Matthew 12
12
Lord of the Sabbath
1At that time Jesus passed through the grainfields on the Sabbath. # Mk 2:23-28; Lk 6:1-5 His disciples # Mt 10:1; 26:56; Mk 3:7; 16:20; Lk 6:13; Jn 12:16 were hungry and began to pick and eat some heads of grain. 2But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful # Mt 12:10; Lk 13:14; 14:3; Jn 5:10; 7:23; 9:16 to do on the Sabbath! ”
3He said to them, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and those who were with him were hungry — 4how he entered the house of God, and they ate # Other mss read he ate the sacred bread, which is not lawful for him or for those with him to eat, but only for the priests? # Ex 25:30; Lv 24:5-9; 1Sm 21:6 5Or haven’t you read in the Law # = The Torah (the Pentateuch) that on Sabbath days the priests in the temple violate the Sabbath and are innocent? # Nm 28:9-10; 1Ch 9:32; Jn 7:22-23 6But I tell you that something greater than the temple is here! # 2Ch 6:18; Mal 3:1; Mt 12:41-42 7If you had known what this means: I desire mercy and not sacrifice, # Hs 6:6; Mc 6:8; Mt 9:13 # Hs 6:6 you would not have condemned the innocent. 8For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” # Mt 8:20; 9:6; 12:32,40
The Man with the Paralyzed Hand
9Moving on from there, He entered their synagogue. # Mk 3:1-6; Lk 6:6-11 10There He saw a man who had a paralyzed hand. And in order to accuse Him they asked Him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath? ” # Mt 12:2; Lk 13:14; 14:3; Jn 9:16
11But He said to them, “What man among you, if he had a sheep # Or had one sheep that fell into a pit on the Sabbath, wouldn’t take hold of it and lift it out? # Ex 23:4-5; Dt 22:4; Lk 14:5 12A man is worth far more than a sheep, # Mt 6:26; 10:31 so it is lawful to do what is good on the Sabbath.”
13Then He told the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out, and it was restored, # 1Kg 13:4; Mt 8:3; Ac 28:8 as good as the other. 14But the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him. # Mt 26:4; 27:1; Mk 3:6; Lk 6:11; Jn 10:39; 11:53
The Servant of the Lord
15When Jesus became aware of this, He withdrew from there. Huge crowds # Other mss read Many followed Him, and He healed them all. # Mt 4:23; 10:23; 19:2; Mk 3:7 16He warned them not to make Him known, # Mt 8:4; 9:30 17so that what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
18Here is My Servant whom I have chosen,
My beloved in whom My soul delights;
I will put My Spirit on Him,
and He will proclaim justice to the nations. # Mt 3:17; 17:5; Lk 4:18; Jn 3:34
19He will not argue or shout,
and no one will hear His voice in the streets.
20He will not break a bruised reed,
and He will not put out a smoldering wick,
until He has led justice to victory. # Or until He has successfully put forth justice
21The nations will put their hope in His name. # Is 42:1-4; Jn 10:25 # Is 42:1-4
A House Divided
22Then a demon-possessed man # Lk 11:14-15 who was blind and unable to speak was brought to Him. He healed him, so that the man # Lit mute could both speak and see. # Mt 4:24; 9:32-34 23And all the crowds were astounded and said, “Perhaps this is the Son of David! ” # 2Ch 1:1; Mt 1:1; Rm 1:3
24When the Pharisees heard this, they said, “The man drives out demons only by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” # Mt 9:34; 10:25; Mk 3:22
25Knowing their thoughts, # Mk 3:23-27; Lk 11:17-22 He told them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is headed for destruction, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. 26If Satan # Mt 4:1,10; 13:19; Ac 13:10 drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? 27And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, who is it your sons drive them out by? For this reason they will be your judges. # 2Kg 2:7; Ac 19:13 28If I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you. # Lk 17:21; 1Jn 3:8 29How can someone enter a strong man’s house and steal his possessions unless he first ties up # Is 49:24; 53:12 the strong man? Then he can rob his house. 30Anyone who is not with Me is against Me, # Mk 9:40; Lk 9:50; 11:23 and anyone who does not gather with Me scatters. 31Because of this, # Mk 3:28-30; Lk 12:10 I tell you, people will be forgiven every sin and blasphemy, # Heb 6:4-6; 10:26; 1Jn 5:16 but the blasphemy against # Or of the Spirit will not be forgiven. # Other mss add people 32Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, # Mt 11:19; Mk 2:10; Jn 7:12; 9:24 it will be forgiven him. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the one to come. # Mk 10:30; Lk 12:10; 20:34-35; Eph 1:21; Ti 2:12; Heb 6:5
