By Dave Armstrong (11-14-13)
The Gospel According
to
MARK
The beginning of the
gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God;
2 As it is
written in the prophets, Behold,
I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way
before thee. [Mal 3:1]
3
The voice of one crying
in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths
straight. [Is
40:3]
4 John was in
the desert baptizing, and preaching the baptism of repentance unto
remission of sins.
5
And 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.
6 John was
dressed in camel's hair, with a leather girdle round his loins, and
he ate locusts and wild honey.
7 He
announced, After me one who is mightier will come, and I am not
fit to stoop and untie the string of his sandals:
8
I have baptized you with water, but he will
baptize you with the Holy Spirit.
9 And it came
to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and
was baptized of John in the Jordan.
10
And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens
opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him;
11 and
there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in
whom I am well pleased.
12 At
once the Spirit impelled him to go out into the desert,
13 and in the
desert he remained for forty days, while Satan tempted him; he was
in the company of wild beasts, but angels ministered to him.
14 And
after the delivering up of John, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming
the good news of the kingdom of God,
15 and
saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand:
repent and believe in the gospel.
16 And passing
by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother of Simon,
casting nets into the sea (for they were fishermen).
17 And Jesus said, Come and follow me, and I will
make you fishers of men.
18 At once they left their nets and followed him.
19 Going on a little further,
he saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were
mending their nets in the ship.
20 And straightway he called
them: and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired
servants, and went to follow him.
21 So
they came to Capernaum, and on the next Sabbath he went to the
synagogue and began to teach,
24 What
do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?
We know who you are—the Holy One of God!
25 But
Jesus reprimanded him, saying, Silence! come out of him.
27 And
they were all so amazed that they kept asking, What is this? Strange
teaching indeed! He gives his commands with authority even to the
foul spirits, and they obey him!
29 And
straightway, having come forth out of the synagogue, they went to the
house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.
30 Now Simon's mother-in-law was lying ill with
fever, and they at once told Jesus about her.
31 And he came and took her by the hand, and
lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she began to
wait upon them.
32 And
evening having come, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all
who were ill, and who were demoniacs,
33 and
the whole city was gathered together near the door.
34 Then
he healed numbers of people who were ill with various diseases, and
he drove out many demons; not allowing the demons to speak, because
they knew who he was.
35 And
very early, it being yet night, having risen, he went forth, and went
away to a solitary place, and was there praying;
38 But he said
to them, Let us go into the neighbouring towns and cities, that I may
preach there also; for to this purpose am I come.
39 And he
preached in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and cast out
demons.
40 A
leper came to him beseeching him on bended knee, saying, If you only
choose, you can cleanse me.
41 Moved with compassion, Jesus put forth his
hand and touched him, saying as he did so, I am willing; become
clean.
44 Be careful not to say anything to any one; but
go and show yourself to the priest, and make the offerings for your
cleansing directed by Moses, as evidence of your cure.
45 But he went off and proceeded to proclaim it
aloud and spread news of the affair both far and wide. The result
was that Jesus could no longer enter any town openly; he stayed
outside in lonely places, and people came to him from every
quarter.
CHAPTER 2
And again
he entered into Capernaum after some days, and it was heard that he
was in the house;
2
and many came together, so that there was no room; not even at the
door; and he preached the word unto them,
4
Finding themselves unable, however, to bring him to Jesus because of
the crowd, they untiled the roof just over his head, and after
clearing an opening they lowered the mat on which the paralytic was
lying.
5 When Jesus
saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, My son, your sins are
forgiven.
6 But some of
the Teachers of the Law who were sitting there were debating in their
minds:
7 Why does
this man speak like this? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins
except God?
8 At once
perceiving in his spirit that they were reasoning within themselves,
Jesus asked them, Why do you thus argue in your minds?
9 Which is
easier? —to say to this paralytic, Your sins are pardoned, or to
say, Rise, take up your mat, and walk?
10 But that you may know that
the Son of Man has power to forgive sins on earth—here he said to
the paralyzed man—
11 To you I say, Get up, take up your mat, and
return to your home.
12 The man
rose, and immediately taking up his mat, went his way in the sight of
all, so that they were all filled with astonishment, gave the glory
to God, and said, We never saw anything like this.
14 And as he
passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax-office,
and said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed him.
15 When he was
sitting at table in Levi's house, a large number of tax-gatherers and
notorious sinners were at table with Jesus and his disciples; for
there were many such who habitually followed him.
16 But when the
Scribes of the Pharisee sect saw him eating with the sinners and the
tax-gatherers, they said to his disciples, He is eating and drinking
with the tax-gatherers and sinners!
17 Jesus
hearing this, said to them, They that are well have no need of a
physician, but they that are sick. For came not to call the
righteous, but sinners.
18 Now John's
disciples and the Pharisees were keeping a fast, and people came and
asked Jesus. Why is it that John's disciples and the disciples of the
Pharisees fast, while yours do not?
19 Jesus answered, Can the bridegroom's friends
fast, while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the
bridegroom with them, they cannot fast.
20 But the days will come,
when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall
they fast in those days.
21 No one mends an old garment
with a piece of unshrunk cloth. Otherwise, the patch put on would
tear away from it—the new from the old—and a worse hole would be
made.
22 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins.
Otherwise the wine would burst the skins, and both wine and skins
would be lost. New wine needs fresh skins!
23 And
it came to pass, that he went through the corn fields on the sabbath
day; and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of
corn.
24 So the Pharisees said to him, Look! why are
they doing what on the Sabbath is unlawful?
25 And he said to them, Have you never read what
David did, when he had need and was hungry himself, and they that
were with him?
26 He went into the house of God, under Abiathar
the high priest, and ate the loaves of the Presence which no one
except the priests is allowed to eat, and also shared them with his
followers.
27 And
he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the
sabbath:
28
Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.
CHAPTER 3
* * * * *
CHAPTER 3
And he
entered again into the synagogue, and there was a man there who had a
withered hand.
2
And they watched Jesus closely, to see if he would cure the man on
the Sabbath, so that they might have a charge to bring against him.
3 And he said
to the man who had the withered hand, Stand up in the midst.
4 And he asked
them, Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath, or to do evil? to save
life, or to destroy? But they held their peace.
5
Grieved and indignant at the hardening of their hearts, he looked
round on them with anger, and said to the man, Stretch out your hand.
He stretched it out, and the hand was completely restored.
6
And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the
Herodians against him, how they might destroy him.
7 But
Jesus withdrew himself with his disciples to the sea; and a great
multitude followed him from Galilee and Judea,
8 and from
Jerusalem and Idumaea and from beyond the Jordan and from the
district of Tyre and Sidon there came to him a vast crowd, hearing of
all that he was doing.
9 And he said
to his disciples that a little boat should wait on him, because of
the multitude, that they may not press upon him.
10 For he had cured many of them, and so people
kept crowding upon him, that all who were afflicted might touch him.
11 And whenever the unclean spirits saw him they
fell down before him, screaming, You are the Son of God!
12 And he
strictly charged them that they should not make him known.
13 Then
he went up the hillside and summoned the men he wanted, and they went
to him.
14 And he appointed twelve, that they might be
with him, and that he might send them out to preach,
15 and to have power to heal sicknesses, and to
cast out demons.
16 These twelve were Simon (to whom he gave the
name of Peter),
17 James the son of Zebedee and
John the brother of James (these two he surnamed Boanerges, that is,
Sons of Thunder),
18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew,
Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the
Canaanite.
19 and Judas Iscariot, the man who also betrayed
him.
