Saul Fights the Philistines

1 Saul lived for one year and then became king, and when he had reigned for two years over Israel,¹ 2 Saul chose three thousand men of Israel. Two thousand were with Saul in ^kMichmash and the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in ^lGibeah of Benjamin. The rest of the people he sent home, every man to his tent. 3 Jonathan defeated ^mthe garrison of the Philistines that was ⁿat Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul ^oblew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear.” 4 And all Israel heard it said that Saul had defeated the garrison of the Philistines, and also that Israel had become a stench to the Philistines. And the people were called out to join Saul at Gilgal.

5 And the Philistines mustered to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen and troops ^plike the sand on the seashore in multitude. They came up and encamped in Michmash, to the east of ^qBeth-aven. 6 When the men of Israel saw that they were in trouble (for the people were hard pressed), the people hid themselves ^rin caves and in holes and in rocks and in tombs and in cisterns, 7 and some Hebrews crossed the fords of the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul was still at Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.

Saul’s Unlawful Sacrifice

8 ^sHe waited seven days, the time appointed by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattering from him. 9 So Saul said, “Bring the burnt offering here to me, and the peace offerings.” And he offered the burnt offering. 10 As soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came. And Saul went out to meet him and greet him. 11 Samuel said, “What have you done?” And Saul said, “When I saw that the people were scattering from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines had mustered at Michmash, 12 I said, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the favor of the Lord.’ So I forced myself, and offered the burnt offering.” 13 And Samuel said to Saul, ^t“You have done foolishly. ^uYou have not kept the command of the Lord your God, with which he commanded you. For then the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. 14 But now ^vyour kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought out a man ^wafter his own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be prince² over his people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.” 15 And Samuel arose and went up from Gilgal. The rest of the people went up after Saul to meet the army; they went up from Gilgal³ to ^xGibeah of Benjamin.

And Saul numbered the people who were present with him, ^yabout six hundred men. 16 And Saul and Jonathan his son and the people who were present with them stayed in ^zGeba of Benjamin, but the Philistines encamped in Michmash. 17 And ^araiders came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies. One company turned toward Ophrah, to the land of Shual; 18 another company turned toward ^bBeth-horon; and another company turned toward the border that looks down on the Valley of ^cZeboim toward the wilderness.

19 ^dNow there was no blacksmith to be found throughout all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, “Lest the Hebrews make themselves swords or spears.” 20 But every one of the Israelites went down to the Philistines to sharpen his plowshare, his mattock, his axe, or his sickle,⁴ 21 and the charge was two-thirds of a shekel⁵ for the plowshares and for the mattocks, and a third of a shekel⁶ for sharpening the axes and for setting the goads.⁷ 22 So on the day of the battle ^ethere was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people with Saul and Jonathan, but Saul and Jonathan his son had them. 23 And ^fthe garrison of the Philistines went out to the ^gpass of ^hMichmash.

The Parable of the Sower

1 That same day Jesus went out of the house ^oand sat beside the sea. 2 And great crowds gathered about him, ^pso that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. 3 And ^qhe told them many things in parables, saying: ^r“A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but ^swhen the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, ^tthey withered away. 7 Other seeds fell among ^uthorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. 8 Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some ^va hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 ^wHe who has ears,¹ let him hear.”

The Purpose of the Parables

10 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” 11 And he answered them, ^x“To you it has been given to know ^ythe secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. 12 ^zFor to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, ^aeven what he has will be taken away. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables, because ^bseeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, ^cnor do they understand. 14 Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:

16 But ⁱblessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. 17 ⁱFor truly, I say to you, ^jmany prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

The Parable of the Sower Explained

18 ^k“Hear then the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of ^lthe kingdom and ^mdoes not understand it, ⁿthe evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. 20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately ^oreceives it with joy, 21 yet he has no root in himself, but ^pendures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately ^qhe falls away.² 22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but ^rthe cares of ^sthe world and ^tthe deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and ^munderstands it. He indeed ^ubears fruit and yields, in one case ^va hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”

The Parable of the Weeds

24 He put another parable before them, saying, ^w“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds³ among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants⁴ of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29 But he said, ^x‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, ^y“Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

The Mustard Seed and the Leaven

31 He put another parable before them, saying, ^z“The kingdom of heaven is like ^aa grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”

33 He told them another parable. ^b“The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in ^cthree measures of flour, till it was ^dall leavened.”

Prophecy and Parables

34 ^eAll these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, he said nothing to them without a parable. 35 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet:⁵

The Parable of the Weeds Explained

36 Then he left the crowds and went into ⁱthe house. And his disciples came to him, saying, ^j“Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” 37 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is ^kthe sons of the kingdom. The weeds are ^lthe sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. ^mThe harvest is ⁿthe end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds ^oare gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at ⁿthe end of the age. 41 ^pThe Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all ^qcauses of sin and ^rall law-breakers, 42 ^sand throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place ^tthere will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then ^uthe righteous will shine like the sun ^vin the kingdom of their Father. ^wHe who has ears, let him hear.

