a centurion "sent to him elders of the Jews" in his place. These two statements are contradictory: if the reader and interpreter assumes that both passages must be relating the same identical event, then they cannot both be factually true. If the text of the Bible is true, and factual, and worthy of belief, then both Matthew and Luke are true, and factual, and worthy of belief, and Matthew and Luke are relating separate events. The promise of Jesus in John 14:26 is operative here for the conservative biblical exegete who believes in Biblical inerrancy. Difference in narrated details demonstrates difference of event. Moreover, in placing the accounts of the four Gospels side by side, with the assumption that they are all four in chronological order, in placing the accounts side by side as being in chronological order, the account of the healing of a centurion's servant related in Luke appears as a later occurrence than the account of the healing of a centurion's servant related in Matthew, and there is no reason to see any discrepancy between them. This approach is against the assertion of Papias related by Eusebius that not all the Gospels are related in order of sequence (Ecclesiastical History, Book III, chapter 39). One of the primary purposes of this Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version) is to demonstrate that there is no contradiction or discrepancy in the scriptures of the Bible. 2 Peter 1:16-21. Compare Proof texting.

"I have not found so great a faith"

Matthew 8:10b
The Bible frequently shows that faith in God is similar to confident expectation (Christian hope) relating to belief, and that personal faith can affect the fulfilment of the Lord's answer to prayer. "How can God enter in if with doubt we shut him out?" According to the word of Jesus himself, the granting of many of the prayers or petitions for healing presented to him ("I pray thee, I beg of thee, I beseech thee") were dependent solely on the faith of the individual who prayed him to respond to their petition for help (Prayer and Intercession). God had made the outcome of his sovereignly willed answers to prayer contingent on our faith alone—"according to your faith" the Father's Will will be done. If you open the door to Him, your faith will make possible the response which is only awaiting your fiat to be done, your consent, to be granted. The centurion's express faith (Matthew 8:8) was his fiat that the Lord's will be done. This doctrine of free will so clearly evident in the Bible absolutely repudiates the Calvinist doctrine of Irresistible Grace which absolutely denies free will in the souls of men and women, and is thus completely against (anti-) the teaching of Christ as found in the Bible—it is "anti"-Christ. The doctrine of free will in man appears to the Calvinist to deny the absolute sovereignty of God alone as God, by falsely attributing divine power to human faith independent of God, thus making God helplessly subject to human will as supreme, utterly dependent on the consent or fiat of the creature, instead of the will of God—a doctrine of idolatry. A "literalist" reading of the Bible presents the scandalous doctrine that it is human faith alone that heals and works wonders, not God. Does not God's word say that the faith of individuals is the cause?
"Your faith has made you whole"—he does not say "God has made you whole."
"Your faith has saved you"—he does not say "God has saved you (or) I have saved you".
This example demonstrates that a literalistic "proof texting" of the scriptures alone (sola scriptura) based solely on the words of the text alone is a false and unreliable method of exegesis, which leads only to controversy, and is the reason it has always been and still is the main tool of heresy. (Compare the hair-splitting distinctions of Jewish Pilpul and the deviant subtleties of Casuistry.) The literalist claims to be "enchained by the scripture", as the firm basis for his assertions, as Jan Hus and Martin Luther also firmly and unswervingly maintained, but only as long as other particular Bible texts do not also by a likewise literalist reading also inescapably contradict the literalist's conclusions and proof texts. Conservative Christians believe firmly that the Bible cannot contradict itself. The abundance of biblical texts already presented here in demonstration, attests to the doctrine of operative personal free will in man and faith as a free expression of the evidently biblical doctrine of free will in man. Therefore faith is in the will to choose to believe in and consent to the willing help of the sovereign God, while faith does not of itself possess the power to directly cause the effect that the Lord himself stands so ready to effect as an act of divine love the moment real faith in him is present. Faith itself is a divine gift of God, according to the majority of Christian theologians. Pelagianism fundamentally denies that man needs such help, having the ability to come to an intelligent understanding of faith in what is not seen, independent of God's grace. And since according to the Bible God is not willing that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9) it seems completely reasonable to believe that the gift of faith is universally available to all mankind, to "whosoever will", to all who choose in their soul to not resist it, but freely accept it (see Revelation 22:17 KJV). Thus, whoever has the gift of divine faith has not willed to reject it. Calvinism denies that faith is available to all, that it is only given to those elect whom God has chosen from all eternity to believe in him, those whom he foreknew would believe. According to the doctrine of Biblical inerrancy, a truly Biblical doctrine does not contradict the Bible. The doctrine that each person is personally and morally responsible for freely accepting or rejecting the divine gift of faith in God and in authorized ambassadors sent by him is therefore consistently and completely consonant with the context of the whole as being according to the mind of Christ through the Spirit of the Lord. See Proof text. Compare the following undeniable Bible texts:
  • Revelation 3:20
  • Matthew 9:22, 29
  • Matthew 15:28
  • Matthew 17:20
  • Matthew 21:22
  • Mark 4:40
  • Mark 5:34
  • Mark 10:52
  • Luke 7:9, 50
  • Luke 8:48
  • Luke 17:19
  • Luke 18:42-43
  • Acts 3:16
  • Acts 14:9-10
  • Colossians 2:4
  • Jude 20-21
  • 1 Timothy 6:3-5
  • 2 Timothy 2:14, 23-26
  • 2 Timothy 3:3-4

"When Jesus came into Peter’s house, he saw his wife’s mother".

Matthew 8:14a
This was Peter's wife's mother, Peter's mother-in-law, not "Jesus' wife's mother", as if Jesus had a mother-in-law. Jesus had no wife.
The structure of Greek grammar does not point to Jesus but to Peter having the wife whose mother was sick. Moreover, it was Peter's house they entered, not Jesus' house.
Compare The Da Vinci Code.
See the interlinear text of Matthew 8:14 and multiple commentaries on Matthew 8:14.

"he saw his wife’s mother lying sick with a fever"

Matthew 8:14b
KJV "he saw his wife's mother laid, and sick of a fever"
See the previous redaction of Mark 1:30; Luke 4:38; Mark 1:31, presented as an earlier, separate episode in this Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version).
Chapter Ten, redacted texts Mark 1:28-30; Luke 4:38-39; Mark 1:31.
It is not impossible that she had developed a fever again a second time, and needed again to be healed. It is also a certainty that when the people of Capernaum knew Jesus had returned, they again brought to him all who were afflicted.
Some commentators and redactors constructing a harmony of the gospels see both Mark 1:29-34 (first) and Matthew 8:14-17 (second) as relating the same identical episode based solely on the nearly identical wording of both texts. On this basis many scholars assume that the Gospels are literary constructions without historical reality, or if historical, that they are not presented in chronological order. The fourth century Christian historian Eusebius for example, in his Ecclesiastical History, Book III, chapter 39 "Writings of Papias", relates the assertion of Papias that Mark did not arrange the discourses and deeds of the Lord in the order in which they were spoken or done, but nevertheless told the complete truth without distortion about what was said and done by the Lord.

"henceforth you will be catching men"

Luke 5:10
This passage in Luke 5:1-16 differs from the narrative texts of Matthew 4:18-22 and Mark 1:16-20.
  • Neither Matthew nor Mark relate a miraculous catch of fish when Jesus first calls Simon and Andrew, and James and John. Luke does.
  • In Luke 5:1-16 Jesus does not say, "Follow me."
  • Neither the Gospel of Matthew nor the Gospel of Mark relate the words of Jesus to Simon in the Gospel of Luke, "Do not be afraid; henceforth you will be catching men."
  • Neither Matthew 4:18-22 nor Mark 1:16-20 state that "they left everything". Luke does.
There is no substantial textual basis for asserting that Luke is relating a variation of the first calling of the disciples as related by Matthew and Mark.

"What kind of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?"

Matthew 8:27
"obey". The centurion in Matthew 8:5-13 had acknowledged by faith the reality of the obedience of nature to the word of Jesus. Here again nature obeys. Throughout this Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version) the words "obey" and "obedience" are consistently highlighted with boldface emphasis. The issue of obedience to proper authority, and the obedience of faith in God and what God has ordained, is fundamental to an understanding of righteousness and godliness, 1 Timothy 3:16 "religion, piety" (Greek eusebia), as revealed within the whole context of the Bible.
Obedience is an act of the will. If man, male and female, has no free will, disobedience to the will of God is not possible, for according to that doctrine they only act according to their nature, "and by those things that they know by instinct as irrational animals do, they are destroyed" Jude 10 (RSVCE). Human beings can choose to disobey. That is why faith and obedience without the coercion of fear and pain are free acts of the will. The will of men can be enslaved in bondage to the will of Satan and the coercion of evil individuals through fear of death. Hebrews 2:15.
See the article Free will.

Three separate accounts of healing a paralytic in three distinctly separate settings:

Matthew 9:2-8; Mark 2:1b-12; Luke 5:17-26
First Matthew 9:2-8, "And getting into a boat he crossed over and came to his own city. And behold, they brought to him a paralytic, lying on his bed." (The crowd is not mentioned, a house is not mentioned)—"Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven."
Second Mark 2:1b-12, "It was reported that he was at home. And many were gathered together, so that there was no longer room for them, not even about the door; and he was preaching the word to them. And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him"—"My son, your sins are forgiven."
Third Luke 5:17-26, "On one of those days, as he was teaching, there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem; and the power of the Lord was with him to heal. And behold, men were bringing on a bed a man who was paralyzed,...they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus. And when he saw their faith he said, "Man, your sins are forgiven you."
The differences in the three narratives are enough to justify presenting each of them as separate accounts in any Harmony of the Gospels. In each case the spiritual and theological lesson is the same. Each of the three synoptic Gospels uses one.
The faith of the men who brought a paralytic to Jesus was visible and active: "He saw their faith". In each passage of this Bible narrative, men showed their faith by what they did, by the working of their faith. These Bible passages illustrate the doctrine of James 2:14-26, in particular James 2:24
"You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone". The same doctrine is found in
1 John 3:14-18 and Matthew 25:31-46,
also Ephesians 2:10; Philippians 2:12-13; and Jeremiah 9:24.

"Matthew" and "Levi".

Matthew 9:9—the name "Matthew"
Mark 2:14; Luke 5:27—the name "Levi"
Tradition holds that both "Matthew" and "Levi" are the names of the apostle and evangelist Saint Matthew, yet this has been debated.
The account of Matthew is not here combined with the account of Levi as a redacted text. The account of Matthew is here given first as a separate narrative. Both accounts of Levi in Mark and Luke are redacted into one narrative, as a subsequent episode. Textually, the two similar narratives, "Matthew" and "Levi", differ enough to justify presenting both as separate episodes.
If Levi the son of Alphaeus was not Matthew (who is never called "the son of Alphaeus"), the fact that the name of Levi the son of Alphaeus is not among the listing of the Twelve, possibly indicates that Levi was among those who left Jesus when the Lord spoke of his flesh and his blood as real food and real drink (John 6:60-66). "Levi son of Alphaeus" may have been the brother of James the son of Alphaeus, one of the twelve (not the brother of James and John the sons of Zebedee). Or he may be in fact the same man, both "Levi" the son of Alphaeus and "James" the son of Alphaeus, being called by either name. He would thus be the apostle, St. James the Less, who, like Matthew himself, was a tax collector. Similarly, the apostle Judas son of James, is also called Lebbaeus and Thaddaeus (see parallel versions of Matthew 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13).
Tax collectors were held to be unclean traitors to their fellow Jews. Calling any tax collector to be a disciple was a profoundly significant act in the eyes of the Jews, and shocking to the scribes and Pharisees. If the tax collector Levi son of Alphaeus is James son of Alphaeus, Jesus called two of them.
This proposal is speculative only, and most significantly it disregards the most ancient tradition which unquestioningly attributes both names of Levi and Matthew to St. Matthew the Evangelist.
While the speculation that Levi son of Alphaeus is not Matthew but James son of Alphaeus does not appear to directly affect biblical doctrine, and for that reason seems inconsequential and harmless, it does reject the ancient tradition of the understanding of the consistent mind of the church over a period of almost two thousand years. This is potentially dangerous. Such novel exegeses as this one at first glance seems to be, however clever, attractive and reasonable they may seem to be, should always be treated with extreme caution. The biblical exegete suddenly taken with what seems to him or her to be the novelty of a brilliant light of revolutionary insight (which this is not) must weigh carefully the possibility that those ancients closest to the time of the apostles had a tradition of information no longer accessible to us nineteen hundred and fifty years after the fact. Knowledge of the extant ancient writings of the early Christian church leaders following after the apostles is a fundamental requisite for a valid biblical hermeneutic of the original Gospel of the Lord. A military analogy holds that a new second lieutenant may have the theory and rank to command a platoon, but the thoroughly experienced veteran sergeant major with decades of service under him has the solid practical expertise in the field that the new lieutenant would be a fool to ignore if he wants to keep his troops alive and earn their respect.
The original developer and contributor of this encyclopedic feature, Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version) rejects the speculation he has presented here that Levi son of Alphaeus is probably not Matthew the apostle. According to further additional research it is not exactly new. It is deliberately presented here solely as an instructive example of jumping to a specious conclusion without doing more thorough background research. The original contributor's complete rejection of the conclusion he has presented here in this feature regarding the identity of Levi son of Alphaeus is an entirely reasonable rejection, firmly based on the solid foundation of the expert opinions of highly qualified, carefully reasoned professional researchers in the field of Historical-critical method (Higher criticism). Compare Peer review.
Consider the example of Martin Luther's documented claim that he himself "is a doctor above all the doctors in Popedom" (scripture scholars and biblical theologians and ecclesiastical historians)
from Open Letter On Translating By Martin Luther, 1530. Translated from "Ein sendbrief D.M. Luthers, Von Dolmetzschen und Fürbit der heiligenn" in Dr. Martin Luthers Werk (Weimar: Hermann Boehlaus Nachfolger, 1909) Band 30, Teil II, pages 632-646 Revised and annotated by Michael D. Marlowe, June 2003; Stoddard J. Rebuilding a Lost Faith. 1922, pages. 101-102; see also Luther M. Amic. Discussion, 1, 127.
Luther was steadfastly unconvinced by every attempt to persuade him, even from scripture, that he was wrong. His defenders declare that he was right. His detractors represent him as at best an example of Invincible ignorance and Specious reasoning.

"I desire mercy, and not sacrifice."

Matthew 9:13
Matthew quotes the Septuagint text of Hosea 6:6.

"Fast", "Fasting"

Matthew 9:14 and Luke 5:33 "fast"; Mark 2:18 "fasting" (RSVCE, WEB, many other versions)
These texts present three criticisms of Jesus and his disciples, by three distinct groups, in three different settings:
  • Those who were present, who spoke to his disciples in Jesus' hearing (Luke 5:33);
  • those who came afterward, who spoke to his disciples, and Jesus heard them (Mark 2:18);
  • and the disciples of John, who came to him directly (Matthew 9:14).
Jesus answers each one, in three distinct replies, with the same fundamental teaching. On this basis, redaction of the three as a single text is not necessary.
A conservative textual critic takes the weight of the collective textual witnesses as trustworthy and reliable, in every detail as recounted in the Gospels, according to Jesus' promise in John 14:26 (Psalm 12:6; 18:30); and holds as a principle that similarity of narrative does not necessarily prove identity of event: just because it sounds the same does not mean it is the same.

"new wine"

