John 9 Cross References - ISV

¹ Jesus Heals a Blind ManAs he was walking along, he observed a man who had been blind from birth. ² His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that caused him to be born blind?”
³ Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned. This happened so that God’s work might be revealed in him. ⁴ I must do the work of the one who sent me while it is day. Night is approaching, when no one can work. ⁵ As long as I’m in the world, I’m the light of the world.” ⁶ After saying this, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he spread the mud on the man’s eyes ⁷ and told him, “Go and wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated “Sent One”). So he went off, washed, and came back seeing.
⁸ Then the neighbors and those who had previously seen him as a beggar said, “This is the man who used to sit and beg, isn’t it?”
⁹ Some were saying, “It’s him,” while others were saying, “No, but it’s someone like him.”
But he himself kept saying, “It’s me!”
¹⁰ So they asked him, “How, then, did you gain your eyesight?”
¹¹ He said, “The man named Jesus made some mud, spread it on my eyes, and told me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So off I went and washed, and I received my sight.”
¹² They asked him, “Where is that man?”
He said, “I don’t know!”
¹³ The Pharisees Investigate the HealingSo they brought to the Pharisees the man who had once been blind. ¹⁴ Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and healed his eyes. ¹⁵ So the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had gained his sight. He told them, “He put mud on my eyes, then I washed, and now I can see.”
¹⁶ Some of the Pharisees began to remark, “This man is not from God because he does not keep the Sabbath.”
But others were saying, “How can a sinful man perform such signs?” And there was a division among them.
¹⁷ So they asked the formerly blind man again, “What do you say about him, since it was your eyes he healed?”
He said, “He is a prophet.”
¹⁸ The Jewish leaders did not believe that the man had been blind and had gained sight until they summoned his parents ¹⁹ and asked them, “Is this your son, the one you say was born blind? How does he now see?”
²⁰ His parents replied, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. ²¹ But we don’t know how it is that he now sees, and we don’t know who opened his eyes. Ask him. He is of age and can speak for himself.” ²² His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders, since the Jewish leaders had already agreed that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah would be thrown out of the synagogue. ²³ That’s why his parents said, “He is of age. Ask him.”
²⁴ The Jewish leaders summoned the man who had been blind a second time and told him, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.”
²⁵ But he responded, “I don’t know whether he is a sinner or not. The one thing I do know is that I used to be blind and now I can see!”
²⁶ Then they asked him, “What did he do to you? How did he heal your eyes?”
²⁷ He answered them, “I’ve already told you, but you didn’t listen. Why do you want to hear it again? You don’t want to become his disciples, too, do you?”
²⁸ At this, they turned on him in fury and said, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses! ²⁹ We know that God has spoken to Moses, but we do not know where this fellow comes from.”
³⁰ The man answered them, “This is an amazing thing! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he healed my eyes. ³¹ We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but he does listen to anyone who worships him and does his will. ³² Ever since creation it has never been heard that anyone healed the eyes of a man who was born blind. ³³ If this man were not from God, he couldn’t do anything like that.”
³⁴ They asked him, “You were born a sinner and you are trying to instruct us?” And they threw him out.
³⁵ Spiritual BlindnessJesus heard that they had thrown him out. So when he found him, he asked him, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
³⁶ He answered, “And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him.”
³⁷ Jesus told him, “You have seen him. He is the person who is talking with you.”
³⁸ He said, “Lord, I do believe,” and worshipped him.
³⁹ Then Jesus said, “I have come into this world to judge it, so that those who are blind may see and so that those who see may become blind.”
⁴⁰ Some of the Pharisees who were near him overheard this and asked him, “We aren’t blind, too, are we?”
⁴¹ Jesus told them, “If you were blind, you would not have any sin. But now that you insist, ‘We see,’ your sin still exists.”

⁵ You are not to bow down to them in worship or serve them, because I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the iniquity of the parents to the third and fourth generations of those who hate me,

¹⁴ They said, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

⁷ to be greeted in the marketplaces, and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by people.

² He asked them, “Do you think that these Galileans were more sinful than all the other Galileans because they suffered like this?

³⁴ They asked him, “You were born a sinner and you are trying to instruct us?” And they threw him out.

⁴ When the people who lived there saw the snake hanging from his hand, they told one another, “This man must be a murderer! He may have escaped from the sea, but Justice won’t let him live.”

⁸ Then the LORD asked Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one like him on earth. The man is blameless as well as upright. He fears God and keeps away from evil.”
⁹ But in response, Satan asked the LORD, “Does Job fear God for nothing? ¹⁰ Haven’t you surrounded him with a fence on all sides, around his house, and around all that he owns? You have blessed everything he puts his hands on and you have increased his livestock in the land. ¹¹ However, stretch out your hand and strike everything he owns, and he will curse you to your face.”
¹² Then the LORD told Satan, “Very well then, everything he owns is under your control, only you may not extend your hand against him.” So Satan left the LORD’s presence.

³ The LORD asked Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one like him on earth. The man is blameless as well as upright. He fears God and keeps away from evil. He remains firm in his integrity, even though you have been urging me to overwhelm him without cause.”
⁴ Satan answered the LORD, “Skin for skin! The man will give up everything that he owns in exchange for his health. ⁵ However, stretch out your hand and strike his bones and flesh, and he’ll curse you to your face, won’t he?”
⁶ Then the LORD told Satan, “Very well then, he is under your control. Just preserve his life.”

²⁷ Job Suspects His Friends of Treachery“Look! I know your thoughts, your plans are going to harm me.

⁵ Your wickedness is great, isn’t it? There’s no limit to your iniquity, is there? ⁶ “After all, you’ve taken collateral from your relatives for no reason; you stripped the naked of their clothing. ⁷ You’ve neglected to give water to the weary, and you’ve withheld food from the hungry. ⁸ The land belongs to the powerful, and the privileged thrive in it. ⁹ You sent away widows empty-handed, and broke the outstretched arms of orphans. ¹⁰ That’s why disaster surrounds you, terror suddenly overwhelms you, ¹¹ you see nothing but darkness, and a flood of troubles drowns you.”
¹² Eliphaz Acknowledges God but Issues an Imprecatory Prayer“Isn’t God in heaven above? Consider how far away the stars are, and how lofty they are! ¹³ You’ve asked, ‘What does God know? Can he sort through pitch black darkness?’ ¹⁴ Thick clouds cover him so he can’t see as he walks back and forth at heaven’s horizon. ¹⁵ “Will you keep walking on the traditional path that sinners have tread, ¹⁶ who were snatched away before their time; when their foundation was swept away by a river? ¹⁷ They told God, ‘Get away from us!’ and ‘What will the Almighty do to them?’ ¹⁸ “Though God fills their houses with good things, the counsel of the wicked will remain far from me. ¹⁹ The righteous will see this and rejoice; the innocent will insult him, saying, ²⁰ ‘Our enemies are sure to be destroyed, and fire will burn up what’s left of their riches.”
²¹ Eliphaz Challenges Job to Repent“Get to know God, and you’ll be at peace with him, and then prosperity will come to you. ²² Accept what he has to teach you, and treasure his words in your heart. ²³ “If you return to the Almighty you’ll be restored, as you remove iniquity from your household. ²⁴ Bury your gold nuggets in the dust, and your source of gold among the stones in a streambed, ²⁵ and then the Almighty will be your gold and your refined silver. ²⁶ “Then you’ll take delight in the Almighty; and will turn your face toward God. ²⁷ You’ll entreat him and he’ll listen to you as you fulfill your vows. ²⁸ When you make a decision on something, it will be established for you, and light will brighten your way. ²⁹ “For when they’re humbled, you may respond; ‘It’s their pride!’ but he delivers the humble. ³⁰ He’ll even deliver the guilty, who will be delivered through your innocence.”

³ Furthermore, he was furious with his three friends because they had not answered Job, but instead had condemned him.

⁷ Job’s Friends are RestoredAfter these words had been spoken by the LORD to Job, the LORD spoke to Eliphaz from Teman: “My anger is burning against you along with your two friends, since you haven’t spoken correctly about me, as did my servant Job.

¹ God’s SovereigntyIn light of all of this, I committed myself to explain it this way: the righteous and the wise, along with everything they do, are in the hands of God. Furthermore, as to love and hate, no human being knows everything concerning them. ² Everyone shares the same experience: a single event affects the righteous, the wicked, the good, the clean, the unclean, whoever sacrifices, and whoever does not sacrifice. As it is with the good person, so also it is with the sinner; as it is with someone who takes an oath, so also it is with someone who fears taking an oath.

⁵ the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the destitute hear the good news.

² He asked them, “Do you think that these Galileans were more sinful than all the other Galileans because they suffered like this? ³ Absolutely not, I tell you! But if you don’t repent, then you, too, will all die. ⁴ What about those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them? Do you think they were worse offenders than all the other people living in Jerusalem? ⁵ Absolutely not, I tell you! But if you don’t repent, then you, too, will all die.”

