¹This is the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. ²As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way.” ³“A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him.’” ⁴John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵People went out to him from all of Jerusalem and the countryside of Judea. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. ⁶John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. ⁷And he proclaimed: “After me will come One more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. ⁸I baptize you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” ⁹In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. ¹⁰As soon as Jesus came up out of the water, He saw the heavens breaking open and the Spirit descending on Him like a dove. ¹¹And a voice came from heaven: “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.” ¹²At once the Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness, ¹³and He was there for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and the angels ministered to Him. ¹⁴After the arrest of John, Jesus went into Galilee and proclaimed the gospel of God. ¹⁵“The time is fulfilled,” He said, “and the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe in the gospel!” ¹⁶As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. ¹⁷“Come, follow Me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” ¹⁸And at once they left their nets and followed Him. ¹⁹Going on a little farther, He saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat, mending their nets. ²⁰Immediately Jesus called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed Him. ²¹Then Jesus and His companions went to Capernaum, and right away Jesus entered the synagogue on the Sabbath and began to teach. ²²The people were astonished at His teaching, because He taught as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. ²³Suddenly a man with an unclean spirit cried out in the synagogue: ²⁴“What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” ²⁵But Jesus rebuked the spirit. “Be silent!” He said. “Come out of him!” ²⁶At this, the unclean spirit threw the man into convulsions and came out with a loud shriek. ²⁷All the people were amazed and began to ask one another, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him!” ²⁸And the news about Jesus spread quickly through the whole region of Galilee. ²⁹As soon as Jesus and His companions had left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. ³⁰Simon’s mother-in-law was sick in bed with a fever, and they promptly told Jesus about her. ³¹So He went to her, took her by the hand, and helped her up. The fever left her, and she began to serve them. ³²That evening, after sunset, people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed, ³³and the whole town gathered at the door. ³⁴And He healed many who were ill with various diseases and drove out many demons. But He would not allow the demons to speak, because they knew who He was. ³⁵Early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up and went out to a solitary place to pray. ³⁶Simon and his companions went to look for Him, ³⁷and when they found Him, they said, “Everyone is looking for You!” ³⁸But Jesus answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns so I can preach there as well, for that is why I have come.” ³⁹So He went throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. ⁴⁰Then a leper came to Jesus, begging on his knees: “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” ⁴¹Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” ⁴²And immediately the leprosy left him, and the man was cleansed. ⁴³Jesus promptly sent him away with a stern warning: ⁴⁴“See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and present the offering Moses prescribed for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.” ⁴⁵But the man went out and openly began to proclaim and spread the news. Consequently, Jesus could no longer enter a town in plain view, but He stayed out in solitary places. Yet people came to Him from every quarter.

Mark 12

¹Then Jesus began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a wine vat, and built a watchtower. Then he rented it out to some tenants and went away on a journey. ²At harvest time, he sent a servant to the tenants to collect his share of the fruit of the vineyard. ³But they seized the servant, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. ⁴Then he sent them another servant, and they struck him over the head and treated him shamefully. ⁵He sent still another, and this one they killed. He sent many others; some they beat and others they killed. ⁶Finally, having one beloved son, he sent him to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said. ⁷But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ⁸So they seized the son, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. ⁹What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. ¹⁰Have you never read this Scripture: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. ¹¹This is from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” ¹²At this, the leaders sought to arrest Jesus, for they knew that He had spoken this parable against them. But fearing the crowd, they left Him and went away. ¹³Later, they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to catch Jesus in His words. ¹⁴“Teacher,” they said, “we know that You are honest and seek favor from no one. Indeed, You are impartial and teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay them or not?” ¹⁵But Jesus saw through their hypocrisy and said, “Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a denarius to inspect.” ¹⁶So they brought it, and He asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?” “Caesar’s,” they answered. ¹⁷Then Jesus told them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” And they marveled at Him. ¹⁸Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus and questioned Him: ¹⁹“Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man is to marry his brother’s widow and raise up offspring for him. ²⁰Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died, leaving no children. ²¹Then the second one married the widow, but he also died and left no children. And the third did likewise. ²²In this way, none of the seven left any children. And last of all, the woman died. ²³In the resurrection, then, whose wife will she be? For all seven were married to her.” ²⁴Jesus said to them, “Aren’t you mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God? ²⁵When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage. Instead, they will be like the angels in heaven. ²⁶But concerning the dead rising, have you not read about the burning bush in the Book of Moses, how God told him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? ²⁷He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!” ²⁸Now one of the scribes had come up and heard their debate. Noticing how well Jesus had answered them, he asked Him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” ²⁹Jesus replied, “This is the most important: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. ³⁰Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ ³¹The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.” ³²“Right, Teacher,” the scribe replied. “You have stated correctly that God is One and there is no other but Him, ³³and to love Him with all your heart and with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself. This is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” ³⁴When Jesus saw that the man had answered wisely, He said, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And no one dared to question Him any further. ³⁵While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts, He asked, “How can the scribes say that the Christ is the Son of David? ³⁶Speaking by the Holy Spirit, David himself declared: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand until I put Your enemies under Your feet.”’ ³⁷David himself calls Him ‘Lord.’ So how can He be David’s son?” And the large crowd listened to Him with delight. ³⁸In His teaching Jesus also said, “Watch out for the scribes. They like to walk around in long robes, to receive greetings in the marketplaces, ³⁹and to have the chief seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. ⁴⁰They defraud widows of their houses, and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will receive greater condemnation.” ⁴¹As Jesus was sitting opposite the treasury, He watched the crowd putting money into it. And many rich people put in large amounts. ⁴²Then one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius. ⁴³Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more than all the others into the treasury. ⁴⁴For they all contributed out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.”