Matthew 9:14-17; Mark 2:18-22; Luke 5:33-39; 18:12.
New wine (Greek οίνον νέον oinon neon) has mildly intoxicating properties (Hosea 4:11; Acts 2:12-15). This is most commonly grape juice that has begun to naturally ferment in the hot middle-eastern climate at the time of the grape harvest, about the season of Pentecost (the "Feast of Weeks" in the month of Sivan, May/June).
Cultivated grapes that are ripe and still on the vine already contain alcohol in trace amounts naturally, about one-tenth of one percent, similar to the amount in fresh-squeezed orange juice, and a naturally occurring yeast is always present on the outside of the skins of unbroken grapes. If the skin of the grape is even slightly broken, this natural yeast will begin to cause a mild fermentation of the juice within the berry, and the grape berry containing the resultant new wine will be considered to contain a blessing.
"As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it: … " Isaiah 65:8. (boldface emphasis added)
Grape juice that has been pasteurized, killing any naturally occurring yeast and allowing the trace amounts of natural alcohol present in the fruit to dissipate harmlessly, will not ferment if kept sterile, and thus pasteurized grape juice contains no alcohol.
In the heat of the ordinary climate in Palestine, a few hours after grapes with the skins have been pressed and the unpasteurized juice with its own natural yeast is stored in pitch-lined clay jars in unrefrigerated rooms, an unavoidable natural process of fermentation begins to change it into wine. After 12 to 24 hours the alcohol content of the stored grape juice ranges from 1 to 3 percent, similar to that of mild beer, due to the natural fermentation action of the yeast of the grapeskins included in the press of the grapes. There is a profound difference between the juice of grapes turning into wine, and spoiled and rotten grape juice and rotten grapes and the juice that happens to come out of them when they are stripped off the vine and discarded to be burned later. They have an unmistakably rotten smell that is utterly unlike the aroma of grape juice being turned into wine by proper natural fermentation.
New wineskins are flexible, moderately-sized new leather pouches or bags, usually whole animal skins, sewn very tightly together (KJV leather "bottles"), which, when filled with this newly fermenting grape juice in its second phase and carefully sealed, can expand and distend as the gas of the second phase of fermentation is produced and held by the tightly sealed leather "bottle", eventually turning the new wine into "old", with a higher alcohol content of 12 to 18 percent. Once stretched by this fermentation process, the leftover old wineskins, as completely suitable containers for "old wine", are no longer flexible and cannot expand any more, and the increasing gas pressure from the remaining phase of fermentation of another batch of new wine put into them and tightly sealed would burst them. Compare Acts 2:12-15. From this passage and others, it is clearly evident that when Jesus refers to "new wine" and "burst" wineskins or "bottles" he is not speaking of unfermented grape juice.
See Hastings Bible Dictionary (1909) p. 824 "WINE" (ccel.org).
The issue is controverted. The Greek word οινος "oinos" (literally, "wine") means simply "the fruit of the vine", an expression similar to the phrase "the fruits of our labors". Ordinarily, the generic phrase "fruit of the vine" generally means "all products of the vine" (Numbers 6:1-4). This includes preserves, raisins, jams, jellies, syrups and all grape-derived beverages, together with the whole spectrum of products of viniculture, all the way from immediately pressed fresh grape juice to carefully refined alcoholic wines derived from fermented grape juice, including what we know today as brandy. (See Alcoholic drink.)
Against this generally all-inclusive meaning of "the fruit of the vine", Christian Fundamentalist doctrine clearly teaches that wine in the modern sense of an alcoholic drink was not a common drink, especially among the Jews, and that contrary to popular belief, connoisseurs of grape juice (as distinct from the average ordinary person) actively sought to stop it from fermenting, and in fact had five different methods available to them to accomplish this. Fundamentalist Christian doctrine firmly asserts that Jesus never used, and in particular that He did not produce in the miracle at Cana, any wine that had any potentially intoxicating properties,
  • because he did not sin,
  • because he would never have provided an opportunity to sin,
  • and because he absolutely would never promote the sin of drunkenness in the celebration of a wedding feast by providing drunken guests with more than 100 gallons of intoxicating wine, as distinctly different from non-intoxicating new wine (John 2:1-11).
The fundamentalist position is clear: the very use of wine with any degree of alcoholic content would therefore immediately constitute a sin of drunkenness the moment it touched the lips, "the fatal first step".
(KJV texts— Genesis 9:20-27; Leviticus 10:9-10; Judges 13:4, 7, 14; 1 Samuel 1:13-16; Proverbs 4:16-17; 20:1; 23:20, 29-35; 31:1-7; Isaiah 5:11, 22-23; 28:7-8; Jeremiah 35:5-8; Ezekiel 44:21; Daniel 1:8-20; Hosea 4:11; Habakkuk 2:5 KJV; Habakkuk 2:5 RSVCE 2 Maccabees 15:39; Acts 2:13-15; Romans 14:21; Ephesians 5:18; 1 Timothy 3:2-3, 8-9; Titus 1:7; 2:3; 1 Peter 4:3-5),
The fundamentalist conclusion, that the sin of drunkenness is inextricably linked to wine, leading always to poverty, crime, disease, insanity and death, is the basis of the doctrine that the production of alcoholic wine by the sinless Jesus would have involved him in providing immediate opportunity for serious sin. Christian fundamentalists who demand total abstinence teach that what Jesus miraculously produced was fresh grape juice, "the best wine, the good wine", and they assert that no Jew ever got drunk on the wine provided at any Jewish marriage feast, and that being "full of new wine" did not mean being drunk with alcohol but only "full to satiety" (satiated, filled to the full, fully satisfied, unable to consume any more).
The apostles on the day of Pentecost were accused of being drunk, of being "full of new wine", because each one of the crowd of devout Jews in Jerusalem there from 16 nations, coming together, confounded and amazed because of the sound, heard them each in their own languages loudly telling the mighty works of God (Acts 2:13-15). It seemed to some of them that no sober man would act that way unless he was really inebriated.
No one ever became drunk by drinking too much grape juice. No one exhibits eccentric or disoriented public behavior as a reaction to drinking too much freshly squeezed grape juice. (However, grape juice consumed in excessively large amounts does have a strongly laxative effect, usually resulting in episodes of diarrhea.)
Consider the relevance of Luke 5:39 to John 2:9-10 and Hosea 4:11
  • "No man having drunk old wine immediately desires new, for he says, ‘The old is better.’ "
    Luke 5:39.
  • "You have kept the good wine until now"
    John 2:9-10.
  • "Wine and new wine take away the understanding"
    Hosea 4:11.
See, for example, the following articles:
Both of these discussions are in (partial) contradiction of facts cited in Hastings Bible Dictionary entry "WINE" above.
This doctrine asserted by Leon C. Fields that "new wine" in the Bible "always" means only non-intoxicating "freshly squeezed grape juice" containing no alcoholic content whatever, is a falsehood that contradicts the teaching of the Bible, the same Bible which clearly demonstrates that drinking an excess of new wine does produce drunkenness, that new wine "takes away reason". See again Acts 2:13-15 and Hosea 4:11 and those other texts already cited above which specifically mention new wine. While the charge of drunkenness hurled by some of the crowd in mockery at the behavior of the apostles was not true, it is clear from the context that drunkenness was commonly attributed to the consumption of too much new wine.
"The Son of man comes eating and drinking and they say, Behold a glutton and a drunkard." Matthew 11:19; Luke 7:34. A public figure who is seen drinking wine with some minimal or moderate alcoholic content might be called a drunkard and a wine-bibber by his detractors and critics, but not one who is seen strictly drinking only freshly-squeezed grape juice instead of wine. No disgrace of drunkenness is attributed to drinking only unfermented grape juice. Excess consumption of food including nonintoxicating beverages is called gluttony, but never drunkenness.
Compare the refuting arguments in the following articles:
  • See also commentaries on Matthew 9:17, in particular Barnes' Notes on the Bible, which refutes the claim that fermenting new wine would have the pressure to burst even fresh wineskins.
The specious reasoning of Leon C. Field's argument for total abstinence based on citing the example of Jesus Himself is summarily exemplified on page 85 of Oinos: a discussion of the Bible wine question where, in reference to the Last Supper, he states:
"So we may conceive that on this solemn occasion our Lord, acting as the archioinochoos, took the purple clusters and pressed their rich juice into the cup, suiting, as he did so, the action to the word, and saying : 'This is my blood in the New Testament which is being poured out for you.' "
(After which he set aside on the table as refuse [fœces] the pulp of the grapes he had just squeezed into the cup.)
Leon C. Field states as an established scientific fact that alcohol is never found in nature,
  • that it is the result of corruption and decay,
  • that it is always a poison, destructive to human tissue,
  • that God never created it,
  • that it is solely the artificial and unnatural product of corrupt human activity opposed to the holiness of God,
  • and that rabbis from the time of Moses to the present day have universally forbidden the use of alcoholic wine in the celebration of the Passover, because the Law of Moses forbids the offering of products of fermentation (of leavening, yeast) to the Lord
—(Leon C. Field, Oinos: a discussion of the Bible wine question 1883, pages 76-79).
Therefore, he reasons, Jesus, whom no one can convict of sin, never sinned by providing opportunity to sin by promoting and providing intoxicating wine and used only freshly squeezed grape juice on the night of his Last Supper.
" 'Christ never made a drop of alcoholic wine in the grape. In the whole realm of living nature he has never once created an atom of alcohol. That destructive spirit is nowhere a product of nature. Alcohol is a purely artificial product, obtained only by carefully carried out chemical methods. It exists nowhere in nature,' says Dr. Niel Carmichael.
"Dr. Eichardson describes alcohol as 'an artificial product devised by man for his purposes.' Similar is the testimony of Sir Humphrey Davy, Liebig, Chapital and Turner.
"If Jesus did make an alcoholic substance on this occasion, as Chancellor Crosby, Dr. Moore, and Professor Bumstead would have us believe that he did, then the act was without a parallel in creation."
—(Oinos: A discussion of the Bible wine question 1883, pages 54-55)
Field maintains the absolute temperance position that everyone who partakes of alcohol sins; and every church that uses wine in Christian worship blasphemes God and dishonors Jesus as a promoter of corruption and death by using in his name the fermented product of corruption and decay, which the scriptures present as the very image of the nature of sin, which the Bible condemns. He says the only image therefore that represents the sinless blood of Jesus Christ is the juice of the grape freshly squeezed into the cup and immediately consumed by his followers without delay.
On the night of His Last Supper, Jesus expressly commanded, "Do this, as often as ye drink it, in remembrance of me" 1 Corinthians 11:25 (boldface emphasis added). We know of no Christian church where, in the ritual of Christian communion, the chief presiding leader, brother, minister, elder, pastor, priest or bishop, takes up a cluster of ripe grapes, and in the presence of the congregation squeezes the fresh grape juice into the cup of blessing that we receive (1 Corinthians 10:16; 11:23-29).
Leon C. Field in Oinos: a discussion of the Bible wine question quotes documented early church records that do mention cases of emergency, when wine is unavailable for the celebration of the Lord's Supper, documentary accounts which authorize by permission that fresh grapes squeezed into the cup of blessing by the president of the assembly, or that new wine, may be used for the Eucharist. But these accounts always relate this authorized practice as the exception, not the normal rule.
There have been anecdotal accounts in print and online of rare occasions when ordinary grape juice purchased by a church, or provided free of cost by a local farmer who has extracted and stored pasteurized homemade grape juice from his own cultivated grapevines, has been prepared a few hours in advance of the worship service, and inadvertently left uncovered indoors on a hot day without air conditioning. When tasted later by the congregation at the moment of communion, it has been discovered to have become slightly fermented, to the embarrassment of the preparers and the amusement of the pastor and the congregation, who usually forgive what is understandably accepted as an accident. This inadvertently gave them a taste of new wine.
Field's discussion cites and quotes, in opposition to his total abstinence position, abundant evidence put forth by credibly established anthropologists, historians, biblical scholars and Hebrew and Greek textual critics, who maintain that the normal Bible meaning of "wine" is the form of drink that varies in alcoholic content and is potentially intoxicating when abused by excessive indulgence. He dismisses them, in favor of every permissible exception they allow which supports his argument that the ordinary wine in the ancient Middle East and among the Jews of Palestine was invariably non-intoxicating and non-alcoholic, while ignoring every verifiable assertion supported by abundant documentary evidence that the ordinary wine of the Jews in Palestine was normally intoxicating and alcoholic in content. This is an example of Confirmation bias. (Compare the Straw man fallacy). His citations of scripture are consequently very selective. Those passages which show wine as a blessing, and a comforting benefit created by God as a good for mankind, and as a foretaste of the richness and exhilarating joy of the coming Kingdom of God under the authority and rule of the King Messiah, are always reinterpreted by Field to exclude the image of wine as a type of the ecstasy of spiritual intoxication and cheerful joy caused by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit
(Judges 9:13 "wine which cheers gods and men"; Psalm 104:14-15; Proverbs 9:1-6; Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 31:35-37; Isaiah 25:6; Matthew 9:17; Mark 2:22; Luke 1:46-47; 5:37-39; 15:22-24, 32; John 2:1-11; 4:13-14; 7:37-39; 15:1-8; Galatians 5:22-23; Ephesians 5:15-20 "be not drunken with wine", he does not say "do not drink wine"; 1 Timothy 4:4-5 with Wisdom 1:13-15; and 2 Peter 1:3-4; Revelation 19:9; 22:17).
Leon Field in his 1883 published paper Oinos: A discussion of the Bible wine question constantly refers to alcohol as a "stimulant", when in fact it was already known to the 19th century international medical establishment of his day as a "depressant" of the central nervous system (not meaning "depressing"). Rarely does Fields clarify for his readers that he means that wine invariably (always) "stimulates" the baser passions of lust and aggression by suppressing (depressing) inhibitions, insisting instead that it is a stimulant, and always an evil one, a poison having utterly no redeeming qualities whatever. Field asserts that even the mildest state of cheerfulness and exhilaration produced from as little as one ounce of wine is physiological proof of poisoning, a genuinely existing poisoned condition manifesting as the earliest stage of actual drunkenness in which the soul is immediately, now, at that very moment of mild inebriation, already, utterly lost and cannot be saved—not even Jesus Christ Savior can save that soul ! (Greek Σωτήρ "Soter" Savior) — not even at the moment of repentance in the midst of an excessively immoderate drunken state of confusion and facing immediate death !
(Recall the "good thief" on the cross, who was himself doubtlessly doped with the draught of myrrh and wine normally offered at the site of execution, Mark 15:23-27; Luke 23:39-43.)
Against the interpretation of the majority of modern scriptural scholars and theologians, Field says a state of non-salvation, Greek άσωτία "asotia", is predicated of οίνος "onios", wine. He says,
"Drunkenness in all its stages is a state of insalvableness. It is a condition in which one not only is not, but can not be saved. We believe, however, that this passage predicates άσωτία of οίνος. We understand very well that this is not the interpretation of the majority of modern expositors." (Leon C. Field, Oinos: the Bible wine question, page 118, italic emphasis his.)
He concludes that even mildly alcoholic wine is per se sin (that wine in and of itself is intrinsically sin, not only its abuse, but wine itself is sin)
Oinos: the Bible wine question, page 3, quoting Tayler Lewis, American Preface to the "Temperance Bible Commentary", pages xii, xiii.
He dismisses as a pagan corruption and departure from the pure Gospel of Christ the traditional usage of pure grape wine in the celebration of the Eucharist in the ancient Apostolic Orthodox and Catholic Churches, the Coptic Church and the Independent Eastern Churches. The ancient antiquity of their traditional use of wine is dismissed by him as wholly irrelevant (ordinary 100% grape wine is used, having a natural 3 to 12 percent alcohol content only).
Compare 2 Thessalonians 2:15; 2 Peter 1:3-4.
The greater majority of Christian apologists warn that the practice of abstinence itself can also be immoderate and extreme, that it can be taken too far, an excessive love of physical denial, a "gluttony" of self-deprivation to the point of physical and mental harm—being actually the opposite of temperance, which consists of humble moderation in all things—and in such cases is evidence of inhuman Satanic pride, pharisaically exalting one's self over others judged as justly condemned without mercy to hell for being moderately indulgent. Moderation by others in the use of wine is interpreted as a deadly spiritual compromise with gross moral corruption. It is condemned as a form of culpable negligence through careless moral and spiritual laxity, thus making them culpably guilty for their spiritual prudence of avoiding the two extremes of excessive self-indulgence and excessive self-mortification (Luke 18:9-14). See Envy. (Compare Syncretism.)
In contrast to fundamentalist warnings, those Christians who appeal to the Bible in accordance with their interpretation of the apostolic tradition, condemned by fundamentalists as the traditions of men and corrupt doctrines of devils (Matthew 15:6-9; 1 Timothy 4:1), claim that the true virtue of abstinence is not that a man or woman abstain altogether from wines with alcoholic content, but that he or she abstain from immoderate use of alcoholic drinks and all other things. Abstinence is understood as avoiding excessive indulgence in using the good things of creation wrongly, by avoiding any illicit perversion of their proper use into an improper use ( 1 Timothy 4:4-5]; Wisdom 1:12-15; James 4:1-4). The Catholic Church, the Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion and Lutheran churches, for example, teach that common sense corroborates the consistent, historical human experience that wine, like food, sex, laughter, and dancing, is a good thing when appropriately enjoyed with sensibly responsible moderation in its proper time and context with respect for human dignity
(1 Timothy 4:4-5;
Sirach 31:35-37 Douay,
Sirach 31:27-28 RSVCE;
Ecclesiastes 3:1-13).
The representative Catholic doctrine of moderation, which is also held by many other professing Christians, is a doctrine ardently condemned on the Reformation interpretive principle of sola scriptura by Protestant Evangelical and Fundamentalist Christian writers, who unhesitatingly warn of danger to the soul of man through the deceitful compromise of moderation, a moderation which is condemned as a compromise with evil. The ancient traditional doctrine of prudent moderation, as rather an expression of the apostolic virtue of temperance, is clearly put forth as a reasonable, biblical and Christian practice by mainline Christian apologists in the following articles and sources available online:
In 1 Corinthians 6:10 St. Paul clearly states that drunkards will not inherit the kingdom of God. Yet drunkards are not mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 25:31-49 nor in Revelation 21:8, 27; 22:15. St. Paul says nothing about those who drink wine in moderation. He even recommends "a little wine" for digestive troubles and other ailments 1 Timothy 5:23. He does say, "Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery" Ephesians 5:15-20 (RSVCE). He does not say, "Do not drink wine."
The assertion on page 54 of Leon C. Field's discussion of the Bible wine question, that alcohol does not occur in nature, is totally refuted by the evidences presented in the following article:
Leon C. Field's assertion that strictly authentic Jewish rabbinical authority and the Torah absolutely forbids the use of any kind of fermented wine at Passover is false. The Torah forbids the eating of anything leavened during the feast of Passover and Unleavened Bread, and specifies nothing about wine, only that nothing leavened is to be found in their dwellings. This is normally understood in the Talmud to apply to grain and grain breads and grain products that may be freely eaten at any time outside of the season of Passover and Unleavened Bread, not to any liquids they drink (Exodus 12:1-51). By extension, anything that included yeast obtained from any of the five forbidden grains, wheat, rye, oats, spelt, and millet, in the process of its manufacture is regarded as the product of leavening, and therefore as leavened. A distinction is made between "kosher wine" and "kosher for Passover wine". Ordinary "kosher wine" is fermented by using yeast from these five grains. But because the yeast used for producing specifically approved "kosher for Passover wine" is from yeast found on fruit and not from yeast found on the five grains that are forbidden at Passover, the rabbis thus allowed for the legitimate fermented production and enjoyment of kosher for Passover alcoholic wine at the Passover Seder as a sign of gladness and joy at the deliverance of the Lord (Psalm 104:14-15; Deuteronomy 14:22-26; 2 Chronicles 30:13-27; Exodus 29:38-42; Leviticus 2:11-13; 23:13; Numbers 15:4-10; 28:14; Sirach 31:30-42 Douay31:25-31 RSVCE). See the following articles:
In the first century at the time of Jesus, wedding feasts normally lasted 7 days, sometimes longer (for example, Genesis 24:52-55; Tobit 8:19). It was entirely the normal, ordinary custom to moderately and intermittently enjoy wine frequently during all that time of feasting, to rejoice with good cheer without getting immoderately, excessively drunk. An abundance of wine was regarded as a necessary compliment of cheer accompanying celebrations of joy. The fact that "they have no more wine" suggests that the wedding feast at Cana drew a great many more guests than the families had reasonably expected, and no more wine would mean that the joy of celebration would be diminished (but not destroyed). Since the time of the early church fathers the marriage feast at Cana has anciently been seen as a prophetic allegory of the kingdom of heaven and the joy of resurrected life in the eternal communion banquet of everlasting fellowship with God (Hebrews 12:22-24). The glory of the realized kingdom of God foretold by the prophets included the image of a great wedding feast of joy, "unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined." Isaiah 25:6. See Isaiah 25:6-9; chapters 60–62.
An abundance of alcoholic wine at a Jewish wedding feast does not normally result in drunkard guests, or even intoxication. Almost all of the alcohol ingested in a beverage or food is metabolized at a constant rate, independent of the amount of alcohol ingested. The human body burns about 1/3 to 1/2 oz. of alcohol per hour, representing little less than one average 4 to 8 oz. glassful of wine with a 6%-12% alcohol content, ingested at the rate of one drink per hour. With more of the beverage than that during one hour, alcohol accumulates in the bloodstream, and the person drinking more than 8 oz. of 6%-12% alcoholic wine in an hour becomes intoxicated. The unalterable rate of alcohol metabolism (burned up) in the body, and a prudently decent rate of drinking a moderate amount of alcoholic wine combined with food (which slows the rate of alcohol absorption), substantially supports a lack of immoderate drunkenness during a 7 day marriage feast with abundant food. One 6 oz. serving of 12% wine in one hour, at the rate of one per hour day and night while feasting at moderate intervals on an available abundance of food, the guests coming and going frequently, will not produce intoxication over a period of 7 days.
The adequate availability of an abundance of fermented alcoholic wine on such an occasion (John 2:10 KJV) does not automatically justify any assumption that that the guests who had "well drunk" of the wine must have been falling down drunk like pagan Greeks and Romans. This is an utterly unfounded assumption, a form of confirmation bias based on abstinence polemic, which sees no distinction between a sip of wine and the gluttony of unrestrained drinking of alcohol to the point of mindless imbecility, all indifferently condemned as the single sin of drunkenness damning the soul to hell. The Bible itself recognizes several degrees of intoxication, from the cheerful joy of light inebriation, to the absolute disgrace of grossly drunken immoral behavior ending in slurred speech, blurred vision, loss of coordination, mindlessly irrational, babbling incoherency, vomit-covered garments and tables, brawling, bruises, falls, hallucinations and unconscious collapse. A responsibly informed Christian hermeneutic charitably assumes the ordinary, historically confirmed cultural meaning that the wedding guests at Cana "had drunk well" as Jews, "rightly, properly", to at most a point of light or moderate intoxication, thus "doing well" (James 2:8; 1 Peter 2:15-16) with a prudent measure of reasonable moderation, in accordance with normal Jewish cultural custom, which strongly disapproved of immoderate drunkenness.
The assumption of Leon C. Fields and his cited supportive sources that, if the wine at Cana was indeed even mildly alcoholic wine, and the Jewish wedding guests at Cana were ("of course ! ") normally all regular "drunkards" as he proposes
—the assumption that they were all drunkards who, using that occasion as a pretext, would therefore have been expected to seize the opportunity to be immoderately, excessively, utterly intoxicated from an uninterrupted binge of seven days and nights of non-stop drinking of alcoholic wine to the extreme point of vomiting and falling down unconscious in an alcoholic stupor (Isaiah 28:1-8; 1 Peter 4:3-5)
—the assumption that even one sip of alcoholic wine is the unforgivable sin of drunkenness, because Paul says "drunkards cannot inherit the kingdom of God"
—the assumption that Jesus would walk among them and therefore ipso facto have knowingly, sinfully, provided "a crowd of drunkards" (meaning all of the invited wedding guests) with even more alcohol, 120 to 180 gallons of what the caterer called "the good wine" (an even better wine than they had been drinking, which would certainly and unavoidably enable them all as drunkards to get even more intoxicated)
this assumption is an outstanding example of what the Bible condemns as "rash judgment".
Matthew 7:1-5; John 7:24; Romans 13:8–14:23; 1 Timothy 4:4-5.
Wine was a food in Ancient Israelite cuisine.
"Thus he declared all foods clean." Mark 7:19.
See Mark 7:14-23.
See also Acts 10:14-15; Matthew 12:20-37; Matthew 7:21;
John 7:24 and Matthew 7:1-5.
Compare Scandal, Prejudice, Straw man fallacy, Polemic and Falsehood.
See especially 2 Timothy 2:23-26; Romans 14; Revelation 22:11-12; Matthew 15:12-14.
Compare the results of medical studies of the benefits to health of red wines and other alcoholic beverages in moderation (average 4 oz. to 8 oz. daily and occasionally, on rare occasions, more - as at Passover once a year!):

"But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and scattered, like sheep without a shepherd."

Matthew 9:36
An allusion to the Septuagint text, Judith 11:19.

Compare the Conservative Bible text (conservapedia.com):

He returned to Capernaum after several days,

And when Jesus had gone into Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, begging Him, and saying, "Lord, my servant is bedridden in my house, paralyzed and in great pain." And Jesus told him, "I will come and heal him." In answer, the centurion said, "Lord, I don't deserve to have you come under my roof. Just say the word, and my servant will be healed. "For I am part of a chain of command, and I have soldiers under my command. I tell this man, "Go" and he goes, and another, "Come" and he comes, and my servant, "Do this," and he does it." When Jesus heard that, he was amazed, and said to those that were following him, "I tell you truly, I have not found such great faith, even in Israel. "And I tell you that many will come from east and west, and will sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the Kingdom of heaven. "But the children of the Kingdom will be thrown out into outer darkness; there will be weeping and grinding of teeth." And Jesus said to the centurion, "Go, and as you have believed, so let it be done for you." And his servant was healed in that very hour. And when Jesus had come into Peter's house, He saw his wife's mother, bedridden and ill with fever. And He touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she got up and waited on them. That evening, they brought to Him many that were demon-oppressed, and He threw out the spirits with His word, and healed all the sick people, so that this might be fulfilled that was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, who said, "He Himself took our infirmities, and bore our sicknesses."

Subsequently, as the crowd pressed against Him to hear God's word, Jesus stood on the shore of Gennesaret's lake, Jesus noticed two boats at the seaside, but their fishermen had left them to wash their nets. Jesus boarded one of the boats, which was Simon's, and urged him to drift away a bit from the shore. Jesus was then seated, and taught the crowd from the boat. Upon finishing preaching, Jesus said to Simon, "Head out where it is deep, and lower your nets for a catch." Simon responded, "Boss, we worked all night, and caught nothing; but your wish is my command." Whereupon they caught an enormous surplus of fish, causing their net to break. They wave over their partners, who were in the other boat, for them to join and help. Those came and filled both boats with the fish, so much so they began to sink. When Simon Peter observed this, he knelt before Jesus, saying "Leave me Lord, for I am a sinful man. Simon was overcome, as were his colleagues, at their catch of the fish. And so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were Simon's partners. Jesus told Simon, "Be not afraid, from here on you shall catch men." They landed their boats, and gave up everything to follow Him.

Now when Jesus saw great crowds of people around him, He gave orders to leave for the other side. And a certain scribe came, and told Him, "Master, I will follow you wherever you go." And Jesus told him, "Foxes have holes, and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of man has no place to rest His head." And another of His pupils said to him, "Lord, first permit me to go to bury my father." But Jesus told him, "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own." And when He had gone into a boat, His pupils followed Him. And behold, a great storm arose on the lake, so much that the boat was swamped with the waves. But He was asleep. And His pupils came to Him, and woke Him up, saying, "Lord, save us; we're dying!" And He said to them, "Why are you afraid, you of little faith?" Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and a great calm fell. But the men were amazed, saying, "What kind of Man is this? Even the winds and the sea obey Him!" And when He had come to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met Him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no man dared pass by that way. And suddenly they cried out, saying, "What business do we have with You, Jesus, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?" And a herd of many pigs was feeding a fair distance from them. So the demons begged Him, saying, "If you're going to throw us out, let us go away into the herd of pigs." And He said to them, "Go." And when they came out of the two men, they went into the herd of pigs. And the entire herd of pigs ran pell-mell down a steep bank into the sea, and drowned in the waters. And those who had been keeping the pigs ran away, and went back into the city, and told about everything that had happened, and what had happened to the formerly demon-possessed men. And then the entire city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw Him, they begged Him to go away from their coasts.

And He boarded a boat, and crossed the lake, and came into His own city. And they brought to Him a paralyzed man, lying on a pallet. And Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, "Son, cheer up; your sins are forgiven you." And some of the scribes said among themselves, "This man is speaking blasphemy." And Jesus, Who knew what they were thinking, said, "Why do you think evil in your hearts? "For which would be easier to say: 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or 'Get up and walk'? "But so that you may know that the Son of man has the authority on earth to forgive sins..." Then He said to the paralyzed man, "Get up, take up your pallet, and go to your house." And he got up and went away to his house. But when the crowds saw it, they were very much afraid, and gave glory to God, Who had given power like that to men. And as Jesus walked away from that place, He saw a man, Matthew by name, sitting in the tax office, and He said to him, "Follow Me." And he got up and followed Him. And it came to pass, as He reclined to dine in the house, many tax-gatherers and sinners came and reclined with Him and His pupils. And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to His pupils, "Why is your Master eating with tax-gatherers and sinners?" But when Jesus heard that, He told them, "The well do not need to see the doctor, but the sick do. "But you go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.' For I haven't come here to call the just, but sinners to change their hearts."

and the news spread that He was at home. A large crowd immediately filled the room to capacity, so many that the door was blocked to access by others, as He was speaking the Truth to them. They brought him a paralyzed man, carried by four men. Finding they could not reach Him, because the crowd was so thick, they removed the roof above Him and, when they had done so, lowered the paralytic in his bed. Seeing their faith in Him, He told the paralyzed man, "Son, your sins are forgiven." Some scribes were sitting in the crowd. They thought to themselves, "Why is this Man speaking such blasphemy? Who can forgive our sins but God Himself?"

Jesus immediately perceived in His spirit what they were thinking, and he asked them, "Why are you so hostile to this? "Is it easier to tell a paralyzed man that his sins are forgiven, or to pick up his bed and walk? "But to remove any doubt about the power on earth of the Son, a man, to forgive sins," he next said to the paralyzed man, "Get up, carry your bed, and go home!" And he got up, carried his bed, and left, in plain sight of the crowd. Amazed, they all praised God, saying, "We've never seen such a thing before."