⁴ But when Jesus heard it, he said, “This illness isn’t meant to end in death. It’s for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

⁴⁰ Jesus told her, “I told you that if you believed you would see God’s glory, didn’t I?”

¹¹ Believe me, I am in the Father and the Father is in me. Otherwise, believe me because of what I’ve been doing. ¹² Truly, I tell all of you emphatically, the one who believes in me will also do what I’m doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I’m going to the Father. ¹³ I’ll do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

²¹ So they threatened Peter and John even more and then let them go. They couldn’t find any way to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened,

¹⁰ Whatever the activity in which you engage, do it with all your ability, because there is no work, no planning, no learning, and no wisdom in the next world where you’re going.

¹⁸ For Sheol cannot thank you, death cannot sing your praise; and those who go down to the Pit cannot hope for your faithfulness. ¹⁹ The living—yes the living—they thank you, just as I am doing today; fathers will tell their children about your faithfulness.

³² He told them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Listen! I am driving out demons and healing today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will finish my work. ³³ But I must be on my way today, tomorrow, and the next day, because it’s not possible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’ ³⁴ O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones to death those who have been sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you people were unwilling!

³⁴ Jesus told them, “My food is doing the will of the one who sent me and completing his work.

¹⁹ The Authority of the SonJesus told them, “Truly, I tell all of you emphatically, the Son can do nothing on his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing, What the Father does, the Son does likewise.

³⁶ “But I have a greater testimony than John’s, because the actions that the Father has given me to complete—the very actions that I am doing—testify on my behalf that the Father has sent me.

³² Jesus replied to them, “I’ve shown you many good actions from my Father. For which of them are you going to stone me?”

³⁷ If I’m not doing my Father’s actions, don’t believe me.

⁹ Jesus replied, “There are twelve hours in the day, aren’t there? If anyone walks during the day he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. ¹⁰ But if anyone walks at night he stumbles, because the light is not in him.”

³⁵ Jesus replied to the crowd, “The light is among you only for a short time. Walk while you have the light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. The person who walks in the darkness is in the darkness and does not know where he is going.

⁴ I glorified you on earth by completing the task you gave me to do.

²⁰ for we cannot stop talking about what we’ve seen and heard.”

¹⁰ So then, whenever we have the opportunity, let’s practice doing good to everyone, especially to the family of faith.

¹⁶ making the best use of your time because the times are evil.

⁵ Behave wisely toward outsiders, making the best use of your time.

⁶ “I’ve called you in righteousness. I’ll take hold of your hand. I’ll preserve you and appoint you as a covenant to the people, as a light for the nations, ⁷ to open blind eyes and to bring out those who are bound from their cells, and those sitting in darkness from prison.

⁶ he says: “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Israel and bring back those of Jacob I have preserved. I’ll also make you as a light to the nations, to be my salvation to the ends of the earth.

¹ The Light of God’s Deliverance “Arise, shine! For your light has come; the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. ² For look! Darkness will cover the earth and thick darkness is over the people, but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you. ³ Nations will come to your light, and kings before your dawn.

² But the Sun of Righteousness will arise with healing in its light for those who fear my name. You will go out and leap like calves released from their stalls

¹⁶ The people living in darkness have seen a great light, and for those living in the land and shadow of death, a light has risen.”

³² a light that will reveal salvation to unbelievers and bring glory to your people Israel.”

⁴ In him was life, and that life brought light to humanity. ⁵ And the light shines on in the darkness, and the darkness has never put it out.
⁶ John’s Witness to the WordThere was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷ He came as a witness to testify about the light, so that all might believe because of him. ⁸ John was not the light, but he came to testify about the light. ⁹ This was the true light that enlightens every person by his coming into the world.

¹⁹ And this is the basis for judgment: The light has come into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light because their actions were evil. ²⁰ Everyone who practices wickedness hates the light and does not come to the light, so that his actions may not be exposed. ²¹ But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may become evident that his actions have God’s approval.”

¹² Jesus the Light of the WorldLater on, Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. The one who follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

³⁵ Jesus replied to the crowd, “The light is among you only for a short time. Walk while you have the light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. The person who walks in the darkness is in the darkness and does not know where he is going. ³⁶ As long as you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of light.” After Jesus had said this, he went away and hid from them.

⁴⁶ I’ve come into the world as light, so that everyone who believes in me won’t remain in the darkness.

⁴⁷ For that is what the Lord ordered us to do: ‘I have made you a light to the gentiles to be the means of salvation to the very ends of the earth.’”

¹⁸ You will help them understand and turn them from darkness to light and from Satan’s control to God, so that their sins will be forgiven and they will receive a share among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

²³ that the Messiah would suffer and be the first to rise from the dead and would bring light both to our people and to the gentiles.”

¹⁴ for the light is making everything visible. That is why it says, “Wake up, sleeper! Arise from the dead, and the Messiah will shine on you.’’

²³ The city doesn’t need any sun or moon to give it light, because the glory of God gave it light, and the lamb was its lamp.

³³ Jesus took him away from the crowd to be alone with him. Putting his fingers into the man’s ears, he touched the man’s tongue with saliva.

²³ Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village. He spit into his eyes, placed his hands on him, and asked him, “Do you see anything?”

¹⁸ Therefore, I advise you to buy from me gold purified in fire so you may be rich, white clothes to wear so your shameful nakedness won’t show, and ointment to put on your eyes so you may see.

¹¹ Then God asked him, “Who gives a person a mouth? Who makes him unable to speak, or deaf, or able to see, or blind, or lame? Is it not I, the LORD?

¹⁰ Elisha sent a messenger out to him, who told him, “Go bathe in the Jordan River seven times. Your flesh will be restored for you. Now stay clean!”
¹¹ But Naaman flew into a rage and left, telling himself, “Look! I thought ‘He’s surely going to come out to me, stand still, call out in the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the infection, and cure the leprosy!’ ¹² Aren’t the Abana and Pharpar rivers in Damascus better than all of the water in Israel? Couldn’t I just bathe in them and become clean?” So he turned away and left, filled with anger.
¹³ But then his servants approached him and spoke with him. They said, “My father, had the prophet only asked of you something great, you would have done it, wouldn’t you? Yet he told you, ‘Bathe, and be clean…!’” ¹⁴ So he went down and plunged himself into the Jordan River seven times, just as the man of God had said, and his flesh rejuvenated like the flesh of a newborn child. And he was clean.

¹⁵ Colhozeh’s son Shallum, ruling official of the Mizpah district, repaired the Fountain Gate, reconstructing it, installing its doors, its locks, and its security bars, as well as the Pool of Shelach near the royal garden as far as the stairway that descends from the City of David.

⁸ the LORD gives sight to the blind. The LORD lifts up those who are weighed down. The LORD loves the righteous.

⁶ “Because this people have rejected the gently-flowing waters of Shiloah, and because they keep rejoicing in Rezin and Remaliah’s son,

¹⁸ On that day the deaf will hear the words of a scroll, and out of gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see. ¹⁹ The humble will again experience joy in the LORD, and the poorest people will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

³ Then the eyes of those who can see won’t turn away, and the ears of those who can hear will listen.

⁵ “Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf unblocked;

⁷ to open blind eyes and to bring out those who are bound from their cells, and those sitting in darkness from prison.

¹⁶ I’ll help the blind walk, even on a road they do not know; I’ll guide them in directions they do not know. I’ll turn the dark places into light in front of them, and the rough places into level ground. These are the things I will do, and I won’t abandon them. ¹⁷ Those who trust in carved idols will turn back and be completely disappointed, along with those who say to metal images, ‘You are our gods.’”
¹⁸ God Rebukes Israel“Listen, you deaf people, and look up, you blind people, so you may see!

⁸ “Bring out the people who are blind, yet still have eyes, who are deaf, yet still have ears!

⁴ What about those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them? Do you think they were worse offenders than all the other people living in Jerusalem?

¹¹ He said, “The man named Jesus made some mud, spread it on my eyes, and told me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So off I went and washed, and I received my sight.”

³⁹ Then Jesus said, “I have come into this world to judge it, so that those who are blind may see and so that those who see may become blind.”

³⁶ how can you say to the one whom the Father has consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You’re blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I’m the Son of God’?

³⁷ But some of them said, “Surely the one who opened the eyes of the blind man could have kept this man from dying, couldn’t he?”

³ For what the Law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did. By sending his own Son in the form of humanity, he condemned sin by being incarnate,

⁴ But when the appropriate time had come, God sent his Son, born by a woman, born under the Law,

¹⁹ So they continued on until they reached Bethlehem.
Naomi and Ruth Arrive in BethlehemNow when the two of them arrived in Bethlehem, the entire town got excited at the news of their arrival and they asked one another, “Can this be Naomi?”

