Mark 1
1
John the Baptist Prepares the Way
1Here begins the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God. 2Long ago it was written,
“I will send my messenger ahead of you,
to prepare your way.”
3“A messenger is calling out in the desert,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord;
make his paths straight.’ ”
4These words of the prophet Isaiah came true when John the Baptist appeared in the desert, preaching that people should seek God’s forgiveness by being baptized and turning away from their sins. 5Everyone from Jerusalem and the countryside of Judea came out to him. Admitting that they had sinned, John baptized them in the Jordan River. 6John’s clothes were made out of camel’s hair, and he wore a leather belt around his waist. For food, he ate locusts and wild honey. 7John announced, “Someone is coming after me who’s more powerful than I am. I’m not even worthy to bend down and untie his sandals. 8I’m baptizing you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
Jesus Is Baptized and Tempted
9Then Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and John baptized him in the Jordan River. As 10Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven opening up and the Holy Spirit coming down on him like a dove. 11A voice from heaven said to him, “You are my beloved Son. I’m very pleased with you.”
12Then the Holy Spirit sent Jesus right out into the desert. 13He was there for 40 days, and during that time Satan tempted him. There were wild animals out there, too, but they didn’t hurt Jesus. Angels came and took care of him.
Jesus Preaches the Good News
14After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, and there he preached the good news of God. 15“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near! Repent and believe the good news.”
Jesus Chooses His First Disciples
16One day Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee. There he saw two fishermen, Simon and his brother Andrew. They were throwing a net into the lake. 17“Come and follow me,” Jesus told them, “and I’ll send you out to fish for people.” 18They left their nets right away and followed him.
19Jesus went a little farther and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John in a boat, working on their nets. 20Jesus called out to them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.
Jesus Drives Out an Evil Spirit
21They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath day came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. 22The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them with authority, not like the teachers of the law. 23Just then a man in the synagogue who was controlled by an evil spirit cried out, 24“What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are. You’re the Holy One of God!”
25“Be quiet!” Jesus ordered the spirit. “Come out of him!” 26The evil spirit shook the man wildly and came out of him with a scream.
27All the people were amazed and asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with such authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits, and they obey him.” 28News about Jesus spread quickly all over Galilee.
Jesus Heals Many People
29Jesus left the synagogue and went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. 30Simon’s mother-in-law was sick in bed with a fever, and they told Jesus about her as soon as he came in. 31He went to her, took her hand, and helped her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
32That evening after sunset the people brought Jesus everyone who was sick or controlled by demons. 33The whole town gathered at the door, and 34Jesus healed many people who had different kinds of sicknesses. He also drove out many demons, but he wouldn’t permit the demons speak, because they knew who he was.
Jesus Prays in a Quiet Place
35Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up and left the house. He went to a place where he could be alone and pray. 36Simon and his friends went looking for Jesus, 37and when they found him, they told him, “Everyone is looking for you!”
38Jesus answered, “Let’s leave this place and go to the towns nearby so I can preach there too. That’s why I’ve come.” 39So he traveled all around Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.
Jesus Heals a Man With a Skin Disease
40A man with a skin disease came to Jesus, knelt down in front of him, and begged him, “If you’re willing, you can make me clean.”
41“I am willing,” Jesus retorted, reaching out his hand to touch the man. “Be clean!” 42Right away the disease left the man and he became clean.
43Jesus sent him away with a strong warning. 44“Don’t tell this to anyone,” he said, “but go and show yourself to the priest. Offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded to show publicly that you’ve become clean.” 45But the man went out and started spreading the news to everyone. So Jesus couldn’t enter a town openly anymore. He had to stay out in desolate places. But people still came to him from everywhere.
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Mark 1
1
John the Baptizer
1-3The good news of Jesus Christ—the Message!—begins here, following to the letter the scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
Watch closely: I’m sending my preacher ahead of you;
He’ll make the road smooth for you.
Thunder in the desert!
Prepare for God’s arrival!