One day while Jesus was teaching, as Pharisees and legal scholars observed from every Galilean Judaean town and from Jerusalem, the Lord's power of healing was there to see. And suddenly men carried a stretcher with a paralyzed man, and they looked for a way to bring and lay him before Jesus. When they could not access Jesus through the crowd, they climbed up on the roof, and lowered the stretcher to Jesus through an opening. Upon seeing their faith, Jesus declared, "Sir, your sins are forgiven." The intellectuals began to murmur, "Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins other than God alone? Jesus, perceiving their close-mindedness, answered them, "What doubt is your hearts? Which is easier: to say "your sins are forgiven," or to say, "stand up and walk?" So that you may know the Son of man has power on earth to forgive sins, I say to you (the paralyzed man), 'Get up, and take your bed, and go home.'" Immediately he rose before the crowd, and picked up his bed, and began walking home, to the glory of God. Everyone was overcome with rapture, and they gave glory to God yet with fear said, "We have seen it all today!"

Jesus continued along the seaside, and all the crowds thronged around Him, and He taught them.

Jesus continued onward and saw a tax collector, named Levi, sitting at his collection booth. Jesus said to him, "Follow me." Levi dropped everything, got up, and followed Jesus.

He passed Levi, son of Alphaeus, at a tax office and told him, "Follow me." Levi arose and followed.

Levi threw a magnificent party in his own home, and the guests included many tax collectors. So intellectuals spread gossip against His disciples in saying, "Why do You eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?" Jesus rebutted the criticism, "People who are well do not need a physician; those who are sick do. I came not for the holy, but to call sinners to repent."

As it happened, Jesus then dined at His house with a great many tax collectors and sinners who chose to follow Him. Seeing him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, the Pharisees and scribes demanded of His students, "Why does he eat and drink with these tax collectors and sinners?" Hearing this, Jesus replied, "It is not the healthy but the sick that need a doctor. I did not come to call the just to change their hearts, but instead the sinners."

They replied, "Why do John's disciples frequently fast and pray, as do the Pharisees' disciples, but yours eat and drink?" Jesus responded, "Do you force people to fast at wedding, while the groom is still there? But the time will come when the groom is taken away, then they shall fast." Jesus taught this parable: "No man rips a piece of a new garment to patch an old, because that ruins the new one and the patch does not match the old. Likewise, no man puts new grape juice into used containers, or else the new juice splits the containers and spills, and ruins them. Rather, new grape juice is poured into new bottles, and both are preserved. No man desires new grape juice after drinking old, because he says, "The old is better."

Then some followers of John the Baptist came to him, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but Your students do not fast?" And Jesus told them, "Can the members of the wedding party mourn, so long as the groom is with them? But a time will come when the groom will be taken from them, and then they will fast. "No man puts a piece of new cloth onto an old garment. What is put in to fill the tear takes something from the old garment, and the hole is torn even wider. Neither do men put freshly-squeezed grape juice into old skins; otherwise the skins break, the juice runs out, and the skins are ruined. Instead they put fresh juice into new skins, and both are preserved. While He was speaking these things to them, behold, a certain ruler came to Him, and fell down at His feet, saying, "My daughter is dead even now. But come and lay Your hand on her, and she will live." And Jesus got up and followed him, and so did His students. And behold, a woman, who had been hemorrhaging for twelve years, came behind Him, and touched the hem of His robe. For she said to herself, "If I could just touch His robe, I will be made well." But Jesus turned around, and when He saw her, He said, "Daughter, take heart; your faith has made you well." And the woman was made well from that hour. And when Jesus came to the ruler's house, and saw the musicians and the crowds making a scene, He told them, "Give Me room. This young woman is not dead; she is asleep." And they laughed at Him scornfully. But when the crowds were put outside, He went in, and took her by the hand, and the young woman got up. And the news of this event went out into that entire land. And when Jesus went away from that place, two blind men followed Him, crying out and saying, "Have mercy on us, Son of David!" And when he had come into the house, the blind men came to Him. Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I can do this?" They said to Him, "Yes, Lord." Then He touched their eyes, saying, "According to your faith, let it work out for you." And their eyes were opened, and Jesus gave them strict orders, saying, "Don't let any man know anything about this." But they, when they had left, spread the news of him in that entire country. As they went out, some people brought to him a mute demon-possessed man. And when the demon was thrown out, the mute spoke. The crowds said, "Wow! Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel!" But the Pharisees said, "He throws out demons by calling upon the leader of demons." And Jesus went around to all the cities and towns, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were worried, and were scattered about like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His students, "The harvest is truly bountiful, but the harvesters are few. So pray to the Lord of the harvest, that He will send out workmen to gather in His harvest.

Thirteen

Chapter 13 Bible texts

He was going on the Sabbath day through the grain fields, and his followers, his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of grain. The Pharisees said to him, “Behold, why do they do that which is not lawful on the Sabbath day?”

He said to them, “Did you never read what David did, when he had need, and was hungry—he, and those who were with him? How he entered into God’s house at the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the show bread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and gave also to those who were with him?”

He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”

He entered again into the synagogue, and there was a man there who had his hand withered. They watched him, whether he would heal him on the Sabbath day, that they might accuse him. He said to the man who had his hand withered, “Stand up.”

He said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath day to do good, or to do harm? To save a life, or to kill?”

But they were silent. When he had looked around at them with anger, being grieved at the hardening of their hearts, he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.”

He stretched it out, and his hand was restored as healthy as the other. The Pharisees went out, and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him. (The Pharisees and the Herodians previously had no dealings with each other; the Pharisees hated the Herodians, and the Herodians despised the Pharisees.)

Now on the second Sabbath after the first, he was going through the grain fields. His disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate, rubbing them in their hands. But some of the Pharisees said to them, “Why do you do that which is not lawful to do on the Sabbath day?”

Jesus, answering them, said, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he, and those who were with him; how he entered into God’s house, and took and ate the show bread, and gave also to those who were with him, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests alone?”

He said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”

It also happened on another Sabbath that he entered into the synagogue and Taught. There was a man there, and his right hand was withered. The scribes and the Pharisees watched him, to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against him. But he knew their thoughts; and he said to the man who had the withered hand, “Rise up, and stand in the middle.”

He arose and stood. Then Jesus said to them, “I will ask you something: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good, or to do harm? To save a life, or to kill?”

He looked around at them all, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.”

He did, and his hand was restored as sound as the other. But they were filled with rage, and talked with one another about what they might do to Jesus. For he was exposing their lack of compassion.

Jesus withdrew to the sea with his disciples, and a great multitude followed him from Galilee, from Judea, from Jerusalem, from Idumaea, beyond the Jordan, and those from around Tyre and Sidon. A great multitude, hearing what great things he did, came to him. He spoke to his followers that a little boat should stay near him because of the crowd, so that they would not press on him. For he had healed many, so that as many as had diseases pressed on him that they might touch him. The unclean spirits, whenever they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, “You are the Son of God!

He sternly warned them that they should not make him known.

After these things, there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now in Jerusalem by the sheep gate, there is a pool, which is called in Hebrew, “Bethesda”, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, or paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water; for an angel went down at certain times into the pool and stirred up the water. Whoever stepped in first after the stirring of the water was healed of whatever disease he had. A certain man was there who had been sick for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had been sick for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to be made well?”

The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me.”

Jesus said to him, “Arise, take up your mat, and walk.”

Immediately, the man was made well, and took up his mat and walked.

Now it was the Sabbath on that day. So the Jews said to him who was cured, “It is the Sabbath. It is not lawful for you to carry the mat.”

(They said this according to their interpretation of what is written in the law of Moses,

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. You shall labor six days, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. You shall not do any work in it, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your livestock, nor your stranger who is within your gates; for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day; therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day, and made it holy.”

The Pharisees had added to this word by declaring that healing is work.)

He answered them, “He who made me well said to me, ‘Take up your mat and walk.’ ”

Then they asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your mat and walk’?”

But he who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a crowd being in the place. Afterward Jesus found him in the Temple, and said to him, “Behold, you are made well. Sin no more, so that nothing worse happens to you.”

The man went away, and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. For this cause the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill him, because he did these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus answered them, “My Father is still working, so I am working, too.”

For this cause therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the Sabbath, but also called God his own Father, making himself equal with God. Jesus therefore answered them, “Most certainly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he sees the Father doing. For whatever things he does, these the Son also does likewise. For the Father has affection for the Son, and shows him all things that he himself does. He will show him greater works than these, that you may marvel. For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom he desires. For the Father judges no one, but he has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.

“Most certainly I tell you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life. Most certainly I tell you, the hour comes, and now is, when the dead will hear the Son of God’s voice; and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, even so he gave to the Son also to have life in himself. He also gave him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this, for the hour comes in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice, and will come out; those who have done good, to the resurrection of life; and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment. I can of myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is righteous; because I do not seek my own will, but the will of my Father who sent me.

“If I testify about myself, my witness is not valid. It is another who testifies about me. I know that the testimony which he testifies about me is true. You have sent to John, and he has testified to the truth. But the testimony which I receive is not from man. However, I say these things that you may be saved. He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. But the testimony which I have is greater than that of John, for the works which the Father gave me to accomplish, the very works that I do, testify about me, that the Father has sent me. The Father himself, who sent me, has testified about me. You have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his form. You do not have his word living in you; because you do not believe him whom he sent.

“You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and these are they which testify about me. Yet you will not come to me, that you may have life. I do not receive glory from men. But I know you, that you do not have God’s love in yourselves. I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. How can you believe, who receive glory from one another, and you do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?

“Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you, even Moses, on whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote about me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”

After these things, Jesus went away to the other side of the sea of Galilee, also called the Sea of Tiberias. A great multitude followed him, because they saw his signs which he did on those who were sick.

Mark 2:23–3:6
Luke 6:1-11
Mark 3:7-12
John 5:1-10
Exodus 20:8-11
John 5:11–6:2
—LXX Wisdom 2:16

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Bible maps (click initial letter of place name)
Bible Encyclopedias: Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature (studylight.org)
Catholic Encyclopedia Catholic Online (catholic.org)
Hebrew Calendar Converter See exact equivalents of Gregorian Calendar dates.

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Table of Old Testament quotes in the New Testament, in English translation, Joel Kalvesmaki 2013 (kalvesmaki.com)

List of 300 Septuagint Old Testament quotations in the New Testament, by Steve Rudd 2017 (bible.ca)

Table of LXX quotes and allusions in the New Testament


Church History (Eusebius): The Ecclesiastical History Of Eusebius Pamphilus: Bishop Of Caesarea, In Palestine (newadvent.org)

The Works of Flavius Josephus William Whiston, Translator, 1737 (sacred-texts.com)

Suetonius: Twelve Caesars: The Lives of the Twelve Caesars by C. Suetonius Tranquilus; To which are added His Lives of the Grammarians, Rhetoricians, and Poets. The Translation of Alexander Thomson, M.D., Revised and corrected by T. Forester, Esq., A.M. (Gutenberg.org)

Tacitus: The Annals, Written 109 A.C.E. Translated by Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb

Sextus Aurelius Victor: Epitome De Caesaribus (roman-emperors.org)

Eutropius: Breviarium - Eutropius's Abridgement of Roman History (tertullian.org)

Cassius Dio: Roman History Epitome (penelope.uchicago.edu)

Early Christian Writings A.D. 30 through 380 (earlychristianwritings.com)
See Biblical Canon and Apocrypha.


Pharisees and Herodians

Mark 3:6
The sect of the Pharisees which hated Roman domination and the political party of the Herodians, supporters of Rome's backing of the Herodian line, were at enmity with each other over religious and political issues, but the Pharisees had decided to join forces with the Herodians in a common plot against Jesus. See multiple commentaries on Mark 3:6.
Compare Isaiah 53:3-12 and Wisdom 2:12-24. Protestant Christianity rejects the Catholic and Orthodox claim that the Book of Wisdom is inspired prophesy belonging to the Old Testament as an integral part of the sacred scripture of the Bible.
See Apocrypha and Septuagint.
Christian Fundamentalists warn that the Apocrypha are deceitful works of the Devil added to the Bible as support for the syncretistic pagan doctrines of Orthodoxy and Catholicism (1 Timothy 4:1 KJV). See for example:

"on the second Sabbath after the first":

Luke 6:1
Alternative reading "On a Sabbath"
also "One Sabbath...".
See multiple versions of Luke 6:1.
More literally, "on the second first Sabbath" — Ἐν Σαββάτῳ δευτεροπρώτῳ en Sabbato deuteroproto "The Sabbath second-first".
See the interlinear text of Luke 6:1—the word δευτεροπρωτω deuteroproto does not appear.
The word δευτεροπρώτῳ "second-first" is absolutely unique in Greek literature, found only here in the Gospel of Luke, and is found in no other Greek author. Moreover, it is not found in the majority of the more ancient authorities, that is, it is not found in the majority of the more anciently authentic authoritative manuscripts. For this reason many recent translations simply read "On a sabbath" and entirely omit the phrase in the Textus Receptus (KJV "And it came to pass on the second sabbath after the first").
There is a difference between early and late witnesses in extant Greek texts (manuscripts), between σαββατω δευτεροπρωτω διαπορευεσθαι sabbato deuteroproto diaporeuesthai and σαββατω διαπορευεσθαι sabbato diaporeuesthai.
See multiple versions of Luke 6:1.
The academic question of the precise meaning and intent of δευτεροπρώτῳ deuteroproto is of interest to the antiquarian scholar, but is scarcely of any interest to the theologian. Such details are not entirely trivial, but this one has no direct impact on the message of the Gospel or on the question of the reliability of the transmission of the text of the Bible.
See multiple commentaries on Luke 6:1.
Some interpreters understand this in reference to Passover, pointing either to the first and second solemn assemblies at the beginning and end of the seven days of Unleavened Bread, the 15th and 21st of Nisan, each of which was a holy sabbath-day apart from the regular weekly sabbath observed on Saturdays, or alternatively to the first day of Unleavened Bread Nisan 15 as the second sabbath of the holy season immediately following the day of the feast of the Passover of Nisan 14 as the first sabbath (Numbers 28:16-25). The text does not, however, say this explicitly. More literally, since only one Sabbath in Nisan, the first month of the year in the religious calendar of Jewish "ordinary time", precedes the day of Passover on the 14th of Nisan, the designation, "On the second first sabbath", can also mean "on the second sabbath after the first sabbath [of Nisan] following Passover" (which would then be the normal Saturday Sabbath on the calendar immediately following the 8-day season of Passover and Unleavened Bread, the second Sabbath of the first month Nisan in Jewish "ordinary time").
Here in this chapter of Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version) the text in Luke 6 relating the grain in the field followed by the healing in the synagogue is placed after the similar narrative text in Mark 2, so that the "second Sabbath after the first", first mentioned in Luke 6:1, is subsequent to the (first) Sabbath in Mark 2:23-3:6.
If in this redacted Gospel the text of Luke 6 instead precedes the text of Mark 2, the words "second Sabbath after the first" apparently have no referent to an immediately preceding Sabbath in the previous chapter Twelve. This could be a source of confusion for the reader. Or it may be an indication of a chronological element without a referent, just as Luke refers to what the people heard Jesus had done in Capernaum without relating the details of what he had done or what they had heard (Luke 4:23), but which are related in Mark 1:21-34 and Matthew 8:5-16.
However, the text of Mark 2:23 to 3:1 states that Jesus "again" entered the synagogue. While this could indicate a particular subsequent reference to "the second Sabbath" in Luke 6:1, by placing the narrative of Luke second, Mark 3:1 may also be read as a more general statement simply relating to the fact that Jesus often taught in the synagogues throughout Galilee and Judea and again entered the synagogue.
In either case, both narratives independently parallel each other in their sequential positions in both Gospels. Placing one before the other here in this text does not violate the general redaction editorial policy of maintaining strict textual sequence in a parallel side-by-side harmonization of all four Gospels. For this reason, the "second Sabbath after the first", as here in the text taken from the WEB translation, weighs more heavily in favor of placing this narrative of the two Sabbaths in Luke second after the narrative of the Sabbath in Mark.
Christians devoutly devoted to the Bible often express their love and devotion by a kind of hobby of knowing entertaining details about the text, and engaging in exercises such as oral and written Sunday School Bible quizzes, including church sponsored Bible Quiz competitions local and regional, all the way up to a Christian version of the National Spelling Bee competition, exercises such as knowing what is the longest and shortest verse in the Bible, the exact number and order of the books of the Bible, even how many words are in any one of the books of the Bible in the King James Version (either the 1611 or 1769 edition), and can recite from memory the text of any passage of scripture when given only the chapter and verse numbers, and standard doctrinal proof texts to be used in witnessing to other people and in debates with other Christians both public and private. Unfortunately, this initially innocent diversion can sometimes become a serious distraction for the Christian, and a real danger to the soul, especially to the young and the newly converted adult novice, equivalent to the Jewish digression into pilpul in Torah studies, in which the heart of the message of the revelation of God in the Bible—"judgment, mercy, and faith" (Matthew 23:23)—is slowly eroded, then lost and forgotten, and the Christian becomes proud, elitist, knowing the Bible, intolerant of other Christians, and adept at condemning sinners according to the Bible, without any perceptively outward sign of a life of gentle mercy and compassionate forgiveness toward any repentant sinner (1 Peter 3:15-16; Matthew 18:23-35), each believing that he or she is absolutely assured of salvation, because he or she "knows the Bible" without knowing the will of the Lord of love (John 16:2-3; Matthew 7:15-27; 23:2; 1 John 3:15 "God is love"). See Corporal and spiritual works of mercy. Even Satan knows the scriptures (Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 4:1-13; John 5:39; James 2:19; 1 John 3:15; John 8:44) and is that spirit of false religion who goes about like a roaring lion seeking whom he can consume (1 Peter 5:8). His followers are those who are "eaten up, consumed" with their own self-righteousness and despise others (Luke 18:9-14). Compare Westboro Baptist Church and Hypocrites.
In Matthew 25:31-46, when the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he does not ask those he judges if they read the Bible or went to Church, but only if they saw him hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and actually ministered to his needs (see 1 John 3:11-18; Matthew 7:21-23).
The question of the meaning of Ἐν Σαββάτῳ δευτεροπρώτῳ "The Sabbath second-first" has a legitimate place in Bible studies, but is not of primary consequence for the meaning of the Gospel of salvation for the body of Christ, his Church, the temple of God (1 Corinthians 12; Ephesians 2:19-22; 1 Peter 2; Revelation 21:22–22:5).
See Psalm 131
Sirach 3:24 NAB "Their own opinion has misled many, and false reasoning unbalanced their judgment".
1 Peter 3:15-18

"It also happened on another Sabbath"

Luke 6:6
See multiple versions of Luke 6:6.
Jesus heals a withered hand (Mark 3:1-5): Jesus heals a withered right hand (Luke 6:6-10): two separate Sabbaths. As there was more than one paralytic whom Jesus healed, so also it is not impossible that there was more than one man with a withered hand whom Jesus healed.
To the first account of the grain fields before "One Sabbath" in Mark 2:23 add the two Sabbaths of Luke 6:1 "On the second Sabbath" and 6 "It also happened", with the second account of going through the grain fields between the two Sabbaths and then "again" entering the synagogue, "Again he entered the synagogue" Mark 3:1. However, arranging instead an alternative redactive sequence, by placing the narrative of Luke 6:1-5 before the narrative of Mark 2:23-28, note the resulting progression of Jesus' increasing anger, Luke 6:6-11 to Mark 3:1-6, and the progression of the anger of the scribes and Pharisees, adding to it a further conspiracy with the Herodians, Luke 6:11 to Mark 3:6. Either arrangement of the two narratives can be set forth in a harmony of the Gospel without loss of text or alteration of the meaning and intent of the Gospel message.
John 5 gives an internal textual indication that the incident related there of healing the man by the pool of Bethzatha in Jerusalem is subsequent to this, in saying, "This was why the Jews sought all the more to kill him" (John 5:18).
A conservative textual critic is alert to such details, which help determine the placement of narrated events in a redaction of scriptural texts. In this Harmony John 5 is placed before the calling of the Twelve in Matthew 10, Mark 3:13-19, Luke 6:12-16.

"blind, lame, paralyzed"

John 5:3
Other ancient authorities insert, wholly or in part, a text not found in the earliest manuscripts
"waiting for the moving of the water; 4 for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and troubled the water; whoever stepped in first after the troubling of the water was healed of whatever disease he had."
This text has been retained here

"Sin no more"

John 5:14
See also Matthew 9:8, John 8:10-11.
In the Catholic Rite of Reconciliation, or Confession, the priest and the person confessing come together, the two of them as "gathered in the name of the Lord", Jesus Himself present with them (Matthew 18:20), and, after hearing the confession (James 5:16; Acts 19:18; 2 Corinthians 5:18-20), at the end, when by the power of Christ present, he has absolved in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit the truly repentant person of all sins confessed, the priest, as the authorized ambassador of the Lord Jesus Christ ordained to act in his name and entrusted with the ministry of reconciliation, "in the stead of God" (2 Corinthians 5:19-20), says these words, "Go, and sin no more." See 1 John 1:8-9.
Compare
Matthew 9:2-8, 18:20;
Mark 2:5-7;
Luke 5:20-21, 7:48-49;
John 20:22-23;
2 Corinthians 5:18;
James 5:16, 19-20
Acts 19:18-20 many that believed came and confessed (see Strong's number 1843 έξομολογέω exomologeo).
See also
Leviticus 5:5, 16:21, 26:40-41; Numbers 5:5-7.
Except for the Anglican and Protestant Episcopal Churches all of Evangelical and Fundamentalist Protestant doctrine rejects entirely as blasphemy any need to confess to a priest, in words corresponding exactly according to the words of Mark 2:7; Luke 5:21, 7:49; and Matthew 9:3
  • Why does this man speak thus? It is blasphemy! Who can forgive sins but God alone?
  • Who is this that speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God only?
  • Who is this, who even forgives sins?
  • And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, "This man is blaspheming."
The episode in John chapter 5 ("in Jerusalem by the sheep gate, there is a pool") is the only episode John relates in his Gospel between the episode of Jesus' return to Galilee after John the Baptist was arrested, as in Matthew 4:12-17, Mark 1:14-39, Luke 4:14-44 and John 4:44-54, and the episode of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes for the five thousand in Matthew 14:15-21, Mark 6:35-44, Luke 9:12-17 and John 6:4-13. The only indication in John 5 for the redactor of the Gospel to determine where in a Harmony of the Gospel to place this episode is found in the words, "This was why the Jews sought all the more to kill him" (John 5:18a). This indicates that the initial plot to kill Jesus was made beforehand, as found in Matthew 12:14, Luke 6:11, and then in Mark 3:6 when they went and took counsel with the Herodians, "how to destroy him". The healing of the man at the pool of Bethesda on the sabbath day is presented as an additional pretext for the Jews "all the more" to seek to kill Jesus. Thus the redactor can place John 5 anywhere between Matthew 12:14–14:15, Mark 3:6–6:35, and Luke 4:44–9:12, depending on the context of the events that took place within those intervals, in three chapters in Matthew, in four chapters in Mark, and in six chapters in Luke. The carefully considered placement of this episode here in this chapter almost immediately after the Jews take counsel with the Herodians to decide how to destroy Jesus is only one possibility among many, representing a progression or further development in their enmity toward him, and it does not violate in any way the integrity of the textual sequence of any of the four Gospels.