20 Then
they went indoors, but the crowd gathered again, so that it was
impossible even to have a meal.
22 And the scribes who had come down from
Jerusalem said, He has Beelzebub, and, It is by the prince of demons
that he casts out demons.
23 And after he had called them together, he said
to them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan?
24 And if a kingdom be divided against itself,
that kingdom cannot stand.
26 And if Satan rise up against himself, and be
divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.
27 No man can enter into the house of a strong
man and rob him of his goods, unless he first bind the strong man,
and then shall he plunder his house.
28 Amen I say to you, that all sins shall be
forgiven unto the sons of men, and the blasphemies wherewith they
shall blaspheme:
29 But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy
Spirit, shall never have forgiveness, but shall be guilty of an
everlasting sin.
30 This was
said in reply to the charge that he had a foul spirit in him.
31 And
his mother and his brethren came; and standing without, sent unto
him, calling him.
32 There was a crowd sitting round Jesus, and
some of them said to him, Look, your mother and your brothers are
outside, asking for you.
34 And
looking round about on them who sat about him, he said, Behold my
mother and my brethren.
CHAPTER 4
And he began again to teach by the sea side: and there
was gathered unto him a great multitude, so that he entered into a
ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on
the land.
2
And he taught them many things in parables, and said unto them in his
doctrine:
3 Hearken;
Behold, the sower went out to sow.
4 And it came
to pass as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the birds of the
air came and ate it up.
5 And some
fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it
sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:
6 But when the
sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered
away.
7 And some
fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it
yielded no fruit.
8 And some
fell upon good ground; and brought forth fruit that grew up, and
increased and yielded, one thirty, another sixty, and another a
hundred.
10 Afterwards,
when he was alone, his followers and the Twelve asked him about his
parables;
11 And he said
to them: To you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of
God: but to them that are without, all things are done in parables:
12
That seeing they may see,
and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest
at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be
forgiven them. [Is 6:9f;
43:8; Jer 5:21; Ezek 12:2]
13 And he said
to them: Are you ignorant of this parable? and how shall you know all
parables?
14 The sower
sows the word.
15 And these
are they by the way side, where the word is sown, and as soon as they
have heard, immediately Satan comes and carries away the word that
was sown in their hearts.
16 And these
likewise are they that are sown on the stony ground: who when they
have heard the word, immediately receive it with joy,
17 and have not
root in themselves, but are temporary; afterward tribulation or
persecution having come because of the word, immediately they are
stumbled.
18 And these
are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word,
19 And the
cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts
of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becomes
unfruitful.
20
And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the
word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some
sixty, and some a hundred.
21 And he said
unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a
bed? and not to be set on a candlestick?
22 For there is nothing hid, which shall not be
made manifest: neither was it made secret, but that it may at last
come to light.
24 And he said unto them, Take heed what you
hear: with what measure you shall mete, it shall be measured to you:
and unto you that hear shall more be given.
25 For,
to those who have, more will be given; while, from those who have
nothing, even what they have will be taken away.
26 And he said,
So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the
ground;
27 And should
sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow
up, he knows not how.
28 For the
earth of itself produces the crop, first the blade, then the ear,
afterwards the full corn in the ear.
29 But when the
fruit is brought forth, immediately he puts in the sickle, because
the harvest is come.
30 And he said:
To what shall we liken the kingdom of God? or to what parable shall
we compare it?
31 It is as a
grain of mustard seed: which when it is sown in the earth, is less
than all the seeds that are in the earth:
32 And when it
is sown, it shoots up, and becomes greater than all herbs, and puts
out great branches, so that the birds of the air may dwell under the
shadow thereof.
33 And with
many such parables, he spoke to them the word, according as they were
able to hear.
34 And without
parable he did not speak unto them; but apart, he explained all
things to his disciples.
35 And he said
to them that day, when evening was come: Let us pass over to the
other side.
36 So, leaving the crowd behind, they took him
with them, just as he was, in the boat; and there were other boats
with him.
37 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the
waves beat into the ship, so that the ship was filled.
38 But He Himself was in the stern asleep, with
His head on the cushion: so they woke Him. They cried, Teacher, is it
nothing to you that we are drowning?
39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said
unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a
great calm.
40 And
he said to them: Why are you fearful? have you not faith yet?
41
And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of
man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?
CHAPTER 5
And they
came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the
Gadarenes.
2
And as soon as he stepped out of the boat a man from the tombs came
to meet him, a man with an unclean spirit
3 who had his
dwelling in the tombs, and no man now could bind him, not even with
chains.
4 For having
been often bound with fetters and chains, he had burst the chains,
and broken the fetters in pieces, and no one could tame him.
5 And always,
night and day, he was in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and
cutting himself with stones.
6 But when he
saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him,
7 shrieking
aloud, Jesus, son of God most High, what business have you with me?
By God, I adjure you, do not torment me.
8 (For he had
said, Come out of the man, you unclean spirit.)
9 And he was
questioning him, What is your name? and he answered, saying, Legion
is my name, because we are many.
10 And they begged him earnestly not to send them
out of the country.
11 And there was there near the mountain a great
herd of swine, feeding.
12 And the spirits besought him, saying: Send us
into the swine, that we may enter into them.
13 And Jesus immediately gave them leave. And the
unclean spirits going out, entered into the swine: and the herd with
great violence was carried headlong into the sea, being about two
thousand, and were drowned in the sea.
14 The herdsmen fled and reported it to the town
and the hamlets. So the people came to see what had happened,
15 and when they reached Jesus they saw the
demoniac sitting down, clothed and in his right mind — the man who
had been possessed by Legion, and they were afraid.
16 Then those who had seen it
related to them all that had happened to the possessed man, as well
as about the swine;
17 and they began to call upon him to go away
from their borders.
18 And when he went up into the ship, the
demoniac began to beseech him that he might be with him;
19 but he said, Go home to your own people, and
report to them all the Lord has done for you and how he has had
compassion on you.
20 So he went
off and began to proclaim throughout Decapolis all that Jesus had
done for him; and all were astonished.
21 Now when
Jesus had crossed in the boat to the other side again, a large crowd
gathered round him; so he remained beside the sea.
22 A president
of the synagogue named Jairus came up, and on catching sight of him
fell at his feet
23 with earnest
entreaties, saying, My little daughter is at the point of death: I
pray you come and lay your hands upon her, that she may recover and
live.
24 And Jesus
went with him, and a great multitude followed him, and they pressed
round him.
25 And there
was a woman who had had a hemorrhage for twelve years —
26 she had
suffered a great deal under a number of doctors and had spent all her
means but was none the better; but rather worse.
27 Hearing
about Jesus, got behind him in the crowd, and touched his robe;
28 for she
said, If I shall touch but his garment, I shall be whole.
29 And
straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in
her body that she was healed of that plague.
30
And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of
him, turned to the multitude, and said, Who touched my garments?
31 His
disciples said to him, You see the crowd are pressing round you, and
yet you ask, Who touched me?
32 But he kept
looking round to see who had done it,
33 and the
woman, knowing what had happened to her, came forward in fear and
trembling and fell down before him, telling him all the truth.
34 And he said
to her, Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be
free from your disease.
35 He was still
speaking when a message came from the house of the
synagogue-president, Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher
any further?
36 But Jesus, overhearing what they were saying,
said to the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid; only believe.
37 And he admitted not any man to follow him, but
Peter, and James, and John the brother of James.
38 And they reached the house of the ruler of the
synagogue; and he saw a tumult, and people weeping and wailing
greatly,
39 and on entering he asked them, Why this
confusion and weeping? The child is not dead but asleep.
