Women Accompanying Jesus

1 Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, ^oproclaiming and ^pbringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, 2 and also some ^qwomen who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom ^rseven demons had gone out, 3 and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them¹ out of their means.

Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit

22 ^aThen 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 And all the people were ^bamazed, and said, ^c“Can this be the ^dSon of David?” 24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, ^e“It is only by ^fBeelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.” 25 Knowing their thoughts, he 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, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. 28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 Or how can someone enter a ^gstrong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house. 30 ^hWhoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 31 Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the ⁱblasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.

A Tree Is Known by Its Fruit

33 ^j“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the ^ktree is known by its fruit. 34 You ^lbrood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? ^mFor out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The 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, on the day of judgment people will ⁿgive account for every careless word they speak, 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

The Sign of Jonah

38 ^oThen some of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.” 39 But he answered them, ^p“An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For ^qjust as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be ^rthree days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for ^sthey repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. 42 The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for ^tshe came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.

Return of an Unclean Spirit

43 ^u“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless 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 the ^vlast state of that person is worse than the first. So also will it be with this evil generation.”

Jesus’ Mother and Brothers

46 ^wWhile he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers¹ stood outside, asking to speak to him.² 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 ^xwhoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my ^ybrother and sister and mother.”

Jesus Heals Two Blind Men

27 And as Jesus passed on from there, ^htwo blind men followed him, crying aloud, “Have mercy on us, ⁱSon 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 Then he touched their eyes, saying, ^j“According to your faith let it be done to you.” 30 And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, ^k“See that no one knows about it.” 31 ^lBut 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 demon-oppressed man who was ^mmute was brought to him. 33 And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds ⁿmarveled, saying, “Never was anything like this seen in Israel.” 34 But the Pharisees said, ^o“He casts out demons by the prince of demons.”

20 Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. 21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, ^q“He is out of his mind.”

Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit

22 ^rAnd the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by ^sBeelzebul,” and ^t“by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.” 23 And he called them to him and said to them in ^uparables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. 27 But no one can enter a ^vstrong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.

28 “Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, 29 but whoever ^wblasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”— 30 for they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

Jesus’ Mother and Brothers

31 ^xAnd his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. 32 And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers¹ are outside, ^yseeking you.” 33 And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” 34 And ^zlooking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 For ^awhoever ^bdoes the will of God, he is my ^cbrother and sister and mother.”

Jesus’ Mother and Brothers

19 ^fThen his mother and his brothers¹ came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. 20 And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see you.” 21 But he answered them, ^g“My mother and my brothers are those who ^hhear the word of God and do it.”