Charitable Giving to the Poor and Prayer
6 “Take care not to practice your righteousness in the sight of people, to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.
2 “So when you [a]give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, so that they will be praised by people. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 3 But when you [b]give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your charitable giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
5 “And when you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they [c]will be seen by people. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 6 But as for you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
7 “And when you are praying, do not use thoughtless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. 8 So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.
The Lord’s Prayer
9 “Pray, then, in this way:
‘Our Father, who is in heaven,
[d]Hallowed be Your name.
10 [e]Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
[f]On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day [g]our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from [h]evil.[i]’
14 For if you forgive other people for their [j]offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive other people, then your Father will not forgive your [k]offenses.
Fasting; The True Treasure; Wealth
16 “Now whenever you fast, do not make a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they [l]distort their faces so that they will be noticed by people when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 17 But as for you, when you fast, [m]anoint your head and wash your face, 18 so that your fasting will not be noticed by people but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
22 “The eye is the lamp of the body; so then, if your eye is [n]clear, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eye is [o]bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. So if the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and [p]wealth.
The Cure for Anxiety
25 “For this reason I say to you, [q]do not be worried about your [r]life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is life not more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the sky, that they do not sow, nor reap, nor gather crops into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more important than they? 27 And which of you by worrying can add a single [s]day to his [t]life’s span? 28 And why are you worried about clothing? Notice how the lilies of the field grow; they do not labor nor do they spin thread for cloth, 29 yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! 31 Do not worry then, saying, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear for clothing?’ 32 For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But [u]seek first [v]His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be [w]provided to you.
34 “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will [x]worry about itself. [y]Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6
Teaching at Nazareth
6 Jesus went out from there and *came into [a]His hometown; and His disciples *followed Him. 2 And when the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue; and [b]the many listeners were astonished, saying, “Where did this man learn these things, and what is this wisdom that has been given to Him, and such [c]miracles as these performed by His hands? 3 Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of [d]James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are His sisters not here with us?” And they took offense at Him. 4 Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not dishonored except in [e]his hometown and among his own relatives, and in his own household.” 5 And He could not do any [f]miracle there except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And He was amazed at their unbelief.
And He was going around the villages, teaching.
The Twelve Sent Out
7 And He *summoned the twelve and began to send them out in pairs, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits; 8 and He instructed them that they were to take nothing for their journey, except a mere staff—no bread, no [g]bag, no money in their belt— 9 but [h]to wear sandals; and He added, “Do not wear two [i]tunics.” 10 And He said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you [j]leave town. 11 Any place that does not receive you or listen to you, as you go out from there, shake the dust [k]off the soles of your feet as a testimony against them.” 12 And they went out and [l]preached that people are to repent. 13 And they were casting out many demons and were anointing with oil many sick people and healing them.
John’s Fate Recalled
14 And King Herod heard about it, for His name had become well known; and people were saying, “John the Baptist has risen from the dead, and that is why these miraculous powers are at work in Him.” 15 But others were saying, “He is Elijah.” And others were saying, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” 16 But when Herod heard about it, he kept saying, “John, whom I beheaded, has risen!”
17 For Herod himself had sent men and had John arrested and bound in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, because he had married her. 18 For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” 19 And Herodias held a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death, and could not do so; 20 for Herod was afraid of John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he had been protecting him. And when he heard him, he was very perplexed; and yet he [m]used to enjoy listening to him. 21 An opportune day came when Herod, on his birthday, held a banquet for his nobles and military commanders, and the leading people of Galilee; 22 and when the daughter of Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased Herod and [n]his dinner guests; and the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you want, and I will give it to you.” 23 And he swore to her, “Whatever you ask of me, I will give it to you, up to half of my kingdom.” 24 And she went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” 25 Immediately she came in a hurry to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” 26 And although the king was very sorry, because of his oaths and [o]his dinner guests, he was unwilling to refuse her. 27 Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded him to bring back his head. And he went and beheaded him in the prison, 28 and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When his disciples heard about this, they came and carried away his body, and laid it in a tomb.
30 The apostles *gathered together with Jesus; and they reported to Him all that they had done and taught. 31 And He *said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a little while.” (For there were many people coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.) 32 And they went away in the boat to a secluded place by themselves.