Mark 13

¹As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, “Teacher, look at the magnificent stones and buildings!” ²“Do you see all these great buildings?” Jesus replied. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” ³While Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked Him privately, ⁴“Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to be fulfilled?” ⁵Jesus began by telling them, “See to it that no one deceives you. ⁶Many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am He,’ and will deceive many. ⁷When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. These things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁸Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, as well as famines. These are the beginning of birth pains. ⁹So be on your guard. You will be delivered over to the councils and beaten in the synagogues. On My account you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. ¹⁰And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all the nations. ¹¹But when they arrest you and hand you over, do not worry beforehand what to say. Instead, speak whatever you are given at that time, for it will not be you speaking, but the Holy Spirit. ¹²Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rise against their parents and have them put to death. ¹³You will be hated by everyone because of My name, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved. ¹⁴So when you see the abomination of desolation standing where it should not be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ¹⁵Let no one on the housetop go back inside to retrieve anything from his house. ¹⁶And let no one in the field return for his cloak. ¹⁷How miserable those days will be for pregnant and nursing mothers! ¹⁸Pray that this will not occur in the winter. ¹⁹For those will be days of tribulation unseen from the beginning of God’s creation until now, and never to be seen again. ²⁰If the Lord had not cut short those days, nobody would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, whom He has chosen, He has cut them short. ²¹At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There He is!’ do not believe it. ²²For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive even the elect, if that were possible. ²³So be on your guard; I have told you everything in advance. ²⁴But in those days, after that tribulation: ‘The sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; ²⁵the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.’ ²⁶At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. ²⁷And He will send out the angels to gather His elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. ²⁸Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its branches become tender and sprout leaves, you know that summer is near. ²⁹So also, when you see these things happening, know that He is near, right at the door. ³⁰Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened. ³¹Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away. ³²No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. ³³Be on your guard and stay alert! For you do not know when the appointed time will come. ³⁴It is like a man going on a journey who left his house, put each servant in charge of his own task, and instructed the doorkeeper to keep watch. ³⁵Therefore keep watch, because you do not know when the master of the house will return—whether in the evening, at midnight, when the rooster crows, or in the morning. ³⁶Otherwise, he may arrive without notice and find you sleeping. ³⁷And what I say to you, I say to everyone: Keep watch!”

Matthew 4:1-11

¹Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ²After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry. ³The tempter came to Him and said, “If You are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” ⁴But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” ⁵Then the devil took Him to the holy city and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple. ⁶“If You are the Son of God,” he said, “throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will command His angels concerning You, and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’” ⁷Jesus replied, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” ⁸Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. ⁹“All this I will give You,” he said, “if You will fall down and worship me.” ¹⁰“Away from Me, Satan!” Jesus told him. “For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’” ¹¹Then the devil left Him, and angels came and ministered to Him.

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Other teachings on Mark 1; 12; 13; Matthew 4:1-11