Matthew 12
12
1 At that time, Jesus went out through the ripe grain on the Sabbath. And his disciples, being hungry, began to separate the grain and to eat.
2 Then the Pharisees, seeing this, said to him, "Behold, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbaths."
3 But he said to them: "Have you not read what David did, when he was hungry, and those who were with him:
4 how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests?
5 Or have you not read in the law, that on the Sabbaths the priests in the temple violate the Sabbath, and they are without guilt?
6 But I say to you, that something greater than the temple is here.
7 And if you knew what this means, 'I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,' you would never have condemned the innocent.
8 For the Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath."
9 And when he had passed from there, he went into their synagogues.
10 And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand, and they questioned him, so that they might accuse him, saying, "Is it lawful to cure on the Sabbaths?"
11 But he said to them: "Who is there among you, having even one sheep, if it will have fallen into a pit on the Sabbath, would not take hold of it and lift it up?
12 How much better is a man than a sheep? And so, it is lawful to do good on the Sabbaths."
13 Then he said to the man, "Extend your hand." And he extended it, and it was restored to health, just like the other one.
14 Then the Pharisees, departing, took council against him, as to how they might destroy him.
15 But Jesus, knowing this, withdrew from there. And many followed him, and he cured them all.
16 And he instructed them, lest they make him known.
17 Then what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah was fulfilled, saying:
18 "Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased. I will place my Spirit over him, and he shall announce judgment to the nations.
19 He shall not contend, nor cry out, neither shall anyone hear his voice in the streets.
20 He shall not crush the bruised reed, and he shall not extinguish the smoking wick, until he sends forth judgment unto victory.
21 And the Gentiles shall hope in his name."
22 Then one who had a demon, who was blind and mute, was brought to him. And he cured him, so that he spoke and saw.
23 And all the crowds were stupefied, and they said, "Could this be the son of David?"
24 But the Pharisees, hearing it, said, "This man does not cast out demons, except by Beelzebub, the prince of the demons."
25 But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said to them: "Every kingdom divided against itself will become desolate. And every city or house divided against itself will not stand.
26 So if Satan casts out Satan, then he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?
27 And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your own sons cast them out? Therefore, they shall be your judges.
28 But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has arrived among you.
29 Or how can anyone enter into the house of a strong man, and plunder his belongings, unless he first restrains the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.
30 Whoever is not with me, is against me. And whoever does not gather with me, scatters.
31 For this reason, I say to you: Every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven men, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven.
32 And anyone who will have spoken a word against the Son of man shall be forgiven. But whoever will have spoken against the Holy Spirit shall not be forgiven, neither in this age, nor in the future age.
33 Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree evil and its fruit evil. For certainly a tree is known by its fruit.
34 Progeny of vipers, how are you able to speak good things while you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
35 A good man offers good things from a good storehouse. And an evil man offers evil things from an evil storehouse.
36 But I say to you, that for every idle word which men will have spoken, they shall render an account in the day of judgment.
37 For by your words shall you be justified, and by your words shall you be condemned."
38 Then certain ones from the scribes and the Pharisees responded to him, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from you."
39 And answering, he said to them: "An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign. But a sign will not be given to it, except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
40 For just as Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days and three nights, so shall the Son of man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.
41 The men of Nineveh shall arise in judgment with this generation, and they shall condemn it. For, at the preaching of Jonah, they repented. And behold, there is a greater than Jonah here.
42 The Queen of the South shall arise in judgment with this generation, and she shall condemn it. For she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon. And behold, there is a greater than Solomon here.
43 Now when an unclean spirit departs from a man, he walks through dry places, seeking rest, and he does not find it.
44 Then he says, 'I will return to my house, from which I departed'. And arriving, he finds it vacant, swept clean, and decorated.
45 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and live there. And in the end, the man becomes worse than he was at first. So, too, shall it be with this most wicked generation."
46 While he was still speaking to the crowds, behold, his mother and his brothers were standing outside, seeking to speak with him.
47 And someone said to him: "Behold, your mother and your brothers are standing outside, seeking you."
48 But responding to the one speaking to him, he said, "Which one is my mother, and who are my brothers?"
49 And extending his hand to his disciples, he said: "Behold: my mother and my brothers.
50 For anyone who does the will of my Father, who is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother."
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Matthew 12
12
Jesus Is Lord Over the Sabbath Day
(Mk. 2:23–28; Lk. 6:1–5)
1About that same time, Jesus was walking through the fields of grain on a Sabbath day. His followers were with him, and they were hungry. So they began to pick the grain and eat it. 2The Pharisees saw this. They said to Jesus, “Look! Your followers are doing something that is against the law to do on the Sabbath day.”
3Jesus said to them, “You have read what David did when he and those with him were hungry. 4David went into God’s house. He and those with him ate the bread that was offered to God. It was against the law for David or those with him to eat that bread. Only the priests were allowed to eat it. 5And you have read in the Law of Moses that on every Sabbath day the priests at the Temple break the law about the Sabbath day. But they are not wrong for doing that. 6I tell you that there is something here that is greater than the Temple. 7The Scriptures say, ‘I don’t want animal sacrifices; I want you to show kindness to people.’#Quote from Hos. 6:6. You don’t really know what that means. If you understood it, you would not judge those who have done nothing wrong.
8“The Son of Man is Lord over the Sabbath day.”