Five Thousand Men Fed
33 The people saw them going, and many recognized them and ran there together on foot from all the cities, and got there ahead of them. 34 When Jesus went [p]ashore, He saw a large crowd, and He felt compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things. 35 And when it was already late, His disciples came up to Him and said, “[q]This place is secluded and it is already late; 36 send them away so that they may go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves [r]something to eat.” 37 But He answered them, “You give them something to eat!” And they *said to Him, “Shall we go and spend two hundred [s]denarii on bread, and give it to them to eat?” 38 But He *said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go look!” And when they found out, they *said, “Five, and two fish.” 39 And He ordered them all to recline by groups on the green grass. 40 They reclined in groups of hundreds and fifties. 41 And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food and broke the loaves and He gave them to the disciples again and again to set before them; and He divided the two fish among them all. 42 And they all ate and were satisfied; 43 and they picked up twelve full baskets of the broken pieces of bread, and of the fish. 44 There were five thousand [t]men who ate the loaves.
Jesus Walks on the Water
45 And immediately Jesus had His disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He Himself *dismissed the crowd. 46 And after saying goodbye to them, He left for the mountain to pray.
47 When it was evening, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and He was alone on the land. 48 Seeing them [u]straining at the oars—for the wind was against them—at about the [v]fourth watch of the night, He *came to them, walking on the sea; and He intended to pass by them. 49 But when they saw Him walking on the sea, they thought that it was a ghost, and they cried out; 50 for they all saw Him and were [w]terrified. But immediately He spoke with them and *said to them, “Take courage; it is I, do not be afraid.” 51 Then He got into the boat with them, and the wind stopped; and they were utterly astonished, 52 for they [x]had not gained any insight from the incident of the loaves, but [y]their hearts were hardened.
Healing at Gennesaret
53 When they had crossed over they came to land at Gennesaret, and moored at the shore. 54 And when they got out of the boat, immediately the people recognized Him, 55 and ran about that entire country and began carrying here and there on their pallets those who were sick, [z]to wherever they heard He was. 56 And wherever He entered villages, or cities, or a countryside, they were laying the sick in the marketplaces and imploring Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and all who touched it were being [aa]healed. Mark 6
Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath
6 Now it happened that [a]Jesus was passing through some grainfields on a Sabbath, and His disciples were picking the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands, and eating them. 2 But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” 3 And Jesus, answering them, said, “Have you not even read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him, 4 how he entered the house of God, and took and ate the [b]consecrated bread, which is not lawful for anyone to eat except the priests alone, and gave it to his companions?” 5 And He was saying to them, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
6 On another Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught; and a man was there [c]whose right hand was withered. 7 Now the scribes and the Pharisees were watching Him [d]closely to see if He healed on the Sabbath, so that they might find a reason to accuse Him. 8 But He knew [e]what they were thinking, and He said to the man with the withered hand, “Get up and [f]come forward!” And he got up and [g]came forward. 9 And Jesus said to them, “I ask you whether it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do harm, to save a life or to destroy it?” 10 And after looking around at them all, He said to him, “Stretch out your hand!” And he did so; and his hand was restored. 11 But they themselves were filled with senseless rage, and began discussing together what they might do to Jesus.
Choosing the Twelve
12 Now it was [h]at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer with God. 13 And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles: 14 Simon, whom He also named Peter, and his brother Andrew; and [i]James and John; and Philip and Bartholomew; 15 and Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; 16 Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
17 And then Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place; and there was a large crowd of His disciples, and a great multitude of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon, 18 who had come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled by unclean spirits were being cured. 19 And all the [j]people were trying to touch Him, because power was coming from Him and healing them all.
The Beatitudes
20 And He raised His eyes toward His disciples and began saying, “Blessed are [k]you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. 21 Blessed are [l]you who are hungry now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are [m]you who weep now, for you will laugh. 22 Blessed are you when the people hate you, and when they [n]exclude you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man. 23 Rejoice on that day and jump for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For their fathers used to [o]treat the prophets the same way. 24 But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full. 25 Woe to you who [p]are well-fed now, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. 26 Woe to you when all the people speak well of you; for their fathers used to [q]treat the false prophets the same way.
27 “But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who are abusive to you. 29 Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your [r]cloak, do not withhold your [s]tunic from him either. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. 31 [t]Treat people the same way you want them to [u]treat you. 32 If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. 35 But love your enemies and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil people. 36 [v]Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
37 “Do not [w]judge, and you will not be judged; and do not [x]condemn, and you will not be condemned; [y]pardon, and you will be pardoned. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. They will [z]pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”
39 Now He also spoke a parable to them: “A person who is blind cannot guide another who is blind, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40 A [aa]student is not above the teacher; but everyone, when he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher. 41 Why do you look at the [ab]speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 42 How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the [ac]speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the [ad]speck that is in your brother’s eye. 43 For there is no good tree that bears bad fruit, nor, [ae]on the other hand, a bad tree that bears good fruit. 44 For each tree is known by its own fruit. For people do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they pick grapes from a briar bush. 45 The good person out of the good [af]treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil person out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from [ag]that which fills his heart.
