| New Living Translation | New International Version |
| 1Once Jesus was in a certain place praying. As he finished, one of his disciples came to him and said, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” | 1One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples." |
| 2Jesus said, “This is how you should pray: “Father, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. | 2He said to them, "When you pray, say: "'Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. |
| 3 Give us each day the food we need, | 3Give us each day our daily bread. |
| 4 and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation. ” | 4Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.'" |
| 5Then, teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, | 5Then Jesus said to them, "Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; |
| 6 ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’ | 6a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.' |
| 7 And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can’t help you.’ | 7And suppose the one inside answers, 'Don't bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can't get up and give you anything.' |
| 8 But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence. | 8I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need. |
| 9 “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. | 9"So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. |
| 10 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. | 10For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. |
| 11 “You fathers—if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? | 11"Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? |
| 12 Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not! | 12Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? |
| 13 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.” Jesus and the Prince of Demons | 13If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" |
| 14One day Jesus cast out a demon from a man who couldn’t speak, and when the demon was gone, the man began to speak. The crowds were amazed, | 14Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed. |
| 15but some of them said, “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons.” | 15But some of them said, "By Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons." |
| 16Others, trying to test Jesus, demanded that he show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove his authority. | 16Others tested him by asking for a sign from heaven. |
| 17He knew their thoughts, so he said, “Any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed. A family splintered by feuding will fall apart. | 17Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them: "Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall. |
| 18 You say I am empowered by Satan. But if Satan is divided and fighting against himself, how can his kingdom survive? | 18If Satan is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? I say this because you claim that I drive out demons by Beelzebul. |
| 19 And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own exorcists? They cast out demons, too, so they will condemn you for what you have said. | 19Now if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your followers drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. |
| 20 But if I am casting out demons by the power of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you. | 20But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. |
| 21 For when a strong man is fully armed and guards his palace, his possessions are safe— | 21"When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. |
| 22 until someone even stronger attacks and overpowers him, strips him of his weapons, and carries off his belongings. | 22But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder. |
| 23 “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me. | 23"Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. |
| 24 “When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, searching for rest. But when it finds none, it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ | 24"When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' |
| 25 So it returns and finds that its former home is all swept and in order. | 25When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. |
| 26 Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before.” | 26Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first." |
| 27As he was speaking, a woman in the crowd called out, “God bless your mother—the womb from which you came, and the breasts that nursed you!” | 27As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, "Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you." |
| 28Jesus replied, “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.” The Sign of Jonah | 28He replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it." |
| 29As the crowd pressed in on Jesus, he said, “This evil generation keeps asking me to show them a miraculous sign. But the only sign I will give them is the sign of Jonah. | 29As the crowds increased, Jesus said, "This is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah. |
| 30 What happened to him was a sign to the people of Nineveh that God had sent him. What happens to the Son of Man will be a sign to these people that he was sent by God. | 30For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation. |
| 31 “The queen of Sheba will stand up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, for she came from a distant land to hear the wisdom of Solomon. Now someone greater than Solomon is here—but you refuse to listen. | 31The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the people of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom; and now something greater than Solomon is here. |
| 32 The people of Nineveh will also stand up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, for they repented of their sins at the preaching of Jonah. Now someone greater than Jonah is here—but you refuse to repent. Receiving the Light | 32The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and now something greater than Jonah is here. |
| 33 “No one lights a lamp and then hides it or puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house. | 33"No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the light. |
| 34 “Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light. But when it is unhealthy, your body is filled with darkness. | 34Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness. |
| 35 Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness. | 35See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. |
| 36 If you are filled with light, with no dark corners, then your whole life will be radiant, as though a floodlight were filling you with light.” Jesus Criticizes the Religious Leaders | 36Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be just as full of light as when a lamp shines its light on you." |
| 37As Jesus was speaking, one of the Pharisees invited him home for a meal. So he went in and took his place at the table. | 37When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him; so he went in and reclined at the table. |
| 38His host was amazed to see that he sat down to eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony required by Jewish custom. | 38But the Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus did not first wash before the meal. |
| 39Then the Lord said to him, “You Pharisees are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and wickedness! | 39Then the Lord said to him, "Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. |
| 40 Fools! Didn’t God make the inside as well as the outside? | 40You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? |
| 41 So clean the inside by giving gifts to the poor, and you will be clean all over. | 41But now as for what is inside you--be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you. |
| 42 “What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore justice and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things. | 42"Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone. |
| 43 “What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you love to sit in the seats of honor in the synagogues and receive respectful greetings as you walk in the marketplaces. | 43"Woe to you Pharisees, because you love the most important seats in the synagogues and respectful greetings in the marketplaces. |
| 44 Yes, what sorrow awaits you! For you are like hidden graves in a field. People walk over them without knowing the corruption they are stepping on.” | 44"Woe to you, because you are like unmarked graves, which people walk over without knowing it." |
| 45“Teacher,” said an expert in religious law, “you have insulted us, too, in what you just said.” | 45One of the experts in the law answered him, "Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us also." |
| 46 “Yes,” said Jesus, “what sorrow also awaits you experts in religious law! For you crush people with unbearable religious demands, and you never lift a finger to ease the burden. | 46Jesus replied, "And you experts in the law, woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them. |
| 47 What sorrow awaits you! For you build monuments for the prophets your own ancestors killed long ago. | 47"Woe to you, because you build tombs for the prophets, and it was your ancestors who killed them. |
| 48 But in fact, you stand as witnesses who agree with what your ancestors did. They killed the prophets, and you join in their crime by building the monuments! | 48So you testify that you approve of what your ancestors did; they killed the prophets, and you build their tombs. |
| 49 This is what God in his wisdom said about you: ‘I will send prophets and apostles to them, but they will kill some and persecute the others.’ | 49Because of this, God in his wisdom said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and others they will persecute.' |
| 50 “As a result, this generation will be held responsible for the murder of all God’s prophets from the creation of the world— | 50Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world, |
| 51 from the murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, it will certainly be charged against this generation. | 51from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for it all. |
| 52 “What sorrow awaits you experts in religious law! For you remove the key to knowledge from the people. You don’t enter the Kingdom yourselves, and you prevent others from entering.” | 52"Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering." |
| 53As Jesus was leaving, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees became hostile and tried to provoke him with many questions. | 53When Jesus went outside, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law began to oppose him fiercely and to besiege him with questions, |
| 54They wanted to trap him into saying something they could use against him. | 54waiting to catch him in something he might say. |
| Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. | New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. |
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