"the Jews sought all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the Sabbath, but also called God his own Father"

John 5:18
An allusion to the Septuagint text, Wisdom 2:15-16
Compare the fuller text of Wisdom 2:12-24, which many Christians regard as an inspired prophesy about Christ.

"those who have done good, to the resurrection of life; and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment."

John 5:29
Throughout this Harmony of the Gospel (Conservative Version) all texts speaking of "works" and the necessity of "doing good" are consistently highlighted with boldface type to emphasize the place of corporal and spiritual works of mercy in the ekonomia (economy) of the unmerited grace of salvation in Christ Jesus, who "will render to every man according to his works". Examples of such teaching are found in
Matthew 7:15-23; 25:31-46;
Romans 2:6-11;
Ephesians 2:8-10;
Philippians 2:12-13;
James 2:14-26;
1 Peter 1:14-17;
1 John 3:4-24; 4:7-21;
Revelation 2–3; 22:11-15.

Compare the Conservative Bible text (conservapedia.com):

On one Sabbath day, He traveled through the corn fields, and His students started to pluck the ears of corn as they passed. The Pharisees cried, "Look! You're breaking Sabbath regulations!" To this Jesus replied, "Haven't you read what David and his allies did, when he was hungry and in need? How he went into God's temple, in the times of the High Priest Abiathar, and ate the blessed bread - the bread which only priests are allowed to eat - and fed his allies with it?" Jesus told them, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath, and therefore the Son, a man, is also Lord of the Sabbath."

Jesus returned to the synagogue, and noticed man with a crippled hand. They were watching Jesus to see if they might catch and accuse him of healing on the Sabbath. Jesus told the man with the crippled hand, "Stand up in front of everyone." Jesus asked them, "Which is lawful on the Sabbath: doing good or evil? Saving a life, or killing one?" And they didn't answer. Jesus looked around at them, feeling anger and pity for the hardness of their hearts, and said to the injured man, "Open your hand." He then opened and held out his hand, and it was as good as new. The Pharisees then fled from the scene to plot with the Herodians against Jesus, and plan how they might destroy him.

On the Sabbath after Passover Jesus walked through a grain field, where His students picked heads of grain for themselves, rubbing off the chaff and eating them. Several Pharisees complained, "Why do You violate the Sabbath like that?" Jesus replied, "Haven't you read what David did when he was hungry, and what others did with him? How he entered the sanctuary, took and ate the bread, and shared it with others, which priests alone were allowed to eat?" Jesus told them, "The Son of man is also Lord of the Sabbath!" On another Sabbath, He entered the synagogue and taught, when he was approached by a man with a crippled right hand. The intellectuals watched Jesus to see if He would heal on the Sabbath, so that they could accuse him of something. But Jesus, aware of the trap, said to the man with the crippled hand, "Get up, and present yourself to the people." He stood up and stepped forward. Jesus then announced, "I ask you this: is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good, or evil? To be pro-life, or pro-death?" After scanning the audience, Jesus told the man, "Hold out your hand!" When he did, his hand worked perfectly. The intellectuals were furious, and plotted how to harm Jesus.

Jesus then departed for the quiet of a lake, but crowds from Galilee and Judea followed him, And crowds went to Jesus from Jerusalem, Idumea, Tyre and Sidon, and from beyond the Jordan River, after hearing of his great deeds for the sick. Jesus asked His students for a small boat that would enable him to keep a distance from pressing crowds. Jesus had healed many people, so that many diseased persons pressed on Him trying to touch Him. Upon seeing Jesus, evil spirits fell down before him crying, "You are the Son of God!" But Jesus strictly commanded them not to tell others who he was.

After this Jesus went up into Jerusalem for a festival of the Jews. In Jerusalem there is, by the Sheep Gate, a pool with five porticos, which is called Bethesda in Hebrew. In these porticos lay a great many people who were sick, blind, crippled and withered, [waiting for the stirring of the water]. [For an angel would periodically go down into the pool and agitate the water; whoever was the first to step into the water after it became agitated would be healed of whatever affliction he had.] There was one particular man there who had been sick for thirty-eight years. Jesus saw him lying there and knowing that he had already been there a long time, He said to him, "Would you like to be well?" The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no one to push me into the pool when the water is agitated; instead, while I am trying to get there, someone else always makes it in before me." Jesus said to him, "Stand up, pick up your bed, and walk." Immediately the man was healed, and he picked up his bed, and he walked, but the day upon which this happened was the Sabbath. So the Jews said to the one who was healed, "it is the Sabbath day; it is illegal for you to carry your bed today."

"Remember the Sabbath day, and set it apart. For six days you will serve and do all your work. But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you will not do any work, neither you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your manservant, your maidservant, your livestock, or the sojourner within your gates. In six days the LORD made the heaven and the earth, and the sea, and everything in them, and stopped work on the seventh day. And so the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it special."

He responded to them, "That man who healed me, He said to me, 'pick up your bed, and walk.'" So they asked him, "Which man told you to pick up your bed and walk?" But the man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the huge crowd that surrounded them there. Later, Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "Look! You have been healed. Do not sin any more, so that something even worse does not happen to you." The man left, and reported back to the Jews that Jesus was the one who healed him. Because of this, the Jews persecuted Jesus, and plotted to murder Him, simply because He did these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus told them, "My Father is active everyday, so I do His work everyday." Therefore, because of this, the Jews plotted even more to murder Him, because not only did He break the Sabbath, but He also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal to God. Therefore Jesus responded to them and said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, The Son is able to do nothing on His own, but only that which He sees the Father doing; For whatever the Father does, the Son does exactly the same thing." Because the Father deeply loves the Son, and shows Him everything that He Himself does, and He will show Him even greater works than these, so that you may be amazed. For just as the Father raises the dead, and gives them life, in the exact same way the Son gives life to whomever He wants. Because the Father does not judge even one person, but rather, He has given the judgment of all people to the Son. So that all people should honor the Son exactly as they honor the Father. The one who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. Truly, truly, I say to you, that the one who hears my word and believes in Him who sent me has eternal life, and is not going into damnation; rather, he has moved from death into life. Truly, truly I say to you, that the hour is coming, in fact, it is already here, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and those hearing it shall live. For just as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted to the Son to have life in Himself. And He has also granted Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son, a human being. Do not be amazed by this, because the hour is coming when all those buried in graves will hear His voice. Those who have done good will be resurrected, and come out of the grave to receive life, but those who have done evil will be resurrected, and come out of the grave to receive damnation. I am able to do nothing by my own power; I judge based on what I hear, and my judgment is completely just, because I am not plotting to do my own will, but rather, I do the will of the Father who sent me. If I testify about myself, my testimony is not true. Another is testifying about me, and I know that the testimony about me that He gives is true. You sent representatives to John, and he testified to the truth. But I myself am not receiving testimony from any man; Instead, I say all these things so that you can be saved. This same John was a brightly burning lamp, and for a little while you danced joyfully in his light. But I have a greater testimony than John, because the works that the Father has given to me to complete, the very works that I am doing here for you, prove that the Father has sent me. Not only that, but this same Father who sent me has also testified about me. Yet you have never, not even one time, heard His voice, you have not perceived His form, nor do you have His word residing in you, because you do not believe in the one He sent. You search the scriptures, because you think that in them you find eternal life, and yet these same scriptures testify about me. And still you refuse to come to me, where you really would find life. But I know all about you, how you do not have the love of God in you. I have come in my Father's name, and you do not accept me, yet if some other man came in his own name, you would accept him. But how could you believe in me, you who accept praise from each other and do not seek the kind of praise that comes from God alone? Do not suppose that I will accuse you before the Father. Moses, whom you claim to trust, will be the first in line to accuse you. Frankly, if you believed Moses, you would have believed in me, because he wrote about me. But if you do not believe his scriptures, how could you possibly believe anything I say?

After these things Jesus crossed the sea of Galilee, also called the sea of Tiberias. And a large crowd followed him around, because they saw the miracles which He performed upon the sick.

Fourteen

Chapter 14 Bible texts

In these days he went out into the hills to pray; and all night he continued in prayer to God. When it was day, he called his followers.

Jesus went up into the mountain. He went up into the mountain, and called to himself those whom he wanted, and they went to him, and he sat there with his disciples. And from them he chose twelve, whom he also named apostles: Simon, whom he also named Peter, Rock; Andrew, his brother; James; John; Philip; Bartholomew; Matthew; Thomas; James, the son of Alphaeus; Simon, who was called the Zealot; Judas the son of James; and Judas Iscariot, who also became a traitor. He appointed twelve, that they might be with him, and that he might send them out to preach, and to have authority to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter, Rock); James the son of Zebedee; and John, the brother of James, (whom he called Boanerges, which means, Sons of Thunder); Andrew; Philip; Bartholomew; Matthew; Thomas; James, the son of Alphaeus; Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

He came down with them, and stood on a level place, with a crowd of his followers, his disciples, and a great number of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; as well as those who were troubled by unclean spirits, and they were being healed. All the multitude sought to touch him, for power came out of him and healed them all.

He lifted up his eyes to his disciples, and said, “Blessed are you who are poor, God’s Kingdom is yours. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude and mock you, and throw out your name as evil, for the Son of Man’s sake. Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven, for their fathers did the same thing to the prophets.

“But woe to you who are rich! For you have received your consolation. Woe to you, you who are full now, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. Woe, when men speak well of you, for their fathers did the same thing to the false prophets.

“But I tell you who hear: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you. To him who strikes you on the cheek, offer also the other; and from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your coat also. Give to everyone who asks you, and do not ask him who takes away your goods to give them back again. It is more blessed to give than to receive.

“As you would like people to do to you, do exactly so to them. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive back as much. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back; and your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind toward the unthankful and evil.

“Therefore be merciful, even as your Father is also merciful. Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Set free, and you will be set free.

“Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be given to you. For with the same measure you measure it will be measured back to you.”

He spoke a parable to them. “Can the blind guide the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit? A disciple is not above his Teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his Teacher. Why do you see the speck of chaff that is in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the wooden beam that is in your own eye? Or how can you tell your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove the speck of chaff that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the beam that is in your own eye? You hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck of chaff that is in your brother’s eye. For there is no good tree that produces rotten fruit; nor again a rotten tree that produces good fruit. For each tree is known by its own fruit. For people do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush. The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings out that which is good, and the evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings out that which is evil, for out of the abundance of the heart, his mouth speaks.

“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do the things which I say? Everyone who comes to me, and hears my words, and does them, I will show you who he is like. He is like a man building a house, who dug and went deep, and laid a foundation on the rock. When a flood arose, the stream broke against that house, and could not shake it, because it was founded on the rock. But he who hears, and does not do, is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream broke, and immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.”

After he had finished speaking in the hearing of the people, he entered into Capernaum. Then he came into a house.

A certain centurion’s servant, who was dear to him, was sick and at the point of death. When he heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and save his servant. When they came to Jesus, they begged him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy for you to do this for him, for he loves our nation, and he built our synagogue for us.”

Jesus went with them. When he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy for you to come under my roof. Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to you; but say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man placed under authority, having under myself soldiers. I tell this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turned and said to the multitude who followed him, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith, no, not in Israel.”

Those who were sent, returning to the house, found that the servant who had been sick was well.

Soon afterward, he went to a city called Nain. Many of his disciples, along with a great multitude, went with him. Now when he came near to the gate of the city, behold, one who was dead was carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. Many people of the city were with her. When the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said to her, “Do not cry.”

He came near and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. He said, “Young man, I tell you, arise!

He who was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he gave him to his mother. Fear took hold of all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and, “God has visited his people!

This report went out concerning him in the whole of Judea, and in all the surrounding region. The followers of John told him about all these things. John, calling to himself two of his followers, sent them to Jesus, saying, “Are you the one who is coming, or should we look for another?”

When the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptizer has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you he who comes, or should we look for another?’ ”

In that hour he cured many of diseases and plagues and evil spirits; and to many who were blind he gave sight. Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John the things which you have seen and heard: that the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. Blessed is he who finds no occasion for stumbling in me.”

When John’s messengers had departed, he began to tell the multitudes about John, “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft clothing? Behold, those who are gorgeously dressed, and live delicately, are in kings’ courts. But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and much more than a prophet. This is he of whom it is written,

“ ‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’

“For I tell you, among those who are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptizer, yet he who is least in God’s Kingdom is greater than he.”

When all the people and the tax collectors heard this, they declared God to be just, having been baptized with John’s baptism. But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the counsel of God, not being baptized by him themselves.

“To what then should I compare the people of this generation? What are they like? They are like children who sit in the marketplace, and call to one another, saying, ‘We piped to you, and you did not dance. We mourned, and you did not weep.’ For John the Baptizer came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man, and a drunkard; a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet Wisdom is justified by all her children.”

One of the Pharisees invited him to eat with him. He entered into the Pharisee’s house, and sat at the table. Behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that he was reclining in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment. Standing behind at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears, and she wiped them with the hair of her head, kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, “This man, if he were a prophet, would have perceived who and what kind of woman this is who touches him, that she is a sinner.”

Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”

He said, “Teacher, say on.”

“A certain lender had two debtors. The one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he forgave them both. Which of them therefore will love him most?”

Simon answered, “He, I suppose, to whom he forgave the most.”

He said to him, “You have judged correctly.”

Turning to the woman, he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered into your house, and you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head. You gave me no kiss, but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.”

He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

Those who sat at the table with him began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”

Soon afterward, he went about through cities and villages, preaching and bringing the good news of God’s Kingdom. With him were the twelve, and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary who was called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out; and Joanna, the wife of Chuzas, Herod’s steward; Susanna; and many others; who served them from their possessions.

When a great multitude came together, and people from every city were coming to him, he spoke by a parable. “The farmer went out to sow his seed. As he sowed, some fell along the road, and it was trampled under foot, and the birds of the sky devoured it. Other seed fell on the rock, and as soon as it grew, it withered away, because it had no moisture. Other fell amid the thorns, and the thorns grew with it, and choked it. Other fell into the good ground, and grew, and produced one hundred times as much fruit.”

As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

Then his disciples asked him, “What does this parable mean?”

He said, “To you it is given to know the mysteries of God’s Kingdom, but to the rest in parables; that

“ ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’

“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Those along the road are those who hear, then the devil comes, and takes away the word from their heart, that they may not believe and be saved. Those on the rock are they who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; but these have no root, who believe for a while, then fall away in time of temptation. That which fell among the thorns, these are those who have heard, and as they go on their way they are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity. Those in the good ground, these are those who with an honest and good heart, having heard the word, hold it tightly, and produce fruit with perseverance.

“No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a container, or puts it under a bed; but puts it on a stand, that those who enter in may see the light. For nothing is hidden that will not be revealed; nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light. Be careful therefore how you hear. For whoever has, to him will be given; and whoever does not have, from him will be taken away even that which he thinks he has.”

His mother and brothers came to him, and they could not come near him for the crowd. Some people told him, “Your mother and your brothers stand outside, desiring to see you.”

But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are these who hear the word of God, and do it.”

The multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread. When his friends heard it, they went out to seize him; for they said, “He is insane.”

The scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He has Beelzebul,” and, “By the prince of the demons he casts out the demons.”

He summoned them, and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. If Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. But no one can enter into the house of the strong man to plunder unless he first binds the strong man; then he will plunder his house. Most certainly I tell you, all sins of the descendants of man will be forgiven, including their blasphemies with which they may blaspheme; but whoever may blaspheme against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation.” —because they said, “He has an unclean spirit.”

His mother and his brothers came, and standing outside, they sent to him, calling him. A multitude was sitting around him, and they told him, “Behold, your mother, your brothers, and your sisters are outside looking for you.”

He answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?”

Looking around at those who sat around him, he said, “Behold, my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of God is my brother, my sister, and mother.”

Now on one of those days, again he began to Teach by the seaside. A great multitude was gathered to him, so that he entered into a boat in the sea, and sat down. All the multitude were on the land by the sea. He Taught them many things in parables, and told them in his Teaching, “Listen! Behold, the farmer went out to sow, and as he sowed, some seed fell by the road, and the birds came and devoured it. Others fell on the rocky ground, where it had little soil, and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of soil. When the sun had risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. Others fell into the good ground, and yielded fruit, growing up and increasing. Some produced thirty times, some sixty times, and some one hundred times as much.”

He said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”

When he was alone, those who were around him with the twelve asked him about the parables. He said to them, “To you is given the mystery of God’s Kingdom, but to those who are outside, all things are done in parables, that

“ ‘seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest perhaps they should turn again, and their sins should be forgiven them.’ ”

He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How will you understand all of the parables? The farmer sows the word. The ones by the road are the ones where the word is sown; and when they have heard, immediately Satan comes, and takes away the word which has been sown in them. These in the same way are those who are sown on the rocky places, who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with joy. They have no root in themselves, but are short-lived. When oppression or persecution arises because of the word, immediately they stumble. Others are those who are sown among the thorns. These are those who have heard the word, and the cares of this age, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. Those which were sown on the good ground are those who hear the word, and accept it, and bear fruit, some thirty times, some sixty times, and some one hundred times.”

He said to them, “Is the lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not put on a stand? For there is nothing hidden, except that it should be made known; neither was anything made secret, but that it should come to light. If any man has ears to hear, let him hear.”

He said to them, “Take heed what you hear. With whatever measure you measure, it will be measured to you, and more will be given to you who hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he who does not have, even that which he has will be taken away from him.”

He said, “God’s Kingdom is as if a man should cast seed on the earth, and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should spring up and grow, though he does not know how. For the earth bears fruit: first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the fruit is ripe, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

He said, “How will we liken God’s Kingdom? Or with what parable will we illustrate it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, though it is less important than all the seeds that are on the earth, yet when it is sown, grows up, and becomes greater than all the herbs, and puts out great branches, so that the birds of the sky can lodge under its shadow.”

With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it. Without a parable he did not speak to them; but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.

Now on that day, when evening had come, he entered into a boat, himself and his disciples, and he said to them, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.”

Leaving the multitude, they took him with them, even as he was, in the boat. Other small boats were also with him. So they launched out. But as they sailed, he fell asleep.

A big wind storm arose. A wind storm came down on the lake, and the waves beat into the boat, and they were taking on dangerous amounts of water, so much that the boat was already filled. He himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. They came to him, and awoke him, saying, “Master, master, we are dying!” They woke him up, and told him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are dying?”

He awoke, and rebuked the wind, and the raging of the water, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” and they ceased, The wind ceased, and there was a great calm; it was calm.

He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? How is it that you have no faith?”

And he said to them, “Where is your faith?”

Being afraid they marveled, saying to one another, “Who is this then, that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?”

They were greatly afraid, and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

They came to the other side of the sea. They arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.

When Jesus stepped ashore, when he had come out of the boat, into the country of the Gadarenes, immediately a certain man out of the city with an unclean spirit who had demons for a long time met him out of the tombs. He wore no clothes, and did not live in a house, but he lived in the tombs. Nobody could bind him any more, not even with chains, because he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been torn apart by him, and the fetters broken in pieces. Nobody had the strength to tame him. Always, night and day, in the tombs and in the mountains, he was crying out, and cutting himself with stones. For the unclean spirit had often seized the man. He was kept under guard, and bound with chains and fetters. Breaking the bonds apart, he was driven by the demon into the desert. When he saw Jesus from afar he cried out! And the man immediately began running toward him. He ran toward him and Jesus said to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!

He immediately bowed down to him, for Jesus was commanding the unclean spirit to come out of the man, for he said to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!

Jesus commanded the unclean spirit to come out. And he fell down before him, and crying out with a loud voice, he said, “What have I to do with you, Jesus, you Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, I beg you, do not torment me, do not torment me!

Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”

He asked him, “What is your name?”

He said to him, “My name is Legion, for we are many.”

He said, “Legion,” for many demons had entered into him. He begged him much that he would not send them away out of the country. They begged him that he would not command them to go into the abyss.

Now on the mountainside there was there a great herd of many pigs feeding on the mountain, and they begged him that he would allow them to enter into those. All the demons begged him, saying, “Send us into the pigs, that we may enter into them.”

Then at once he allowed them, Jesus gave them permission. The unclean spirits came out. The demons came out of the man, and entered into the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake, the sea of Galilee. The herd of about two thousand rushed down the steep bank into the sea, and they were drowned in the sea.

When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled. Those who fed them fled, and told it in the city and in the country.

People went out to see what had happened. The people came to see what it was that had happened. They came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had gone out, and saw him who had been possessed by demons sitting at Jesus’s feet, clothed, and in his right mind, even him who had the legion; and they were afraid.

Those who saw it declared to them what happened to him who was possessed by demons, told them how he who had been possessed by demons was healed, and about the pigs. All the people of the surrounding country of the Gadarenes asked him to depart from them. They began to beg him to depart from their region, for they were very much afraid.

As he was entering into the boat, he who had been possessed by demons begged him that he might be with him. He did not allow him, but said to him, “Go to your house, to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how he had mercy on you.”

Then he entered into the boat. But the man from whom the demons had gone out begged him that he might go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, “Return to your house, and declare what great things God has done for you.”

He went his way, and began to proclaim in Decapolis how Jesus had done great things for him, proclaiming throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled.

When Jesus had crossed back over in the boat to the other side and returned, a great multitude was gathered to him; the multitude welcomed him, for they were all waiting for him; and he was by the sea.

Behold, a man named Jairus came. He was a ruler of the synagogue. One of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, came; and seeing him, he fell down at Jesus’s feet. He fell at his feet, and begged him to come into his house, and begged him much, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Please come and lay your hands on her, that she may be made healthy, and live.”

For he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying.

He went with him, and a great multitude followed him. But as he went, the multitudes pressed against him, and they pressed upon him on all sides.

A certain woman, who had a discharge of blood for twelve years, a woman who had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had suffered many things by many physicians, who had spent all her living on physicians and could not be healed by any, and had spent all that she had, and was no better, but rather grew worse, having heard the things concerning Jesus, came up behind him in the crowd, and touched his clothes, the fringe of his cloak. For she said, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be made well.”

Immediately the flow of her blood stopped, was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. Jesus said, “Who touched me?”

Jesus, immediately perceiving in himself that the power had gone out from him, turned around in the crowd, and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”

This he said to test her, for he himself knew who had touched him. His disciples said to him, “You see the multitude pressing against you, and you say, ‘Who touched me’?”

When all denied it, Peter and those with him said, “Master, the multitudes press and jostle you, and you say, ‘Who touched me’?”

But Jesus said, “Someone did touch me, for I perceived that power has gone out of me.”

He looked around to see her who had done this thing. But when the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had been done to her, saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. Falling down before him she declared to him in the presence of all the people the reason why she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately. He said to her, “Daughter, cheer up. Your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be cured of your disease.”

While he was still speaking, people came from the synagogue ruler’s house saying, “Your daughter is dead. Why bother the Teacher any more?”

While he still spoke, one from the ruler of the synagogue’s house came, saying to him, “Your daughter is dead. Do not trouble the Teacher.”

But Jesus hearing it, answered him, “Do not be afraid. Only believe, and she will be healed.”

