The Holy Gospel

     1 And again he began to teach by the sea; and a great multitude gathered to him, so that he went into the boat and sat on the sea, and all the people were on the land by the sea.  2 And he taught them many parables, and in his teaching he said unto them, 3 Hear, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;  4 And it came to pass, as he sowed, that another thing fell by the wayside, and the birds flew in, and pecked at it.  5 And some fell on a stony place, where there was little earth, and came up quickly, because the earth was not deep;  6 And when the sun rose, it withered, and as it had no root, it withered.  7 Some fell into thorns, and the thorns grew, and choked the seed, and it bore no fruit.  8 And some fell on good ground, and yielded fruit, which sprang up and grew, and brought forth some thirty, and some sixty, and some a hundred.  9 And he said unto them, Whosoever hath ears to hear, let him hear.  10 And when he was left without the multitude, those who were round about him, together with the twelve, asked him about the parable.  11 And he said unto them, 'It has been given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to those who are on the outside all things are in parables;  12 so that they look with their own eyes, and do not see; they hear with their own ears, and do not understand, lest they be converted, and their sins be forgiven.  13 And he said to them, 'Do you not understand this parable?' How then can you understand all the parables?  14 The sower sows the word.  15 That which is sown by the wayside signifies those in whom the word is sown, but to whom, when they hear, Satan immediately comes, and snatches away the word that is sown in their hearts.  16 In like manner also that which is sown in a stony place signifies those who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy, 17 but have no root in themselves, and are fickle. then, when tribulation or persecution for the word comes, they are immediately offended.  18 That which is sown in thorns signifies those who hear the word, 19 but in whom the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and other desires, entering into them, choke the word, and it is without fruit.  20 And that which is sown in good ground signifies those who hear the word, and receive, and bear fruit, some thirty, some sixty, and some a hundredfold.

     21 And he said to them, 'Is this why a candle is brought to put it under a bushel or under a bed?' Is it not to put it on a candlestick?  22 There is nothing hidden that will not be made manifest, and nothing is hidden that will not come out.  23 If any man have ears to hear, let him hear!  24 And he said to them, 'Take note of what you hear: with what measure you measure, it will be measured to you, and it will be added to you that hear.  25 For he who has shall be given, but he who does not have shall have even that which he has shall be taken away from him.

     26 And he said, "The kingdom of God is like this, as if a man cast seed into the ground, 27 and sleeps, and rises night and day; and how the seed sprouts and grows, he does not know, 28 for the earth of itself produces first greenery, then an ear, then a full grain in the ear.  29 And when the fruit is ripe, he immediately sends forth the sickle, because the harvest has come.

     30 And he said, 'To what shall we liken the kingdom of God?' or what parable shall we depict him?  31 It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown in the ground, is the least of all the seeds on the earth;  32 And when it is sown, it sprouts, and becomes greater than all the crops, and sends forth great branches, so that the birds of the air may take refuge under its shade.  33 And with such many parables he preached the word to them, as far as they could hear.  34 And he did not speak to them without a parable, but explained all things to the disciples in private.

     35 In the evening of that day he said to them, 'Let us cross over to the other side.'  36 And they sent the people away, and took him with them, as he was in the boat; There were other boats with Him.  37 And a great storm arose; the waves were hitting the boat, so that it was already filled with water.  E-38 And He slept in the stern at the head. They woke Him up and said to Him: "Teacher! Is there no need of Thee that we are perishing?  39 And when he arose, he rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, 'Be still, be still.' And the wind subsided, and there was a great silence.  40 And he said to them, 'Why are you so afraid?' How is it that you have no faith?  41 And they were afraid, with great fear, and said among themselves, Who then is this, that both the wind and the sea obey him?

5

     1 And they came to the other side of the sea, to the land of the Gadarenes.  2 And when he came out of the boat, straightway there met him a man who came out of the tombs, possessed of an unclean spirit, 3 and he had a dwelling place in the tombs, and no one was able to bind him even with chains, 4 because many times he was bound with fetters and chains, but he broke the chains and broke the fetters, and no one was able to tame him;  5 Always, night and day, in the mountains and in the tombs, he cried out, and beat himself against the stones;  6 And when he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshipped him, 7 and cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?' I adjure Thee by God, do not torment me!  8 For Jesus said to him, 'Come out, you unclean spirit, out of this man.'  9 And he asked him, 'What is your name?' And he answered and said, "Legion is my name, because we are many."  10 And they besought him much, that he would not send them out of that country.  11 And there was grazing there by the mountain a great herd of swine.  12 And all the demons besought him, saying, 'Send us into swine, that we may enter into them.'  13 And Jesus immediately gave them permission, and the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep slope into the sea, and there were about two thousand of them; and drowned in the sea.  14 And those who tended the pigs ran and told the story in the city and in the villages. And the residents went out to see what happened.  15 And they come to Jesus, and see that the possessed man, in whom the legion was, is sitting and clothed, and of sound mind; and they were afraid.  16 Those who had seen told them how it had happened to the demoniac and about the swine.  17 And they began to ask him that he would depart from their borders.  18 And when he came into the boat, the demon-possessed man asked him to be with him.  19 But Jesus did not allow him, but said, 'Go home to your people and tell them what the Lord has done to you, and how he has had mercy on you.'  20 And he went and began to preach in the Decapolis what Jesus had done to him; and everyone was amazed.

     21 When Jesus again crossed in a boat to the other side, a multitude of people gathered to him. He was by the sea.  22 And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue, whose name was Jairus, came, and when he saw him, he fell down at his feet, 23 and beseeched him fervently, saying, 'My daughter is at the point of death; Come and lay your hands on her, that she may recover and live.  E-24 Jesus went with him. A multitude of people followed Him, and they pressed Him.