40 And
they laughed him to scorn. But he put them all outside and taking the
father and mother of the child as well as his companions he went in
to where the child was lying;
41
then he took the child's hand and said to her, Talitha cumi — which
may be translated, Little girl, rise, I tell you.
42
The girl got up at once and began to walk (she was twelve years old);
and at once they were lost in utter amazement.
43
And he charged them strictly that no man should know it: and
commanded that something should be given her to eat.
CHAPTER 6
And going
out from thence, he went into his own country; and his disciples
followed him.
2
And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the
synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, Where did he
get all this? and what wisdom is this that is given to him, that even
such mighty works are wrought by his hands?
3
Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and
Joses, and of Judas, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us?
And they were offended at him.
4 And Jesus
said to them: A prophet is not without honor, but in his own country,
and in his own house, and among his own kindred.
5
And he could not do any miracles there, save that he laid his hands
upon a few that were sick, and healed them.
6 And he
marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the
villages, teaching.
7
And
he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth two by
two; and gave them power over unclean spirits;
8
And commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey,
save a staff only; no bag, no bread, no money in their pockets:
9 But to be
shod with sandals, and that they should not put on two coats.
10 And he said to them: Wheresoever you shall
enter into an house, there abide till you depart from that place.
11 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear
you; going forth from thence, shake off the dust from your feet for a
testimony against them.
14 Now
this came to the hearing of king Herod, for the name of Jesus had
become well known; people said, John the Baptist has risen from the
dead, that is why miraculous powers are working through him;
15 others said, It is Elijah, others again, It is
a prophet, like one of the old prophets.
17 For Herod himself had sent
forth and laid hold upon John, and bound him in prison for the sake
of Herodias the wife of Philip his brother, because he had married
her.
18 John had told Herod, You have no right to your
brother's wife.
19 Now Herodias laid snares for him: and was
desirous to put him to death, and could not.
20 For Herod feared John, knowing him to be a
just and holy man: and kept him,
and when he heard him, did many things: and he heard him willingly.
21 And when a convenient day was come, Herod made
a supper for his birthday, for the princes, and tribunes, and chief
men of Galilee,
22 at which Herodias's own
daughter came in and danced, and so charmed Herod and his guests that
he said to her, Ask me for anything you please, and I will give it to
you.
23 He even swore to her, Whatever you ask me for
I will give you, up to half my kingdom.
24 And she went forth, and
said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of
John the Baptist.
25 Then she hurried in at once and asked the
king, saying, I want you to give me this very moment the head of John
the Baptist on a dish.
26 The king was much
distressed; yet, on account of his oath and of the guests at his
table, he would not reject her.
27 But sending an executioner, he commanded that
his head should be brought in a dish. And he beheaded him in the
prison,
28 brought his head on a dish, and gave it to the
girl; and the girl gave it to her mother.
30 And the apostles gathered themselves together
unto Jesus, and told him all things, both what they had done, and
what they had taught.
31 And he said to them: Come apart into a desert
place, and rest a little. For there were many coming and going: and
they had not so much as time to eat.
32 And going up into a ship, they went into a
desert place apart.
33 However a number of people who saw them start
and recognized them, got to the place before them by hurrying there
on foot from all the towns.
34 And Jesus going out saw a great multitude: and
he had compassion on them, because they were as sheep not having a
shepherd, and he began to teach them many things.
35 And when the day was now far spent, his
disciples came to him, saying: This is a desert place, and the hour
is now past:
36 send them off to the farms and villages round
about to buy some food for themselves.
37 He replied, Give them some food, yourselves.
They said, Are we to go and buy ten pounds' worth of food and give
them that to eat?
38 He said, How many loaves have you got? Go and
see. When they found out they told him, Five, and two fish.
39 Then he gave orders that they were to make all
the people lie down in parties on the green grass;
40 so
they arranged themselves in groups of a hundred and of fifty;
41
And when he had taken the five loaves, and the two fishes: looking up
to heaven, he blessed, and broke the loaves, and gave to his
disciples to set before them: and the two fishes he divided among
them all.
42 And they
all did eat, and had their fill.
44 The number of men who ate the loaves was five
thousand.
45 And straightway he constrained his disciples
to get into the boat, and to go to the other side before to
Bethsaida, while he sent away the people.
46 And when he had dismissed them, he went up to
the mountain to pray.
47 And when it was late, the boat was in the
midst of the sea, and himself alone on the land,
48 but when he saw them buffeted as they rowed
(for the wind was against them) he went to them about the fourth
watch of the night walking on the sea. He would have passed them by,
49 but when they saw him walking upon the sea,
they supposed it had been a spirit, and cried out.
50 For they all saw him, and were troubled. And
immediately he talked with them, and said to them, Be of good cheer:
it is I; be not afraid.
51 And he got into the boat beside them, and the
wind dropped. They were utterly astounded,
52 for they understood not concerning the loaves;
for their heart was blinded.
54 And when they had disembarked, the people at
once recognized Jesus;
55 And
running through that whole country, they began to carry about in beds
those that were sick, where they heard he was.
56
And whithersoever he entered, into towns or into villages or cities,
they laid the sick in the streets, and besought him that they might
touch but the hem of his garment: and as many as touched him were
made whole.
CHAPTER 7
And there
assembled together unto him the Pharisees and some of the scribes,
coming from Jerusalem.
2
And when they had seen some of his disciples eat bread with common,
that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault.
3 For the
Pharisees, and all the Jews eat not without often washing their
hands, holding the tradition of the ancients:
4 And when
they come from the market, unless they be washed, they eat not: and
many other things there are that have been delivered to them to
observe, the washings of cups and of pots, and of brazen vessels, and
of beds.
5 Then the
Pharisees and scribes put this question to him, Why do your disciples
not follow the tradition of the elders? Why do they take their food
with common hands?
6 He answered
and said unto them, Well hath Isaiah prophesied of you hypocrites, as
it is written, This
people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.
8 For leaving
the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men, the washing of
pots and of cups: and many other things you do like to these.
9 And he said
to them: Well do you make void the commandment of God, that you may
keep your own tradition.
10 For Moses said, Honour thy father and thy
mother; [Ex 20:12; Dt 5:16] and, Whoso curseth father or
mother, let him die the death: [Ex 21:17; Lev 20:9]
11 But you say that if a man tells his father or
mother, This money might have been at your service, but it is Corban
(that is, dedicated to God),
12 he is exempt, so you hold, from doing anything
for his father or mother,
13 making the word of God of none effect through
your tradition, which you have delivered: and many such like things
you do.
14 And when he had called all
the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of
you, and understand:
15 Nothing outside a man can defile him by
entering him; it is what comes from him that defiles him.
17 And when he was entered
into the house from the people, his disciples asked him concerning
the parable.
18 And he said to them, So are you also without
knowledge? Understand you not that every thing from without, entering
into a man cannot defile him?
19 It does not enter his heart but his belly and
passes from that into the drain (thus he pronounced all food clean).
20 But he said that the things which come out
from a man, they defile a man.
21 For from within, out of the
heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications,
murders,
22 Thefts, covetousness,
wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride,
foolishness:
23 All these evil things come from within, and
defile the man.
24 Leaving there, he went away to the territory
of Tyre and Sidon. He went into a house and wished no one to know of
it, but he could not escape notice;
25 For a certain woman, whose young daughter had
an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet:
26 The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by
nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the demon out
of her daughter.
27 But Jesus said unto her, Let the children
first be filled: for it is not good to take the children's bread, and
to cast it unto the dogs.
28 And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord:
yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.