Jesus, when he heard the message spoken, immediately said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not be afraid, only believe.”

He allowed no one to follow him, except Peter, James, and John the brother of James.

He came to the synagogue ruler’s house, and he saw an uproar, weeping, and great wailing. When he came to the house, he did not allow anyone to enter in, except Peter, John, James, the father of the child, and her mother. All were weeping and mourning her, but he said, “Do not weep. She is not dead, but sleeping.”

They ridiculed him.

When he had entered in, he said to them, “Why do you make an uproar and weep? The child is not dead, but is asleep.”

They were ridiculing him, knowing that she was dead. But he put them all outside; he, having put them all out, took the father of the child, her mother, and those who were with him, and went in where the child was lying. Taking the child by the hand, he said to her, “Talitha cumi!” which means, being interpreted, “Girl, I tell you, get up!

And taking her by the hand, he called, saying, “Child, arise!

Her spirit returned, and she rose up immediately. Immediately the girl rose up and walked, for she was twelve years old. They were amazed with great amazement. Her parents were amazed, but he commanded them to tell no one what had been done. He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and commanded that something should be given to her to eat.

He called to himself his twelve disciples. He called the twelve together, and gave them power and authority over unclean spirits, over all demons, to cast them out, and to cure diseases, to heal every disease and every sickness. He sent them out to preach God’s Kingdom and to heal the sick. He said to them, “Take nothing for your journey—no staffs, nor wallet, nor bread, nor money. Do not have two coats each. Into whatever house you enter, stay there, and depart from there. As many as do not receive you, when you depart from that city, shake off even the dust from your feet for a testimony against them.”

Now the names of the twelve apostles are these. The first, Simon, who is called Peter; Andrew, his brother; James the son of Zebedee; John, his brother; Philip; Bartholomew; Thomas; Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus; Lebbaeus, who was also called Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

Jesus sent these twelve out, and commanded them, saying, “Do not go among the Gentiles, and do not enter into any city of the Samaritans. Rather, go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, preach, saying, ‘The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!’ Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons. Freely you received, so freely give. Do not take any gold, silver, or brass in your money belts. Take no bag for your journey, neither two coats, nor shoes, nor staff: for the laborer is worthy of his food. Into whatever city or village you enter, find out who in it is worthy; and stay there, before you go on. As you enter into the household, greet it. If the household is worthy, let your peace come on it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. Whoever does not receive you, nor hear your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. Most certainly I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.

“Behold, I send you out as sheep among wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to councils, and in their synagogues they will scourge you. Yes, and you will be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony to them and to the nations. But when they deliver you up, do not be anxious how or what you will say, for it will be given you in that hour what you will say. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.

“Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his child. Children will rise up against parents, and cause them to be put to death. You will be hated by all men for my name’s sake, but he who endures to the end will be saved. But when they persecute you in this city, flee into the next, for most certainly I tell you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man has come.

“A disciple is not above his Teacher, nor a servant above his lord. It is enough for the disciple that he be like his Teacher, and the servant like his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more those of his household! Therefore do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing covered that will not be revealed; and hidden that will not be known. What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in the ear, proclaim on the housetops. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. Rather, fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.

“Are not two sparrows sold for an assarion coin? Not one of them falls on the ground apart from your Father’s will, but the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Therefore do not be afraid. You are of more value than many sparrows. Everyone therefore who confesses me before men, I will also confess him before my Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies me before men, I will also deny him before my Father who is in heaven.

“Do not think that I came to send peace on the earth. I did not come to send peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man at odds against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man’s foes will be those of his own household. He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. He who does not take his cross and follow after me, is not worthy of me. He who seeks his life will lose it; and he who loses his life for my sake will find it. He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me. He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward. He who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward. Whoever gives one of these little ones just a cup of cold water to drink in the name of a disciple, most certainly I tell you he will in no way lose his reward.”

When Jesus had finished directing his twelve disciples, he departed from there to Teach and preach in their cities. They departed and went throughout the villages, preaching the Good News and healing everywhere.

Now when John heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said to him, “Are you he who comes, or should we look for another?”

Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. Blessed is he who finds no occasion for stumbling in me.”

As these went their way, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John, “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? But what did you go out to see? A man in soft clothing? Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. But why did you go out? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and much more than a prophet. For this is he, of whom it is written,

“ ‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’

“Most certainly I tell you, among those who are born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptizer; yet he who is least in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptizer to now, the Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied up to John. If you are willing to receive it, this is Elijah, who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

“But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces, who call to their companions and say, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance. We mourned for you, and you did not lament.’ For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is justified by her children.”

Then he began to denounce the cities in which most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. You, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, you will go down to Hades. For if the mighty works had been done in Sodom which were done in you, it would have remained to this day. But I tell you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom, on the day of judgment, than for you.”

At that time, Jesus answered, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you hid these things from the wise and understanding, and revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for so it was well-pleasing in your sight. All things have been delivered to me by my Father. No one knows the Son, except the Father; neither does anyone know the Father, except the Son, and he to whom the Son desires to reveal him.

“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

At that time, Jesus went on the Sabbath day through the grain fields. His disciples were hungry and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. But the Pharisees, when they saw it, said to him, “Behold, your disciples do what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.”

But he said to them, “Have you not read what David did, when he was hungry, and those who were with him; how he entered into God’s house, and ate the show bread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for those who were with him, but only for the priests? Or have you not read in the law, that on the Sabbath day, the priests in the Temple profane the Sabbath, and are guiltless? But I tell you that One greater than the Temple is here. But if you had known what this means,

“ ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’

“you would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

He departed from there, and went into their synagogue. And behold there was a man with a withered hand. They asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath day?” that they might accuse him.

He said to them, “What man is there among you, who has one sheep, and if this one falls into a pit on the Sabbath day, will he not grab on to it, and lift it out? Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath day.”

Then he told the man, “Stretch out your hand.”

He stretched it out; and it was restored whole, just like the other. But the Pharisees went out, and conspired against him, how they might destroy him. Jesus, perceiving that, withdrew from there. Great multitudes followed him; and he healed them all, and commanded them that they should not make him known: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying,

“Behold, my servant whom I have chosen; my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my Spirit on him. He will proclaim justice to the nations. He will not strive, nor shout; neither will anyone hear his voice in the streets. He will not break a bruised reed. He will not quench a smoking flax, before he leads justice to victory. In his name, the nations will have confident expectation.”

Then one possessed by a demon, blind and mute, was brought to him and he healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. All the multitudes were amazed, and said, “Can this be the son of David?”

But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “This man does not cast out demons, except by Beelzebul, the prince of the demons.”

Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your children cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if I by the Spirit of God cast out demons, then God’s Kingdom has come upon you. Or how can one enter into the house of the strong man, and plunder his goods, unless he first bind the strong man? Then he will plunder his house.

“He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me, scatters. Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, neither in this age, nor in that which is to come.

“Either make the tree good, and its fruit good, or make the tree corrupt, and its fruit corrupt; for the tree is known by its fruit. You offspring of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. The good man out of his good treasure brings out good things, and the evil man out of his evil treasure brings out evil things. I tell you that every idle word that men speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Then certain of the scribes and Pharisees answered, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from you.”

But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, but no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand up in the judgment with this generation, and will condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, someone greater than Jonah is here. The queen of the south will rise up in the judgment with this generation, and will condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, someone greater than Solomon is here.

“When an unclean spirit has gone out of a man, he passes through waterless places, seeking rest, and does not find it. Then he says, ‘I will return into my house from which I came out,’ and when he has come back, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. Then he goes, and takes with himself seven other spirits more evil than he is, and they enter in and dwell there. The last state of that man becomes worse than the first. Even so will it be also to this evil generation.”

While he was yet speaking to the multitudes, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, seeking to speak to him. One said to him, “Behold, your mother and your brethren stand outside, seeking to speak to you.”

But he answered him who spoke to him, “Who is my mother? Who are my brethren?”

He stretched out his hand toward his disciples, and said, “Behold, my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father who is in heaven, he is my brother, and sister, and mother.”

On that day Jesus went out of the house, and sat by the seaside. The twelve were away, preaching the Good News throughout the villages and healing everywhere. Great multitudes gathered to him, so that he entered into a boat, and sat, and all the multitude stood on the beach. He spoke to them many things in parables, saying, “Behold, a farmer went out to sow. As he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and devoured them. Others fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of earth. When the sun had risen, they were scorched. Because they had no root, they withered away. Others fell among thorns. The thorns grew up and choked them. Others fell on good soil, and yielded fruit: some one hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

The disciples came, and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?”

He answered them, “To you it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven, but it is not given to them. For whoever has, to him will be given, and he will have abundance, but whoever does not have, from him will be taken away even that which he has. Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing, they do not hear, neither do they understand. In them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says,

“ ‘By hearing you will hear, and will in no way understand; Seeing you will see, and will in no way perceive: for this people’s heart has grown callous, their ears are dull of hearing, they have closed their eyes; or else perhaps they might perceive with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and would turn again; and I would heal them.’

“But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear. For most certainly I tell you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see the things which you see, and did not see them; and to hear the things which you hear, and did not hear them.

“Hear, then, the parable of the farmer. When anyone hears the word of the Kingdom, and does not understand it, the evil one comes, and snatches away that which has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown by the roadside. What was sown on the rocky places, this is he who hears the word, and immediately with joy receives it; yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while. When oppression or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. What was sown among the thorns, this is he who hears the word, but the cares of this age and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. What was sown on the good ground, this is he who hears the word, and understands it, who most certainly bears fruit, and produces, some one hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty.”

He set another parable before them, saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while people slept, his enemy came and sowed darnel seeds also among the wheat, and went away. But when the blade sprang up and produced fruit, then the darnel weeds appeared also. The servants of the householder came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where did these darnel weeds come from?’

“He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’

“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and gather them up?’

“But he said, ‘No, lest perhaps while you gather up the darnel weeds, you root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together to the harvest, and in the harvest time I will tell the reapers, “First, gather up the darnel weeds, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”

He set another parable before them, saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field; which indeed is smaller than all seeds. But when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in its branches.”

He spoke another parable to them. “The Kingdom of Heaven is like yeast, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, not stopping before it was all leavened.”

Jesus spoke all these things in parables to the multitudes; and without a parable, he did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophet, saying,

“I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world.”

Then Jesus sent the multitudes away, and went into the house. His disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the darnel weeds of the field.”

He answered them, “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, the field is the world; and the good seed, these are the children of the Kingdom; and the darnel seeds are the children of the evil one. The enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. As therefore the darnel weeds are gathered up and burned with fire; so will it be at the end of this age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will gather out of his Kingdom all things that cause stumbling, and those who do iniquity, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in the field, which a man found, and hid. In his joy, he goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field.

“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who is a merchant seeking fine pearls, who having found one pearl of great price, he went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a dragnet, that was cast into the sea, and gathered some fish of every kind, which, when it was filled, they drew up on the beach. They sat down, and gathered the good into containers, but the bad they threw away. So will it be in the end of the world. The angels will come and separate the wicked from among the righteous, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.”

Jesus said to them, “Have you understood all these things?”

They answered him, “Yes, Lord.”

He said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been made a disciple in the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who is a householder, who brings out of his treasure new and old things.”

When Jesus had finished these parables, he departed and went out from there. He came into his own country, and his disciples followed him. Coming into his own country, he Taught them in their synagogue. When the Sabbath had come, he began to Teach in the synagogue, so that they were astonished; and many hearing him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things?” and, “What is the wisdom that is given to this man, that such mighty works come about by his hands? Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judah, and Simon? Are not his sisters here with us?”

They were offended at him, and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom, and these mighty works? Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother called Mary, and his brethren, James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? Are not all of his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all of these things?”

They were offended by him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and among his own relatives, and in his own house.”

He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief. He could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people, and healed them. He marveled because of their unbelief.

He went around the villages Teaching.

He called to himself the twelve, and began to send them out two by two; and he gave them authority over the unclean spirits. He commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, except a staff only: no bread, no wallet, no money in their purse, but to wear sandals, and not put on two tunics. He said to them, “Wherever you enter into a house, stay there to the day you depart from there. Whoever will not receive you nor hear you, as you depart from there, shake off the dust that is under your feet for a testimony against them. Assuredly, I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!

They went out and preached that people should repent. They cast out many demons, and anointed many with oil who were sick, and healed them.

This chapter is an illustrative example of how particular details in the narratives of the Evangelists can help the student of the scriptures resolve apparent difficulties perceived in comparative parallel readings of the Gospels, and more certainly determine the redacted chronological sequence of episodes in a Harmony of the Gospel. This is not always an easy task.

What the texts do not say is as important as what they do say and can be a key determining factor in discerning the differences in similar-sounding but separate events which cannot be redacted together if the chronological sequence of the Gospel texts is to be retained and presented as historical fact.
The unbroken length of this chapter is a purposeful and deliberate means of representing the period of the initial training of the Apostles as a whole. It is best read in one sitting, free of distractions, to grasp the overall message of the Christian mission, in the face of misunderstanding, ignorance and resistance to the truth of the kingdom of God, as revealed in the ministry and person of Jesus Christ and his authorized representatives, and in the body of the flock of his people the Church.
Reading time about 50 minutes.

Luke 6:12-13a
John 6:3a
Mark 3:13
John 6:3b
Luke 6:13b-16
Mark 3:14-19a
Luke 6:17-30
Acts 20:35c
Luke 6:31–7:1
Mark 3:19b
Luke 7:2–8:21
Mark 3:20–4:34
—LXX Sirach 40:15

Luke 8:22-40 and Mark 4:35–5:21

Luke 8:22a
Mark 4:35-36a
Luke 8:22b
Mark 4:36b
Luke 8:23a
Mark 4:37
Luke 8:23b
Mark 4:38
Luke 8:24
Mark 4:39-40
Luke 8:25a
Mark 4:41
Luke 8:25b
Mark 5:1
Luke 8:26
Mark 5:2
Luke 8:27
Mark 5:3-4
Luke 8:29b
Mark 5:5-6a
Luke 8:28a
Mark 5:6b
Luke 8:29a
Mark 5:8
Luke 8:28b
Mark 5:7
Luke 8:28c
Luke 8:30
Mark 5:9
Mark 5:10
Luke 8:31
Mark 5:11
Luke 8:32ab
Mark 5:12
Luke 8:32c
Mark 5:13
Luke 8:33-34
Mark 5:14
Luke 8:35
Mark 5:15
Luke 8:36
Mark 5:16-17
Luke 8:37abc
Luke 8:38-39
Mark 5:18-20
Luke 8:40a
Luke 8:37d
Luke 8:40b
Mark 5:21

Mark 5:22-43 and Luke 8:41–9:5

Mark 5:22a
Luke 8:41a
Mark 5:22b
Luke 8:41b-42a
Mark 5:23-24
Luke 8:42b-43
Mark 5:25-27
Luke 8:44a
Mark 5:28
Luke 8:44b
Mark 5:29-31
Luke 8:45-46
Mark 5:32-33a
Luke 8:47a
Mark 5:33b
Luke 8:47b
Mark 5:33-34
Luke 8:48
Mark 5:35
Luke 8:49-50
Mark 5:36-38
Luke 8:51-53
Mark 5:39-40
Luke 8:54
Mark 5:41
Luke 8:55a
Mark 5:42
Luke 8:55b
Mark 5:43
Luke 8:56

Luke 9:1 and Matthew 10:1

Luke 9:1a
Matthew 10:1a
Luke 9:1b
Matthew 10:1b
Luke 9:1c
Matthew 10:1c
Luke 9:1d
Matthew 10:1d

Luke 9:2-5
Matthew 10:2–11:1
Luke 9:6
Matthew 11:2–13:58
—LXX Isaiah 42:4
—LXX Isaiah 6:10
—LXX Book of Wisdom
Mark 6:1-13

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Bible maps (click initial letter of place name)
Bible Encyclopedias: Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature (studylight.org)
Catholic Encyclopedia Catholic Online (catholic.org)
Hebrew Calendar Converter See exact equivalents of Gregorian Calendar dates.

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Table of Old Testament quotes in the New Testament, in English translation, Joel Kalvesmaki 2013 (kalvesmaki.com)

List of 300 Septuagint Old Testament quotations in the New Testament, by Steve Rudd 2017 (bible.ca)

Table of LXX quotes and allusions in the New Testament


Church History (Eusebius): The Ecclesiastical History Of Eusebius Pamphilus: Bishop Of Caesarea, In Palestine (newadvent.org)

The Works of Flavius Josephus William Whiston, Translator, 1737 (sacred-texts.com)

Suetonius: Twelve Caesars: The Lives of the Twelve Caesars by C. Suetonius Tranquilus; To which are added His Lives of the Grammarians, Rhetoricians, and Poets. The Translation of Alexander Thomson, M.D., Revised and corrected by T. Forester, Esq., A.M. (Gutenberg.org)

Tacitus: The Annals, Written 109 A.C.E. Translated by Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb

Sextus Aurelius Victor: Epitome De Caesaribus (roman-emperors.org)

Eutropius: Breviarium - Eutropius's Abridgement of Roman History (tertullian.org)

Cassius Dio: Roman History Epitome (penelope.uchicago.edu)

Early Christian Writings A.D. 30 through 380 (earlychristianwritings.com)
See Biblical Canon and Apocrypha.


"And from them he chose twelve, whom he also named apostles: ... He appointed twelve, that they might be with him"

Luke 6:13 and Mark 3:14
—but he does not immediately send them out to preach and to heal.
Luke is an important guide for the conservative redactor of the Gospels. He states at the beginning of his account of the Gospel that he was writing everything "in order" (in sequence). After the choosing of the twelve, Jesus comes down the mountain with them, delivers the Sermon on the Plain, re-enters Capernaum, heals the centurion's slave; then accompanied by "many of his disciples" raises the widow's son at Nain, gives answer to the disciples of John the Baptist, forgives the woman who anoints his feet, teaches the parable of the seeds and the lamp, warns about the unforgivable sin against the Holy Spirit, declares those who do his Father's will his brothers, sisters and mother; he departs, heals the Gadarene demoniac, returns and is touched by the woman with a hemorrhage and raises Jairus' daughter, and only then does Luke relate that Jesus sends out the twelve to preach and to heal.
In Matthew 10:1-15, after the naming of the twelve and instructing them before sending them out to preach and to heal (parallel to Luke 9:1-6 and Mark 6:7-8), Jesus departs, and immediately Matthew relates that John sent his disciples to Jesus to ask if he is the one expected. The conservative redactor, in preserving intact the chronological integrity of the textual sequence of both Luke and Matthew, cannot reconcile the two accounts of John's sending his disciples to Jesus as the same identical event or episode (Matthew 11:2-30 and Luke 7:18-35). In Matthew John's disciples come to Jesus after he sends out the twelve, in Luke John's disciples come to Jesus before he sends out the twelve. This apparent difficulty is resolved according to the principle that similarity of narrative does not demonstrate identity of event. Just because they sound the same does not mean they are the same. It is not impossible that John in prison sent his disciples to Jesus a second time, after receiving the Lord's initial response, "the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is he who takes no offense at me." He did not directly say "yes" or "no". Through the testimony of others who were eyewitnesses Jesus invited John to reach his own conclusion, based on their anecdotal evidence. It is not impossible that John desired a clear and simple answer, and sent them a second time, to be certain.
"And from them he chose twelve, whom he also named apostles". Judas was one of the twelve "chosen elect", an Apostle of the Lord, yet he fell away. This contradicts the Calvinist doctrine of eternal security, that those whom God has chosen and elected as his own cannot be lost. "Have I not chosen you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?" John 6:70. "And none of them is lost, save the son of perdition, that the scripture might be fulfilled." John 17:12. "For he was numbered among us, and was allotted his share in this ministry." Acts 1:17.

"He came down with them, and stood on a level place, with a crowd of his disciples"

Luke 6:17.
This passage makes a distinction between the twelve whom he made apostles and the crowd of his disciples who were his ordinary followers, as also in Mark 4:10, "those who were around him with the twelve".
Luke 6:17, 8:1, and Mark 4:10 together with their places in the narrative, as found in the textual sequence of events related in the two Gospels, are strongly suggestive of the period of the initial formal training of the twelve, prior to Jesus sending them out to preach and to heal. The conservative redactor uses such details as facts to aid in determining the actual chronological sequence of events in constructing an historically faithful Harmony of the Gospel by avoiding narrative inconsistencies and obvious contradictions. They cannot simultaneously be out on mission and also be present with him and with the other disciples about him. These verses, Luke 6:17, 8:1, Mark 4:10, are not preceded by any statement that Jesus summoned them or called them (back) after sending them out. (See note below: "with him were the twelve" and "those who were around him with the twelve".)

"When he heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and save his servant."

Luke 7:3
Various details in the narrative of Luke 7:1-10 demonstrate that this is not the same as the episode in Matthew 8:5-13. Similarity of narrative is not proof of identity: just because they sound the same does not mean they are the same. The policy of redacting the texts of the four Gospels together into a single Harmony of the Gospel by placing them side by side, and strictly retaining the sequence of each of them in the order of their narratives, on the conservative assumption that they are set forth by the Evangelists each in chronological order, places the episode in Luke 7:1-10 later than the episode in Matthew 8:5-13. This strongly suggests the scenario that when his own servant was close to death he had probably just now heard from the other centurion there in Capernaum of the earlier healing of his own personal servant who had been suffering in terrible distress from paralysis. This centurion had respect for the Jewish community and he had earned their respect by building a synagogue for them. The chief elders were ready to accede to his request to have Jesus heal his servant as he had previously healed the servant of his fellow centurion who had gone to Jesus himself. But when he heard that the rabbi Jesus was actually coming to his house, the Roman pagan centurion was overwhelmed. He humbly acknowledged the auctoritas of Jesus' power and dignity by his own words of faith in him as had his fellow centurion. As with the other man, who earlier had humbly demonstrated such unquestioning faith in him, Jesus praised this pagan's faith too, saying that he had not found such faith even in Israel. This statement made directly to the elders of the Jews sent to him was the rebuke of a prophet reproaching them for their lack of faith in him. "I have not found such faith, no, not in Israel." This text is not necessarily a demonstrable contradiction of the sequentially redacted apparently earlier expression of "such faith" from the centurion who came to him in Matthew 8:5-13 when the Gospels are placed in parallel columns without rearranging their sequence. The grammatical structure of the Greek text points to lack of such marvelous faith in Israel, not to the faith of the other centurion. The Jews, who had received as a people the revelations of God from Moses and the prophets with signs and miracles of power, knowing the scriptures and seeing the signs he had done among them as works worthy of belief, should have had the very faith that these pagans had manifested, but they did not have it. They did not express doubt that Jesus could heal the centurion's servant; the Jewish elders of the nation as a whole doubted that his healings were adequate proof that he is the Messiah. The elders urged Jesus to "do this for him" only because they wished to enjoy the continued favor the centurion had bestowed on them, not because they had any faith that Jesus is the Messiah foretold by Moses.

