Day 8 of 365

¹The beginning of the Good News of Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.

²As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, "Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.

³The voice of one crying in the wilderness, 'Make ready the way of the Lord! Make his paths straight!'"

⁴John came baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming the baptism of repentance for forgiveness of sins.

⁵All the country of Judea and all those of Jerusalem went out to him, and they were baptized by him in the Jordan river, confessing their sins.

⁶John was clothed with camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist. He ate locusts and wild honey.

⁷He preached, saying, "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and loosen.

⁸I baptized you in water, but he will baptize you in the Holy Spirit."

⁹It happened in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

¹⁰Immediately coming up from the water, he saw the heavens parting, and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.

¹¹A voice came out of the sky, "You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased."

¹²Immediately the Spirit drove him out into the wilderness.

¹³He was there in the wilderness forty days tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals; and the angels were serving him.

¹⁴Now after John was taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the Good News of God,

¹⁵and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is near! Repent, and believe in the Good News."

¹⁶And passing along by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.

¹⁷Jesus said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you into fishers for men."

¹⁸Immediately they left the nets, and followed him.

¹⁹Going on a little further, he saw Jacob the son of Zebedee, and John, his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets.

²⁰Immediately he called them, and they left their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired servants, and went after him.

²¹They went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath day he entered into the synagogue and taught.

²²They were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as having authority, and not as the scribes.

²³Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he shouted,

²⁴saying, "What do we have to do with you, Jesus, you Nazarene? Have you come to destroy us? I know you who you are: the Holy One of God!"

²⁵Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"

²⁶The unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.

²⁷They were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this? A new teaching? For with authority he commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him!"

²⁸The report of him went out immediately into all the region of Galilee and its surrounding area.

²⁹Immediately, when they had come out of the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with Jacob and John.

³⁰Now Simon's wife's mother lay sick with a fever, and immediately they told him about her.

³¹And he came and took her by the hand, and raised her up. The fever left her, and she served them.

³²At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to him all who were sick, and those who were possessed by demons.

³³All the city was gathered together at the door.

³⁴He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. He did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew him.

³⁵Early in the morning, while it was still dark, he rose up and went out, and departed into a deserted place, and prayed there.

³⁶Simon and those who were with him followed after him;

³⁷and they found him, and told him, "Everyone is looking for you."

³⁸He said to them, "Let us go somewhere else into the next towns, that I may proclaim there also, because I came out for this reason."

³⁹He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, preaching and casting out demons.

⁴⁰A leper came to him, begging him, kneeling down to him, and saying to him, "If you want to, you can make me clean."

⁴¹Being moved with compassion, he stretched out his hand, and touched him, and said to him, "I want to. Be made clean."

⁴²Immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was made clean.

⁴³He strictly warned him, and immediately sent him out,

⁴⁴and said to him, "See you say nothing to anyone, but go show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing the things which Moses commanded, for a testimony to them."

⁴⁵But he went out, and began to proclaim it much, and to spread about the matter, so that Jesus could no more openly enter into a city, but was outside in desert places: and they came to him from everywhere.

¹When he entered again into Capernaum after some days, it was heard that he was in the house.

²And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even around the door; and he spoke the word to them.

³Four people came, carrying a paralytic to him.

⁴When they could not come near to him for the crowd, they removed the roof above him. When they had broken it up, they let down the mat that the paralytic was lying on.

⁵Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven you."

⁶But there were some of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts,

⁷"Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming; who can forgive sins but God alone?"

⁸Immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, said to them, "Why do you reason these things in your hearts?

⁹Which is easier, to tell the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven;' or to say, 'Arise, and take up your bed, and walk?'

¹⁰But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins", he said to the paralytic,

¹¹"I tell you, arise, take up your mat, and go to your house."

¹²And he arose immediately, and took up the mat, and went out in front of them all; so that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, "We never saw anything like this!"

¹³And he went out again by the seaside. All the multitude came to him, and he taught them.

¹⁴As he passed by, he saw Levi, the son of Alphaeus, sitting at the tax office, and he said to him, "Follow me." And he arose and followed him.

¹⁵It happened, that he was reclining at the table in his house, and many tax collectors and sinners sat down with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many, and they followed him.

¹⁶The scribes of the Pharisees, when they saw him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, said to his disciples, "Why is it that he eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?"

¹⁷But when Jesus heard it, he said to them, "Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners."

¹⁸John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting, and they came and asked him, "Why do the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?"

¹⁹And Jesus said to them, "Can the groomsmen fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast.

²⁰But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then will they fast in those days.

²¹No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, or else the patch shrinks and the new tears away from the old, and a worse hole is made.

²²And no one puts new wine into old wineskins, or else the new wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and the skins will be destroyed; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins."

²³It happened that he was going on the Sabbath day through the grain fields, and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of grain.

²⁴The Pharisees said to him, "Behold, why do they do that which is not lawful on the Sabbath day?"

²⁵He said to them, "Did you never read what David did, when he had need, and was hungry-he, and those who were with him?

²⁶How he entered into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest, and ate the show bread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and gave also to those who were with him?"

²⁷He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

²⁸Therefore the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath."

¹He entered again into the synagogue, and there was a man there who had his hand withered.

²They watched him, whether he would heal him on the Sabbath day, that they might accuse him.

³He said to the man with the withered hand, "Stand up in the middle."