⁸ He raises the poor up from the dust, he lifts up the needy from the trash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor. Indeed the pillars of the earth belong to the LORD, and he has set the world on them.

¹¹ The officials of Achish told him, “Isn’t this David, king of the land? Isn’t this the one about whom they sang as they danced, ‘Saul has struck down his thousands, but David his ten thousands’?”

⁴⁶ Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus
Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus, his disciples, and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, a blind beggar named Bartimaeus (that is, the son of Timaeus) was sitting by the road.

²⁰ A beggar named Lazarus, who was covered with sores, was brought to his gate. ²¹ He was always trying to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs used to come and lick his sores.
²² “One day, the beggar died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried.

³⁵ Jesus Heals a Blind Man
As Jesus was approaching Jericho, there was a blind man sitting by the road begging.

² Now a man who had been crippled from birth was being carried in. Every day people would lay him at what was called the Beautiful Gate so that he could beg from those who were going into the Temple. ³ When he saw that Peter and John were about to go into the Temple, he asked them to give him something.
⁴ Peter, along with John, looked him straight in the eye and said, “Look at us!” ⁵ So the man watched them closely, expecting to get something from them. ⁶ However, Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold, but I’ll give you what I do have. In the name of Jesus the Messiah from Nazareth, walk!” ⁷ Then Peter took hold of his right hand and began to help him up. Immediately his feet and ankles became strong, ⁸ and he sprang to his feet, stood up, and began to walk. Then he went with them into the Temple, walking, jumping, and praising God.
⁹ When all the people saw him walking and praising God, ¹⁰ they knew that he was the man who used to sit and beg at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
¹¹ Peter Speaks to the OnlookersWhile he was holding on to Peter and John, all the people came running to them in what was called “Solomon’s Colonnade”. They were dumbfounded.

⁵ Just as you do not understand the way of the spirit in the womb of a pregnant mother, so also you do not know what God is doing in everything he makes.

²⁷ He sleeps and gets up night and day while the seeds sprout and grow, although he doesn’t know how

⁹ Nicodemus asked him, “How can that be?”

¹⁵ So the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had gained his sight. He told them, “He put mud on my eyes, then I washed, and now I can see.”

²¹ But we don’t know how it is that he now sees, and we don’t know who opened his eyes. Ask him. He is of age and can speak for himself.”

²⁶ Then they asked him, “What did he do to you? How did he heal your eyes?”

³⁵ The Resurrection BodyBut someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? What kind of body will they have when they come back?”

¹⁷ Then they asked Baruch, “Please tell us how you wrote all the words. Did Jeremiah dictate them all?”

⁶ After saying this, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he spread the mud on the man’s eyes ⁷ and told him, “Go and wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated “Sent One”). So he went off, washed, and came back seeing.

²⁷ He answered them, “I’ve already told you, but you didn’t listen. Why do you want to hear it again? You don’t want to become his disciples, too, do you?”

¹⁸ When they returned to their father Reuel, he asked, “Why have you returned so quickly today?”
¹⁹ “An Egyptian rescued us from the shepherds,” they replied, “and he even drew water for us and watered the sheep!”
²⁰ “Then where is he?” He asked his daughters. “Why did you leave the man behind? Go invite him to have something to eat.”

¹¹ But he answered them, “The man who made me well told me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’”
¹² They asked him, “Who is the man who told you, ‘Pick it up and walk’?”
¹³ But the one who had been healed did not know who it was, because Jesus had slipped away from the crowd in that place.

¹¹ The Jewish leaders kept looking for him at the festival, asking, “Where is that man?”

³ But the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery. After setting her before them, ⁴ they told him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the very act of adultery. ⁵ Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women to death. What do you say?” ⁶ They said this to test him, so that they might have a charge against him. But Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.
⁷ When they persisted in questioning him, he straightened up and told them, “Let the person among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” ⁸ Then he bent down again and continued writing on the ground.

⁴⁶ Some of them, however, went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. ⁴⁷ So the high priests and the Pharisees assembled the Council and said, “What are we going to do? This man is performing many signs.

⁵⁷ Now the high priests and the Pharisees had given orders that whoever knew where he was should tell them so that they could arrest him.

¹⁹ Then the Pharisees told one another, “You see, there is nothing you can do. Look, the world has gone after him!”

⁴² Yet many people, even some of the authorities, believed in him, but because of the Pharisees they did not admit it so they would not be thrown out of the synagogue.

¹ Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath
At that time, Jesus walked through the grain fields on a Sabbath. His disciples became hungry and began picking heads of grain to eat. ² When the Pharisees saw this, they told him, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!”
³ But he told them, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? ⁴ How is it that he went into the house of God and ate the Bread of the Presence, which was not lawful for him and his companions to eat but was reserved for the priests? ⁵ Or haven’t you read in the Law that on every Sabbath the priests in the Temple violate the Sabbath and yet are innocent? ⁶ But I tell you, something greater than the Temple is here! ⁷ If you had known what ‘I want mercy and not sacrifice’ means, you would not have condemned the innocent, ⁸ for the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
⁹ Jesus Heals a Man with a Paralyzed Hand
Moving on from there, Jesus went into their synagogue. ¹⁰ Suddenly, a man with a paralyzed hand appeared. The people asked Jesus if it was lawful to heal on Sabbath days, intending to accuse him of doing something wrong.
¹¹ But he asked them, “Is there a man among you who, if he had one sheep and it fell into a ditch on the Sabbath, wouldn’t take hold of it and pull it out? ¹² How much more is a human being worth than a sheep! So it is lawful to do good on Sabbath days.”
¹³ Then he told the man, “Hold out your hand.” He held it out and it became normal, as healthy as his other hand. ¹⁴ The Pharisees, however, went out and plotted against Jesus to kill him.

²³ Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath
Jesus happened to be going through the grain fields on a Sabbath. As they made their way, his disciples began picking the heads of grain.

¹ Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath
One time Jesus was walking through some grain fields on a Sabbath. His disciples were picking the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands, and eating them. ² Some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what isn’t lawful on Sabbath days?”
³ Jesus answered them, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions became hungry? ⁴ How was it that he went into the house of God, took the Bread of the Presence and ate it, which was not lawful for anyone but the priests to eat, and then gave some of it to his companions?”
⁵ Then he told them, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
⁶ Jesus Heals a Man with a Paralyzed Hand
Once, on another Sabbath, Jesus went into a synagogue and began teaching. A man whose right hand was paralyzed was there. ⁷ The scribes and the Pharisees were watching Jesus closely to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, in order to find a way of accusing him of doing something wrong. ⁸ But Jesus knew what they were thinking. So he told the man with the paralyzed hand, “Get up, and stand in the middle of the synagogue.” So he got up and stood there.
⁹ Then Jesus asked them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do evil on the Sabbath, to save a life or to destroy it?”
¹⁰ He looked around at all of them and then told the man, “Hold out your hand.” The man did so, and his hand was restored to health. ¹¹ The others were furious and began to discuss with each other what they could do to Jesus.

¹⁰ Jesus Heals a Woman on the SabbathJesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. ¹¹ A woman was there who had a spirit that had disabled her for eighteen years. She was hunched over and completely unable to stand up straight. ¹² When Jesus saw her, he called to her and said, “Woman, you are free from your illness.” ¹³ Then he placed his hands on her, and immediately she stood up straight and began praising God.
¹⁴ But the synagogue leader, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, told the crowd, “There are six days when work is to be done. So come on those days to be healed, and not on the Sabbath day.”
¹⁵ The Lord replied to him, “You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey and lead it out of its stall to give it some water? ¹⁶ Shouldn’t this woman, a descendant of Abraham whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath day?” ¹⁷ Even as he was saying this, all of his opponents were blushing with shame. But the rest of the crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things he was doing.

¹ Jesus Heals a Man on the SabbathOne Sabbath, Jesus went to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal. The guests were watching Jesus closely.

⁹ The man immediately became well, and he picked up his mat and started walking. Now that day was a Sabbath.

¹⁶ So the Jewish leaders began persecuting Jesus, because he kept doing such things on the Sabbath.

²¹ Jesus answered them, “I performed one action, and all of you are astonished. ²² Moses gave you circumcision—not that it is from Moses, but from the Patriarchs—and so you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. ²³ If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath so that the Law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because I made a man perfectly well on the Sabbath?

¹⁰ So they asked him, “How, then, did you gain your eyesight?”
¹¹ He said, “The man named Jesus made some mud, spread it on my eyes, and told me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So off I went and washed, and I received my sight.”

²⁶ Then they asked him, “What did he do to you? How did he heal your eyes?”
²⁷ He answered them, “I’ve already told you, but you didn’t listen. Why do you want to hear it again? You don’t want to become his disciples, too, do you?”

² When the Pharisees saw this, they told him, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!”

