Lord of the Sabbath

1Now it happened that on a Sabbath He was passing through some grainfields, and His disciples were picking and eating the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. 2But some of the Pharisees said, “Why do you do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” 3And Jesus answered and said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him, 4how he entered the house of God, and took and ate the [†]consecrated bread which is not lawful for any to eat except the priests alone, and gave it to his companions?” 5And He was saying to them, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

Jesus Heals a Man on the Sabbath

6Now it happened that on another Sabbath He entered the synagogue and was teaching; and there was a man there [†]whose right hand was withered. 7And the scribes and the Pharisees were watching Him closely to see if He heals on the Sabbath, so that they might find reason to accuse Him. 8But He knew [†]what they were thinking, and He said to the man with the withered hand, “Get up and [†]come forward!” And he stood up and [†]came forward. 9And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to destroy it?” 10And after looking around at them all, He said to him, “Stretch out your hand!” And he did so, and his hand was restored. 11But they themselves were filled with [†]rage, and were discussing together what they might do to Jesus.

Jesus Appoints the Twelve

12Now it happened that [†]at this time He went off to the mountain to pray, and He was spending the whole night in prayer to God. 13And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles: 14Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James and John; and Philip and Bartholomew; 15and Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; 16Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

17And Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place; and there was a large crowd of His disciples, and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon, 18who had come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were being cured. 19And all the crowd was trying to touch Him, for power was coming from Him and healing them all.

The Beatitudes

20And turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say,

“Blessed are the poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.

21Blessed are those who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied.

Blessed are those who cry now, for you shall laugh.

22Blessed are you when men hate you, and exclude you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man.

23Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For their fathers were doing the same things to the prophets.

Jesus Pronounces Woes

24But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full.

25Woe to you who [†]are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry.

Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and cry.

26Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers were doing the same things 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, 28bless those who curse you, pray for those who disparage you. 29Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your garment, do not withhold your [†]tunic from him either. 30Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. 31And [†]treat others the same way you want [†]them to treat you. 32And if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. 35But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, [†]expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to the ungrateful and evil. 36[†]Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

Do Not Judge

37“And do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; [†]pardon, and you will be [†]pardoned. 38Give, and it will be given to you. They will [†]pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”

39And He also spoke a parable to them: “Can a blind man guide a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40A [†]student is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will [†]be like his teacher. 41And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 42How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye. 43For there is no good tree which produces bad fruit, nor, [†]on the other hand, a bad tree which produces good fruit. 44For each tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they pick grapes from a bramble bush. 45The good man out of the good [†]treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil. For his mouth speaks from the abundance of his heart.

Build Your House on the Rock

46“Now why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and does them, I will show you whom he is like: 48he is like a man building a house, who dug and went deep, and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the river burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49But the one who heard and did not do accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation; and the river burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.”