Jesus Heals a Man on the Sabbath Day
(Mk. 3:1–6; Lk. 6:6–11)
9Jesus went from there to their synagogue. 10In the synagogue there was a man with a crippled hand. Some Jews there were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus of doing wrong. So they asked him, “Is it right to heal on the Sabbath day?”#12:10 “Is it right … day?” It was against Jewish law to work on the Sabbath day.
11Jesus answered, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a ditch on the Sabbath day, you will take the sheep and help it out of the ditch. 12Surely a man is more important than a sheep. So it is right to do good on the Sabbath day.”
13Then Jesus said to the man with the crippled hand, “Hold out your hand.” The man held out his hand, and it became well again, the same as the other hand. 14But the Pharisees left and made plans to kill Jesus.
Jesus Is God’s Chosen Servant
15Jesus knew what the Pharisees were planning. So he left that place, and many people followed him. He healed all who were sick, 16but he warned them not to tell others who he was. 17This was to give full meaning to what Isaiah the prophet said when he spoke for God:
18“Here is my servant,
the one I have chosen.
He is the one I love,
and I am very pleased with him.
I will fill him with my Spirit,
and he will bring justice to the nations.
19He will not argue or shout;
no one will hear his voice in the streets.
20He will not break off even a bent stem of grass.#12:20 stem of grass Literally, “reed.”
He will not put out even the weakest flame.
He will not give up until he has made justice victorious.
21All people will hope in him.” Isaiah 42:1-4
Jesus’ Power Is From God
(Mk. 3:20–30; Lk. 11:14–23; 12:10)
22Then some people brought a man to Jesus. This man was blind and could not talk, because he had a demon inside him. Jesus healed the man, and he could talk and see. 23All the people were amazed at what Jesus did. They said, “Maybe he is the promised Son of David!”
24When the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man uses the power of Satan#12:24 Satan Literally, “Beelzebul” (the devil). Also in verse 27. to force demons out of people. Satan is the ruler of demons.”
25Jesus knew what the Pharisees were thinking. So he said to them, “Every kingdom that fights against itself will be destroyed. And every city or family that is divided against itself will not survive. 26So if Satan forces out his own demons,#12:26 if Satan … demons Literally, “if Satan forces out Satan.” then he is fighting against himself, and his kingdom will not survive. 27You say that I use the power of Satan to force out demons. If that is true, then what power do your people use when they force out demons? So your own people will prove that you are wrong. 28But I use the power of God’s Spirit to force out demons, and this shows that God’s kingdom has come to you. 29Whoever wants to enter a strong man’s house and steal his things must first tie him up. Then they can steal the things from his house. 30Whoever is not with me is against me. And anyone who does not work with me is working against me.
31“So I tell you, people can be forgiven for every sinful thing they do and for every bad thing they say against God. But anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. 32You can even speak against the Son of Man and be forgiven. But anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven—not now or in the future.
What You Do Shows What You Are
(Lk. 6:43–45)
33“If you want good fruit, you must make the tree good. If your tree is not good, it will have bad fruit. A tree is known by the kind of fruit it produces. 34You snakes! You are so evil. How can you say anything good? What people say with their mouths comes from what fills their hearts. 35Those who are good have good things saved in their hearts. That’s why they say good things. But those who are evil have hearts full of evil, and that’s why they say things that are evil. 36I tell you that everyone will have to answer for all the careless things they have said. This will happen on the day of judgment. 37Your words will be used to judge you. What you have said will show whether you are right or whether you are guilty.”
Some People Doubt Jesus’ Authority
(Mk. 8:11–12; Lk. 11:29–32)
38Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law answered Jesus. They said, “Teacher, we want to see you do a miracle as a sign from God.”
39Jesus answered, “Evil and sinful people are the ones who want to see a miracle as a sign. But no miracle will be done to prove anything to them. The only sign will be the miracle that happened to the prophet Jonah.#12:39 Jonah The story of Jonah is found in the Old Testament book of Jonah. 40Jonah was in the stomach of the big fish for three days and three nights. In the same way, the Son of Man will be in the grave three days and three nights. 41On the judgment day, you people who live now will be compared with the people from Nineveh,#12:41 Nineveh City where Jonah preached. See Jonah 3. and they will be witnesses who show how guilty you are. Why do I say this? Because when Jonah preached to those people, they changed their lives. And you are listening to someone greater than Jonah, but you refuse to change!
42“On the judgment day, you people who live now will also be compared with the queen of the South,#12:42 queen of the South Or “queen of Sheba.” She traveled about 1000 miles (1600 km) to learn God’s wisdom from Solomon. See 1 Kings 10:1-13. and she will be a witness who shows how guilty you are. I say this because she traveled from far, far away to listen to Solomon’s wise teaching. And I tell you that someone greater than Solomon is right here, but you won’t listen!
The Danger of Emptiness
(Lk. 11:24–26)
43“When an evil spirit comes out of a person, it travels through dry places looking for a place to rest, but it finds none. 44So it says, ‘I will go back to the home I left.’ When it comes back, it finds that home still empty. It is all neat and clean. 45Then the evil spirit goes out and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself. They all go and live there, and that person has even more trouble than before. It is the same way with the evil people who live today.”
Jesus’ Followers Are His True Family
(Mk. 3:31–35; Lk. 8:19–21)
46While Jesus was talking to the people, his mother and brothers stood outside. They wanted to talk to him. 47Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are waiting for you outside. They want to talk to you.”
48Jesus answered, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” 49Then he pointed to his followers and said, “See! These people are my mother and my brothers. 50Yes, anyone who does what my Father in heaven wants is my true brother and sister and mother.”
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