The Parable of the Builders
46 “Now why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and [ah]acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: 48 he is like a man building a house, who [ai]dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when there was a flood, the river burst against that house and yet it could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49 But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation; and the river burst against it and it immediately collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.” Luke 6
Five Thousand Men Fed
6 After these things Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or Tiberias). 2 A large crowd was following Him, because they were watching the [a]signs which He was performing on those who were sick. 3 But Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat with His disciples. 4 Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near. 5 So Jesus, after raising His eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to Him, *said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread so that these people may eat?” 6 But He was saying this only to test him, for He Himself knew what He intended to do. 7 Philip answered Him, “Two hundred [b]denarii worth of bread is not enough for them, for each to receive just a little!” 8 One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, *said to Him, 9 “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what are these for so many people?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people recline to eat.” Now there was plenty of grass in the place. So the men reclined, about [c]five thousand in number. 11 Jesus then took the loaves, and after giving thanks He distributed them to those who were reclining; likewise also of the fish, as much as they wanted. 12 And when they had eaten their fill, He *said to His disciples, “Gather up the leftover pieces so that nothing will be lost.” 13 So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with pieces from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. 14 Therefore when the people saw the [d]sign which He had performed, they said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.”
Jesus Walks on the Water
15 So Jesus, aware that they [e]intended to come and take Him by force to make Him king, withdrew again to the mountain by Himself, alone.
16 Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, 17 and after getting into a boat, they started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 In addition, the sea began getting rough, because a strong wind was blowing. 19 Then, when they had rowed about [f]twenty-five or thirty stadia, they *saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat; and they were frightened. 20 But He *said to them, “It is I; [g]do not be afraid.” 21 So they were willing to take Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.
22 The next day the crowd that stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other small boat there except one, and that Jesus had not gotten into the boat with His disciples, but that His disciples had departed alone. 23 Other small boats came from Tiberias near to the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24 So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they themselves got into the small boats and came to Capernaum, looking for Jesus. 25 And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, “Rabbi, when did You get here?”
Words to the People
26 Jesus answered them and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw [h]signs, but because you ate some of the loaves and were filled. 27 Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His [i]seal.” 28 Therefore they said to Him, “What are we to do, so that we may accomplish the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” 30 So they said to Him, “What then are You doing as a sign, so that we may see, and believe You? What work are You performing? 31 Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread out of heaven to eat.’” 32 Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. 33 For the bread of God is [j]that which comes down out of heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 Then they said to Him, “Lord, always give us this bread.”
35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; the one who comes to Me will not be hungry, and the one who believes in Me will never be thirsty. 36 But I said to you that you have indeed seen Me, and yet you do not believe. 37 Everything that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I certainly will not cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. 39 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that of everything that He has given Me I will lose nothing, but will raise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”
Words to the Jews
41 So then the Jews were complaining about Him because He said, “I am the bread that came down out of heaven.” 42 And they were saying, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does He now say, ‘I have come down out of heaven’?” 43 Jesus answered and said to them, “Stop complaining among yourselves. 44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets: ‘And they shall all be taught of God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Me. 46 Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One who is from God; He has seen the Father. 47 Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down out of heaven, so that anyone may eat from it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats from this bread, he will live forever; and the bread which I will give for the life of the world also is My flesh.”
52 Then the Jews began to argue with one another, saying, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?” 53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. 54 The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. 56 The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him. 57 Just as the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, the one who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. 58 This is the bread that came down out of heaven, not as the fathers ate and died; the one who eats this bread will live forever.”
Words to the Disciples
59 These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum.
60 So then many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This statement is very [k]unpleasant; who can listen to it?” 61 But Jesus, aware that His disciples were complaining about this, said to them, “Is this [l]offensive to you? 62 What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before? 63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh provides no benefit; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit, and are life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was who would [m]betray Him. 65 And He was saying, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”
Peter’s Confession of Faith
66 As a result of this many of His disciples left, and would no longer walk with Him. 67 So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to leave also, do you?” 68 Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. 69 And we have already believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.” 70 Jesus answered them, “Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.” 71 Now He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot; for he, one of the twelve, [n]was going to betray Him. John 6
Giving verses:
Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:7
In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” Acts 20:35
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