³¹ Jesus Rebukes Jerusalem
At that hour some Pharisees came and told Jesus, “Leave and get away from here, because Herod wants to kill you!”
³² He told them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Listen! I am driving out demons and healing today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will finish my work. ³³ But I must be on my way today, tomorrow, and the next day, because it’s not possible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’

² He came to Jesus at night and told him, “Rabbi, we know that you have come from God as a teacher, because no one can perform these signs that you are doing unless God is with him.”

⁵² Then the Jewish leaders debated angrily with each other, asking, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

¹² And there was a great deal of discussion about him among the crowds. Some were saying, “He is a good man,” while others were saying, “No, he is deceiving the crowds!”

⁴³ So there was a division in the crowd because of him.

²⁴ The Jewish leaders summoned the man who had been blind a second time and told him, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.”

³⁰ The man answered them, “This is an amazing thing! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he healed my eyes. ³¹ We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but he does listen to anyone who worships him and does his will. ³² Ever since creation it has never been heard that anyone healed the eyes of a man who was born blind. ³³ If this man were not from God, he couldn’t do anything like that.”

¹⁹ Once again there was a division among the Jews because of what Jesus had been saying.

¹¹ Believe me, I am in the Father and the Father is in me. Otherwise, believe me because of what I’ve been doing.

²⁴ If I hadn’t done among them the actions that no one else did, they wouldn’t have any sin. But now they have seen and hated both me and my Father.

⁴ But the people of the city were divided. Some were with the Jews, while others were with the apostles.

¹¹ The crowds kept saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, the man from Nazareth in Galilee.”

¹⁹ He asked them, “What things?”
They answered him, “The events involving Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet, mighty in what he said and did before God and all the people,

¹⁹ The woman told him, “Sir, I see that you are a prophet!

¹⁴ When the people saw the sign that he had done, they kept saying, “Truly this is the Prophet who was to come into the world!”

²² “Fellow Israelis, listen to these words: Jesus from Nazareth was a man authenticated to you by God through miracles, wonders, and signs that God performed through him among you, as you yourselves know.

²² In fact, Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must listen to everything he tells you. ²³ Any person who will not listen to that prophet will be utterly destroyed from among the people.’
²⁴ “Indeed, all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who followed him, also announced these days. ²⁵ You are the descendants of the prophets and the heirs of the covenant that God made with your ancestors when he told Abraham, ‘Through your descendant all the families of the earth will be blessed.’ ²⁶ When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning every one of you from your evil ways.”

³⁸ God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, and because God was with him, he went around doing good and healing everyone who was oppressed by the devil.

¹⁴ Lot then went out and told his sons-in-law (they had married his daughters), “Get out of here! The LORD is going to destroy this city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.

¹¹ “LORD, your hand is lifted up, but they do not see it. And let them see your zeal for your people and be put to shame— yes, let the fire reserved for your enemies consume them!

¹ “Who has believed our message, and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

³¹ “Then Abraham told him, ‘If your brothers do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded, even if someone were to rise from the dead.’”

¹⁹ The Testimony of John the Baptist
This was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders sent priests and descendants of Levi to him from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?”

⁴⁴ How can you believe when you accept each other’s praise and do not look for the praise that comes from the only God?

²² His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders, since the Jewish leaders had already agreed that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah would be thrown out of the synagogue.

³⁷ The Unbelief of the JewsAlthough he had performed numerous signs in their presence, they did not believe in him, ³⁸ so that what the prophet Isaiah spoke might be fulfilled when he said: “Lord, who has believed our message, and to whom has the Lord’s power been revealed?”
³⁹ This is why they could not believe: Isaiah also said, ⁴⁰ “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, so that they might not perceive with their eyes, and understand with their mind and turn, and I would heal them.”

¹⁵ As it is said, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as they did when they provoked me.”
¹⁶ Now who heard him and provoked him? Was it not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses? ¹⁷ And with whom was he angry for 40 years? Was it not with those who sinned and whose bodies fell dead in the wilderness? ¹⁸ And to whom did he swear that they would never enter his rest? It was to those who disobeyed him, was it not? ¹⁹ So we see that they were unable to enter because of their unbelief.

¹¹ Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one may fail by following their example of disobedience.

⁸ Then the neighbors and those who had previously seen him as a beggar said, “This is the man who used to sit and beg, isn’t it?”
⁹ Some were saying, “It’s him,” while others were saying, “No, but it’s someone like him.”
But he himself kept saying, “It’s me!”

¹⁰ they knew that he was the man who used to sit and beg at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

¹⁴ And seeing the man who was healed standing with them, they could not say anything against them.

¹ Davidic
Confidence in the LORD The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom will I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom will I be afraid? ² When those who practice evil, my enemies, and my oppressors come near me to devour my flesh, they stumble and fall.

²⁵ Fearing any human being is a trap, but confiding in the LORD keeps anyone safe.

⁷ Listen to me, you who know righteousness, you people who have my instruction in their hearts. Don’t fear the insults of mortals, and don’t be dismayed at their hateful words.

¹² “I—yes, I—am the one who comforts you. Who are you, that you are so afraid of humans who will die, descendants of mere men, who have been made like grass?

¹¹ “Whom did you so dread— and while you feared me— that you lied, and you did not remember me, and did not lay to heart these things? Haven’t I remained silent for a long time, and still you don’t fear me?”

²² “How blessed are you whenever people hate you, avoid you, insult you, and slander you because of the Son of Man!

⁴ Fear God
“But I tell you, my friends, never be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can’t do anything more. ⁵ I’ll show you the one you should be afraid of. Be afraid of the one who has the authority to throw you into hell after killing you. Yes, I tell you, be afraid of him!
⁶ “Five sparrows are sold for two pennies, aren’t they? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. ⁷ Why, even all the hairs on your head have been counted! Stop being afraid. You are worth more than a bunch of sparrows.”
⁸ Acknowledging the Messiah
“But I tell you, the Son of Man will acknowledge before God’s angels everyone who acknowledges me before people. ⁹ But whoever denies me before people will be denied before God’s angels.

⁵⁶ A servant girl saw him sitting by the fire, stared at him, and said, “This man was with him, too.”
⁵⁷ But he denied it, “I don’t know him, woman!” he responded.
⁵⁸ A little later, a man looked at him and said, “You are one of them, too.”
But Peter said, “Mister, I am not!”
⁵⁹ About an hour later, another man emphatically asserted, “This man was certainly with him, because he is a Galilean!”
⁶⁰ But Peter said, “Mister, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just then, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed.
⁶¹ Then the Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. And Peter remembered the word from the Lord, and how he had told him, “Before a rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.”

¹³ Nevertheless, no one would speak openly about him because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders.

⁴⁵ The Unbelief of the AuthoritiesThen the officers returned to the high priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring him?”
⁴⁶ The officers answered, “No man ever spoke like that!”
⁴⁷ Then the Pharisees replied to them, “You haven’t been deceived, too, have you? ⁴⁸ None of the authorities or Pharisees has believed in him, have they? ⁴⁹ But this mob that does not know the Law—they’re under a curse!”
⁵⁰ One of their own, Nicodemus (the man who had previously met with Jesus), asked them, ⁵¹ “Surely our Law does not condemn a person without first hearing from him and finding out what he is doing, does it?”
⁵² They answered him, “You aren’t from Galilee, too, are you? Search and see that no prophet comes from Galilee.”

⁴² Yet many people, even some of the authorities, believed in him, but because of the Pharisees they did not admit it so they would not be thrown out of the synagogue. ⁴³ For they loved the praise of human beings more than the praise of God.

² You’ll be thrown out of the synagogues. Yes, a time is coming when the one who kills you will think he’s serving God.

³⁸ Jesus is Buried
Later on, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus (though a secret one because he was afraid of the Jewish leaders), asked Pilate to let him remove the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission, and he came and removed his body.

¹⁹ Jesus Appears to the Disciples
It was the evening of the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Jesus came and stood among them. He told them, “Peace be with you.”

¹⁸ So they called Peter and John back in and ordered them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.

¹³ None of the others dared join them, although the rest of the people continued to hold them in high regard.

⁴⁰ After calling in the apostles and beating them, they again ordered them to stop speaking in the name of Jesus and let them go.

¹¹ Paul Confronts Cephas in AntiochBut when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he was clearly wrong. ¹² Until some men arrived from James, he was in the habit of eating with the gentiles, but after those men came, he withdrew from the gentiles and would not associate with them any longer, because he was afraid of the circumcision party. ¹³ The other Jews also joined him in this hypocritical behavior, to the extent that even Barnabas was caught up in their hypocrisy.

⁸ But people who are cowardly, unfaithful, detestable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars will find themselves in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.”

¹⁹ Joshua then spoke to Achan, “My son, give glory and praise to the LORD God of Israel. Tell me right now what you did. Don’t hide anything.”

