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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Mark 1: MSG
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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.
Mark 1
1
1A beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, Son of God.
2As it hath been written in the prophets, ‘Lo, I send My messenger before thy face, who shall prepare thy way before thee,’ —
3‘A voice of one calling in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, straight make ye his paths,’ —
4John came baptizing in the wilderness, and proclaiming a baptism of reformation — to remission of sins,
5and there were going forth to him all the region of Judea, and they of Jerusalem, and they were all baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
6And John was clothed with camel's hair, and a girdle of skin around his loins, and eating locusts and honey of the field,
7and he proclaimed, saying, ‘He doth come — who is mightier than I — after me, of whom I am not worthy — having stooped down — to loose the latchet of his sandals;
8I indeed did baptize you with water, but he shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit.’
9And it came to pass in those days, Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John at the Jordan;
10and immediately coming up from the water, he saw the heavens dividing, and the Spirit as a dove coming down upon him;
11and a voice came out of the heavens, ‘Thou art My Son — the Beloved, in whom I did delight.’
12And immediately doth the Spirit put him forth to the wilderness,
13and he was there in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by the Adversary, and he was with the beasts, and the messengers were ministering to him.
14And after the delivering up of John, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of the reign of God,
15and saying — ‘Fulfilled hath been the time, and the reign of God hath come nigh, reform ye, and believe in the good news.’
16And, walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon, and Andrew his brother, casting a drag into the sea, for they were fishers,
17and Jesus said to them, ‘Come ye after me, and I shall make you to become fishers of men;’
18and immediately, having left their nets, they followed him.
19And having gone on thence a little, he saw James of Zebedee, and John his brother, and they were in the boat refitting the nets,
20and immediately he called them, and, having left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, they went away after him.
21And they go on to Capernaum, and immediately, on the sabbaths, having gone into the synagogue, he was teaching,
22and they were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as having authority, and not as the scribes.
23And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out,
24saying, ‘Away! what — to us and to thee, Jesus the Nazarene? thou didst come to destroy us; I have known thee who thou art — the Holy One of God.’
25And Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Be silenced, and come forth out of him,’
26and the unclean spirit having torn him, and having cried with a great voice, came forth out of him,
27and they were all amazed, so as to reason among themselves, saying, ‘What is this? what new teaching [is] this? that with authority also the unclean spirits he commandeth, and they obey him!’
28And the fame of him went forth immediately to all the region, round about, of Galilee.
29And immediately, having come forth out of the synagogue, they went to the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John,
30and the mother-in-law of Simon was lying fevered, and immediately they tell him about her,
31and having come near, he raised her up, having laid hold of her hand, and the fever left her immediately, and she was ministering to them.
32And evening having come, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all who were ill, and who were demoniacs,
33and the whole city was gathered together near the door,
34and he healed many who were ill of manifold diseases, and many demons he cast forth, and was not suffering the demons to speak, because they knew him.
35And very early, it being yet night, having risen, he went forth, and went away to a desert place, and was there praying;
36and Simon and those with him went in quest of him,
37and having found him, they say to him, — ‘All do seek thee;’
38and he saith to them, ‘We may go to the next towns, that there also I may preach, for for this I came forth.’
39And he was preaching in their synagogues, in all Galilee, and is casting out the demons,
40and there doth come to him a leper, calling on him, and kneeling to him, and saying to him — ‘If thou mayest will, thou art able to cleanse me.’
41And Jesus having been moved with compassion, having stretched forth the hand, touched him, and saith to him, ‘I will; be thou cleansed;’
42and he having spoken, immediately the leprosy went away from him, and he was cleansed.
43And having sternly charged him, immediately he put him forth,
44and saith to him, ‘See thou mayest say nothing to any one, but go away, thyself shew to the priest, and bring near for thy cleansing the things Moses directed, for a testimony to them.’
45And he, having gone forth, began to proclaim much, and to spread abroad the thing, so that no more he was able openly to enter into the city, but he was without in desert places, and they were coming unto him from every quarter.
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