30 so she went home and found the child lying in
bed and the demon gone from her.
31 He left the territory of Tyre again and passed
through Sidon to the sea of Galilee, crossing the territory of
Decapolis.
32 And a deaf man who stammered was brought to
him, with the request that he would lay his hand on him.
33 So taking him aside from the crowd by himself,
he put his fingers into the man's ears, touched his tongue with
saliva,
34 and looking up to heaven with a deep sigh he
said to him, Ephphatha (which means, Be opened).
36 Jesus
forbade them to tell anyone about it, but the more he forbade them
the more eagerly they made it public;
37
they were astounded in the extreme, saying, How splendidly he has
done everything! He actually makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak!
CHAPTER 8
In those
days, when a large crowd had again gathered and when they had nothing
to eat, he called the disciples and said to them,
2
I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with
me three days, and have nothing to eat:
3
And if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint
by the way: for some of them came from afar off.
4
And his disciples answered him, From whence can a man satisfy these
men with bread here in the wilderness?
5 And he asked
them, How many loaves have you? And they said, Seven.
6
And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took
the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and broke, and gave to his
disciples to set before them; and they set them before the people.
7 And as they
also had a few small fish, he blessed them too and told the disciples
to serve them out as well.
8 So the
people ate and were satisfied, and they picked up seven baskets of
fragments which were left over.
9 There were
about four thousand of them. Then he sent them away,
10 and straightway he entered into a boat with
his disciples, and came into the parts of Dalmanutha.
11 And the Pharisees came
forth, and began to question with him, seeking of him a sign from
heaven, tempting him.
12 And sighing deeply in spirit, he said: Why
does this generation seek a sign? Verily, I say to you, a sign shall
not be given to this generation.
13 So he left them to themselves, and, getting
into the boat again, went away to the opposite shore.
14 Now the disciples had
forgotten to take any bread with them, one loaf being all that they
had in the boat.
15 And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware
of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.
16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It
is because we have no bread.
17 He noted this and said to them, Why do you
argue you have no bread? Do you not see, do you not understand, even
yet? Are your minds still so slow of comprehension?
18 Having eyes, see you not? and having ears,
hear you not? and do you not remember?
19 Do you not remember how many baskets full of
fragments you picked up when I broke the five loaves for the five
thousand? They said, Twelve.
20 And how many basketfuls of fragments did you
pick up when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand? They
said, Seven.
21 And he said to them: How do you not yet
understand?
22 Then they reached Bethsaida. A blind man was
brought to him with the request that he would touch him.
23 Taking the blind man's hand, Jesus led him to
the outskirts of the village, and, when he had put saliva on the
man's eyes, he placed his hands on him, and asked him: Do you see
anything?
25 After that again he laid his hands upon his
eyes, and he began to see, and was restored, so that he saw all
things clearly.
26 And he sent him away to his
house, saying, Neither go into the town, nor tell it to any in the
town.
27 And Jesus went out, and his disciples, into
the towns of Caesarea Philippi: and by the way he asked his
disciples, saying unto them, Whom do men say that I am?
28 And they answered, John the Baptist: but some
say, Elijah; and others, One of the prophets.
29 So he inquired of them, And who do you say I
am? Peter replied, You are the Christ.
30 Then he forbade them to tell anyone about him.
31 And he began to teach them, that the Son of
man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of
the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days
rise again.
32 This statement he made openly. But Peter took
Jesus aside, and began to rebuke him.
33 Jesus, however, turning round and seeing his
disciples, rebuked Peter. He exclaimed, Out of my sight, Satan! For
you look at things, not as God does, but as man does.
34 And when he had called the people unto him
with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after
me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
35 For whosoever will save his life shall lose
it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's,
shall save it.
37
Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
38
Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this
adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be
ashamed, when he shall come in the glory of his Father with the holy
angels.
CHAPTER 9
And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there
are some of those standing here who shall not taste of death, till
they have seen the kingdom of God come with power.
2
Six days afterwards Jesus took Peter, James and John, and led them up
a high hill by themselves alone; in their presence he was
transfigured,
3 and his
clothes glistened white, vivid white, such as no fuller on earth
could bleach them.
4 And there
appeared unto them Elijah with Moses: and they were talking with
Jesus.
5 And Peter
answered and said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and
let us make three tabernacles; one for you, and one for Moses, and
one for Elijah,
6 for he did
not know what to say, they were so terrified.
7 And there
was a cloud that overshadowed them: and a voice came out of the
cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.
8
And suddenly, when they had looked round about, they saw no man any
more, save Jesus only with themselves.
9 And as they
came down from the mountain, he charged them not to tell any man what
things they had seen, till the Son of man shall be risen again from
the dead.
10 And they kept the word to themselves;
questioning together what that should mean, when he shall be risen
from the dead.
11 And they asked him, saying: Why then do the
scribes say that Elijah must come first?
12 And he answering said to them, Elijah does
indeed come first and re-establish everything; and does not Scripture
speak, with regard to the Son of Man, of his undergoing much
suffering and being utterly despised?
13 But I tell you that Elijah
has come, and people have treated him just as they pleased, as
Scripture says of him.
14 And coming to his disciples, he saw a great
multitude about them, and the scribes disputing with them.
15 And presently all the people seeing Jesus,
were astonished and struck with fear; and running to him, they
saluted him.
16 Jesus asked the scribes, What are you
discussing with them?
17 A man from the crowd answered him, Teacher, I
brought my son to you; he has a dumb spirit,
18 and whenever it seizes him it throws him down,
and he foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth, and turns rigid; I told
your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.
19 He answered them, O faithless generation, how
long must I still be with you? how long have I to bear with you?
Bring him to me.
20 So they brought the boy to him, and when the
spirit saw Jesus it at once convulsed the boy; he fell on the ground
and rolled about, foaming at the mouth.
21 Jesus asked his father, How long has he been
like this? He said, From childhood;
22 it has thrown him into fire and water many a
time, to destroy him. If you can do anything, have compassion on us,
and help us.
23 And Jesus said to him, If
you are able to believe! all things are possible to the one that is
believing;
24 And immediately the father of the boy crying
out, with tears said, I do believe, Lord: help my unbelief.
25 And when Jesus saw the multitude running
together, he threatened the unclean spirit, saying to him, Deaf and
dumb spirit, I command you, go out of him; and enter not any more
into him.
26 So with a loud cry he threw the boy into fit
after fit, and came out. The boy looked as if he were dead, so that
most of them said he was dead;
28 When he went indoors his disciples asked him
in private, Why could we not cast it out?
29 He said to them, Nothing can make this kind
come out but prayer and fasting.
30 Leaving there they passed through Galilee. He
did not want anyone to know of their journey,
31 for he was teaching his disciples, telling
them that the Son of man would be betrayed into the hands of men,
that they would kill him, and that when he was killed he would rise
again after three days.
32 But they did not understand what he said, and
they were afraid to ask him what he meant.
33 Then they reached Capernaum. And when he was
indoors he asked them, What were you arguing about on the road?
34 But they held their peace: for on the road
they had been disputing about which of them was the greatest.
35 Then sitting down he called the twelve, and
said to them,
If any man desire to be first, he must be last of
all and servant of all.
36 And he took a child, and
set him in the midst of them: and when he had taken him in his arms,
he said unto them,
37 Whosoever shall receive one
of such children in my name, receives me: and whosoever shall receive
me, receives not me, but him that sent me.
38 John said to him, Teacher, we saw a man
casting out demons in your name; but he does not follow us, and so we
stopped him.