⁵ Make images of your tumors and images of the mice that are destroying your land, and you are to give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps he will remove his pressure from you, your gods, and your land. ⁶ Why should you harden your hearts just as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? Isn’t it true that after God toyed with them, they let Israel go, and off they went?
⁷ “So make a new cart, and take two milk cows that have never had a yoke on them. Hitch the cows to the cart and take their calves away from them and back to the house. ⁸ Take the Ark of the LORD, put it on the cart, and put the gold objects that you are returning to him as a guilt offering in a box beside it. Then send it away and let it go. ⁹ Keep watching it. If it goes up along the road to its own territory to Beth-shemesh, it’s the LORD who has done this great evil to us. But if it does not, then we will know that he wasn’t pressuring us. It happened to us as a natural event.”

¹⁴ Offer to God a thanksgiving praise; pay your vows to the Most High. ¹⁵ Call on me in the day of distress; I will deliver you, and you will glorify me.”

⁵ The LORD Vindicates Zion“Hear this message from the LORD, you who tremble at his words: “Your own brothers who hate you and exclude you because of my name have said: ‘Let the LORD be glorified; he will see your joy,’ yet it is they who will be put to shame.

²⁷ They crucified two bandits with him, one on his right and the other on his left.

³⁹ Now the Pharisee who had invited Jesus saw this and told himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who is touching him and what kind of woman she is. She’s a sinner!”

² But the Pharisees and the scribes kept complaining, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

⁷ But all the people who saw this began to complain: “Jesus is going to be the guest of a notorious sinner!”

²³ so that everyone may honor the Son as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.

⁴⁶ Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I’m telling the truth, why don’t you believe me?

⁴⁹ Jesus answered, “I don’t have a demon. On the contrary, I honor my Father, and you dishonor me.

¹⁶ Some of the Pharisees began to remark, “This man is not from God because he does not keep the Sabbath.”
But others were saying, “How can a sinful man perform such signs?” And there was a division among them.

³⁰ I won’t talk with you much longer, because the ruler of this world is coming. He has no power over me.

³⁰ They answered him, “If he weren’t a criminal, we wouldn’t have handed him over to you.”

⁶ When the high priests and the officials saw him, they shouted, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”
Pilate told them, “You take him and crucify him. I find no basis for a charge against him.”

² For I can testify on their behalf that they have a zeal for God, but it is not in keeping with full knowledge. ³ For they are ignorant of the righteousness that comes from God while they try to establish their own, and they have not submitted to God’s means to attain righteousness. ⁴ For the Messiah is the culmination of the Law as far as righteousness is concerned for everyone who believes.

²¹ God made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that God’s righteousness would be produced in us.

¹¹ But he answered them, “The man who made me well told me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’”

³⁰ The man answered them, “This is an amazing thing! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he healed my eyes.

¹⁰ The person who believes in the Son of God believes this testimony personally. The person who does not believe God has made him a liar by not believing the testimony that he has given about his Son.

⁶⁷ They said, “If you are the Messiah, tell us.”
But he told them, “If I tell you, you won’t believe me,

¹⁰ So they asked him, “How, then, did you gain your eyesight?”
¹¹ He said, “The man named Jesus made some mud, spread it on my eyes, and told me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So off I went and washed, and I received my sight.”
¹² They asked him, “Where is that man?”
He said, “I don’t know!”
¹³ The Pharisees Investigate the HealingSo they brought to the Pharisees the man who had once been blind. ¹⁴ Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and healed his eyes. ¹⁵ So the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had gained his sight. He told them, “He put mud on my eyes, then I washed, and now I can see.”

¹¹ “How blessed are you whenever people insult you, persecute you, and say all sorts of evil things against you falsely because of me!

³⁹ Those who passed by kept insulting him, shaking their heads,

⁴⁵ Do not suppose that I will be the one to accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom you have set your hope, ⁴⁶ because if you believed Moses, you would believe me, since he wrote about me. ⁴⁷ But if you do not believe what he wrote, how will you believe my words?”

¹⁹ Moses gave you the Law, didn’t he? Yet none of you is keeping the Law. Why are you trying to kill me?”

¹¹ So they secretly got some men to say, “We have heard him speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God.” ¹² They stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes. Then they rushed at Stephen, grabbed him, and brought him before the Council.
¹³ They had false witnesses stand up and say, “This man never stops saying things against this Holy Place and against the Law. ¹⁴ For we have heard him say that this Jesus from Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs that Moses handed down to us.”

¹⁷ Who is a Jew?Now if you call yourself a Jew, and rely on the Law, and boast about God,

¹² We wear ourselves out from working with our own hands. When insulted, we bless. When persecuted, we endure.

¹⁰ thieves, greedy people, drunks, slanderers, and robbers will not inherit the kingdom of God.

²³ When he was insulted, he did not retaliate. When he suffered, he did not threaten. It was his habit to commit the matter to the one who judges fairly.

² They asked, “Has the LORD spoken only through Moses? Hasn’t he also spoken through us?”
But the LORD heard it.
³ Now the man Moses was very humble—more than any person on earth. ⁴ All of a sudden, the LORD told Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “The three of you are to come out to the Tent of Meeting.” So the three of them went out. ⁵ Then the LORD came down in a pillar of cloud, stood at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, and summoned Aaron and Miriam. So both of them went forward.
⁶ Then he told the two of them: “Pay attention to what I have to say! When there is a prophet among you, won’t I, the LORD, reveal myself to him in a vision? Won’t I speak with him in a dream? ⁷ But that’s not how it is with my servant Moses, since he has been entrusted with my entire household!

²⁸ Then Moses said, “This is how you’ll know that the LORD has sent me to do all these awesome works—they’re not coming merely from me.

¹⁰ No prophet ever rose again in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew with such great intimacy.

²⁷ Give him this order: ‘Place him in prison on survival rations of bread and water only until I come back safely.’”

¹¹ As Jehu was coming out to his master’s attendants, one of them asked him, “Is everything all right? Why did this maniac visit you?”
“You know the man and how he speculates,” Jehu replied.

⁶ But as for me, I am only a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by people.

⁷ He revealed his plans to Moses and his deeds to the people of Israel.

²⁶ He sent his servant Moses, along with Aaron, whom he had chosen.

¹⁶ They were envious of Moses in the camp, and of Aaron, the holy one of the LORD.

² For he grew up before him like a tender plant, and like a root out of a dry ground; he had no form and he had no majesty that we should look at him, and there is no attractiveness that we should desire him. ³ “He was despised and rejected by others, and a man of sorrows, intimately familiar with suffering; and like one from whom people hide their faces; and we despised him and did not value him.

⁴ The Coming of Elijah the Prophet“Remember the Law of Moses my servant that I gave him at Horeb for all Israel—both the decrees and laws.

²⁴ But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man drives out demons only by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.”

⁶¹ and stated, “This man said, ‘I can destroy the sanctuary of God and rebuild it in three days.’”

² They began to accuse him, “We found this man corrupting our nation, forbidding us to pay taxes to Caesar, and saying that he is the Messiah, a king.”

¹⁷ because while the Law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus the Messiah.

²⁷ We know where this man comes from. But when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he comes from.”

⁴¹ while others were saying, “This is the Messiah!”
But some were saying, “The Messiah doesn’t come from Galilee, does he? ⁴² Doesn’t the Scripture say that the Messiah is from David’s family and from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?”

¹⁴ Jesus answered them, “Even though I’m testifying about myself, my testimony is valid because I know where I’ve come from and where I’m going. But you don’t know where I come from or where I’m going.

³⁵ “This same Moses—whom they rejected by saying, ‘Who made you ruler and judge?’—was the man whom God sent to be both their ruler and deliverer with the help of the angel who had appeared to him in the bush.

²² Up to this point they listened to him, but then they began to shout, “Away with such a fellow from the earth! He’s not fit to go on living!”

²² I’ve had help from God to this day, and so I stand here to testify to both the powerful and the lowly alike, stating only what the prophets and Moses said would happen—

² He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was in all God’s household, ³ because he is worthy of greater glory than Moses in the same way that the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. ⁴ After all, every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. ⁵ Moses was faithful in all God’s household as a servant who was to testify to what would be said later,

¹⁸ Open my eyes so that I will observe amazing things from your instruction.

¹⁴ Therefore, watch out! “As for me, I will once again do amazing things with this people, wonder upon wonder. The wisdom of their wise men will perish, and the insights of their discerning men will stay hidden.”

¹⁸ On that day the deaf will hear the words of a scroll, and out of gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see.

⁶ He was amazed at their unbelief. Then he went around to the villages and continued teaching.

²² So he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have observed and heard: the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear again, the dead are raised, and the destitute hear the good news.

¹⁰ Jesus answered him, “You’re the teacher of Israel, and you can’t understand this?