"touched the bier"

Luke 7:14
The WEB text "coffin", while technically permitted, is misleading and is replaced here with "bier" according to the majority versions of Luke 7:14.
In the U.S. a coffin carried by pallbearers to the grave is closed and sealed. A bier is defined by most dictionaries as an open framework for carrying a corpse to a grave, a burial litter or pallet, but it can also mean a coffin. "And the dead man sat up, and began to speak"—impossible, if he were in a closed coffin. Translators are responsible for choosing the best English word to render the meaning of the Greek text, and among the possible words available to them the best one to choose is one that most accurately fits the context, what is called in hermeneutics Sitz im Leben, a German term meaning "life setting/situation". Here, given the situation in Luke 7:12-15, the word "coffin" is a poor choice for the Greek term σοροῦ sorou. The dynamic rendering "open coffin" is only a slight improvement, which does not convey the meaning of bier or pallet according to the ancient middle eastern custom. See Strong's number 4673 soros for Luke 7:14: a funereal receptacle (urn, coffin) i.e. (by analogy) a bier: —bier.

"Are you he who is to come, or shall we look for another?" RSV

Luke 7:19
Luke 7:18ff parallels Matthew 11:2ff.
Compare Luke 7:18-23; Matthew 11:2-6. This indicates the most relevant position of Matthew 10:1–11:1, which immediately precedes an account of John's disciples coming to Jesus to ask if he is the one expected.
This Harmony of the Gospel represents John the Baptist twice sending his disciples to Jesus. Here, in the account of Luke, this episode follows the Sermon on the Plain, the healing of the centurion's slave, and the raising of the widow's son at Nain—before Jesus sends the twelve out to preach and to heal. In Matthew it is related immediately after Jesus had finished instructing his disciples and sent them out, which indicates a second separate sending by John to ask him (again) if he is the one to come.
See note below ("Are you he who is to come, or shall we look for another?" RSV —Matthew 11:3).

"You gave me no kiss, but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss my feet."

Luke 7:45
A literal reading of the "clear, plain and simple" meaning of the words of this verse absolutely contradicts the "clear, plain and simple" reading of the meaning of the preceding passage of Luke 7:37 "a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that he was reclining in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment.". Jesus says quite clearly, plainly and simply that the woman started kissing his feet the moment he entered the room. But according to verse 37, Luke says that he was already seated at table in the Pharisee's house and eating with him when the woman first learned that he was sitting at table in the Pharisee's house! By this literal method of reading the Bible, scripture is made to contradict scripture. Luke contradicts the words of Jesus, and Jesus contradicts the words of Luke. This is not a legitimate way to read and understand the Bible.
In contrast to the literalistic approach to reading the Bible, an understanding reading of the true literal sense of scripture in accordance with an informed understanding of the ordinary first century semitic mode of speaking by hyperbole within the mileau of the culture of the time resolves the difficulty. To their credit, most literalist readers of the Bible using their innate common sense do not take the literalistic reading of the words of this passage as the actual meaning of these Bible verses, and normally do not see a contradiction. In accepting the actual meaning of Luke and Jesus according to the narrative of what the woman did to Jesus as he sat at table in the Pharisee's house and when she did it, they dismiss the principle of reading the Bible according to the "clear, plain and simple" meaning of the words of the Bible, because of its evident absurdity, and they adopt instead the accommodated understanding of the literal sense of scripture according to its true meaning.
Another clear example is the statement by Jesus himself in Matthew 13:32 that the mustard seed is the "least" or "smallest" of seeds. Liberal critics of Christianity eagerly cite this statement to prove that Jesus is in error, since there are numerous other kinds of seeds that are much smaller than the mustard seed, some of them nearly microscopic in size. The majority of biblical exegetes understand this parabolic saying as an example of Middle Eastern hyperbole. See multiple versions of Matthew 13:32. In an absolute sense it is not the "smallest of seeds", yet there is little argument against understanding the mustard seed as most probably the least important of all commercially available seeds sold for cultivation in the Middle Eastern marketplace. There is no "mustard farm".
Another illustration of the inadequate and erroneous method of taking only the literalistic reading of the words of the Bible as the plainly evident meaning of scripture is found in the phrase, "three days and three nights in the heart of the earth" (Matthew 12:40). The physical heart of the earth is literally located at the center of the planet. Earth radius is the distance from the Earth's center to its surface, 3,959 miles (about 6,371 kilometers). This length is also used as a unit of distance, especially in astronomy and geology, where it is usually denoted by R⊕. To this day, no one has drilled a shaft into the heart of the earth, to the very center of its core. There is no evidence that anyone in the first century achieved this feat.
Some Fundamentalist Christians who believe, and teach, that the hot, molten core of the earth is the literal location of the lake of fire and hell, where the resurrected wicked sinners condemned for their unrepented evil deeds (Revelation 20:10-15) will physically spend everlasting eternity (Daniel 12:2-3), understand the core of the earth itself to be the literal meaning of the heart of the earth, where Jesus went when he lay in the tomb, and that "he went and preached to the spirits in prison" (1 Peter 3:19-20) where "Tartarus" or "Hell" is located (2 Peter 2:4). Jesus did not say that the Son of Man will only "spiritually" be in the heart of the earth, but that he would "be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth", and Peter does say that Jesus went "spiritually" or "alive in the spirit" to preach to the spirits in prison" (1 Peter 3:18-19). In the most literal reading of the Greek text of Luke 16:22 and 23, the rich man is "buried in hell", ἐτάφη 23καὶ ἐν τῷ ᾅδῃ—this is the reading of the Catholic Douay-Rheims Bible 1899, "the rich man also died: and he was buried in hell" Luke 16:22 from Jerome's Latin Vulgate translation "et sepultus est in inferno".
Biblical exegetes tell us that "sheol, gehenna, hell" is the grave. Thus "ashes to ashes and dust to dust" (see Genesis 3:19; 18:27) is the meaning of "the heart of the earth", as being the speaker's intended reference to the grave, the literal sense of scripture, understood as death, the sealed tomb—not the molten core of the planet. Moreover, the core of the earth will also be destroyed when
"the elements shall melt with fervent heat and the earth and the works that are upon it will be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved..." (2 Peter 3:10-11).
It should be evident that the core of the planet, the "heart of the earth" according to this literalistic doctrine, cannot be the everlasting hell of Revelation 20:10; likewise the alternate interpretation instead that the center of the Sun is hell is dismissed by the Bible, because neither of them will last forever.
See article Where is Hell? What is the location of Hell? (gotquestions.org).
To truly discover and understand the sacred authors' intention, the reader must take into account the conditions of the sacred authors' particular time and culture, the literary genres in use at that time, and the modes of feeling, speaking, and narrating then current, not the meaning understood by the plain, ordinary American English-speaking 21st century reader. (See Historical-critical method (Higher criticism).) The reader must be especially attentive to the content and unity of the whole Bible, as having one supreme Author who cannot deceive or be deceived, speaking through inspired writers chosen by him to express the truth of God's revelation to man, "for he cannot deny himself". Any method of reading any text of the Bible which produces absurdities and contradictions is proven false by the very fact that it produces that result: "A tree is known by its fruit." It violates the principle set forth in Revelation 22:18-19. What has been called by Protestant scholars the "perspicuity of scripture" is obscured by an ignorantly literal reading of the "clear, plain and simple" surface meaning of the words of the Bible, which violates the meaning of the Bible. The reasons for this do not lie in the Scriptures themselves but in the unconscious baggage of interpretive assumptions many people bring to the Scriptures. Many denominations have creeds or statements of faith that they use as a norm to define themselves. In doing so they tend to view Scripture through the lens of their stated beliefs (Confirmation bias). In other cases some people inherit their particular interpretation of scripture from their forefathers without questioning whether it actually corresponds to the literal sense of scripture. See 2 Peter 3:14-17; Hebrews 13:7 and 17; Romans 13:1 (includes "church authorities") and 13:2 (includes "church government").
See the following:

"His mother and brothers came to him, and they could not come near him for the crowd. Some people told him, “Your mother and your brothers stand outside, desiring to see you.” But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are these who hear the word of God, and do it.
—"The multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread. When his friends heard it, they went out to seize him; for they said, “He is insane.” "

Luke 8:19-21; Mark 3:20-21
See multiple commentaries on Luke 8:21.
See multiple commentaries on Mark 3:21.
See interlinear text of Mark 3:21.
See multiple versions of Mark 3:21.
Translations of Mark 3:21 differ. The Greek term Οἱ παρʼ αὐτοῦ literally means "those of him", that is, the common general term for acquaintances, relatives, hometown (citizens), those who knew him as one of their own. Some translated readings say "his friends" (KJV), some say "his family".
However, against both of these interpretive readings, the Greek term τους φίλους του tous philous tou, "his friends", is not in Mark 3:21. The Greek term οικογένειάς του oikogeneias tou, "his family", is not in Mark 3:21. As for the reading "his own people", the Greek term τους δικούς του ανθρώπους, tous dikous tou anthropous, "his own people", is not in Mk 3:21. The most probable literal sense of the wording in Mark 3:21 would be "his neighbors", those from his hometown who did not accept him (compare Mark 6:1-6; Matthew 13:53-58; Luke 4:16-30; John 7:2-9).
Depending on which version the reader prefers, Mary is not among "his friends" who say "He is beside himself" (KJV) / "He is insane"—or—Mary is included among "his family" and agrees with them in saying "He is beside himself" / "He is insane".
Compare John 10:20 "he hath a devil and is mad; why hear ye him?" (KJV).
The version that reads "his family" implies that Mary had ceased to believe in Jesus and therefore that she too had sinned against Him by disbelief, that she had lost faith in him and had apostatized, and had blasphemed against Him by saying, "He is insane". This is adduced by many Protestant Christian exegetes as biblical and doctrinal proof that Mary had sinned, and committed blasphemy, and therefore that the Catholic doctrine that Mary was wholly and entirely free of sin by the grace of God from the moment of her Immaculate Conception and entirely throughout her life is a false doctrine and a satanic deception (see 1 Timothy 4:1-2). Mary therefore was a sinner.
The version that reads "his friends" does not eisegetically read into Mark 3:21 evidence that Mary was among those who thought Jesus was insane. Exegetes in support of the view that Mary was not among the group assert that the plain and simple reading of the Greek text does not justify the reading of "his family". Therefore there is no explicit scriptural support here for the contention that Mary had sinned by disbelief.
In either case, a basic understanding of the natural psychology of mothers toward their children sees in Luke 8:21 and parallel texts (Matthew 12:46; Mark 3:31) a mother's natural concern and anxiety over the reaction of Jesus' relatives. Many have supposed that His relatives on the several occasions mentioned in the Gospels had come to call Jesus apart from His followers and the crowd, in order to reason with Him and beg Him to cease embarrassing them and alarming the Roman authorities, and that Mary His mother in her worried concern about what they might be planning to do was only motivated by her anguish over their obvious doubts about Him. In this interpretation, Mary was alarmed by the belief of Οἱ παρʼ αὐτοῦ "those of him", who knew him, that her child was insane, and in her fear for Him she could not remain aloof and apart from them when they gathered to confront Him and "take charge of him / take him into custody" as a madman, to "protect him from himself". In this view, they were only causing her sorrow.

"Now on one of those days"

Luke 8:22a.
The same day as Mark 4:1 and 4:35
—"Again he began to teach beside the sea."
—"On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, 'Let us go across to the other side.' "

"some seeds fell by the roadside ... This is what was sown by the roadside."

Mark 4:5 and 16-17
Allusion to the Septuagint text, Sirach 40:15

"with him were the twelve" and "those who were around him with the twelve".

Luke 8:1 and Mark 4:10:
These texts indicate that the twelve were not yet sent out. Notice also that in the first instance, the twelve were told the meaning of the parable; in the second instance, the twelve did not ask the meaning (they had already been told) but "those who were around him with the twelve".
The redaction of these texts reveals a progression, first to the twelve, then to others gathered around Jesus together with his disciples. Each evangelist, Luke and Mark, related one of these two episodes, both containing the same teaching, each one fully representative of the message Jesus taught them.

"Jesus asked him, 'What is your name?' He asked him, 'What is your name?' "

Luke 8:30 and Mark 5:9.
This apparently unnecessary duplication retains the word "He" (asked him) in the parallel text (KJV / WEB). The RSVCE has the name of Jesus in both texts, Mark and Luke.
Throughout this Harmony of the Gospel the name of Jesus in one parallel text does not eliminate the personal pronoun "He" in another, and the name of Jesus immediately repeated more than once in a redaction of parallel texts is not replaced by the word "He" for the sake of avoiding an unpleasant repetitious experience for the English speaking reader-audience, but the Semitic pattern of poetic parallelism is used, so that the content of both texts is preserved. Here, the repetition also suggests the stubbornly rebellious resistance of the demons and the victim's hesitant reluctance to be rid of them due to their dominating influence on him.

"a discharge of blood for twelve years"

Mark 5:25
This "twelve years" is a common figure of speech of the time and not an exact count, equivalent to saying, "a dozen or more". It could be more dynamically interpreted and rendered simply as, "a woman who had suffered a discharge of blood for a long time" or "for a number of years".
When this "twelve years" is taken literalistically as an exact figure of precisely twelve years, no more and no less, and Mark 5:25 is seen as identical with Matthew 9:20 and Luke 8:43, and similarity of narrative is taken as proof that these three texts relate exactly the same episode, as if such an occurrence was absolutely unique and therefore could only have happened once, a chronological harmony of the accounts of the four Gospels which preserves unaltered the sequence of their narratives becomes impossible. When the expression "twelve years" is taken as the more probable, well-known cultural middle eastern expression of an imprecise or approximate figure of speech (the literal sense of scripture), together with the fact that it is not impossible that more than one woman at the time of Jesus' ministry suffered from a chronic discharge of blood, and was healed by touching him, the apparent problem of comparative internal textual inconsistency is resolved. "Similarity of narrative does not demonstrate or prove identity of event: just because it sounds the same does not mean it is the same." This principle allows the interpreter of the Gospel to compare the detailed differences in circumstance and see as distinctly different episodes the raising of the daughter of Jairus (an ἀρχισυναγώγων archisunagogon, a chief rabbi of the synagogue), and the raising of the daughter of a ruler (an ἄρχων archon, a civil magistrate), both of them "about twelve years of age" (Mark 5:1-43 and Luke 8:22-56; Matthew 8:28-9:26). Both of these episodes were circumstantially preceded by the healing of women who had each suffered a long time with a continuous discharge of blood and sought to touch him to be healed. If this parallel of incidents had happened in our time we would say that this was a "remarkable coincidence", and we would see no discrepancy in the fact that it happened that way. See also Mark 3:10, 6:56; Luke 6:19. As part of the proclamation of the Good News of Jesus Christ, it was only necessary that a single representative episode out of many be related in detail in the narrative account of any one of the Gospel writers. Matthew simply related one of them, and Mark and Luke separately each simply relate others; just as the similar narratives of the feeding of the 5,000 and the feeding of the 4,000 are related by Matthew (14:15-21; 15:32-38) and Mark (6:35-44; 8:1-9), but only the narrative of the feeding of the 5,000 is related in Luke (9:2-17) and John (6:5-13) with no mention of the feeding of the 4,000. See John 21:25

"This he said to test her, for he himself knew who had touched him."

This is an amplification of the text for clarification of meaning. Mark 5:30-34. Compare John 6:5-6 "This he said to test him...".
The scriptures consistently attest the fact that Jesus knew the interior thoughts and motivations of people, and that nothing was hidden from him even as a man. See John 1:47-51; 2:23-25; 6:64, 70-71; 13:11; 18:4; Matthew 9:4; 12:25; Mark 12:13-17; Luke 11:15-17. See also Acts 1:7 and 2 Corinthians 12:2-4.
Liberal theologians point biblical literalists to texts such as Luke 8:45-46 and Mark 13:32 and Matthew 24:36 to support their position that Jesus had only imperfect knowledge as a man, themselves inferring and then implying and suggesting that he could not in fact at the same time be God. This is an application of the logical fallacy of the loaded question. (The "Son" in Matthew 24:36 is properly understood as a reference to the whole community of Israel as God's "son" in accordance with Old Testament texts such as Exodus 4:22-23, and many Christian theologians also see in this a distinction between the Persons of the Blessed Trinity which does not deny the equal divinity of the Son with the Father.) They isolate these texts from the rest of the Bible and from Christian traditional doctrine, by emphasizing a literalistic reading of the text while ignoring the literal sense of scripture, and removing such texts from the context of the whole of the Christian revelation about Jesus in both the sacred scriptures and sacred tradition, which together say of him that he is "true God and true man" (Apostles' Creed, Nicene Creed, Council of Chalcedon, article "True God and True Man" (catholicity.com) ). This deliberate approach of liberal and atheistic biblical scholarship is aimed directly at a fundamental weakness of the Fundamentalist method of strict literalism in the reading of the Bible (Sola scriptura). It is a method which often inadvertently violates the warning in Revelation 22:18-19 by either adding to or taking away from the intentional meaning of the words of the Book by a literalistic reading of the text. The conservative textual critic can always respond by pointing out that the text (Mark 5:30) does not say that Jesus did not actually know who touched him; it says that he asked, "Who touched my garments?" (RSVCE). This is no different from a parent who, fully knowing what happened, and what the child has done, lovingly asks, "Who did this?", thus giving the child opportunity to honestly, humbly, and courageously testify to the truth of the matter.

"He called to himself his twelve disciples. He called the twelve together"

Matthew 10:1 and Luke 9:1
Matthew 10:1 does not mention Jesus' choosing of the Twelve from among the disciples after spending the night in prayer. Matthew simply says that he called or summoned the Twelve and empowered them for the mission he is sending them to perform.
The first verses of Matthew 10 should not be confused with the initial selection of the Twelve: verse 10:1 most closely parallels Luke 9:1-2 and Mark 6:7-8. The list of the names of the Twelve, whom he appointed before he gave the Sermon on the Plain in Luke, is consequently repeated in this redaction of the accounts of his sending them forth in Luke 9:1-6 and Mark 6:7-13. The writings of the New Testament were intended to be read aloud to an assembly of persons. It is not impossible in presenting doctrine to an audience to repeat for emphasis either verbally or in writing a significant or important fact already presented at the beginning, such as the names of the twelve.
In heeding the particular details of narrative, an additional distinction is noted between Luke's sending of the twelve [together] (Luke 9:1-2) and Mark's sending of the twelve "two by two" (Mark 6:7), which suggests to the more conservative textual critic a progression in the training of the Twelve. Note also the difference in sending them out without a staff in Luke 9:3 and the (later) exception that they are to take a staff in Mark 6:8. The conservative redactor sees in this difference an indication of two separate events.
The more liberal textual critics, assuming on principle that similarity of narrative demonstrates identity of event, see in such divergent details in apparently similar narratives a contradiction or "confusion" in relating the "same event". Their readings of the Four Gospels according to this principle a priori (from the first) allows them to represent the narrated events in the Gospels as poorly remembered anecdotal evidence, which they assert should consequently be regarded as unreliable, even "contradictory", and therefore "uncertain". See the following three sources refuting the academic opinion that the Gospels are myth:
For a Catholic discussion of why some scholars claim "the Gospel operates like a myth but is not fiction" see the following:
  • article in Strange Notions: The Digital Areopagus - Reason. Faith. Dialogue. "Are the Gospels a Myth?" by Fr. Dwight Longenecker. (He says they are not.) —"If “myth” means a made up story with no basis in history or fact, then 'no' the gospels are not myth."
Conservative textual critics assume a priori on principle that the scriptures are accurate and truthful, according to the apostolic tradition of the Church that their primary author is God the Holy Spirit "who cannot lie", and the Gospels are factual accounts provided by truthful, reliable eyewitnesses. They are guided according to the principle that apparent inconsistencies (as subjectively perceived by the reader) can be resolved by the possibility (the hypothesis) that differences in detail indicate different occasions, or separate events. It is an example of what is called elegance in science and mathematics, an elegant solution to an apparently difficult problem.
"Looking at the overall picture it becomes clear that elegant proofs or theories or experiments possess most or all of the following features: they are simple, ingenious, concise and persuasive; they often have an unexpected quality, and they are very satisfying. What is more, once one has understood the argument behind the proof or theory or experiment, it can be seen at a glance, and one has no doubts about its validity. " (Ian Glynn, author of Elegance in Science, the Beauty of Simplicity.)
It is a fundamental principle that any unwillingness on the part of researchers and scholars to entertain and consider all possible hypotheses is a violation of the scientific principle. This applies to biblical textual criticism, which includes the hypothesis of "the historical integrity, reliability and internal consistency of the testimony of the scriptures", an hypothesis that liberal agnostic and atheistic biblical textual critics reject on the assumption a priori that it is impossible. See Historical-critical method (Higher criticism) and Philosophical naturalism.

"but he who endures to the end will be saved"

Matthew 10:22.
This is a doctrine of conditional salvation. Whoever does not [choose to] endure to the end will not be saved. This contradicts the Calvinist doctrine of Unconditional eternal security.
Compare the seeds in the parable that fall on rocky soil, as those who actually receive the word, but when tribulation or persecution comes they fall away. Matthew 13:5-6, 20-21.
The New Testament has an abundant number of passages warning against the danger of falling away, and losing what has been freely given, joined to admonitions to remain faithful to the day of the coming of the Lord. See 2 Peter 3, in particular verse 3:17; also Hebrews 12:12-17; 6:4-8.
"Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise." Hebrews 10:35-36 (KJV).
"Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that you may do the will of God and receive what is promised." Hebrews 10:35-36 (RSVCE).
No one can throw away what they never had, but they can throw away what is given to them, and by freely choosing to do so forfeit the gift they had and the promise.

"Are not two sparrows sold for an assarion coin?"

Matthew 10:26
(Greek ἀσσαρίου assariou, assarion)
See Matthew 10:29 WEB text with this explanatory note:
"An assarion is a small coin worth one tenth of a drachma or a sixteenth of a denarius. An assarion is approximately the wages of one half hour of agricultural labor."
The Greek NT text of Matthew 10:29 is, "οὐχὶ δύο στρουθία ἀσσαρίου πωλεῖται; καὶ ἓν ἐξ αὐτῶν οὐ πεσεῖται ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν ἄνευ τοῦ πατρὸς ὑμῶν."

"Are you he who is to come, or shall we look for another?" RSV

Matthew 11:3
Matthew 11:2ff parallels Luke 7:18ff.
Compare Matthew 11:2-6; Luke 7:18-23. This indicates the most relevant position of Matthew 10:1–11:1, which immediately precedes an account of John's disciples coming to Jesus to ask if he is the one expected.
This Harmony of the Gospel represents John the Baptist twice sending his disciples to Jesus. In Luke, this episode follows the Sermon on the Plain, the healing of the centurion's slave, and the raising of the widow's son at Nain—before Jesus sends the twelve out to preach and to heal. In Matthew it is related immediately after Jesus had finished instructing his disciples and sent them out. The conservative redactor, seeing the distressing situation that John is in, understands that it is not impossible that John sent his disciples to Jesus twice, to ask for certainty. The second time Jesus reiterates his first response verbatim. The differences in what Jesus said to the crowds after John's disciples departed are suggestive of two separate episodes, as related by eyewitnesses who heard and remembered exactly what Jesus said each time. The Evangelists Matthew and Luke each related a single representative occasion—both present the same teaching. Mark and John were not prompted by the Holy Spirit to relate either one. Liberal textual critics reject the possibility that the witnesses could remember exactly word-for-word verbatim exactly what Jesus said after more than twenty years. This dismisses the powerful impact of Jesus' personal presence and the extraordinary and unforgettable impression his utterances made on the hearers. Compare John 7:46 KJV, "Never man spake like this man." In the Middle East from before the first century and even unto this day a retentive memory is highly valued and deliberately cultivated even among the common people. This fact alone supports the veracity of the testimony of the eyewitnesses who heard Jesus speak. Moreover, on the basis of all the historical evidence available to us, the contemporaries of the apostles and their disciples, those who opposed the Christians and their writings, do not deny that Jesus said the words attributed to him by the writers of the Gospels, they only reject them as the utterances of a false prophet—not as the creative invention of the writers' imaginations.

