6
Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath
1 Now it came to pass on the *second chief Sabbath, that He was going through the grain fields. And His disciples were picking the heads of grain and were eating them, rubbing them in their hands. 2 But some of the Pharisees said to them, “Why do you do what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?”
3 But Jesus answering them said, “Have you not even read this, what David did when he became hungry, he and those who were with him: 4 how he entered into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave some to those with him, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat?” 5 And He said to them, “The Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”
6 Now it happened that on another Sabbath, He entered the synagogue and was teaching. And there was a man there whose right hand was withered. 7 And the scribes and Pharisees were observing if whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him. 8 But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, “Arise and stand in the midst.” And he arose and stood. 9 Then Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?” 10 And when He had looked around at them all, He said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. 11 But they were filled with fury, and they were discussing with one another what they might do to Jesus.
The Twelve Apostles
12 Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and He was spending the night in prayer to God. 13 And when it became day, He summoned His disciples, and having chosen twelve from them, whom He also named apostles: 14 He chose Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; 15 Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot; 16 Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor.
17 And having come down with them, He stood on a level place, with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, 18 as well as those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were being healed. 19 And all the crowd was trying to touch Him, because power was going out from Him, and was healing them all.
The Beatitudes
20 Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said:
“Blessed are you who are poor,
For yours is the kingdom of God.
21 Blessed are you who hunger now,
For you shall be filled.
Blessed are you who weep now,
For you shall laugh.
22 Blessed are you when men shall hate you,
And when they shall exclude you,
And shall revile you, and cast out your name as evil,
Because of the Son of Man.
23 Rejoice in that day and leap for joy!
For behold, your reward is great in heaven;
For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.
Jesus Pronounces Woes
24 But woe to you who are rich,
Because you have received your consolation.
25 Woe to you who have been filled,
For you shall be hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
For you shall mourn and weep.
26 Woe to you when men speak well of you,
For in like manner their fathers would do to the false prophets.
Love Your Enemies
27 “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you; pray for those who mistreat you. 29 To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes your outer garment, do not forbid the tunic either. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your belongings, do not ask for them back. 31 And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.
32 “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive it back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners, so that they may receive the same amount back. 35 But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping to receive nothing back; and your reward shall be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. 36 Therefore be compassionate, just as your Father also is compassionate.
Do Not Judge
37 “And do not judge, and you shall not be judged. Do not condemn, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you shall be forgiven. 38 Give, and it shall be given to you: good measure, pressed down and shaken and running over they shall give into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it shall be measured back to you.”
39 And He spoke a parable to them: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone, having been fully trained, will be like his teacher. 41 And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not notice the plank in your own eye? 42 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, permit me to remove the speck which is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the plank that is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck which is in your brother's eye.
43 “For a good tree does not produce corrupt fruit, nor does a corrupt tree produce good fruit. 44 For each tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a thorn bush. 45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth that which is evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Build on the Rock
46 “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do the things which I say? 47 Everyone who comes to Me, and hears My words and does them, I will show you to whom he is like: 48 He is like a man building a house, who dug and went deep and laid a foundation on the rock. And when a flood came, the stream burst upon that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock. 49 But he who hears and does not do is like a man building a house on the ground without a foundation, against which the stream burst upon; and immediately it fell. And the destruction of that house was great.”
* 6:1 Δεuτεροπρωτω, Gk (Deuteroproto). Difficult word to translate. Literally, “second first.” Thanks to Dr. Maurice Robinson for help with this difficult translation.