³⁷ The Unbelief of the JewsAlthough he had performed numerous signs in their presence, they did not believe in him,

⁶ For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory in the face of Jesus the Messiah.

²³ Abraham Negotiates with GodAbraham approached and asked, “Will you actually destroy the righteous along with the wicked? ²⁴ Perhaps there are 50 righteous ones within the city. Will you actually destroy it and not forgive the place for the sake of the 50 righteous that are found there? ²⁵ Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous along with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike! The Judge of all the earth will do what is right, won’t he?”
²⁶ The LORD said, “If I find 50 righteous people within Sodom, I’ll forgive the whole place for their sake.”
²⁷ Abraham answered, “Look, even though I am only dust and ashes, I’ve ventured to speak to my LORD. ²⁸ What if there are five less than 50 righteous ones? Will you bring destruction upon the city because of those five?”
The LORD said, “I won’t destroy it if I find 45 there.”
²⁹ Abraham continued to speak to him, asking, “What if 40 are found there?”
The LORD replied, “I won’t do it for the sake of those 40.”
³⁰ Abraham then asked, “I hope my LORD will not be angry if I speak. What if 30 are found there?”
The LORD answered, “I won’t do it for the sake of those 30.”
³¹ “Look,” Abraham said, “I’ve presumed to speak to my LORD… so what if 20 are found there?”
“For the sake of those 20,” the LORD responded, “I won’t destroy it.”
³² Finally, Abraham inquired, “I hope my LORD will not be angry if I speak only once more. What if ten are found there?”
He replied, “For the sake of those ten I won’t destroy it.”
³³ As soon as he finished talking to Abraham, the LORD left and Abraham returned to where he had been sitting.

²⁹ And so it was that, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham and brought Lot out from the midst of the destruction when he overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.

⁷ Now then, return the man’s wife. As a matter of fact, he’s a prophet and can intercede for you so you’ll live. But if you don’t return her, be aware that you and all who are yours will certainly die.”

²⁰ Then he called out to the LORD and asked him, “LORD my God, have you also brought evil to this dear widow with whom I am living as her guest? Have you caused the death of her son?” ²¹ Then he stretched himself three times and cried out to the LORD, “LORD my God, please cause the soul of this little boy to return to him.”
²² The LORD listened to Elijah, and the soul of the little boy returned to him, and he revived.

³⁶ Elijah’s Prayer and God’s Answer by FireAs the time for the evening offering arrived, Elijah the prophet approached and said, “LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I, your servant, have done all of this in obedience to your word. ³⁷ Answer me, LORD! Answer me so that this people may know that you, LORD, are God, and that you are turning back their hearts again.”
³⁸ Right then the LORD’s fire fell and consumed the burnt offering, the wood, the stones, the dust, and even the water that was in the trench!

²⁰ Sennacherib is Defeated and Killed
Meanwhile, King Hezekiah and Amoz’s son Isaiah the prophet were praying about this and crying out to heaven. ²¹ So the LORD sent an angel, who eliminated all of the elite forces, commanders, and officers within the encampment of the king of Assyria. As a result, he retreated to his own country, deeply ashamed and humiliated. When he visited the temple of his god, some of his sons killed him right there with swords.

⁸ For where is the hope of the godless when he is eliminated; when God takes away his life? ⁹ Will God hear his cry when distress overtakes him?

¹² “They cry out there, but he doesn’t answer because of the arrogance of those who practice evil.

⁸ So take seven bulls and seven rams and bring them to my servant Job. And bring a whole burnt offering for yourselves and my servant Job will pray for you. I’ll encourage him by not responding as your disgraceful folly deserves, since you didn’t speak about me correctly as did my servant Job.

⁴¹ They cried out for deliverance, but there was no one to deliver; they cried out to the LORD, but he did not answer them.

¹⁵ The LORD looks on the righteous, and he listens to their cries. ¹⁶ The face of the LORD is set against those who do evil, and he will remove people’s recollection of them from the earth.

⁸ I delight to do your will, my God. Your Law is part of my inner being.”

¹⁸ Were I to cherish iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not listen to me. ¹⁹ Surely God has heard, and he paid attention to my prayers. ²⁰ Blessed be God, who did not turn away my prayers nor his gracious love from me.

⁶ Moses and Aaron were among his priests; Samuel also was among those who invoked his name. When they called on the LORD, he answered them.

²³ He would have destroyed them but for Moses, his chosen one, who stood in the breach before him to avert his destructive wrath.

¹⁰ Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground.

¹⁹ He fulfills the desire of those who fear him, hearing their cry and saving them.

²⁸ “Then they will call out to me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. ²⁹ “Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD;

²⁹ The LORD is far away from the wicked, but he hears the prayers of the righteous.

¹³ Whoever refuses to hear the cry of the poor will also cry himself, but he won’t be answered.

⁹ If someone quits listening to the Law even his prayer is detestable.

¹⁵ When you spread out your hands in prayer, I’ll hide my eyes from you. Even though you pray repeatedly, I won’t listen. Your hands are full of blood, your fingers drenched with iniquity.”

⁹ Then you’ll call, and the LORD will answer; you’ll cry for help, and he’ll respond, ‘Here I am.’ “If you do away with the yoke among you, and pointing fingers and malicious talk;

¹¹ Therefore, this is what the LORD says: “I’m about to bring disaster on them from which they won’t be able to escape. They’ll cry out to me, but I won’t listen to them.

¹² Although they fast, I won’t listen to their cry, and although they offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I won’t accept them. Instead, I’ll put an end to them with the sword, with famine, and with a plague.”

¹ The Destiny of the JudgedThen the LORD told me, “Even if Moses and Samuel were standing before me, I wouldn’t be favorably disposed toward this people. Send them out of my presence! Let them go!

¹⁸ I’m going to deal with them in rage and anger. I’ll show neither pity nor compassion. They’ll cry loudly directly in my ears, but I won’t listen to them.”

⁴ “Then they will cry to the LORD, but he will not listen to them. In fact, he will hide his face from them at that time, because they were so wicked in what they were doing.”

¹³ Therefore, just as when I cried out and they would not listen, so also they will cry out, and I will not listen,’ says the LORD of the Heavenly Armies.

¹⁷ If anyone wants to do his will, he’ll know whether this teaching is from God or whether I’m speaking on my own.

⁴¹ So they removed the stone.
Then Jesus looked upward and said, “Father, I thank you for hearing me. ⁴² I know that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.”

¹⁶ “You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you. I have appointed you to go and produce fruit that will last, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give it to you.

⁷ Then I said, ‘See, I have come to do your will, O God’ In the volume of the scroll this is written about me.”

¹⁵ And the prayer offered in faith will save the person who is sick. The Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven.
¹⁶ Therefore, make it your habit to confess your sins to one another and to pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. ¹⁷ Elijah was a person just like us, and he prayed earnestly for it not to rain, and rain never came to the land for three years and six months. ¹⁸ Then he prayed again, and the skies poured out rain, and the ground produced its crops.

²¹ Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence in the presence of God. ²² Whatever we request we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.

⁴ Destruction Awaits the Wicked“Haven’t you known this from ancient times, since mankind was placed on the earth?

⁴ Since ancient times no one has heard, and no ear has perceived, and no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.

⁷⁰ just as he promised long ago through the mouth of his holy prophets

¹⁸ There were flashes of lightning, noises, peals of thunder, and a powerful earthquake. There has never been such a powerful earthquake since people have been on the earth.

³⁸ “I’m telling you to keep away from these men for now. Leave them alone, because if this plan or movement is of human origin, it will fail. ³⁹ However, if it’s from God, you won’t be able to stop them, and you may even discover that you are fighting against God!”
So they were convinced by him.

⁹ But they replied, “Get out of the way! This man came here as a foreigner, and now he’s acting like a judge! So we’re going to deal more harshly with you than with them.” Then they pushed hard against the man (that is, against Lot), intending to break down the door.

¹⁴ The man replied, “Who appointed you to be an official judge over us? Are you planning to kill me like you killed the Egyptian?”
Then Moses became terrified and told himself, “Certainly this event has become known!”

¹⁶ But even while the prophet was speaking, the king asked him, “Did we appoint you to be a royal counselor? Stop! Why should you be struck down?”
So the prophet stopped speaking, but he also said, “I know God has determined to destroy you, because you’ve done all this and ignored my counsel.”

⁴ Who can produce a clean thing from an unclean thing? No one!

¹⁴ “What is mankind, that he can be blameless? Or does being born of a woman mean he’ll be in the right? ¹⁵ Look, if God doesn’t trust his holy ones, if even the heavens aren’t pure as he looks at them, ¹⁶ then how much less is one who is abhorred and corrupted, such as a man who drinks injustice like water?”

⁴ How can a human being become right with God? How can a human being be pure?

⁵ Indeed, in iniquity I was brought forth; in sin my mother conceived me.