"I desire mercy, and not sacrifice"

Matthew 12:7
Matthew quotes the Septuagint text, Hosea 6:6.

"Behold, my servant whom I have chosen ... In his name, the nations will hope." WEB

Matthew 12:18-21
Matthew 12:21 quotes the Septuagint text, Isaiah 42:4.
Hebrew for "the [pagan] nations" is "the Gentiles"—"In his name the Gentiles will hope." (LXX)
However, the Hebrew text of Isaiah 42:4 reads, (KJV) "and the isles shall wait for his law."—(RSVCE) "and the coastlands wait for his law."
It is clearly and plainly evident that Matthew is not quoting from the Hebrew Old Testament, but from the LXX Greek.

"whoever may blaspheme against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness"

Matthew 12:31
—(and again in Luke 12:10 "but those who blaspheme against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven"—Chapter Twenty-one).
This is The unforgivable sin (against the Holy Spirit).
Jesus clearly and emphatically states that the one unforgivable sin is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.
Many published commentaries discuss, debate and speculate with uncertainty what exactly is meant by the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, or what it could possibly mean. The text of Mark 3:30 plainly says that it is the sin of saying or declaring that the Holy Spirit is unclean, that is, that the Holy Spirit is a defiling evil spirit—"for they had said, 'He has an unclean spirit' ". This is blasphemy. According to a literalistic reading of this text the words themselves are enough:
"For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." Matthew 12:37.
"The good man out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil man out of his evil treasure produces evil; for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks" Luke 6:45.
Many others affirm against the literalistic reading of these texts that the words alone do not condemn the speaker but that the words said together with intent, that is, said with conviction and certainty as a serious charge about the very Spirit that is empowering and performing the works, do condemn. Those who simply say or mouth the words are not condemned, but those who mean what they say against the Holy Spirit—as the Soul of the whole Christian community animating the works of goodness and holiness and sanctification in changing lives—will never be forgiven this sin.
See multiple commentaries on Matthew 12:31 and 32
See The Devil's Fraud, Lies, and Deception, Martin Luther (angelfire.com) The lying deceit of Catholic miracles and healings as false support of Catholicism.
Luther maintains in this writing that even if the miracles prove to be real, the fact that they are offered as proof that Catholicism is true (as in Acts 4:30 and Mark 16:17-18), is proof rather that such miracles are performed by the Devil. See Intercession of the saints.
Compare the following texts:

"she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon"

Matthew 12:42
An allusion to the Septuagint text, The Wisdom of Solomon.

"because seeing they do not see, and hearing, they do not hear, neither do they understand. ... else they might perceive with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and would turn again; and I would heal them."

Matthew 13:13 and 15
Matthew quotes the Septuagint text, Isaiah 6:10.

"having found one pearl of great price"

Matthew 13:46
Allegorically, the "one pearl of great price" is Christ Himself, the Gospel of Christ, the true Faith (latin: santa Fe, "holy Faith"): "I am not ashamed of the gospel: it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who has faith" (Romans 1:16; 2:6-10). He is the "narrow gate" (Matthew 7:13-14; John 10:1-16). We too have been purchased at a price, the precious blood of Christ (1 Corinthians 6:20; 7:23; 1 Peter 1:7, 19; 2:4-10; 3:3-4).
Compare Revelation 21:21 "And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl". Alternatively, "the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made from one pearl"—a single pearl, the pearl of great price.
The follower of Christ must always be ready instantly to renounce title to everything and give all effort and dedication to serving Him alone, helping those in need (1 John 3:14-18), and honoring all who represent Him in holiness as His servants and members of His Body in the Kingdom of God the Father by and through the power of God the Holy Spirit (Matthew 10:41-42; 25:34-46; Ephesians 2:10). This is the pearl of great price, worth all that we have and all that we are. "He went and sold all that he had and bought it."
See Mark 8:34-38.

"two by two"—"except a staff"—"wear sandals"—"anointed with oil"

Mark 6:7-13
These details indicate that Mark 6:6b-13 differs from Luke 9:1-5. Luke does not say that he sent them out two by two but most explicitly does say, "no staff". Luke also does not specify that they were to wear sandals, and does not say that they anointed the sick with oil, but Mark's account does.
Some commentators see in Mark 6:13 either the Christian sacrament of Anointing of the Sick with oil as in James 5:14-16 —because of the authority Jesus himself had given to his apostles in sending them out to preach and heal in his name— or they see it as a prefigurement.
See multiple commentaries on Mark 6:13 and James 5:14.
Compare the differences between these commentaries and actual official Roman Catholic doctrinal teaching in the following
Catechism of the Catholic Church: Seven Sacraments: Article 5 Anointing of the sick.
See also the following sites for actual Eastern Orthodox and Russian Orthodox teaching
Orthodox Church in America (OCA): Volume II - Worship: The Sacraments: Holy Unction
Russian Orthodox Church in Great Britain and Ireland: Diocese of Sourozh: Patriarchate of Moscow: Orthodox Faith Texts: Anointing with Oil
See also:
Anointing of the Sick brings spiritual, sometimes physical healing, by Joyce Coromel (catholicsun.org)
When does anointing of the sick cause physical healing? (newtheologicalmovement.blogspot)
Cessationism is the doctrine that the miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit ceased with the passing of the Twelve Apostles.
Continuationism or non-cessationism is the doctrine that the gifts of the Holy Spirit have continued and will continue until the Parousia.
See the following articles:
Questions Cessationists Should Ask: A Biblical Examination of Cessationism, Lecture edited by Greg Herrick, Ph.D. (bible.org) Excellent balanced discussion of both positions by a Protestant Bible scholar.
Charismata - Catholic Encyclopedia (newadvent.org) Condensed complete discussion of the purpose of the gifts of the Holy Spirit then and now

Some cessationists unhesitatingly maintain, as Luther did, that every claim of evidence of miraculous healings after the time of the apostles is not evidence of the active presence of the truth of pure Christian doctrine in operation and the work of Christ, but is proof of Satanic deception and diabolical activity designed to lead astray the ignorant into superstition and idolatry against the simple purity of the Gospel of salvation.
Some continuationists unhesitatingly maintain that rejection of the evidence of miracles of healing and of restoring the dead to life and health is a blasphemous rejection of the obvious work of the Holy Spirit, and the active presence of demonic heresy operating in opposition to the Bible and to the Church as the temple of the Holy Spirit, as the Pharisees rejected Jesus' miracles as evidence that He rejected Moses and was in league with Satan.
Every Christian student is obliged in all honesty and truth to check the accuracy of any negative statement made by representatives of any religion or denomination, especially any made by one's own, about the teachings and doctrine of another religion or denomination, by seeking out authentic sources of information published by the other religion or denomination which officially state what they actually teach and believe and their reasoning, rather than relying solely on what some writers and commentators outside of those communities say they teach and believe. Some commentaries about other religions or denominations make false statements (see Libel and Polemic, also Appeal to personal interest).
Compare Romans 14:10-12; Matthew 15:14; Revelation 22:11-12; 1 Peter 3:13-17.
The same principle applies to claims made about the accuracy or inaccuracy of any translation of the Bible. See

Compare the Conservative Bible text (conservapedia.com):

As was His habit, Jesus left for the mountain to pray, and continuing praying all night to God. And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples:

So Jesus went up onto a hill,

He then walked up a mountain, calling whomever He wanted to follow him, and they did.

and there He sat down with His disciples.

The next day, He gathered his disciples, and chose twelve of them whom he called apostles. Simon (whom Jesus named Peter) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon who was known as the Zealot, Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, who later was to betray Jesus.

He appointed twelve men as Apostles, to be with him, so he could send them to preach to the world, and to have the authority to throw demons out of people. Jesus gave the surname of Peter to Simon. He also appointed James and his brother John, the sons of Zebedee, and called them "Boanerges," which means "The Sons of Thunder": His other appointees were Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, and Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who was to betray Jesus:

He descended the mountain and reached a plateau with them and many others from Judaea and Jerusalem, and Tyre and Sidon along the coast, who came to learn and be cured by Him. Those who were possessed were freed from the Devil. Crowds sought merely to touch Him in order to receive His healing power.

Focusing on his disciples, Jesus said, "Blessed are the powerless, for yours is the paradise of God. Blessed are you who earnestly try, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who mourn, for you shall rejoice. Blessed are you when men hate you, ostracize you, humiliate you, and smear your name, for the Son of man's sake. Rejoice all day and jump for joy because you will have great reward in heaven; people mistreated the prophets the same way.

But grief to the idle rich! You've enjoyed all there is for you. Grief to you who are content! You shall be unsatisfied. Grief to you who party now! You shall mourn and weep. Grief to you, when all men praise you now! Their fathers did likewise for the false prophets.

I tell all who hear, Love your enemies, and be kind to those who hate you, bless those who call you names, and pray for those who insult you. He who slaps you on one cheek, offer him also your other; he who takes your coat, do not deny him your shirt too. Give to every man who asks of you; and of he who takes your things, do not ask for them back.

It is more blessed to give than to receive.

As you hope others do to you, do likewise to them. For if you love those who love you, where is the good? Sinners also love those who love them. And if you merely help those who help you, where is the good in that? For sinners do likewise. If you share with others merely to obtain something back, where's the charity? Sinners also lend to sinners to obtain profits. Instead love the outcasts, do God's work, and be charitable, and you shall obtain a great reward, and become sons of God, because He is kind even to the ungrateful and the downtrodden. Thus you should be merciful, as your Father is merciful.

Judge not, and you shall not be judged; blame not, and you shall not be blamed; forgive, and you shall be forgiven. Give, and such shall be given you, in full measure, combined, and shaken together, overflowing, shall pour out for your possession. With the same standard that you use shall it be measured for you.

He told them a parable: "Can the blind lead the blind? Will not both fall into a pit? No student ranks above his teacher, but with training can become like his teacher. Why do you focus on the triviality about your brother's approach, while overlooking the serious flaw in your own? How can you tell your friend, 'Sir, let me correct your trivial flaw, when you do not focus on your bigger problem? You deceiver, fix your own problem and then you'll be able to focus better on correcting your friend.

A good tree does not yield bad fruit, nor does a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree is known by its own fruit. Men do not gather figs from thorns, or obtain grapes from a bramble bush.

A good man brings forth out of the treasure of his heart what is good; an evil man brings forth from his evil treasure what is evil, because his mouth speaks from the overflowing of his heart. Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord, yet not do as I say?' Whoever comes to me, hears my words, and takes them to heart, I will tell you whom he is like: He is like a man who built a house by digging deep and laying its foundation on a rock. When the floods came, the waters beat violently against that house, but could not shake it, because it was grounded in rock. But he who hears, and does not take to hear, is like a man who built a house without in soil without a foundation, against which the flood waters beat violently and knocked it down, to the great ruin of the house."

After Jesus completed his sermon to the people, He entered Capernaum.

and they all entered a house

A Roman army captain's beloved aide-de-camp was sick and near death. Upon hearing of Jesus, the soldier sent Jewish leaders to beg Him to come and heal his servant. They reached Jesus and pleaded with Him urgently, "This man deserves Your help. For he loves our people, and built a synagogue for us."

Jesus complied. When He approached the home, the captain sent friends out to Him to say, "Lord, don't bother yourself, for I am not worthy for You to enter my home. I am not even worthy to greet You. But issue the command, and my assistant shall be healed. I also have power, over my soldiers, and can tell one, 'Go,' and he goes; and tell another, 'Come', and he comes; and order my soldier, 'Do this,' and he does it."

Upon hearing this, Jesus was amazed, and turned around to tell those following Him, "Let me say this, I have not found such great faith not even in Israel!"

And when the captain's soldiers returned to the home, they found the ill servant cured. Before long Jesus reached the town of Nain, with his disciples and others tagging along. But upon reaching the city gate He encountered a funeral procession for the only son of a widow, and many townsmen accompanied her. The Lord was stuck with pity upon seeing her, and exclaimed, "Weep no more!"

Jesus approached and touched the coffin, and the pall-bearers stopped in their tracks. Jesus said, "Young man, I order you, Get up!" With that he sat up, and began speaking. Jesus then turned him over to his mother. The crowd was overwhelmed with reverence, and glorified God by saying, "A great prophet is among us" and "God looks after His people."

Publicity about Jesus spread throughout Judaea and its surrounding region.

Meanwhile, John's disciples reported these wonders to him. John told two of his disciples to find and ask Jesus, "Are You the awaited One? Or should we seek another?"

When they reached Jesus, they said, "John the Baptist sent us to you to ask, 'Are You the Promised One? Or should we keep looking for another?'"

At the same time Jesus cured many of handicaps and diseases, and exorcised the devil; He also restored sight to many who were blind. Jesus replied to them, "Carry on, and tell John what you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, and the dead rise to life, and the gospel is taught to the powerless. Blessed is anyone who does not interfere with my word."

When John's messengers left, Jesus taught the people about him, "What did you go into the desert to see? A staff broken by the elements? But what did you see when you got there? A man with fine clothes? Those who wear fine cloths and live delicately are in the courts of kings. So what did you see then? A prophet? Yes, but you saw more than a prophet. This is the man about whom it was written, 'Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who shall prepare the way before you.' I say to you, 'No child of a woman is a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but the least man in the kingdom of God is greater than he.'"

All the people that heard him, even the tax collectors, realized the justice of God and were baptized by John. But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the purpose God had set for them, and were not baptized. The Lord said, "What shall I compare the men of this generation to, what are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace, saying to each other, "I played happy music for you and you didn't dance; we played sad music for you, and you didn't weep. For John the Baptist came, neither eating bread or drinking wine, and you said, 'He is possessed.' But now the Son of man has come, eating and drinking, and you say, 'He is a gluttonous man, and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.' The fruits of wisdom are enough to prove it is right."

One of the Pharisees desired that Jesus should eat with him. So he went into the Pharisee's house, and sat down to eat meat. A prostitute from the city heard Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, and so brought an alabaster box of ointment, and kneeled before him, weeping, and began to wash his feet with her tears, and wiping them with her hair, and kissed his feet, and anointet them with the ointment. When the Pharisee saw this, he thought to himself, "If this man were a prophet, surely he would have known what kind of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner."

Jesus knew what he was thinking, and said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you."

And he said, "Say it, then."

Jesus said, "There was a creditor who had to debtors: one who owed five hundred dollars, and the other only fifty. But neither of them could pay, and so he forgave both their debts. So tell me, who will love the creditor more?"

Simon answered, "I suppose the man who had the larger debt, which was forgiven, will love him more."

And Jesus said to him, "That's right."

Jesus turned to the woman, and said to Simon, "See this woman? I came to your house, and you didn't give me any water for my feet; but she washed my feet with her tears, and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but this woman hasn't stopped kissing my feet since I came in. You didn't anoint my head with oil, but this woman anointed my feet with ointment. Which is why I say now, her many sins are forgiven, for she loves me a great deal; but as you have loved me only a little, you have only been forgiven a little."

He then told her, "Your sins are forgiven."

Those with Him wondered to each other, "Who is this who forgives sins also?"

He told the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go with peace of mind."

And Jesus then traveled through many cities and villages with His twelve best students, preaching the good news of the Kingdom of God. Also with Him were several women He had sent The Devil out of and healed: Mary Magdalene, from whom He had expelled seven devils, and Joanna, who was the wife of Chuza (a man who managed Herod’s affairs), and Susanna, and several others.

And when a crowd of many people from the cities came to hear Him, He told them this parable: "A man went out to plant his crops, and he threw the seeds onto the field. Some of the seeds fell on the edge of the field: this was stepped on and eaten by birds. Some seeds landed on rocks, and so the shoots withered from lack of water. Some seeds landed in patches of weeds, which grew with the crops until the weeds choked the plants. But the rest of the seeds landed on fertile ground, and grew well, providing a harvest of one hundred times more than the farmer had planted. And when Jesus said this, He said: If you have ears, listen!"

The students of Jesus asked Him to explain the parable to them.

"You disciples already know all about the Kingdom of God, but to these other people I tell parables so they might understand better.

”The parable means this: The seed is the Truth of The Lord. The seeds on the edge of the field are the people who hear the Truth, but The Devil comes and stops them believing, to stop them from being saved. The seeds on the rock represent those people who, having heard the Truth, are happy, but do not let the faith become established. And so they only believe for a little while, and when they are tested they lose faith. The seeds that tried to grow in the weeds are the people who heard the Truth, but were distracted by the everyday trivia of life and self-indulgence. But the seeds that fell on the fertile ground are the honest and moral people who hear and constantly remember the Truth, and so these people persevere, and achieve their potential. No man lights a candle and hides the flame by covering it with a pot or putting it under a bed. Instead, he puts it on a candlestick, so that people can see the light. For there is nothing secret that will not be revealed, and nothing hidden that will not be seen. Therefore, listen carefully to me: whoever has this will have it given to him, and whoever does not will have whatever he seems to have taken away."

Then the mother of Jesus, and His brothers, came looking for Him, but they could not get through the crowd.

And someone told Him, “Your mother and brothers are outside, waiting to see you”

And He answered, saying, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the Truth of the Lord, and obey”

But the crowd pressed upon them so much that they could not even eat. When Jesus's own family heard of this, they went to rescue him, saying, "He is out of his mind."

Some scribes from Jerusalem came also, smearing Jesus by saying "He has Beelzebub and throws out demons by calling on the leader of demons!"

But Jesus called them together and taught in parables, and asked "How can Satan cast out Satan? A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand. Nor can a house divided against itself stand. So if Satan were divided against himself, he could not stand, and would perish. No one can break into a well-armed man's house to destroy his property, unless he first tie the man down. Only then can he damage his home. I tell you: all the sons of men will be forgiven their sins and their blasphemies, whatever they might be: but any man who blasphemes against the Divine Guide will never be forgiven, but risks eternal damnation."

This Jesus told them because they lied, "He has an evil spirit."

His mother and his brothers, who were standing outside, asked to see him. The crowd around Jesus said to him, "Your mother and brothers are outside, looking for you."

To which he responded, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"

Then, looking around at the gathered crowed, he said, "You are My mother and My brothers! Whoever does what God wants, qualifies as My brother, sister or mother."

Jesus returned to teaching again on the seashore, but the crowd was so overwhelming that he turned a boat into a makeshift pulpit while the people pressed to the shoreline. He taught them many things, using parables.

During one of His lessons, He said, "Listen. A farmer went out to sow a crop. As he sowed, some seed was scattered on the path, and birds came and ate it up. Some fell on stony ground, which lacked deep soil. It grew quickly, but once the sun was out, it was scorched and withered away, as its roots were too shallow. Some was scattered among weeds, which choked it, and it didn't produce fruit. But some seed fell upon good soil and produced a great deal of fruit, thirty, sixty, even one-hundred times the original investment."

Then Jesus said to them, "let any man who has ears hear."

Privately a few along with the twelve Apostles asked Jesus about the parable.

He said to them, "You have been granted insight into the secrets of the Kingdom of God, but to others these things are done in parables, that they may see but not perceive and hear but not understand; otherwise they might convert, and then their sins would be forgiven."

Then He asked them, "Don't you understand this parable? If not, how will you understand any other parables?

"The farmer plants the Truth. As for the people who are on the roadside, where the seeds are scattered, Satan comes as soon they have heard the truth, and takes it from their hearts. Likewise with those planted on the stony ground: when they hear the Truth, they receive It with joy, but they have little deep-down understanding of It, so they endure in the Truth only briefly. Afterward, when they must face oppression persecution for the sake of the Truth, all at once they have doubts about It. Then there are those planted among the thorns. They hear the word, but because of worldly concerns, the deceit of wealth, and other desires, the Truth is suffocated and cannot bear fruit. Finally are those planted in good ground. They hear the Truth, accept It, and produce good fruit in their turn, sometimes thirty, sixty, or even one hundred times more."

Then he asked them, "Do we light candles only to hide them under a bushel basket or a bed, rather than to place them on candlesticks? Nothing is hidden which will not be brought to light. Likewise any secret kept will soon become known. If a man is willing to listen, let him hear the Truth."

Then he said to them, "Be careful of what you listen to. Whichever measure you apply, you shall be measured accordingly, and those of you who listen will be given more. He who has will be given, while he doesn't will see that little which he has taken from him. The kingdom of God is the same way. If someone sows seed on the ground, and goes to sleep and waits several days, plants will spring from the seeds, though he doesn't know how. Because it is the earth that brings forth the fruit: first a blade, then an ear of corn, then the corn itself. And when the fruit has been produced, he brings out the sickle and harvests his produce."

Then he said, "What will we say God's kingdom is like? What sort of metaphor will we use? It's like a single mustard seed, which is smaller than all other seeds on earth when placed in the ground, but once planted, it grows larger than all the other herbs and grows large branches, so the birds can shelter under its shadow."

He used many parables like this one to preach God's word in a way that they could understand. But He never used parables when speaking to His own men. He explained everything to His own students.

Now one day, Jesus and his best students got into a boat, and He said, “Let us sail to the other side of this lake.”

Later that day, around sunset, He said to them: "Let's cross over to the opposite shore."

They dismissed the crowd, and then cast off in the boat where Jesus had been preaching, with Jesus still on board.

So they launched the boat and set sail.

Some other boats also went with them.

But as they sailed, Jesus fell asleep, and a gale blew up,

Suddenly a fierce storm came, with strong winds. Waves started to break over the boat, so that it began to fill with water.

which filled the boat with water, putting it in danger of sinking.

Jesus was sleeping on a cushion in the stern of the boat. They woke him saying, "Master, don't you care that we'll capsize and drown?"

And His students awoke Jesus, saying, “Teacher, we will drown”. Then He stood up and rebuked the wind and the waves, so that the wind stopped blowing and the waves calmed.

He got up and chided the wind, and said to the sea: "Silence, be still!" The wind then stopped, and there was complete calm. He asked them, "Why are you so afraid? Why haven't you any faith?"

And Jesus said to his students, “Where is your faith?”

Filled with awe, they asked each other: "What kind of Man is He, such that even the wind and sea obey Him?

And they were in awe of this, and said to each other, “What kind of man is this? When He commands the winds and the waves, they obey!”

They reached the other side of the lake, which was in the region where the Gadarenes lived.

And so they arrived in the country of the Gadarenes, which borders on Galilee.