39 Jesus said, Do not stop him; no one who
performs any miracle in my name will be ready to speak evil of me.
40 He
who is not against us is for us.
41
For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name,
because you belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not
lose his reward.
42 And
whoever is a hindrance to one of these little ones who believe, it
were better for him to have a great millstone hung round his neck and
be thrown into the sea.
43 If your hand should cause
you to sin, cut it off: it would be better for you to enter into life
maimed, than remain in possession of both your hands and go away into
hell, into the fire which never shall be quenched.
45 If your foot is a hindrance to you, cut it
off: better get into life a cripple, than keep your two feet and be
cast into hell.
47 Or if your eye should cause you to sin, tear
it out. It would be better for you to enter into the Kingdom of God
half-blind than remain in possession of two eyes and be cast into
hell:
50
Salt is a good thing, but if the salt should become tasteless, what
will you use to restore its flavour? Have salt within you and be at
peace with one another.
[Verses
44 and 46 are not found in the best ancient manuscripts, and merely
repeat verse 48]
CHAPTER 10
On
leaving that place, Jesus went into the district of Judea on the
other side of the Jordan. Crowds gathered about him again; and again,
as usual, he began teaching them.
2
Presently some Pharisees came up and, to test him, asked, Has a
husband the right to divorce his wife?
3 And he
answered and said to them, What did Moses command you?
5 Jesus said
to them, Because of the hardness of your heart he wrote you that
precept.
6 But from the
beginning of the creation God made
them male and female.
[Gen 1:27; 5:2]
7 For
this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his
wife; [Gen 2:24]
9 What
therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder.
10 And in the house again his disciples asked him
concerning the same thing.
11 And he said, Any one who divorces his wife and
marries another woman is guilty of adultery against his wife;
12 and, if the woman divorces her husband and
marries another man, she is guilty of adultery.
13 Some of the people were
bringing little children to Jesus, for him to touch them; but the
disciples found fault with those who had brought them.
14 But Jesus was angry when he saw this, and he
said to them, Let the children come unto me, and forbid them not: for
of such is the kingdom of God.
15 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not
receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter
therein.
17 And, as Jesus was resuming his journey, a man
came running up to him, and threw himself on his knees before him,
and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit
eternal life?
18 And Jesus said unto him, Why do you call me
good? there is none good but one, that is, God.
19 You know the commandments, Do not commit
adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness,
Defraud not, Honour your father and mother. [Ex 20:12-16; Dt
5:16-20]
20 And he answered and said unto him, Master, all
these have I observed from my youth.
21 Jesus looked at him and loved him, and said to
him, One thing you lack; go and sell all you have; give the money to
the poor and you shall have treasure in heaven; then come, and follow
me.
23 Jesus looked round and said to his disciples,
How difficult it is for those who have riches enter into the kingdom
of God!
24 And the disciples were astonished at his
words. But Jesus said again, Children, how hard is it for those who
trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!
25 It is easier for a camel to
go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the
kingdom of God.
26 And they were more astounded than ever, saying
among themselves, Who then can be saved?
27 And Jesus looking upon them
said, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all
things are possible.
29 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto
you, There is no man that has left house, or brethren, or sisters, or
father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and
the gospel's,
30 But he shall receive a
hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and
mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world
to come eternal life.
32 They were on the way up to Jerusalem, Jesus
walking in front of them: the disciples were in dismay and the
company who followed were afraid. So once again he took the twelve
aside and began to tell them the things that should befall him.
33 Saying, Behold, we go up to
Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief
priests, and unto the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death,
and shall deliver him to the Gentiles:
34 And they shall mock him, and shall scourge
him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day
he shall rise again.
35 James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up
to him saying, Teacher, we want you to do whatever we ask you.
36 So he said, What do you want me to do for you?
37 They said unto him, Grant
unto us that we may sit, one on your right hand, and the other on
your left hand, in your glory.
38 And Jesus said to them, You know not what you
ask. Can you drink of the cup that I drink of: or be baptized with
the baptism that I am baptized with?
39 But they said to him: We can. And Jesus said
to them, You shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of: and with
the baptism wherewith I am baptized, you shall be baptized.
40 But
to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but
it shall be given to those for whom it is prepared.
42 But Jesus
calling them, said to them, You know that they who seem to rule over
the Gentiles, lord it over them: and their princes have power over
them.
43 But so shall it not be among you: but
whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister:
44 And whosoever will be first among you, shall
be the servant of all.
45 For even the Son of Man
came, not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a
ransom for many.
46 And they came to Jericho: and as he went out
of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind
Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging.
47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of
Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, Son of David, have
mercy on me.
48 And many rebuked him, that he might hold his
peace; but he cried a great deal the more, Son of David, have mercy
on me.
49 Jesus
stopped and said, Call him. Then they called the blind man and told
him, Be of good comfort: arise, he is calling you.
50
And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.
51
Jesus spoke to him and said, What do you want me to do for you? The
blind man said, Rabboni, I want to regain my sight.
52
Then Jesus said, Go, your faith has made you well; and he regained
his sight at once and followed Jesus along the road.
CHAPTER 11
And
when they were drawing near to Jerusalem, unto Bethphage and Bethany,
at the mount of Olives, he sent forth two of his
disciples,
2
saying to them, Go to the village in front of you. As soon as you
enter it you will find a colt tethered, on which no one has ever sat;
untether it and bring it here.
3 If anyone
asks you, Why are you doing that? Say that the Lord needs it, and he
will send it back immediately.
4 So they went
and found a young colt tied up at the front door of a house. They
untethered it;
5 but some of
the bystanders said to them, What do you mean by untethering that
colt?
6 So they
answered as Jesus had told them, and the men allowed them to go.
7 And they
brought the colt to Jesus; and they lay their garments on him, and he
sat upon him.
8 Then many
spread their outer garments to carpet the road, and others leafy
branches which they had cut down in the fields;
9 and both
those in front and those who followed cried, saying, Hosanna;
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
[Ps 118:26]
10 Blessed be the kingdom of our father David:
Hosanna in the highest.
11 And he entered into Jerusalem, into the
temple: and having viewed all things round about, it now being
evening, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
12 And the next day when they came out from
Bethany, he was hungry,
13 and noticing a fig tree in leaf some distance
away he went to see if he could find anything on it; but when he
reached it he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the time for
figs.
14 Then he said to it, May no one ever eat fruit
from you after this! The disciples heard him say it.
15 Then they came to Jerusalem, and entering the
temple he proceeded to drive out those who were buying and selling
inside the temple; he overthrew the tables of the money-changers and
the stools of those who sold doves,
16 and would not allow anyone to carry a vessel
through the temple;
17 And he taught, saying to them: Is it not
written, My house shall be called the house of prayer to all
nations? [Is 56:7] But you have made it a den of thieves.
[Jer 7:11]
18 This came to the ears of the scribes and high
priests, and they tried to get him put to death, for they were afraid
of him. But the multitude were all astounded at his teaching.
19 And when evening came he went outside the
city.
20 And when they passed by in the morning they
saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.
21 And Peter calling to
remembrance said to him, Master, behold, the fig tree which you
cursed is withered away.
22 And Jesus answered them, Have faith in God!
23 For verily I say unto you, That whosoever
shall say to this mountain, Be taken up, and be cast into the sea;
and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that what he says
shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he may say.
24 Therefore I say unto you, all things,
whatsoever you ask when you pray, believe that you shall receive; and
you shall have them.
25 And when you shall stand to pray, forgive, if
you have anything against any man; that your Father also, who is in
heaven, may forgive you your sins.