A Tree and Its Fruit
33“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad # Or decayed ; lit rotten and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. # Mt 7:18-19,23; Lk 6:43-44; Jn 15:4-7 34Brood of vipers! How can you speak good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks from the overflow # 1Sm 24:13; Mt 3:7; 23:33; Lk 6:45; Eph 4:29 of the heart. 35A good man produces good things from his storeroom of good, # Other mss read from the storehouse of his heart and an evil man produces evil things from his storeroom of evil. # Mt 13:52; Col 4:6 36I tell you that on the day of judgment # Mt 12:41; Jn 5:29; 1Jn 4:17 people will have to account # Lk 16:2; Ac 19:40; Rm 14:12; Heb 13:17; 1Pt 4:5 for every careless word they speak. # Lit will speak 37For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
The Sign of Jonah
38Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” # Mt 16:1; Mk 8:11-12; Lk 11:16; Jn 2:18; 6:30; 1Co 1:22
39But He answered them, # Mk 8:11-12; Lk 11:29-32 “An evil and adulterous generation demands a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. # Is 57:3; Mt 16:4; Mk 8:38 40For as Jonah was in the belly of the huge fish three days and three nights, # Jnh 1:17 so the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights. 41The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, # Jr 3:11; Ezk 16:51; Rm 2:27 because they repented at Jonah’s proclamation; and look — something greater than Jonah is here! # Jnh 1:2; 3:5 42The queen of the south # 1Kg 10:1; 2Ch 9:1 will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and look — something greater than Solomon is here!
An Unclean Spirit’s Return
43“When an unclean spirit comes out of a man, it roams through waterless places looking for rest but doesn’t find any. # Lk 11:24-26 44Then it says, ‘I’ll go back to my house that I came from.’ And returning, it finds the house vacant, swept, and put in order. 45Then off it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and settle down there. As a result, that man’s last condition is worse than the first. # Heb 6:4; 2Pt 2:20 That’s how it will also be with this evil generation.”
True Relationships
46He # Mk 3:31-35; Lk 8:19-21 was still speaking to the crowds when suddenly His mother and brothers were standing outside wanting to speak to Him. # Mt 13:55; Mk 6:3; Jn 2:12; Ac 1:14; 1Co 9:5; Gl 1:19 47Someone told Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to You.” # Other mss omit this v.
48But He replied to the one who told Him, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers? ” 49And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, # Mt 10:42; 28:19; Lk 14:26; Jn 8:31; 13:35; 15:8; Ac 6:1 He said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! 50For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven, that person is My brother and sister and mother.” # Mt 6:1; 7:21; Jn 15:14; Heb 2:11
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Matthew 12: HCSB
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Matthew 12
12
Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath Day
1One Sabbath day Jesus walked through the grainfields. His disciples were hungry. So they began to break off some heads of grain and eat them. 2The Pharisees saw this. They said to Jesus, “Look! It is against the Law to do this on the Sabbath day. But your disciples are doing it anyway!”
3Jesus answered, “Haven’t you read about what David did? He and his men were hungry. 4So he entered the house of God. He and his men ate the holy bread. Only priests were allowed to eat it. 5Haven’t you read the Law? It tells how every Sabbath day the priests in the temple have to do their work on that day. But they are not considered guilty. 6I tell you that something more important than the temple is here. 7Scripture says, ‘I want mercy and not sacrifice.’ (Hosea 6:6) You don’t know what those words mean. If you did, you would not bring charges against those who are not guilty. 8The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath day.”