Make the road smooth and straight!
4-6John the Baptizer appeared in the wild, preaching a baptism of life-change that leads to forgiveness of sins. People thronged to him from Judea and Jerusalem and, as they confessed their sins, were baptized by him in the Jordan River into a changed life. John wore a camel-hair habit, tied at the waist with a leather belt. He ate locusts and wild field honey.
7-8As he preached he said, “The real action comes next: The star in this drama, to whom I’m a mere stagehand, will change your life. I’m baptizing you here in the river, turning your old life in for a kingdom life. His baptism—a holy baptism by the Holy Spirit—will change you from the inside out.”
9-11At this time, Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. The moment he came out of the water, he saw the sky split open and God’s Spirit, looking like a dove, come down on him. Along with the Spirit, a voice: “You are my Son, chosen and marked by my love, pride of my life.”
God’s Kingdom Is Here
12-13At once, this same Spirit pushed Jesus out into the wild. For forty wilderness days and nights he was tested by Satan. Wild animals were his companions, and angels took care of him.
14-15After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee preaching the Message of God: “Time’s up! God’s kingdom is here. Change your life and believe the Message.”
16-18Passing along the beach of Lake Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew net-fishing. Fishing was their regular work. Jesus said to them, “Come with me. I’ll make a new kind of fisherman out of you. I’ll show you how to catch men and women instead of perch and bass.” They didn’t ask questions. They dropped their nets and followed.
19-20A dozen yards or so down the beach, he saw the brothers James and John, Zebedee’s sons. They were in the boat, mending their fishnets. Right off, he made the same offer. Immediately, they left their father Zebedee, the boat, and the hired hands, and followed.
Confident Teaching
21-22Then they entered Capernaum. When the Sabbath arrived, Jesus lost no time in getting to the meeting place. He spent the day there teaching. They were surprised at his teaching—so forthright, so confident—not quibbling and quoting like the religion scholars.
23-24Suddenly, while still in the meeting place, he was interrupted by a man who was deeply disturbed and yelling out, “What business do you have here with us, Jesus? Nazarene! I know what you’re up to! You’re the Holy One of God, and you’ve come to destroy us!”
25-26Jesus shut him up: “Quiet! Get out of him!” The afflicting spirit threw the man into spasms, protesting loudly—and got out.
27-28Everyone there was spellbound, buzzing with curiosity. “What’s going on here? A new teaching that does what it says? He shuts up defiling, demonic spirits and tells them to get lost!” News of this traveled fast and was soon all over Galilee.
29-31Directly on leaving the meeting place, they came to Simon and Andrew’s house, accompanied by James and John. Simon’s mother-in-law was sick in bed, burning up with fever. They told Jesus. He went to her, took her hand, and raised her up. No sooner had the fever left than she was up fixing dinner for them.
32-34That evening, after the sun was down, they brought sick and evil-afflicted people to him, the whole city lined up at his door! He cured their sick bodies and tormented spirits. Because the demons knew his true identity, he didn’t let them say a word.
The Leper
35-37While it was still night, way before dawn, he got up and went out to a secluded spot and prayed. Simon and those with him went looking for him. They found him and said, “Everybody’s looking for you.”
38-39Jesus said, “Let’s go to the rest of the villages so I can preach there also. This is why I’ve come.” He went to their meeting places all through Galilee, preaching and throwing out the demons.
40A leper came to him, begging on his knees, “If you want to, you can cleanse me.”
41-45Deeply moved, Jesus put out his hand, touched him, and said, “I want to. Be clean.” Then and there the leprosy was gone, his skin smooth and healthy. Jesus dismissed him with strict orders: “Say nothing to anyone. Take the offering for cleansing that Moses prescribed and present yourself to the priest. This will validate your healing to the people.” But as soon as the man was out of earshot, he told everyone he met what had happened, spreading the news all over town. So Jesus kept to out-of-the-way places, no longer able to move freely in and out of the city. But people found him, and came from all over.
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.