27 Once more they came to Jerusalem. And as he
was walking within the temple the high priests and scribes and elders
came
28 and asked him, What authority have you for
acting in this way? Who gave you authority to act in this way?
29 And Jesus answered and said
unto them, I will also ask of you one question, and answer me, and I
will tell you by what authority I do these things.
30 What about the baptism of John? Was it from
heaven or from men? Answer me that.
31 And they reasoned with themselves, saying: If
we say, From heaven; he will say, Why then did you not believe him?
32 If we say, From men, we fear the people. For
all men counted John that he was a prophet indeed.
33 And they answered and said
unto Jesus, We cannot tell. And Jesus answering said to them, Neither
do I tell you by what authority I do these things.
[the best manuscripts do not contain verse 26]
CHAPTER 12
And Jesus
began to speak to them in parables: A man once planted a vineyard,
put a fence round it, dug a wine-press, built a tower, and then let
it out to tenants and went abroad.
2
At the proper time he sent a servant to the tenants, to receive from
them a share of the produce of the vintage;
4 A second
time the owner sent a servant to them; this man, too, the tenants
struck on the head, and insulted.
5
He sent another, but him they killed; and so with many others—some
they beat and some they killed.
6 He had still
one son, who was very dear to him; and him he sent to them last of
all. He said, They will respect my son.
7 But those
tenants said to one another Here is the heir! Come, let us kill him,
and his inheritance will be ours.
9 What will
the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and put the tenants to
death, and he will give
the vineyard to
others.
10 And have ye not read this
scripture; The stone which the builders rejected is become the
head of the corner: [Ps 118:22]
11 This was the Lord's doing, and it is
marvellous in our eyes? [Ps 118:23]
12 And they sought to lay hold on him, but feared
the people: for they knew that he had spoken the parable against
them: and they left him, and went their way.
13 And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and
of the Herodians; that they should catch him in his words.
14 These men came to him and said: Teacher, we
know that you are an honest man, and are not afraid of any one, for
you pay no regard to a man's position, but teach the way of God in
truth: Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not?
15 Should we pay, or should we not pay? Knowing
their hypocrisy, Jesus said to them: Why are you testing me? Bring me
a penny to look at.
16 They brought one; and he
asked them, Whose is this likeness and this inscription? And they
said unto him, Caesar's.
17 And Jesus answering said
unto them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God
the things that are God's. And they marvelled at him.
18 Then came to him a party of Sadducees, a sect
which denies that there is any Resurrection; and they proceeded to
question him.
19 Master, Moses wrote unto
us, If a man's brother die, and leave his wife behind him, and
leave no children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise
up seed unto his brother. [Dt 25:5]
20 There were once seven brothers, the eldest of
whom married a wife, but at his death left no family.
21 The second married her, and died, leaving no
family; and the third did the same.
22 And so did the rest of the seven, all dying
childless. Finally the woman also died.
24 And Jesus answering said unto them, Do you not
therefore err, because you know not the scriptures, neither the power
of God?
25 For when they shall rise
from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are
as the angels which are in heaven.
26 And as concerning the dead that they rise
again, have you not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God
spoke to him, saying: I am the God of Abraham, and the God of
Isaac, and the God of Jacob? [Ex 3:6]
27 He is not the God of the dead, but of the
living. You therefore do greatly err.
28 And one of the scribes came, and having heard
them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them
well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?
29 And Jesus answered him, The
first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God
is one Lord: [Dt 6:4]
30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with
all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with
all thy strength. [Dt 6:5]
31 And the second is like to it: Thou shalt
love thy neighbour as thyself. [Lev 19:18] There is no other
commandment greater than these.
32 And the scribe said to him,
Well, Teacher, in truth you have spoken that there is one God, and
there is none other but he;
33 And that he should be loved with the whole
heart, and with the whole understanding, and with the whole soul, and
with the whole strength; and to love one's neighbour as one's self,
is a greater thing than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.
34 And when Jesus saw that he answered
discreetly, he said unto him, You are not far from the kingdom of
God. And no man after that ventured to ask him any question.
35 And Jesus answering, said, teaching in the
temple: How do the scribes say, that Christ is the son of David?
36 For David himself said by the Holy Spirit, The
LORD said to my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine
enemies thy footstool. [Ps 110:1]
37 David here calls him Lord. How then can he be
his son? Now the mass of the people listened with delight to him.
38 And in the course of his teaching he said,
Beware of the scribes! They like to walk about in long robes, to get
saluted in the marketplaces,
39 to secure the front seats in the synagogues
and the best places at banquets;
40 they
prey upon the property of widows and for a pretence make long
prayers: these shall receive greater judgment.
41
And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people
cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich were putting in
large sums,
42 but a
poor widow came up and put in two little coins amounting to a
halfpenny.
43 And he called his disciples and said to them,
I tell you truly, this poor widow has put in more than all who have
put their money into the treasury;
44 for they have all put in a contribution out of
their abundance, but she has given out of her neediness all she
possessed, her whole living.
CHAPTER 13
And as he
was going out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him:
Master, behold what manner of stones and what buildings are here.
2
And Jesus answering said unto him, You see these great buildings?
there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be
thrown down.
3
And as he sat upon the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter
and James and John and Andrew asked him privately,
4
Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when
all these things shall be fulfilled?
7
And when you shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, do not be
troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end is not yet.
8
For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:
and there shall be earthquakes in various places, and there shall be
famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.
9
But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to
councils; and in the synagogues you shall be beaten: and you shall be
brought before rulers and kings for my sake, to testify to them.
10 And unto all nations the gospel must first be
preached.
11 But when they shall lead
you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what you shall
speak: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, speak: for it
is not you that speak, but the Holy Spirit.
12 Now the brother shall betray his brother to
death, and the father his son; and children shall rise up against
their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.
13 And you shall be hated by all men for my name'
s sake. But he that shall endure unto the end, he shall be saved.
14 But when you shall see the
abomination of desolation, [Dan 9:27; 11:31; 12:11] spoken of
by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let the reader
understand,) then let them that are in Judaea flee to the mountains:
15 And let him that is on the
housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take
any thing out of his house:
17 But woe to the women that are with child, and
for those that are nursing infants in those days!
18 Pray, too, that this may not occur in winter.
19 For in those days shall be such tribulations,
as were not from the beginning of the creation which God created
until now, neither shall be.
20 And except that the Lord
had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the
elect's sake, whom he has chosen, he has shortened the days.
22 For false Christs and false
prophets shall rise, and shall perform signs and wonders, to seduce,
if it were possible, even the elect.
24 But in those days, after that tribulation, the
sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, [Is
13:10; Ezek 32:7; Joel 2:10, 21; 3:15]
25 And the stars of heaven shall fall [Is
34:4], and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.
26 And then shall they see the
Son of man coming in the clouds [Dan 7:13] with great power and
glory.
27 And then shall he send his angels, and shall
gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost
part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.
28 Let the fig tree teach you a parable. As soon
as its branches turn soft and put out leaves, you know summer is at
hand;
29 so, whenever you see this happen, you may be
sure he is at hand, at the very door.
30 Verily I say unto you, that this generation
shall not pass, till all these things be done.
32 Now no one knows anything about that day or
hour, not even the angels in heaven, not even the Son, but only the
Father.
33 Take heed, watch and pray, for you know not
when the time is.
34 For the Son of man is as a man taking a far
journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and
to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.
35 Watch then, for you never know when the master
of the house will come, in the late evening or at midnight or at
cock-crow or in the morning.
36 Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.