As Jesus disembarked the boat, he was immediately confronted by a possessed man,

And when Jesus stepped onto the land, He was met by a man from the city, who had been possessed by devils for a long time, and had no clothes, and lived in the graveyard rather than in a house.

who was homeless and slept in a cemetery; no man had the strength to restrain him, not even with chains: Many times, he had been restrained by leg irons and chains, but he had thrown off the chains and broken the leg irons to pieces. No man could control him.

because the man had been possessed so often that he was kept restrained with chains, but when possessed, he would break the chains, and The Devil would drive him out into the wilderness.)

Day and night he roamed the mountains and tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones. But when he glimpsed Jesus at a distance,

When he saw Jesus,

he ran up to Him and fell down at His feet.

(For Jesus had ordered The Devil to come out of the man,

Because Jesus had proclaimed, "Get out of that man, evil spirit."

he fell down in front of him,

He cried out loudly, "What business do I have with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you in God's name not to torment me."

crying in a loud voice, “What have I go to do with you, Jesus the Son of God? I beg you not to hurt me.”

Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" He answered, "My name is 'Legion', because we are many."

And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion” because he was possessed by many devils.

He begged Jesus not to expel him from the region.

And the devils begged Him not to send them to Hell.

Near the mountains where they were, a large herd of pigs was feeding.

And there was a herd of pigs feeding on the mountain, and the devils begged Jesus to permit them to enter the pigs,

The demons all begged Jesus, "Send us to the pigs, so that we may possess them."

and He gave them permission to do so.

Jesus then granted the demons the permission they sought. The demons left the man and possessed the pigs, and the herd ran violently down a steep embankment to drown in the sea, all two thousand of them.

Then all of the devils left the man and possessed the pigs, and the herd of pigs jumped off a cliff, falling into the lake and drowning. When the pig farmers saw what Jesus had done, they ran away, and went and told the story in the city, and throughout the country.

Those in charge of the pigs fled and told everyone in the town and countryside. People then went to see for themselves what had happened.

So then the inhabitants of the city went out to see what had happened, and when they found Jesus, the man from whom He had expelled the devils was sitting at His feet, properly dressed and sane, and the people were afraid.

They saw Jesus and the man formerly possessed, who was in his right mind and sitting peacefully, fully dressed; the people became afraid upon seeing him.

The eyewitnesses told the people how Jesus had healed the possessed man.

Witnesses to the episode described for the people what had happened to the possessed man, and about the pigs. The terrified people began to plead that Jesus leave their area.

Then the crowd gathered from the region nearby begged Jesus to leave, because they were afraid of Him, so He got back into the ship and

The man from whom Jesus had expelled the devils asked if he could follow Him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, ”Return to your own house and show the amazing things the Lord has done to you.” And the man went away and reported to the whole city what Jesus had done to him.

When Jesus got back aboard His boat, the man who had been possessed begged Jesus to let him join His company. Instead, Jesus told him, "Return home to your friends, and tell them how the Lord has done wonders for you with compassion."

So the man left and began speaking publicly in Decapolis about Jesus's great works for him, and everyone who heard the story was very much amazed.

Now when Jesus returned,

returned across the lake.

the people were waiting for him, and welcomed him.

A huge crowd was awaiting Jesus on the opposite coast as he crossed by boat, so He stayed on the seashore.

One of the leaders of the synagogue, named Jairus, joined the crowd.

Then a man called Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue, came and knelt before Jesus,

When he saw Jesus, he threw himself at His feet,

and asked Him to come to his house because his only daughter, about twelve years old, was dying.

and begged Him urgently, saying "My little daughter is dying. Please come and put Your hands on her, so that she will be healed; and then she will live."

Jesus accompanied him; many people followed Jesus, pressing Him on all sides.

But as Jesus went with him, the crowds of people impeded his progress. And a women in the crowd had been suffering from a blood disorder for twelve years, and had spent all her money on doctors, but they could not heal her,

One woman who had suffered from hemorrhages for twelve years, and had suffered further from mistreatments by doctors, having spent all she had on them without any improvement; her condition even worsened. When she heard about Jesus she crowded behind Him and touched his clothes,

came up behind Him, and touched the hem of His coat,

Because as she had said, "If I can just touch His clothes, I will be made well."

and immediately was healed.

Instantly the hemorrhages ceased, and she felt cured of her illness. Jesus immediately realized that power had discharged from him, and turned to the pressing crowd to say, "Who touched my clothes?"

His students replied, "You see the huge crowd pressing against you, and yet you ask, 'Who touched me'"?

And Jesus said, “Who touched me?”

Everyone denied it, and Peter said “Teacher, the crowd is thick, and presses against you, and you ask, ‘Who touched me?’”

And Jesus replied, “Someone has touched me, because I have noticed that virtue has gone out of me.

Jesus turned and scanned the crowd to find her. But the terrified, trembling woman, aware of the miracle,

And when the women saw Jesus had noticed, she

came and bowed at Jesus's feet,

fell down at His feet, trembling, and said in front of the whole crowd that she had touched Him and had been healed.

and told him the entire truth. Jesus said to her: "Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go with peace of mind, and live a life free from that terrible disease."

And Jesus said to her, “Daughter, do not be afraid, your faith has healed you, go in peace.”

While Jesus was speaking, people told the synagogue leader, "Your daughter has died. Why bother this teacher any more?"

And while he spoke, someone came from the house of Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue, saying, “Your daughter is dead, don’t bother the Teacher.”

But Jesus heard, and answered, “Do not worry, have faith, and she will be healed”

But as soon as Jesus heard about this, he said to the father, "Don't be afraid; only believe."

Jesus then allowed no one to follow Him, except Peter, James, and James' brother John.

He came to the synagogue leader's home, and saw the mourning, and all those who wept and cried enormously.

And when He arrived at the house, he did not allow anyone to enter, except Peter, James, John and the parents of the girl. Outside, the crowd were mourning for the girl, but Jesus said, “She is not dead, but sleeping.”

And they mocked Him, knowing that the girl had died.

When Jesus entered the house, he said to them, "What is the reason for all this uproar and crying? The girl is not dead - she's just asleep!"

They laughed and ridiculed him. But after he evicted them all, he took the girl's mother and father with Him and His three students to where she was lying,

But He took the girl by her hand, and said, “Girl, get up.”

and taking her by the hand, said, "talitha cumi", which means "girl, I tell you to rise."

And her soul re-entered her, and she got up immediately,

Immediately the 12-year-old girl got up and walked. The onlookers were positively astounded.

and Jesus ordered them to give her meat to eat.

Jesus gave them strict orders not to tell anyone what had happened, and then commanded that the girl should be given something to eat.

And her parents were amazed, but Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone what He had done.

Then Jesus called his Apostles together,

And when He had summoned His twelve students,

and gave them the power and authority

He gave them authority over unclean spirits,

over demons

so that they could throw them out of a person, and to cure diseases.

to heal every kind of chronic illness and every kind of germ.

He sent them to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. He said to them, “Take nothing on your travels, not a staff, no bag, no food, no money or a spare coat. And whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town. If the people will not let you stay, when you leave the city, shake the dust off your feet as evidence.”


Now the names of the twelve Apostles are as follows:
1. Simon, called Peter
2. Andrew, his brother
3. James son of Zebedee
4. John, his brother
5. Philip
6. Bartholomew
7. Thomas
8. Matthew the tax gatherer
9. James son of Alpheus
10. Thaddeus
11. Simon the Canaanite
12. Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Him later on.

Jesus sent these Twelve out with this instruction: "Do not take the road leading to the Gentiles, nor enter into any Samaritan town. Instead, go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, 'The Kingdom of heaven is near.'

"Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, throw out demons. You have received freely, so give freely.

"Do not provide either gold, silver, or bronze in your money belts, nor paper money for your journey, nor two coats, nor shoes, nor even walking sticks. The workman earns his wages.

"Into any city or village that you enter, inquire who in it is deserving, and stay with that person until you leave that place.

"When you come into a house, greet it properly. And if the house is a deserving house, let your peace come on it, but if it doesn't deserve it, then let your peace come back to you. And whoever refuses to receive you or hear your words, when you walk out of that house or city, shake the dust off your feet. I tell you truly: it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the Day of the Trial, than for that city.

"I am sending you out like sheep in the middle of a pack of wolves. So be as cunning as snakes and as innocent as doves.

"And watch out for the people. They are likely to hand you over to the Sanhedrin and have you scourged in their synagogues; and you will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, for a testimony against them and against the Gentiles. But when they so arraign you, don't worry about how or what to say. In that very moment it will be given you what to say. Because it won't be you doing the speaking, but the Guide (Spirit) from your Father speaking from within you.

"Brother shall turn in brother for execution, and father will turn in child, and children will rise up against their parents and have them executed. And you will be hated by all men on account of My Name. But whoever endures to the end will be saved.

"But when people persecute you in one city, flee to another city. I tell you truly: you will not have finished visiting all the cities in Israel until the Son, a human being, has come.

"The student is not above his teacher, nor the slave above his lord. It is enough that the student be like his teacher, and the slave like his lord. If they have called the master of the house the Lord of the Flies, how much more will they call the members of the household? So don't be afraid of them. Nothing is covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in darkness, speak in the light, and what you hear in the ear, shout from the housetops. And don't be afraid of those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the One Who can destroy both body and soul in hell. Aren't two sparrows sold for a penny? And neither one will fall to the ground without your Father knowing about it. In fact the very hairs on your head are all counted. So don't be afraid; you are more valuable than many sparrows.

"So every person who speaks out about Me in front of men, I will also speak out about in front of My Father in heaven. But if anyone denies me before men, I will deny him before My Father in heaven.

"Don't think that I came to send peace on earth. I did not come to send peace, but a sword. I came to set 'man against father, and daughter against mother, and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. 'And a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.'

"A man who loves father or mother more than Me doesn't deserve Me, and a man who loves son or daughter more than Me doesn't deserve Me. And whoever will not take his cross, and follow after Me, doesn't deserve Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

"The one that receives you, receives Me, and the one who receives Me, receives Him Who sent Me.

"One who receives a prophet in a prophet's name will receive a prophet's reward, and one who receives a just man in a just man's name will receive a just man's reward. And whoever gives one of these little ones a cup of cold water to drink, even if only in the name of a student (of Mine), I tell you truly: he will not lose his reward under any circumstances."

And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished giving His orders to His twelve prize students, He left that place in order to teach and preach in their cities.

So they departed, going through all the towns, spreading the good news and healing everywhere.

Now when John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about the works of Christ, he sent a message to Christ, carried by his own students. The message asked: "Are you the one we were led to expect to come, or shall we wait for someone else?"

In answer, Jesus told John's messengers, "Go and show John again what you can hear and see: The blind see again, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the Good News preached to them. And anyone who does not have doubts about Me will be blessed."

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? And as they were leaving, Jesus began to say to the crowds about John, "What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed shaken in the wind?

"And what did you go out to see? A man wearing soft clothes? You'll find people wearing soft clothes in kings' houses.

"And what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one of whom Scripture says, 'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, and he will prepare Your road before You.' I tell you truly: Among those who are born from women, there has never been a greater man than John the Baptist, even though the least person in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers from violence, and the violent people snatch it by force. Because all the prophets and the law used to prophesy until John came. And if you are willing to take it, this is Elijah, who said he'd come back.

"Let anyone hear if he has ears to hear.

"But to what shall I compare this generation? It's like several children sitting in the public squares, and calling to their fellows, and saying, 'We have blown the pipes for you, and you did not dance, and we have mourned to you, and you have not lamented.' Because John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He's demon-possessed.' The Son, a human being, came eating and drinking, and they say, 'He's a glutton and a wine drinker, and a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners.' But wisdom is justified by her works."

Then He started denouncing the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because the people in those cities never changed their hearts and minds: "It will go horribly for you, Chorazin! And you, Bethsaida! If the mighty works that were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have changed their hearts long ago and put on sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you that it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the Day of Trial, than for you.

"And you, Capernaum, that are exalted to the sky, will be brought down to the underworld! If the mighty works that have been done in you had been done in Sodom, that city would still be standing. But I tell you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the Day of Trial than for you."

In that time Jesus said in answer, "Father, I thank You, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the sophisticated and clever, and have revealed them to the uneducated. Yes, Father, because it seemed good in Your estimation.

"All things are delivered to Me by My Father, and no man knows the Son except the Father, and neither does any man know the Father, except the Son, and the one to whom the Son will reveal Him.

"Come to Me, all of you who work hard and carry a heavy load. I will give you rest. Take My yoke on yourself, and learn from Me. I am gentle and humble in heart. And you will find rest for your souls. My yoke is easy to carry, and My load is light."

At that time Jesus went through a cornfield on a Sabbath day. His students were hungry and started to pull out ears of corn from the stalks and eat them. And when the Pharisees saw them doing this, they told him, "Stop! Your students are doing things that are against Sabbath regulations!"

But He told them, "Haven't you read what David did, when he was hungry, and so were those who were with him, how he went into the Tabernacle and ate showbread, which was not proper for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? Or haven't you read in the law, that on Sabbath days the priests in the Temple usually do things that desecrate the Sabbath and are held harmless for it? But I am telling you that right here you have Someone greater than the Temple. But if you had known what 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice' means, you wouldn't have condemned someone who had done nothing wrong. Because the Son, a human being, is Lord even of the Sabbath."

And when He had left that place, He went into their synagogue. A man was present who had a withered hand. And they asked Him a question, "Is it lawful to heal on Sabbath days?" so that they might accuse him.

And He told them, "Is there anyone among you who, if he has one sheep, and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath day, will not take hold of it and lift it out? So how much better is a man than a sheep? Therefore it is lawful to behave well on Sabbath days."

Then He told the man, "Hold out your hand."

And he held it out, and it was restored and made well, like the other hand.

Then the Pharisees left, and held a council against Him, to determine how to destroy Him. And when Jesus knew about that, He left that place, and great crowds followed Him, and He healed them all, and gave them orders not to make Him famous in any way, so that this might be fulfilled, spoken by Isaiah, who said, "Look at My Servant, Whom I have chosen, My Beloved, in Whom My Soul is well pleased. I will put My Spirit on Him, and He will show judgment to the nations. He will not struggle, nor cry, and neither will any man hear His voice in the streets. He will not break even a bruised reed, and will not quench smoking flax, until He causes justice to triumph, and the nations will trust in His Name."

Then they brought to him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute. He healed him, so that this blind and mute man could see and speak. Everyone in the crowds were amazed, and said, "Isn't this Man the Son of David?"

But when the Pharisees heard about it, they said, "This Man throws out demons by calling on Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."

But Jesus knew what they were thinking, and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is made desolate like a desert, and every city or house divided against itself cannot stand. So if Satan throws out Satan, he is divided against himself. So how can his kingdom stand? And if I throw out demons by calling on Beelzebub, by whom do your children throw them out? They will be your judges on this account. But if I throw out demons by using the Divine Guide of God, then the Kingdom of God has come to you. Or else how can anyone walk into a strong man's house, and steal his goods, without first restraining the strong man? Then he can ransack his house.

"Whoever is not with Me is against Me, and whoever does not gather with Me, scatters about. For this reason I am telling you: All sorts of sin and blasphemy will be forgiven to men. But blasphemy against the Divine Guide will not be forgiven to men. Any person who speaks a word against the Son, a human being, will have that word forgiven him. But any person who speaks against the Divine Guide will not have that speech forgiven him, not in this world, and not in the world to come. Either make the tree good, and its fruit will be good, or else make the tree rotten, and its fruit will be rotten. The tree is known by its fruit.

"You jerks, how can you, being evil, say anything good? The mouth speaks out of the abundance of the heart. A good man, out of a good (heart) treasure, produces good things; a bad man, out of a bad (heart) treasure, produces bad things. And I am telling you: Every idle word that men speak, they will have to explain in the Day of Trial. Because you will be justified by your words, and condemned by your words."

Then some of the scribes and the Pharisees said in answer, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from you."

And He in answer told them, "A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, and they're not going to get one, except the sign of the prophet Jonah. Just as 'Jonah spent three days and nights in the belly of a sea-monster,' so also the Son, a human being, will spend three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

"The men of Nineveh will rise at the Trial along with this generation, and will condemn it, because they changed their hearts at the preaching of Jonah, and a greater man than Jonah is now present.

"The queen of the south will rise up at the trial along with this generation, and will condemn it, because she came from the furthest reaches of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon. A much greater man than Solomon is now present."

"When the unclean spirit has left a man, he walks through dry places, looking for rest, and does not find it. Then he says, 'I will go back to the house from which I came.' And when he comes back, he finds the house unoccupied, swept clean, and put in order. Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than he, and they come in and settle there, and the last state of that man is worse than the first. And that's how it's going to be as well for this wicked generation."

While He was still talking to the people, His mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak with Him. And someone told him, "Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, and want to speak with You."

But in answer He said back to the person who told Him, "Who is my mother? And who are my brothers?"

And He held out His hand toward His students, and said, "They are My mother and brothers! Because any person who does what My Father in Heaven wants, that person is My brother, and sister, and mother."

On that day Jesus left the house and sat by the lake. Great crowds gathered for Him. So he boarded a boat and sat there, while the entire crowd stood on the shore. He taught much to them in parables, saying, "Consider this: A sower went out to sow seed. And when he sowed, some of the seeds fell on the roadside, and birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rock, where there was little soil. They sprouted immediately, because the soil was not deep, and by midday the sun scorched them, and because they lacked roots, they withered.

"Others fell among thorns. The thorns sprang up, and choked them.

"But still others fell on good ground, and produced fruit, some a hundred times as much, some sixty times as much, and some thirty times as much.

"Anyone having ears to hear, let him hear."

And His students came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?"

In answer He told them, "I speak in parables because it is granted to you to know the secrets of the Kingdom of heaven, but it is not granted to them. For whoever has, it will be given to him even more abundantly. But whoever has not, even what he has will be taken away from him.

"That's why I talk to them in parables: because they see without seeing, and hear without hearing, and don't understand, either. In them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled. That prophecy says: 'By hearing you will hear, and not understand, and seeing you will see, and not perceive. Because the heart of this people has grown fat, and their ears are dull of hearing, and they have shut their eyes; otherwise they might at any time see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and would be converted, and I would heal them.'

"But your eyes are blessed, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. For I tell you truly: Many prophets and just men have strongly desired to see the things that you see, and have not seen them, and to hear the things that you hear, and have not heard them.

"So listen to the parable of the sower:

"When anyone hears the Truth about the Kingdom, and fails to understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away whatever was sown in his heart. This is the one who receives the seed that fell by the roadside.

"And he who receives the seed in rocky places, is the one who hears the Truth, and receives it with joy, but has no root in himself. He will last a little while, and then when oppression or persecution arises on account of the Truth, he finally stumbles and falls away.

"Also, he who receives the seed among the thorns is one who hears the Truth, and the worries of this world, and the deception that comes with wealth, choke the Truth, and he he becomes unfruitful. But he who receives seed on good ground is the one who hears the Truth, understands it, and also bears fruit, and produces a hundred, or sixty, or thirty times as much as he received."

He told them another parable: "The Kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was asleep, his enemy came and sowed weeds in the middle of the wheat, and then left. And when the blades of wheat sprouted, and produced their grain, the weeds appeared as well. So the household slaves came and told him, 'Lord, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where did these weeds come from?' He told them, 'An enemy has done this.' The slaves asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?' And he said, 'No. If you pull the weeds, you might pull up the wheat along with them. Let them both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time I will tell the harvesters, "Gather the weeds together first, and tie them in bundles to burn them, and gather the wheat into my barn."'"

He told them another parable: "The Kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed, that a man took and sowed in his field. Mustard is the smallest of all seeds. But when it grows, it is the largest among herbs, and grows into a tree, so that birds of the sky can come and nest in its branches."

He spoke another parable to them: "The Kingdom of heaven is like yeast, that a woman took and hid in three sata of meal, until the entire loaf was filled with it."

Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables, and did not speak to them other than in parables, so that the prophecy (by Isaiah) might be fulfilled. That prophecy states: "I will open My mouth in parables. I will talk about things that have been kept hidden from the foundation of the world."

Then Jesus sent the crowd away, and went into the house. His students came to him, saying, "Explain the parable of the weeds in the field to us."

In answer He told them, "The one sowing the good seed is the Son, a human being. The field is the world. The good seed are the recognized children of the Kingdom. The weeds are the children of the Evil One. The enemy who sowed them is the Slanderer. The harvest is the end of the world, and the harvesters are the Messengers of God. So just as the weeds are gathered and burned in the fire, that's how it will be at the end of this world. The Son, a human being, will send out His Messengers, and they will gather out of His Kingdom all stumbling blocks, and all those who do lawlessness, and will throw them into a furnace of fire. There will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Then the just will shine out like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. Anyone having ears to hear, let him hear."

"The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. When a man has found it, he hides it, and he is so happy to have found it that he goes and sells everything he has, and buys that field.

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant, looking for valuable pearls. When he finds one very valuable pearl, he goes and sells everything he has, and buys it.

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered every kind of fish. When it was full, they drew it ashore, and sat down, and gathered the good fish into containers, and threw the bad fish back. That's how it will be at the end of the world: the Messengers will come out, and separate the wicked from among the just, and will throw them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Have you understood all this?" They told them, "Yes, Lord."

Then He told them, "For this reason every writer who his taught the things of the Kingdom of heaven is like a householder, who brings out of his treasure-house both new and old things."

It happened that when Jesus had finished telling these parables, He left.

He traveled around the villages in that area, teaching the people who lived there.

Jesus then traveled home, followed by his students.

He came into His own country, and taught them in their synagogue.

On the next Sabbath, Jesus began teaching in the synagogue.

They were amazed, and said, "Where did this Man get such wisdom, and such mighty works?

Many were amazed, and declared, "How does this Man know so much? What kind of wisdom has been given to Him, enabling Him to perform such wonderful deeds? Isn't this the carpenter we know, the son of Mary, the brother of James, Joseph, Judah and Simon? Don't we also know his sisters here?" So the public rejected Him.

"This is the carpenter's Son, isn't He? His mother is called Mary, isn't she? And His brothers are James, Simon, and Judas? And aren't His sisters all with us? So where did this Man get all these things?"

And they rejected Him. So Jesus told them, "A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country and in his own house."

Jesus replied to their complaints, "A prophet lacks honor only in his own hometown, among his neighbors and in his own home."

Jesus was unable to perform any marvelous works in that area, except for healing a few sick people by laying His hands on them. He was in fact shocked at their lack of faith.

And he didn't perform many wonderful deeds there, on account of their unbelief.

He gathered the Twelve, and began to send them out in pairs, giving them the power to cast out evil spirits. He instructed them to take only a walking stick, and to bring nothing else: no bag, no bread, and no money in their belts, and to wear only sandals, and not to wear two coats.

He told them, "Whichever house you stay in while in a town, stay there until you leave that town. And if anyone will not take you in or listen to you, when leaving them, shake the dust from under your feet as an indictment against their conduct. I tell you truly, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will fare better on the day of judgment than that city."

Thus they went among the towns, preaching repentance. There they cast out many demons, anointed the ill with oil, and healed them of their afflictions.


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Ad Gloriam Dei, 31 January 2019—developed by Michael Paul Heart and the editors of Conservapedia.