⁷ Wisdom Extends LifeWhoever corrects a mocker invites only insult, and whoever rebukes the wicked will himself become stained. ⁸ Don’t rebuke a mocker or he will hate you. Rebuke a wise person, and he will love you.

¹⁰ Throw out the mocker and strife departs, too; furthermore, quarrels and discord will end.

¹² Do you see a man who is wise in his own opinion? There’s more hope for a fool than for him.

¹ Advice on Life and Justice After many rebukes, the stiff-necked man will be broken incurably, without any warning.

⁵ who say, ‘Keep to yourself!’ ‘Don’t touch me!’ and ‘I am too holy for you!’ “Such people are smoke in my nostrils, a fire that keeps burning all day long.

¹⁷ If, however, he ignores them, tell it to the congregation. If he also ignores the congregation, regard him as an unbeliever and a tax collector.
¹⁸ “I tell all of you with certainty, whatever you prohibit on earth will have been prohibited in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will have been permitted in heaven.

⁴⁵ Then one of the experts in the Law told him, “Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us, too.”

¹¹ Because everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the person who humbles himself will be exalted.”

¹⁰ “Two men went up to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed, ‘O God, I thank you that I’m not like other people—thieves, dishonest people, adulterers, or even this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week, and I give a tenth of my entire income.’
¹³ “But the tax collector stood at a distance and would not even look up to heaven. Instead, he continued to beat his chest and said, ‘O God, be merciful to me, the sinner that I am!’ ¹⁴ I tell you, this man, rather than the other one, went down to his home justified, because everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the person who humbles himself will be exalted.”

¹⁷ I tell all of you with certainty, whoever doesn’t receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never get into it at all.”

³⁷ Everything the Father gives me will come to me, and I’ll never turn away the one who comes to me.

⁴⁸ None of the authorities or Pharisees has believed in him, have they? ⁴⁹ But this mob that does not know the Law—they’re under a curse!”

⁴¹ You are doing your father’s actions.”
They told him, “We’re not illegitimate children. We have one Father, God himself.”

² His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that caused him to be born blind?”

³⁵ Spiritual BlindnessJesus heard that they had thrown him out. So when he found him, he asked him, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”

⁴⁰ Some of the Pharisees who were near him overheard this and asked him, “We aren’t blind, too, are we?”

⁴ In the name of our Lord Jesus, when you are gathered together (and I am there in spirit), and the power of our Lord Jesus is there, too, ⁵ turn this man over to Satan for the destruction of his body, so that his spirit may be saved on the Day of the Lord.

¹³ God will judge outsiders. “Expel that wicked man.”

¹⁵ Jews, Like Gentiles, are Saved by FaithWe ourselves are Jews by birth, and not gentile sinners,

³ Indeed, all of us once behaved like them in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of our flesh and senses. By nature we were destined for wrath, just like everyone else.

⁵ Be Humble and AlertIn a similar way, you young people must submit to the elders. All of you must clothe yourselves with humility for the sake of each other, because: “God opposes the arrogant, but gives grace to the humble.”

⁹ Criticism of DiotrephesI wrote a letter to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be in charge, will not recognize our authority.

¹⁷ so that no one may buy or sell unless he has the mark, which is the beast’s name or the number of its name.

⁷ The Anointed King SpeaksLet me announce the decree of the LORD that he told me: “You are my son, today I have become your father.

¹² Kiss the son before he becomes angry, and you die where you stand. Indeed, his wrath can flare up quickly. How blessed are those who take refuge in him.

¹⁰ Though my father and my mother abandoned me, the LORD gathers me up.

³³ Then the men in the boat began to worship Jesus, saying, “You certainly are the Son of God!”

¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God!”

¹ John the Baptist Prepares the Way for Jesus
This is the beginning of the gospel of Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.

¹⁸ No one has ever seen God. The unique God, who is close to the Father’s side, has revealed him.

³⁴ I have seen this and have testified that this is the Son of God.”

⁴⁹ Nathaniel replied to him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”
⁵⁰ Jesus told him, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than that.”

¹⁵ so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.
¹⁶ “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his unique Son so that everyone who believes in him might not be lost but have eternal life. ¹⁷ Because God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. ¹⁸ Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s unique Son.

³⁶ The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who disobeys the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him.

¹⁴ Later on, Jesus found him in the Temple and told him, “Look! You have become well. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.”

⁶⁹ Besides, we have believed and remain convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”

²⁷ “Yes, Lord,” she told him. “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who was to come into the world.”

²⁸ Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”

³¹ But these have been recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and so that through believing you may have life in his name.

³⁶ As they were going along the road, they came to some water. The eunuch said, “Look, there’s some water. What keeps me from being baptized?”

²⁰ He immediately started to preach about Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “This is the Son of God.”

⁴ and was declared by the resurrection from the dead to be the powerful Son of God according to the spirit of holiness—Jesus the Messiah, our Lord.

²⁰ And Isaiah boldly says, “I was found by those who were not looking for me; I was revealed to those who were not asking for me.”

² has in these last days spoken to us by a Son whom he appointed to be the heir of everything and through whom he also made the universe. ³ He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact likeness of his being, and he holds everything together by his powerful word. After he had provided a cleansing from sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Highest Majesty ⁴ and became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is better than theirs.
⁵ God’s Son is Superior to the AngelsFor to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son. Today I have become your Father”? Or again, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son”? ⁶ And again, when he brings his firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.” ⁷ Now about the angels he says, “He makes his angels winds,
and his servants flames of fire.”
⁸ But about the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and the scepter of your kingdom is a righteous scepter. ⁹ You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness. That is why God, your God, anointed you rather than your companions with the oil of gladness.”

¹⁵ God abides in the one who acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, and he abides in God.

⁵ Who overcomes the world? Is it not the person who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

¹³ ConclusionI have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.

²⁰ We also know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know the true God. We are in union with the one who is true, his Son Jesus the Messiah, who is the true God and eternal life.

³ I never acquired wisdom, but I know what the Holy One knows. ⁴ Who has ascended to heaven, and then descended? Who has collected the wind in his hands? Who has wrapped up waters in a garment? Who has established all the farthest points of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son’s name? Surely you know!

⁹ The Young WomenWhat is so special about your beloved, most beautiful of women? What is so special about your beloved, that you charge us like this?

³ and asked him, “Are you the Coming One, or should we wait for someone else?”

³⁸ But when Jesus turned around and saw them following, he asked them, “What are you looking for?”
They asked him, “Rabbi,” (which is translated “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”

¹⁴ How, then, can people call on someone they have not believed? And how can they believe in someone they have not heard about? And how can they hear without someone preaching?

⁸ The LORD is good and just; therefore he will teach sinners concerning the way. ⁹ He will guide the humble to justice; he will teach the humble his way.

¹⁴ The intimate counsel of the LORD is for those who fear him so they may know his covenant.

²⁵ Jesus Praises the Father and Invites the Disciples to Come to Him
At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from wise and intelligent people and have revealed them to infants.

¹¹ He answered them, “You have been given knowledge about the secrets of the kingdom from heaven, but it hasn’t been given to them, ¹² because to anyone who has something, more will be given, and he will have more than enough. But from the one who doesn’t have anything, even what he has will be taken away from him.

²⁶ “I am he,” Jesus replied, “the one who is speaking to you.”

²¹ The person who has my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I, too, will love him and reveal myself to him.”
²² Judas (not Iscariot) asked him, “Lord, how is it that you are going to reveal yourself to us and not to the world?”
²³ Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. Then my Father will love him, and we will go to him and make our home within him.

³¹ and said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard. God has remembered your gifts to the poor, ³² so send messengers to Joppa and summon Simon, who is called Peter, to come to you. He is a guest in the home of Simon, a leatherworker, by the sea.’ ³³ So I sent for you immediately, and it was good of you to come. All of us are here now in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has ordered you to say.”

¹¹ and the king will greatly desire your beauty. Because he is your lord, you should bow in respect before him.

⁹ Suddenly, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” They went up to him, took hold of his feet, and worshipped him.

¹⁷ When they saw him, they worshipped him, though some had doubts.

⁵² They worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem filled with great joy.

⁹ They sang a new song: “You are worthy to take the scroll and open its seals, because you were slaughtered. With your blood you purchased people for God from every tribe, language, people, and nation. ¹⁰ You made them a kingdom and priests for our God, and they will reign on the earth.”
¹¹ The Vision of the Song of the LambThen I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels, the living creatures, and the elders surrounding the throne. They numbered 10,000’s times 10,000 and thousands times thousands. ¹² They sang with a loud voice, “Worthy is the lamb who was slaughtered to receive power, wealth, wisdom, strength, honor, glory, and praise!” ¹³ I heard every creature in heaven, on earth, under the earth, and on the sea, and everything that is in them, saying, “To the one who sits on the throne and to the lamb be praise, honor, glory, and power forever and ever!” ¹⁴ Then the four living creatures said, “Amen!”, and the elders bowed down and worshipped.