9Going on from that place, Jesus went into their synagogue. 10A man with a weak and twisted hand was there. The Pharisees were trying to accuse Jesus of a crime. So they asked him, “Does the Law allow us to heal on the Sabbath day?”
11He said to them, “What if one of your sheep falls into a pit on the Sabbath day? Won’t you take hold of it and lift it out? 12A person is worth more than sheep! So the Law allows us to do good on the Sabbath day.”
13Then Jesus said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out. It had been made as good as new. It was just as good as the other hand. 14But the Pharisees went out and planned how to kill Jesus.
God’s Chosen Servant
15Jesus knew all about the Pharisees’ plans. So he left that place. A large crowd followed him, and he healed all who were sick. 16But he warned them not to tell other people about him. 17This was to make what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah come true. It says,
18“Here is my servant. I have chosen him.
He is the one I love. I am very pleased with him.
I will put my Spirit on him.
He will announce to the nations that everything will be made right.
19He will not argue or cry out.
No one will hear his voice in the streets.
20He will not break a bent twig.
He will not put out a dimly burning flame.
He will make right win over wrong.
21The nations will put their hope in him.” (Isaiah 42:1–4)
Jesus and Beelzebul
22A man controlled by demons was brought to Jesus. The man was blind and could not speak. Jesus healed him. Then the man could speak and see. 23All the people were amazed. They said, “Could this be the Son of David?”
24The Pharisees heard this. So they said, “This fellow drives out demons by the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons.”
25Jesus knew what they were thinking. So he said to them, “Every kingdom that fights against itself will be destroyed. Every city or family that is divided against itself will not stand. 26If Satan drives out Satan, he fights against himself. Then how can his kingdom stand? 27You say I drive out demons by the power of Beelzebul. Then by whose power do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 28But suppose I drive out demons by the Spirit of God. Then the kingdom of God has come to you.
29“Or think about this. How can you enter a strong man’s house and just take what the man owns? You must first tie him up. Then you can rob his house.
30“Anyone who is not with me is against me. Anyone who does not gather sheep with me scatters them. 31So here is what I tell you. Every kind of sin and every evil word spoken against God will be forgiven. But speaking evil things against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. 32Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. A person like that won’t be forgiven either now or in days to come.
33“If you make a tree good, its fruit will be good. If you make a tree bad, its fruit will be bad. You can tell a tree by its fruit. 34You nest of poisonous snakes! How can you who are evil say anything good? Your mouths say everything that is in your hearts. 35A good man says good things. These come from the good that is stored up inside him. An evil man says evil things. These come from the evil that is stored up inside him. 36But here is what I tell you. On judgment day, everyone will have to account for every empty word they have spoken. 37By your words you will be found guilty or not guilty.”
The Sign of Jonah
38Some of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law came to Jesus. They said, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from you.”
39He answered, “Evil and unfaithful people ask for a sign! But none will be given except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40Jonah was in the belly of a huge fish for three days and three nights. Something like that will happen to the Son of Man. He will spend three days and three nights in the grave. 41The men of Nineveh will stand up on judgment day with the people now living. And the Ninevites will prove that these people are guilty. The men of Nineveh turned away from their sins when Jonah preached to them. And now something more important than Jonah is here. 42The Queen of the South will stand up on judgment day with the people now living. And she will prove that they are guilty. She came from very far away to listen to Solomon’s wisdom. And now something more important than Solomon is here.
43“What happens when an evil spirit comes out of a person? It goes through dry areas looking for a place to rest. But it doesn’t find it. 44Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives there, it finds the house empty. The house has been swept clean and put in order. 45Then the evil spirit goes and takes with it seven other spirits more evil than itself. They go in and live there. That person is worse off than before. That is how it will be with the evil people of today.”
Jesus’ Mother and Brothers
46While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside. They wanted to speak to him. 47Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside. They want to speak to you.”
48Jesus replied to him, “Who is my mother? And who are my brothers?” 49Jesus pointed to his disciples. He said, “Here is my mother! Here are my brothers! 50Anyone who does what my Father in heaven wants is my brother or sister or mother.”
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