⁴He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath day to do good, or to do harm? To save a life, or to kill?" But they were silent.

⁵When he had looked around at them with anger, being grieved at the hardening of their hearts, he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.

⁶The Pharisees went out, and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him.

⁷Jesus withdrew to the sea with his disciples, and a great multitude followed from Galilee, from Judea,

⁸from Jerusalem, from Idumaea, beyond the Jordan, and those from around Tyre and Sidon. A great multitude, when they heard what great things he did, came to him.

⁹And he told his disciples that a small boat should stay near him because of the crowd, so that they would not press on him.

¹⁰For he had healed many, so that as many as had diseases pressed on him that they might touch him.

¹¹The unclean spirits, whenever they saw him, fell down before him, and shouted, "You are the Son of God!"

¹²And he sternly warned them that they should not make him known.

¹³And he went up into the mountain, and called to himself those whom he wanted, and they went to him.

¹⁴And he appointed twelve, designating them apostles, and that he might send them out to preach,

¹⁵and to have authority to cast out demons:

¹⁶And he appointed the Twelve: Simon, to whom he gave the name Peter;

¹⁷Jacob the son of Zebedee; John, the brother of Jacob, and he surnamed them Boanerges which means, Sons of Thunder;

¹⁸Andrew; Philip; Bartholomew; Matthew; Thomas; Jacob, the son of Alphaeus; Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot;

¹⁹and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

²⁰Then he came into a house. The multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.

²¹When his family heard it, they went out to take charge of him: for they said, "He is out of his mind."

²²The scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebul," and, "By the prince of the demons he casts out the demons."

²³So he summoned them, and said to them in parables, "How can Satan cast out Satan?

²⁴If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.

²⁵If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.

²⁶If Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.

²⁷But no one can enter into the house of the strong man to plunder, unless he first binds the strong man; and then he will plunder his house.

²⁸Truly I tell you, all sins of the sons of men will be forgiven, including their blasphemies with which they may blaspheme;

²⁹but whoever may blaspheme against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal judgment"

³⁰-because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."

³¹Then his brothers and his mother came, and standing outside, they sent to him, calling him.

³²A multitude was sitting around him, and they told him, "Behold, your mother and your brothers are outside looking for you."

³³And he answered them, saying, "Who are my mother or my brothers?"

³⁴Looking around at those who sat around him, he said, "Behold, my mother and my brothers!

³⁵For whoever does the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother."

¹Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth, who has set your glory above the heavens!

²From the lips of babes and infants you have ordained praise, because of your adversaries, that you might silence the enemy and the avenger.

³When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have ordained;

⁴what is man, that you think of him? What is the son of man, that you care for him?

⁵For you have made him a little lower than the angels, and crowned him with glory and honor.

⁶You make him ruler over the works of your hands. You have put all things under his feet:

⁷All sheep and cattle, yes, and the animals of the field,

⁸The birds of the sky, the fish of the sea, and whatever passes through the paths of the seas.

⁹Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

¹Doesn't wisdom cry out? Doesn't understanding raise her voice?

²On the top of high places by the way, where the paths meet, she stands.

³Beside the gates, at the entry of the city, at the entry doors, she cries aloud:

⁴"To you men, I call! I send my voice to the sons of mankind.

⁵You simple, understand prudence. You fools, be of an understanding heart.

⁶Hear, for I will speak excellent things. The opening of my lips is for right things.

⁷For my mouth speaks truth. Wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

⁸All the words of my mouth are in righteousness. There is nothing crooked or perverse in them.

⁹They are all plain to him who understands, right to those who find knowledge.

¹⁰Receive my instruction rather than silver; knowledge rather than choice gold.

¹¹For wisdom is better than rubies. All the things that may be desired can't be compared to it.

¹²"I, wisdom, have made prudence my dwelling. Find out knowledge and discretion.

¹³The fear of the Lord is to hate evil. I hate pride, arrogance, the evil way, and the perverse mouth.

¹⁴Counsel and sound knowledge are mine. I have understanding and power.

¹⁵By me kings reign, and princes decree justice.

¹⁶By me princes rule; nobles, and all the righteous rulers of the earth.

¹⁷I love those who love me. Those who seek me diligently will find me.

¹⁸With me are riches, honor, enduring wealth, and prosperity.

¹⁹My fruit is better than gold, yes, than fine gold; my yield than choice silver.

²⁰I walk in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of justice;

²¹That I may give wealth to those who love me. I fill their treasuries.

²²"The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his work, before his deeds of old.

²³I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, before the earth existed.

²⁴When there were no depths, I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water.

²⁵Before the mountains were settled in place, before the hills, I was brought forth;

²⁶while as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the beginning of the dust of the world.

²⁷When he established the heavens, I was there; when he set a circle on the surface of the deep,

²⁸when he established the clouds above, when the springs of the deep became strong,

²⁹when he gave to the sea its boundary, that the waters should not violate his commandment, when he marked out the foundations of the earth;

³⁰then I was the craftsman by his side. I was a delight day by day, always rejoicing before him,

³¹Rejoicing in his whole world. My delight was with the sons of men.

³²"Now therefore, my sons, listen to me, for blessed are those who keep my ways.

³³Hear instruction, and be wise. Do not refuse it.

³⁴Blessed is the man who hears me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at my door posts.

³⁵For whoever finds me, finds life, and will obtain favor from the Lord.

³⁶But he who sins against me wrongs his own soul. All those who hate me love death."