⁹ “Go!” he responded. “Tell this people: “‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’

¹⁰ For the LORD has poured out upon you a spirit of deep sleep— he has closed your eyes, you prophets, he has covered your heads, you seers!”

¹⁸ God Rebukes Israel“Listen, you deaf people, and look up, you blind people, so you may see! ¹⁹ Who is blind except my servant, or deaf like my messenger I am sending? Who is blind like the one committed to me, or blind like the LORD’s servant? ²⁰ You’ve seen many things, but you pay no attention. His ears are open, but he doesn’t listen.

¹⁸ They don’t realize; they don’t understand, because their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see, and their minds, too, so they cannot understand.

⁹ The LORD stretched out his hand, touched my mouth, and then told me, “Look, I’ve put my words in your mouth. ¹⁰ See, today I’ve appointed you to prophesy about nations and kingdoms, to pull up and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”

²³ But if your eye is evil, your whole body will be full of darkness. Therefore, if the light within you has turned into darkness, how great is that darkness!”

¹³ That’s why I speak to them in parables, because ‘they look but don’t see, and they listen but don’t hear or understand.’
¹⁴ “With them the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says: ‘You will listen and listen but never understand. You will look and look but never comprehend, ¹⁵ for this people’s heart has become dull, and their ears are hard of hearing. They have shut their eyes so that they might not see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.’

⁷⁹ to shine on those who sit in darkness and in death’s shadow, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

³⁴ Then Simeon blessed them and told Mary, his mother, “This infant is destined to cause many in Israel to fall and rise. Also, he will be a sign that will be opposed.

¹⁸ “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; he has anointed me to tell the good news to the poor. He has sent me to announce release to the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to set oppressed people free,

²¹ At that time Jesus had healed many people of diseases, plagues, and evil spirits, and had given sight to many who were blind.

³⁴ Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light. But when it’s evil, your body is full of darkness. ³⁵ Therefore, be careful that the light in you isn’t darkness.

³⁰ You see, some who are last will be first, and some who are first will be last.

¹⁷ Because God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.

¹⁹ And this is the basis for judgment: The light has come into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light because their actions were evil.

²² The Father judges no one, but has given all authority to judge to the Son, ²³ so that everyone may honor the Son as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.
²⁴ “Truly, I tell all of you emphatically, whoever hears what I say and believes in the one who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged, but has passed from death to life. ²⁵ Truly, I tell all of you emphatically, the time approaches, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear it will live. ²⁶ Just as the Father has life in himself, so also he has granted the Son to have life in himself, ²⁷ and he has given him authority to judge, because he is the Son of Man.

¹⁵ You’re judging by human standards, but I’m not judging anyone.

²⁵ But he responded, “I don’t know whether he is a sinner or not. The one thing I do know is that I used to be blind and now I can see!”

³⁶ He answered, “And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him.”
³⁷ Jesus told him, “You have seen him. He is the person who is talking with you.”
³⁸ He said, “Lord, I do believe,” and worshipped him.

⁴⁰ “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, so that they might not perceive with their eyes, and understand with their mind and turn, and I would heal them.”
⁴¹ Isaiah said this when he saw his glory and spoke about him.

⁷ What, then, does this mean? It means that Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking, but the selected group obtained it while the rest were hardened. ⁸ As it is written, “To this day God has put them into deep sleep. Their eyes do not see, and their ears do not hear.”
⁹ And David says, “Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a punishment for them. ¹⁰ Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and keep their backs forever bent.”

¹⁶ To some people we are a deadly fragrance, while to others we are a living fragrance. Who is qualified for this?

⁴ In their case, the god of this world has blinded the minds of those who do not believe to keep them from seeing the light of the glorious gospel of the Messiah, who is the image of God.
⁵ For we do not preach ourselves, but rather Jesus the Messiah as Lord, and ourselves as merely your servants for Jesus’ sake. ⁶ For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory in the face of Jesus the Messiah.

¹⁰ and every type of evil to deceive those who are dying, those who refused to love the truth that would save them.

⁹ But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people to be his very own and to proclaim the wonderful deeds of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

¹¹ But the person who hates his brother is in the darkness and lives in the darkness. He does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

¹² Then the disciples came and asked him, “Do you realize that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this statement?”
¹³ He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father did not plant will be pulled up by the roots. ¹⁴ Leave them alone. They are blind guides of the blind. If one blind person leads another blind person, both will fall into a ditch.”

¹⁶ “How terrible it will be for you, blind guides! You say, ‘Whoever swears an oath by the sanctuary is excused, but whoever swears an oath by the gold of the sanctuary must keep his oath.’ ¹⁷ You blind fools! What is more important, the gold or the sanctuary that made the gold holy? ¹⁸ Again you say, ‘Whoever swears an oath by the altar is excused, but whoever swears by the gift that is on it must keep his oath.’ ¹⁹ You blind men! Which is more important, the gift or the altar that makes the gift holy? ²⁰ Therefore, the one who swears an oath by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. ²¹ The one who swears an oath by the sanctuary swears by it and by the one who lives there. ²² And the one who swears an oath by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.
²³ “How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your mint, dill, and cummin, but have neglected the more important matters of the Law: justice, mercy, and faithfulness. These are the things you should have practiced, without neglecting the others. ²⁴ You blind guides! You filter out a gnat, yet swallow a camel!
²⁵ “How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but on the inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. ²⁶ You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that its outside may also be clean.
²⁷ “How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs that look beautiful on the outside but inside are full of dead people’s bones and every kind of impurity. ²⁸ In the same way, on the outside you look righteous to people, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

³⁹ But the Lord told him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but on the inside you are full of greed and evil. ⁴⁰ You fools! The one who made the outside made the inside, too, didn’t he? ⁴¹ So give what is inside to the poor, and then everything will be clean for you.
⁴² “How terrible it will be for you Pharisees! You give a tenth of your mint, spices, and every kind of herb, but you neglect justice and the love of God. These are the things you should have practiced, without neglecting the others.
⁴³ How terrible it will be for you Pharisees! You love to have the places of honor in the synagogues and to be greeted in the marketplaces.
⁴⁴ How terrible it will be for you! You are like unmarked graves—people walk on them without realizing it.”
⁴⁵ Then one of the experts in the Law told him, “Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us, too.”
⁴⁶ Jesus said, “How terrible it will be for you experts in the Law, too! You load people with burdens that are hard to carry, yet you don’t even lift a finger to ease those burdens.
⁴⁷ How terrible it will be for you! You build monuments for the prophets, and it was your ancestors who killed them! ⁴⁸ So you are witnesses and approve of the deeds of your ancestors, because they killed those for whom you are building monuments. ⁴⁹ That is why the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles. They will kill some of them and persecute others,’ ⁵⁰ so those living today will be charged with the blood of all the prophets that was shed since the foundation of the world, ⁵¹ from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who died between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it will be charged against this generation!
⁵² How terrible it will be for you experts in the Law! You have taken away the key to knowledge. You didn’t go in yourselves, and you kept out those who were trying to go in.”
⁵³ As Jesus was leaving, the scribes and the Pharisees began to oppose him fiercely, interrogating him about many things. ⁵⁴ They watched him closely in an effort to trap him in something he might say.

¹⁹ and if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light to those in darkness, ²⁰ an instructor of ignorant people, and a teacher of infants because you have the full content of knowledge and truth in the Law— ²¹ as you teach others, do you fail to teach yourself? As you preach against stealing, do you steal? ²² As you forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? As you abhor idols, do you rob temples?

¹⁷ You say, “I am rich. I have become wealthy. I don’t need anything.” Yet you don’t realize that you are miserable, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.

²¹ Judgment on the Arrogant“How terrible it will be for those who are wise in their own opinion, and clever in their own reckoning!

³⁵ you say, ‘I’m innocent. Surely his anger has turned away from me.’” “I’m about to bring charges against you because you say, ‘I haven’t sinned.’

⁴⁷ That servant who knew what his master wanted but didn’t prepare himself or do what was wanted will receive a severe beating.

¹⁴ I tell you, this man, rather than the other one, went down to his home justified, because everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the person who humbles himself will be exalted.”

²² “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have any sin. But now they have no excuse for their sin. ²³ The person who hates me also hates my Father. ²⁴ If I hadn’t done among them the actions that no one else did, they wouldn’t have any sin. But now they have seen and hated both me and my Father.

²⁶ For if we choose to go on sinning after we have learned the full truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,

⁸ If we say that we do not have any sin, we are deceiving ourselves and we’re not being truthful to ourselves. ⁹ If we make it our habit to confess our sins, in his faithful righteousness he forgives us for those sins and cleanses us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰ If we say that we have never sinned, we make him a liar and his word has no place in us.