The Parable of the Hidden Treasure

44 “The kingdom of heaven ^xis like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy ^yhe goes and sells all that he has and ^zbuys that field.

The Parable of the Pearl of Great Value

45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding ^aone pearl of great value, ^ywent and sold all that he had and ^zbought it.

The Parable of the Net

47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is ^blike a net that was thrown into the sea and ^cgathered fish of every kind. 48 When it was full, ^dmen drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. 49 So it will be at ^ethe end of the age. The angels will come out and ^fseparate the evil from the righteous 50 ^gand throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place ^gthere will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

New and Old Treasures

51 ^h“Have you understood all these things?” They said to him, “Yes.” 52 And he said to them, “Therefore every ⁱscribe ^jwho has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who ^kbrings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.”

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth

53 And when Jesus had finished these parables, he went away from there, 54 ^land coming to ^mhis hometown ⁿhe taught them in their synagogue, so that ^othey were astonished, and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these mighty works? 55 ^pIs not this ^qthe carpenter’s⁶ son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not ^rhis brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? 56 And are not all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57 And ^sthey took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, ^t“A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household.” 58 And he did not do many mighty works there, ^ubecause of their unbelief.

The Death of John the Baptist

1 ^vAt that time ^wHerod the tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus, 2 and he said to his servants, ^x“This is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead; that is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.” 3 For ^yHerod had seized John and bound him and ^zput him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife,⁷ 4 because John had been saying to him, ^a“It is not lawful for you to have her.” 5 And though he wanted to put him to death, ^bhe feared the people, because they held him to be ^ca prophet. 6 But when Herod’s ^dbirthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company and pleased Herod, 7 so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask. 8 Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.” 9 And the king was sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given. 10 He sent and had John beheaded in the prison, 11 and his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. 12 And ^ehis disciples came and took the body and buried it, and they went and told Jesus.

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

13 Now when Jesus heard this, ^fhe withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When he went ashore he ^gsaw a great crowd, and ^ghe had compassion on them and healed their sick. 15 Now when it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the day is now over; ^hsend the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” 16 But Jesus said, “They need not go away; ⁱyou give them something to eat.” 17 They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and two fish.” 18 And he said, “Bring them here to me.” 19 Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, ^jhe looked up to heaven and ^ksaid a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 20 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over. 21 And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Jesus Walks on the Water

22 ^lImmediately he ^mmade the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, ⁿhe went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When ^oevening came, he was there alone, 24 but the boat by this time was a long way⁸ from the land,⁹ beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. 25 And ^lin the fourth watch of the night¹⁰ he came to them, walking on the sea. 26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, ^pthey were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ^q“Take heart; it is I. ^qDo not be afraid.”

28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and ^rwalked on the water and came to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind,¹¹ he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, ^s“Lord, save me.” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, ^t“O you of little faith, why did you ^udoubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, ^sthe wind ceased. 33 And ^vthose in the boat ^wworshiped him, saying, ^x“Truly you are ^ythe Son of God.”

Jesus Heals the Sick in Gennesaret

34 ^zAnd when they had crossed over, they came to land at ^aGennesaret. 35 And when the men of that place recognized him, they sent around to all that region and ^bbrought to him all who were sick 36 and implored him that they might only touch ^cthe fringe of his garment. And ^das many as touched it were made well.

Traditions and Commandments

1 ^eThen Pharisees and ^fscribes came to Jesus ^ffrom Jerusalem and said, 2 ^g“Why do your disciples break ^hthe tradition of the elders? ^jFor they do not wash their hands when they eat.” 3 He answered them, “And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God commanded, ^k‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ^l‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ 5 But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or his mother, “What you would have gained from me is given to God,”¹² 6 he need not honor his father.’ So for the sake of your tradition you have ^mmade void the word¹³ of God. 7 ⁿYou hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:

What Defiles a Person

10 And he called the people to him and said to them, ^q“Hear and understand: 11 ^rit is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” 12 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were ^soffended when they heard this saying?” 13 He answered, ^t“Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted ^uwill be rooted up. 14 Let them alone; ^vthey are blind guides.¹⁴ And ^wif the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” 15 But Peter said to him, ^x“Explain the parable to us.” 16 And he said, ^y“Are you also still without understanding? 17 Do you not see that ^zwhatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled?¹⁵ 18 But ^awhat comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come ^bevil thoughts, ^cmurder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, ^dslander. 20 ^eThese are what defile a person. But ^fto eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”

The Faith of a Canaanite Woman

21 ^gAnd Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, ^ha Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, ⁱ“Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, ^j“Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” 24 He answered, ^k“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and ^lknelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and ^mthrow it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat ⁿthe crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, ^ogreat is your faith! ^pLet it be done for you as you desire.” ^qAnd her daughter was ^phealed instantly.¹⁶