1And He called the twelve together, and gave them power and authority over all the demons, and to heal diseases. 2And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God, and to perform healing. 3And He said to them, “Take nothing for your journey, neither a staff, nor a bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not even have two tunics apiece. 4“And whatever house you enter, stay there, and take your leave from there. 5“And as for those who do not receive you, as you go out from that city, shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.” 6And departing, they began going about among the villages, preaching the gospel, and healing everywhere.

     7Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was happening; and he was greatly perplexed, because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead, 8and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others, that one of the prophets of old had risen again. 9And Herod said, “I myself had John beheaded; but who is this man about whom I hear such things?” And he kept trying to see Him.

     10And when the apostles returned, they gave an account to Him of all that they had done. And taking them with Him, He withdrew by Himself to a city called Bethsaida. 11But the multitudes were aware of this and followed Him; and welcoming them, He began speaking to them about the kingdom of God and curing those who had need of healing.

Five Thousand Fed

     12And the day began to decline, and the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodging and get something to eat; for here we are in a desolate place.” 13But He said to them, “You give them something to eat!” And they said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless perhaps we go and buy food for all these people.” 14(For there were about five thousand men.) And He said to His disciples, “Have them recline to eat in groups of about fifty each.” 15And they did so, and had them all recline. 16And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed them, and broke them, and kept giving them to the disciples to set before the multitude. 17And they all ate and were satisfied; and the broken pieces which they had left over were picked up, twelve baskets full.

     18And it came about that while He was praying alone, the disciples were with Him, and He questioned them, saying, “Who do the multitudes say that I am?” 19And they answered and said, “John the Baptist, and others say Elijah; but others, that one of the prophets of old has risen again.” 20And He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.” 21But He warned them, and instructed them not to tell this to anyone, 22saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day.” 23And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. 24“For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. 25“For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself? 26“For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 27“But I say to you truthfully, there are some of those standing here who shall not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”

The Transfiguration

     28And some eight days after these sayings, it came about that He took along Peter and John and James, and went up to the mountain to pray. 29And while He was praying, the appearance of His face became different, and His clothing became white and gleaming. 30And behold, two men were talking with Him; and they were Moses and Elijah, 31who, appearing in glory, were speaking of His departure which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32Now Peter and his companions had been overcome with sleep; but when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him. 33And it came about, as these were parting from Him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—not realizing what he was saying. 34And while he was saying this, a cloud formed and began to overshadow them; and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My Son, My Chosen One; listen to Him!” 36And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent, and reported to no one in those days any of the things which they had seen.

     37And it came about on the next day, that when they had come down from the mountain, a great multitude met Him. 38And behold, a man from the multitude shouted out, saying, “Teacher, I beg You to look at my son, for he is my only boy, 39and behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly screams, and it throws him into a convulsion with foaming at the mouth, and as it mauls him, it scarcely leaves him. 40“And I begged Your disciples to cast it out, and they could not.” 41And Jesus answered and said, “O unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you, and put up with you? Bring your son here.” 42And while he was still approaching, the demon dashed him to the ground, and threw him into a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. 43And they were all amazed at the greatness of God.

      But while everyone was marveling at all that He was doing, He said to His disciples, 44“Let these words sink into your ears; for the Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men.” 45But they did not understand this statement, and it was concealed from them so that they might not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this statement.

The Test of Greatness

     46And an argument arose among them as to which of them might be the greatest. 47But Jesus, knowing what they were thinking in their heart, took a child and stood him by His side, 48and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; for he who is least among you, this is the one who is great.”

     49And John answered and said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name; and we tried to hinder him because he does not follow along with us.” 50But Jesus said to him, “Do not hinder him; for he who is not against you is for you.”

     51And it came about, when the days were approaching for His ascension, that He resolutely set His face to go to Jerusalem; 52and He sent messengers on ahead of Him. And they went, and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make arrangements for Him. 53And they did not receive Him, because He was journeying with His face toward Jerusalem. 54And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” 55But He turned and rebuked them, [and said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are of; 56for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”] And they went on to another village.

Exacting Discipleship

     57And as they were going along the road, someone said to Him, “I will follow You wherever You go.” 58And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” 59And He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Permit me first to go and bury my father.” 60But He said to him, “Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.” 61And another also said, “I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home.” 62But Jesus said to him, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”