37 And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.
CHAPTER 14
After two days was the feast of the passover, and of
unleavened bread: and the chief priests and the scribes sought how
they might take him by craft, and put him to death.
3 Now when he
was at Bethany, in the house of Simon the Leper, while he was at
table, there came a woman with a jar of pure, sweet-scented ointment
very costly: she broke the jar and poured the ointment over his head.
4
Some of those who were present said to one another indignantly: Why
has the perfume been wasted like this?
5
for this could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii,
and given to the poor; and they were murmuring at her.
6 But Jesus
said, Let her alone. Why are you giving her trouble? She has done a
beautiful thing to me.
7 For you have
the poor with you always with you: and whensoever you will, you may
do them good: but me you have not always.
8 She has done
all she could — she has anticipated the perfuming of my body for
burial.
9 Verily I say
unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the
whole world, this also that she has done shall be spoken of in
remembrance of her.
10 And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went to
the chief priests, to betray him to them.
11 And when they heard it, they were glad, and
promised to give him money. And he sought how he might conveniently
betray him.
12 On the first day of unleavened bread (the day
when the paschal lamb was sacrificed) his disciples said to him,
Where do you want us to go and prepare for you to eat the passover?
13 So he sent two of his disciples with
instructions, saying, Go into the city, and you will meet a man
carrying a pitcher of water: follow him,
14 and whatever house he enters, tell the master
of the house, The Master asks, Where is my room where I can eat the
passover with my disciples?
16 And his disciples went forth, and came into
the city, and found as he had said unto them: and they prepared the
passover,
17 and when evening fell he arrived along with
the twelve.
18 And when they were at table and eating, Jesus
said, Verily I say unto you, one of you who is eating with me shall
betray me.
19 And they began to be sorrowful, and to say to
him one by one, Is it I?
20 And he answered and said to them, It is one of
the twelve, who is dipping into the same dish as I am.
21 The Son of man goes the road that the
scripture has described for him, but woe to the man by whom the Son
of man is betrayed! Better that man had never been born!
22 And as they did eat, Jesus
took bread; and blessing, broke it, and gave to them, and said, Take,
eat: this is my body.
23 And he took the cup, and when he had given
thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it.
24 And he said to them: This is my blood of the
new testament, which shall be shed for many.
25 Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of
the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the
kingdom of God.
26 After singing a hymn, they went out to the
Mount of Olives.
27 And Jesus said to them, You
will be scandalized because of me this night: for it is written, I
will strike the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered. [Zech
13:7]
28 But after my having risen I will go before you
to Galilee.
29 And Peter said to him, And if all shall be
stumbled, yet not I;
30 Jesus said to him, Verily I say unto you,
to-day you will deny me three times, this very night, before the cock
crows twice.
31 But he persisted, Though I have to die with
you, I will never disown you. And they all said the same.
32 Then they came to a place called Gethsemane,
and he told his disciples, Sit here till I pray.
33 But he took Peter and James and John along
with him; and as he began to feel appalled and agitated,
34 he said to them, My soul is exceeding
sorrowful unto death; stay here and watch, while I pray.
35 And when he was gone forward a little, he fell
flat on the ground; and he prayed that, if it were possible, the hour
might pass from him.
36 And he said, Abba, Father, all things are
possible for thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what
I will, but what thou willest.
37 Then he came and found them asleep; so he said
to Peter, Are you sleeping, Simon? Could you not watch for a single
hour?
38 Watch and pray that you enter not into
temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
39 And going away again, he prayed, saying the
same words.
40 And
when he returned, he found them again asleep, (for their eyes were
heavy,) and they knew not what to answer him.
41
Then he came for the third time, and said to them, Sleep on now, and
take your rest. It is enough, the hour is come: behold, the Son of
man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
42 Rise up,
let us go. Behold, he that will betray me is at hand.
43 And immediately, while he was yet speaking,
came Judas, one of the twelve, and with him a great multitude with
swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the
elders.
44 And he that betrayed him, had given them a
sign, saying: Whomsoever I shall kiss, that is he; lay hold on him,
and lead him away carefully.
45 So when he arrived he at once went up to him
and said, Master, master; and kissed him.
47 And one of them that stood by, drawing a
sword, struck a servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.
48 And Jesus answering, said to them: Are you
come out as to a robber, with swords and clubs to apprehend me?
49 I
was daily with you in the temple teaching, and you did not lay hands
on me: but the scriptures must be fulfilled.
50
And they all forsook him, and fled.
51
And there followed him a certain young man, having a linen cloth cast
about his naked body; and the young men laid hold on him:
53 And they led Jesus away to the high priest:
and with him were assembled all the chief priests and the elders and
the scribes.
54 And Peter followed him afar off, even into the
palace of the high priest: and he sat with the servants, and warmed
himself at the fire.
55 And the chief priests and all the council
sought for evidence against Jesus to put him to death; and found
none.
56 For many bore false witness against him, and
their evidences were not agreeing.
57 And some rising up, bore false witness against
him, saying:
58 We heard him say, I will destroy this temple
made with hands, and within three days I will build another not made
with hands.
59 But even so the evidence did not agree.
60 So the high priest rose in their midst and
asked Jesus, Have you no reply to make? What about this evidence
against you?
61 But he held his peace, and answered nothing.
Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Are you the
Christ, the Son of the Blessed?
62 And Jesus said, I am: and
you shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of the power
of God, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
63 Then the high priest tore his clothes and
cried, What more evidence do we want?
64 You have heard the blasphemy. What think you?
And they all condemned him to be guilty of death.
65 And some began to spit on him, and to cover
his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him: Prophesy: and the
servants struck him with the palms of their hands.
66 Now as Peter was downstairs in the courtyard,
a maidservant of the high priest came along,
67 And when she had seen Peter warming himself,
looking on him she said, You also were with Jesus of Nazareth.
68 But he denied, saying, I neither know nor
understand what you mean. And he went forth before the court; and the
cock crowed.
69 And a maid saw him again, and began to say to
the bystanders, This is one of them.
70 A second time he repeatedly denied it. Soon
afterwards the bystanders again accused Peter, saying, You are surely
one of them, for you too are a Galilaean.
72
At that moment the cock crowed for the second time. Then Peter
remembered how Jesus had told him, Before the cock crows twice you
will disown me thrice; and he burst into tears.
CHAPTER 15
And straightway in the morning the chief priests held a
consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council, and
bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him to Pilate.
2
And Pilate asked him, Are you the King of the Jews? And he answering
said unto him, I am.
4 and once
more Pilate asked him, Have you no reply to make? Look at all their
charges against you.
5 But, to the
astonishment of Pilate, Jesus answered no more.
6 Now on the
feast day he was wont to release unto them one of the prisoners,
whomsoever they demanded.
7 And there
was one named Barabbas, who was put in prison with some seditious
men, who in the sedition had committed murder.
8 So, when the
crowd went up and began to ask Pilate to follow his usual custom,
9 he
answered: Do you want me to release the King of the Jews for you?
10
For he knew that the chief priests had delivered him up out of envy.
11
But the high priests stirred up the crowd to get him to release
Barabbas for them instead.
12 Pilate asked them again, And what am I to do
with your so-called King of the Jews?
13 And they cried out again, Crucify him.
14 Then Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil has
he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him.
15 And so Pilate, willing to
content the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus,
when he had scourged him, to be crucified.
16 And the soldiers led him away into the court
of the palace, and they called together the whole band:
17 And they clothed him with purple, and platted
a crown of thorns, and put it about his head,
18 And began to salute him, Hail, King of the
Jews!
19 They struck him on the head with a stick and
spat upon him and bent their knees to him in homage.
