Mat 9, Mat 12 | ESV | STEP | And getting into a boat he crossed over and came to his own city .

1 And getting into a boat he crossed over and came to ^ahis own city. 2 ^bAnd behold, some people brought to him a paralytic, lying on a bed. And when Jesus ^csaw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ^d“Take heart, my son; ^eyour sins are forgiven.” 3 And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, ^f“This man is blaspheming.” 4 But Jesus, ^gknowing ^{▼▼Some manuscripts perceiving} their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your hearts? 5 For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? 6 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he then said to the paralytic—“Rise, pick up your bed and go home.” 7 And he rose and went home. 8 When the crowds saw it, ⁱthey were afraid, and ^jthey glorified God, who had ^kgiven such authority to men.

Jesus Calls Matthew

9 ^lAs Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called ^mMatthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.

10 And as Jesus ^{▼▼Greek he} reclined at table in the house, behold, many ^otax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. 11 And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, ^p“Why does your teacher eat with ^qtax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 Go and learn ^rwhat this means: ^s‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For ^tI came not to call the righteous, ^ubut sinners.”

A Question About Fasting

14 Then ^vthe disciples of John came to him, saying, ^w“Why do we and ^xthe Pharisees fast, ^{▼▼Some manuscripts add much, or often} but your disciples do not fast?” 15 And Jesus said to them, ^z“Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? ^aaThe days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and ^abthen they will fast. 16 No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch tears away from the garment, and a worse tear is made. 17 Neither is new wine put into old ^acwineskins. If it is, the skins burst and the wine is spilled and the skins are destroyed. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.”

A Girl Restored to Life and a Woman Healed

18 ^adWhile he was saying these things to them, behold, a ruler came in and ^aeknelt before him, saying, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.” 19 And Jesus rose and followed him, with his disciples. 20 And behold, a woman ^afwho had suffered from a discharge of blood for twelve years came up behind him and touched ^agthe fringe of his garment, 21 for she said to herself, “If I only touch his garment, I will be made well.” 22 Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, ^ah“Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” ^aiAnd instantly ^{▼▼Greek from that hour} the woman was made well. 23 And when Jesus came to the ruler’s house and saw ^akthe flute players and the crowd making a commotion, 24 he said, “Go away, for ^althe girl is not dead but ^amsleeping.” And they laughed at him. 25 But ^anwhen the crowd had been put outside, he went in and ^aotook her by the hand, and the girl arose. 26 And the report of this went through all that district.

Jesus Heals Two Blind Men

27 ^apAnd as Jesus passed on from there, two blind men followed him, crying aloud, “Have mercy on us, ^aqSon of David.” 28 When he entered the house, the blind men came to him, and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” 29 ^arThen he touched their eyes, saying, ^as“According to your faith be it done to you.” 30 And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, ^at“See that no one knows about it.” 31 ^auBut they went away and spread his fame through all that district.

Jesus Heals a Man Unable to Speak

32 As they were going away, behold, a ^avdemon-oppressed man who was mute ^awwas brought to him. 33 And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds ^axmarveled, saying, “Never was anything like this seen in Israel.” 34 But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the prince of demons.”

The Harvest Is Plentiful, the Laborers Few

35 ^ayAnd Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 36 ^azWhen he saw the crowds, ^bahe had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, ^bblike sheep without a shepherd. 37 ^bcThen he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore ^bdpray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to ^besend out laborers into his harvest.”

Matthew 12

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

1 At that time ^bfJesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, and ^bgthey began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. 2 But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, ^bh“Look, your disciples are doing ^biwhat is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.” 3 He said to them, ^bj“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 ^bkthe bread of the Presence, which it 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 ^blin the Law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are guiltless? 6 I tell you, ^bmsomething greater than the temple is here. 7 And if you had known ^bnwhat this means, ^bo‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless. 8 For ^bpthe Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”

A Man with a Withered Hand

9 He went on from there and ^bqentered their synagogue. 10 And a man was there with a withered hand. And they asked him, ^br“Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”— ^bsso that they might accuse him. 11 He said to them, “Which one of you who has a sheep, ^btif it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out? 12 ^buOf how much more value is a man than a sheep! So ^bvit is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” 13 Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And ^bwthe man stretched it out, and it was restored, healthy like the other. 14 But the Pharisees went out and conspired against him, how to destroy him.

God’s Chosen Servant

15 Jesus, aware of this, ^bxwithdrew from there. And ^bymany followed him, and he healed them all 16 and ^bzordered them not to make him known. 17 ^caThis was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah:

18 ^cb“Behold, my ^ccservant whom I have chosen,
my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased.
^cdI will put my Spirit upon him,
and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
19 He will not quarrel or cry aloud,
nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets;
20 a bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory;
21 ^ceand in his name the Gentiles will hope.”

Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit

22 ^cfThen a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw. 23 ^cgAnd all the people were amazed, and said, ^ch“Can this be the Son of David?” 24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, ^ci“It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.” 25 ^cjKnowing their thoughts, ^ckhe said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. 26 And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? 27 And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, ^clby whom do ^cmyour sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. 28 But if it is ^cnby the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then ^cothe kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 Or ^cphow can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed ^cqhe may plunder his house. 30 ^crWhoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 31 ^csTherefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but ^ctthe blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 And whoever speaks a word ^cuagainst the Son of Man ^cvwill be forgiven, but ^cwwhoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in ^cxthis age or in the age to come.

A Tree Is Known by Its Fruit

33 ^cy“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, ^czfor the tree is known by its fruit. 34 ^daYou brood of vipers! How can you speak good, ^dbwhen you are evil? ^dcFor out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 ^ddThe good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. 36 I tell you, ^deon the day of judgment ^dfpeople will give account for ^dgevery careless word they speak, 37 for ^dhby your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

The Sign of Jonah

38 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, “Teacher, ^diwe wish to see a sign from you.” 39 But he answered them, ^dj“An evil and ^dkadulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For ^dljust as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, ^dmso will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 ^dnThe men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and ^docondemn it, for ^dpthey repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, ^dqsomething greater than Jonah is here. 42 ^drThe queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, ^dssomething greater than Solomon is here.

Return of an Unclean Spirit

43 “When ^dtthe unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through ^duwaterless places seeking rest, but finds none. 44 Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there, and ^dvthe last state of that person is worse than the first. So also will it be with this ^dwevil generation.”

Jesus’ Mother and Brothers

46 While he was still speaking to the people, behold, ^dxhis mother and his ^dybrothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. ^{▼▼Some manuscripts insert verse 47: Someone told him, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, asking to speak to you”} 48 But he replied to the man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” 49 And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 50 For ^eawhoever ^ebdoes the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”