     25 A certain woman who had been afflicted with an issue of blood for twelve years, 26 had suffered much from many physicians, and had exhausted all that she had, and had received no benefit, but was in a worse condition, 27 and when she heard of Jesus, she came up behind the multitude and touched his garment, 28 for she said, 'If I touch his garment, I will recover.'  29 And straightway the fountain of blood dried up in her body, and she felt in her body that she was healed of sickness.  30 At the same time, Jesus, having felt in himself that power had gone out of him, turned to the multitude, and said, "Who has touched my garment?"  31 And the disciples said unto him, 'Thou seest that the people press upon thee, and thou sayest, 'Who hath touched me?'  E-32 But He looked around to see the one that did it.  33 And the woman, in fear and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.  34 And he said to her, 'Daughter! thy faith hath saved thee; Go in peace and be made well of thy sickness.  35 And while he was yet saying these things, there came from the ruler of the synagogue, and said, 'Thy daughter is dead; what else do you trouble the Teacher?  36 But Jesus, when he heard these words, immediately said to the ruler of the synagogue, 'Do not be afraid, but only believe.'  37 And He suffered no one to follow Him, except Peter, James, and John the brother of James.  38 And he came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and saw confusion, and weeping and crying aloud.  39 And when he went in, he said to them, 'Why are you troubled and weeping?' The girl is not dead, but is asleep.  40 And they laughed at him. But He, having sent them all away, takes with Him the father and mother of the virgin and those who were with Him, and goes into the place where the maiden lay.  41 And taking the damsel by the hand, he said to her, 'Talitha kumi,' which means, 'Virgin, I say to you, arise.'  42 And the damsel straightway arose and began to walk, for she was about twelve years old. Those who saw them were greatly astonished.  43 And he sternly commanded them, that no one should know about it, and told them to give her something to eat. 

6

     1 From thence he went out, and came to his own country; His disciples followed Him.  2 When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue; and many who heard said with amazement, "Where did he get this?" what kind of wisdom is given to Him, and how are such miracles wrought by His hands?  3 Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and of Josiah, and of Judah, and of Simon? Is it not here, among us, that His sisters are? And they were offended in Him.  4 And Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and among his kinsmen, and in his own house."  5 And he could not do any miracle there, but laid his hands on a few sick people, and healed them.  6 And he was amazed at their unbelief; then he went to the surrounding villages and taught.

     7 And having called the twelve, he began to send them out two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits.  8 And he commanded them not to take anything on the journey, except one staff, neither purse, nor bread, nor brass in the girdle, 9 but to put on plain shoes, and not to wear two garments.  10 And he said to them, 'If you enter into a house anywhere, stay in it until you come out of that place.'  11 And if any man receive you not, and hearken unto you, when ye go out of thence, shake off the dust from your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, it shall be more pleasant for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.  12 And they went and preached repentance;  13 They cast out many devils, and anointed many sick with oil, and healed them. 

 14 King Herod, when he heard of Jesus, said, "It is John the Baptist who has risen from the dead, and therefore miracles are done by him."  15 Others said, "This is Elijah," and some said, "This is a prophet," or as one of the prophets.  16 And when Herod heard it, he said, 'This is John, whom I have beheaded; He rose from the dead.  17 For this Herod, having sent, took John, and put him in prison for Herodias, the wife of Philip his brother, because he had married her.  18 For John said to Herod, 'It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife.'  19 And Herodias, being angry with him, would have killed him; But I couldn't.  20 For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him; I did many things, obeying him, and listened to him with pleasure.  21 And the day came to pass, when Herod, on the occasion of his birthday, was making a feast to his nobles, and to the captains of thousands, and to the elders of Galilee, 22 the daughter of Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod, and those who sat at table with him; The king said to the maiden, "Ask me what you will, and I will give it to you;  23 And he swore to her, 'Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, I will give thee, even to the half of my kingdom.'  24 And she went out, and asked her mother, 'What shall I ask?' She answered, "The heads of John the Baptist."  25 And straightway she went in haste to the king, and begged, saying, 'I desire that you give me the head of John the Baptist on a platter at once.'  26 And the king was grieved, but for the sake of the oath, and of those who sat at table with him, he would not refuse her.  27 And straightway the king sent a squire, and commanded that his head should be brought.  28 And he went and cut off his head in prison, and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the virgin, and the damsel gave it to her mother.  29 And when his disciples heard it, they came and took his body, and laid it in the tomb.

     30 And the apostles gathered together to Jesus, and told him all things, and what they had done, and what they had taught.  31 And he said unto them, Go ye alone into a desert place, and rest a little, for there were many that came and went, so that they had no time to eat.  32 And they went into a desert place in a boat alone.  33 And the people saw them departing, and many recognized them; And the footmen fled thither from all the cities, and warned them, and gathered themselves together to him.  34 And when Jesus went out, he saw a multitude of people, and had compassion on them, because they were like sheep, having no shepherd; And he began to teach them much.  35 And when much time had passed, his disciples came to him, saying, 'The place here is desolate, and the time is already long,' 36 let them go, that they may go to the villages and villages round about, and buy bread for themselves, for they have nothing to eat.  37 He answered and said to them, 'Give them something to eat.' And they said to him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?"  38 But he asked them, 'How many loaves do you have?' Go and have a look. When they found out, they said, "Five loaves and two fishes."  39 Then he commanded them to seat them all in divisions on the green grass.  40 And they sat down in rows, a hundred and fifty.  41 And he took five loaves and two fishes, and looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them unto his disciples, that they might give unto them; And he divided the two fishes among all.  42 And they all ate, and were satisfied.  43 And they gathered up the pieces of bread and the remnants of the fishes, twelve full baskets.  44 And there were about five thousand men eating the loaves.