20 And when they had mocked him, they took off
the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out
to crucify him.
21 And they forced one Simon a Cyrenian who
passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and of
Rufus, to take up his cross,
22 and they led him to the place called Golgotha
(which means the place of a skull).
23 They offered him wine flavoured with myrrh,
but he would not take it.
24 Then they crucified him and distributed his
clothes among themselves, casting lots to decide each man's share.
25 It was nine in the morning when they crucified
him.
26 And the superscription of his accusation was
written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
27 They also crucified two robbers along with
him, one at his right and one at his left.
29 Those who passed by scoffed at him, nodding at
him in derision and calling, Ha! You were to destroy the temple and
build it in three days!
30 Come down from the cross and save yourself!
31 In
the same way the chief priests, with the scribes, said to one another
in mockery, He saved others, but he cannot save himself!
32
Let Christ the king of Israel come down now from the cross, that we
may see and believe. And those who were crucified with him reviled
him.
33 When
twelve o'clock came, darkness covered the whole land till three
o'clock,
34 and at three o'clock Jesus gave a loud cry,
Elôi, Elôi, lama sabachthani (which means, My God, my God, why
hast thou forsaken me?) [Ps 22:1]
35 On hearing this some of the bystanders said,
Look, he is calling for Elijah.
36 And one ran and filled a sponge full of sour
wine, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone;
let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.
37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and yielded up
his spirit.
38 And the veil of the temple was rent in two,
from the top to the bottom.
39 And the centurion who stood over against him,
seeing that crying out in this manner he had given up the ghost,
said, Indeed this man was the Son of God.
40 There
were some women also watching at a distance, among them Mary
Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and
Salome,
41
women who had followed him when he was in Galilee and waited on him,
besides a number of other women who had accompanied him to Jerusalem.
42 By
this time it was evening, and as it was the day of preparation (that
is, the day before the sabbath)
43 Joseph of Arimathaea, a councillor of good
position who himself was looking for the kingdom of God, ventured to
go to Pilate and ask for the body of Jesus.
44 Pilate was surprised that he was dead already;
he summoned the captain and asked if he had been dead some time,
45 and on ascertaining this from the captain he
gave the body to Joseph.
46 And
he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the
linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and
rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre.
47
Now Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses noted where he was
laid.
[verse
28 is not in the best manuscripts]
CHAPTER 16
And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary
the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they
might come and anoint him.
2
And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came
unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.
3 And they
said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door
of the sepulchre?
4 And when
they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very
great.
5
And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the
right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were
astonished,
6 but he said
to them, Do not be bewildered. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth,
who was crucified? He has risen, he is not here. That is the place
where he was laid.
7 But go your
way, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you into
Galilee: there shall you see him, as he told you.
8 But they
going out, fled from the sepulchre. For a trembling and fear had
seized them: and they said nothing to any man; for they were afraid.
9 Now
when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared
first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven demons.
10
She went and reported it to those who had been with him, as they
mourned and wept;
11
but although they heard he was alive and had been seen by her, they
would not believe it.
12 After this he appeared in another form to two
of them as they were walking on their way to the country.
13 They too went and reported it to the rest, but
they would not believe them either.
14 At length he appeared to the eleven as they
were at table: and he upbraided them with their incredulity and
hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen
him after he was risen again.
15 And he said to them: Go into all the world,
and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 He who believes and is baptized shall be
saved; but he who refuses to believe will be condemned.
17 And these signs shall
follow those who believe; In my name shall they cast out demons; they
shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink
any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands upon
the sick, and they shall recover.
19 And
the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into
heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
20
And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with
them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.
[some
of the most ancient manuscripts do not contain verses 9-20]
* * * * *
I kept track of which versions I utilized (whole verses or most of a verse), for the first four chapters of the Gospel of Mark:
King James (AV): 41 verses (27% of 149 verses)
Rheims NT: 39 (26%)
Weymouth: 25 (17%)
20th Century NT 21 (14%)
Moffatt 13 (9%)
Young's Literal Translation 10 (7%)
This
shows clearly that I am drawing from all these sources, and seeking for
the "best" renderings of each passage, according to stylistic
considerations and the desire to retain the "feel" of "King James / Rheims" English, while updating awkward phrases and archaisms in
it. A full 53% of the work (a majority of all passages) -- at least in these chapters -- remains King James / Rheims, with the remaining 47% is a revision of Elizabethan language in some fashion. I suspect that a similar ratio will pertain to the rest of the New Testament.
* * * * *
I'm quite surprised by how well this works.
ReplyDeleteMy only question is, what is the purpose of the project? Would it be publishable? Could it possibly receive an imprimatur? I wouldn't think it would be a good idea for a Catholic to publish an edition of the Bible without ecclesiastical approval. (If, indeed, that's even canonically allowable.)
If you aren't desiring to publish it, but just to post it online, how many people do you think will make use of it? The chapters you've posted here make for good reading--but if I want to read the Bible, I'd rather read it from a physical book than from a computer. I'm probably not alone in that preference.
It seems to me the best purpose for this collation would be declaiming. But I can't think of a situation where it could actually be used.
Have you ever read Ronald Knox's translation? It has, by far, the best literary quality of any translation I've read.
Reuben
I'm quite surprised by how well this works.
ReplyDeleteGlad you like it. Yours is the first positive comment I've received (of very few comments at all so far).
My only question is, what is the purpose of the project?
As explained in the Introduction that I'll put out today: to preserve the grandeur and majesty of the old Elizabethan English, updated to the Victorian period, rather than to today, and citing only English / British (including Scottish) revisions.
Would it be publishable?
I just put it out on my own at Lulu. This is why I deliberately used all public domain sources. I've done several books like that: My "Quotable" series in particular.
Could it possibly receive an imprimatur?
Not likely, or necessary anymore. Only a few of my 42 books + a pamphlet and a project I partially contributed to, have an Imprimatur.
I wouldn't think it would be a good idea for a Catholic to publish an edition of the Bible without ecclesiastical approval.
That's not a biggie anymore. But as it turns out, this NT will be roughly one-quarter drawn from the catholic Rheims version, and presumably will show some Catholic bias (since I'm the editor).
(If, indeed, that's even canonically allowable.)
Yes it is. But remember, this is not a new translation; merely a "selection" or compilation, drawing from six existing translations. I don't translate a single word. I wouldn't dare do so.
If you aren't desiring to publish it, but just to post it online, how many people do you think will make use of it?
Maybe three or four.
The chapters you've posted here make for good reading--but if I want to read the Bible, I'd rather read it from a physical book than from a computer. I'm probably not alone in that preference.
It'll be out as a Lulu Paperback as soon as I finish. The price will be my standard price of $21.95 for longer books, but discounted at Lulu 20%, so that it'll be $17.56: a very good price for a book that'll be probably 450-550 pages.
I hope you purchase it, my friend, if you like it!
It seems to me the best purpose for this collation would be declaiming. But I can't think of a situation where it could actually be used.
We'll see. I think it has some value for its particular purpose. If one loves KJV or Rheims or Victorian literature, they should love this, too.
Have you ever read Ronald Knox's translation? It has, by far, the best literary quality of any translation I've read.
Yep; have it in my collection. I'd love to include that, but it's copyrighted, and will be for another 15 or so years, I think. English copyright law says that copyright is retained by the author till 70 years after his death. I think Knox died in 1957, so that means in 2027 it'll go public.
Ironically, James Moffatt died in 1944, so his book is public domain next year, when I finish. I use his 1922 NT.
Thanks so much for your comments. I appreciate the feedback.