New American Standard Bible 1995

New Living Translation

1It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain place, after He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples."

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.”

2And He said to them, "When you pray, say: 'Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come.

2Jesus said, “This is how you should pray: “Father, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon.

3'Give us each day our daily bread.

3 Give us each day the food we need,

4'And forgive us our sins, For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.'"

4 and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation. ”

5Then He said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves;

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,

6for a friend of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him';

6 ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’

7and from inside he answers and says, 'Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.'

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.’

8"I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs.

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.

9"So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

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.

10"For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened.

10 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

11"Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he?

11 “You fathers—if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead?

12"Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he?

12 Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not!

13"If you then, being evil, 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?"

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

14And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute; when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke; and the crowds were amazed.

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,

15But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons."

15but some of them said, “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons.”

16Others, to test Him, were demanding of Him a sign from heaven.

16Others, trying to test Jesus, demanded that he show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove his authority.

17But He knew their thoughts and said to them, "Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and a house divided against itself falls.

17He knew their thoughts, so he said, “Any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed. A family splintered by feuding will fall apart.

18"If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul.

18 You say I am empowered by Satan. But if Satan is divided and fighting against himself, how can his kingdom survive?

19"And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? So they will be your judges.

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.

20"But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

20 But if I am casting out demons by the power of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you.

21"When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are undisturbed.

21 For when a strong man is fully armed and guards his palace, his possessions are safe—

22"But when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away from him all his armor on which he had relied and distributes his plunder.

22 until someone even stronger attacks and overpowers him, strips him of his weapons, and carries off his belongings.

23"He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me, scatters.

23 “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.

24"When the unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and not finding any, it says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'

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.’

25"And when it comes, it finds it swept and put in order.

25 So it returns and finds that its former home is all swept and in order.

26"Then it goes and takes along seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there; and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first."

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.”

27While Jesus was saying these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You and the breasts at which You nursed."

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!”

28But He said, "On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it."

28Jesus replied, “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.” The Sign of Jonah

29As the crowds were increasing, He began to say, "This generation is a wicked generation; it seeks for a sign, and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah.

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.

30"For just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.

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.

31"The Queen of the South will rise up with the men of this generation at the judgment and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.

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.

32"The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah 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

33"No one, after lighting a lamp, puts it away in a cellar nor under a basket, but on the lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light.

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.

34"The eye is the lamp of your body; when your eye is clear, your whole body also is full of light; but when it is bad, your body also is full of darkness.

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.

35"Then watch out that the light in you is not darkness.

35 Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness.

36"If therefore your whole body is full of light, with no dark part in it, it will be wholly illumined, as when the lamp illumines you with its rays."

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

37Now when He had spoken, a Pharisee asked Him to have lunch with him; and He went in, and reclined at the table.

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.

38When the Pharisee saw it, he was surprised that He had not first ceremonially washed before the meal.

38His host was amazed to see that he sat down to eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony required by Jewish custom.

39But the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and of the platter; but inside of you, you are full of robbery and wickedness.

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!

40"You foolish ones, did not He who made the outside make the inside also?

40 Fools! Didn’t God make the inside as well as the outside?

41"But give that which is within as charity, and then all things are clean for you.

41 So clean the inside by giving gifts to the poor, and you will be clean all over.

42"But woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithe of mint and rue and every kind of garden herb, and yet disregard justice and the love of God; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.

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.

43"Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the chief seats in the synagogues and the respectful greetings in the market places.

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.

44"Woe to you! For you are like concealed tombs, and the people who walk over them are unaware of it."

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.”

45One of the lawyers said to Him in reply, "Teacher, when You say this, You insult us too."

45“Teacher,” said an expert in religious law, “you have insulted us, too, in what you just said.”

46But He said, "Woe to you lawyers as well! For you weigh men down with burdens hard to bear, while you yourselves will not even touch the burdens with one of your fingers.

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.

47"Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and it was your fathers who killed them.

47 What sorrow awaits you! For you build monuments for the prophets your own ancestors killed long ago.

48"So you are witnesses and approve the deeds of your fathers; because it was they who killed them, and you build their tombs.

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!

49"For this reason also the wisdom of God said, 'I will send to them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and some they will persecute,

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.’

50so that the blood of all the prophets, shed since the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation,

50 “As a result, this generation will be held responsible for the murder of all God’s prophets from the creation of the world—

51from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the house of God; yes, I tell you, it shall be charged against this generation.'

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.

52"Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge; you yourselves did not enter, and you hindered those who were entering."

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.”

53When He left there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to be very hostile and to question Him closely on many subjects,

53As Jesus was leaving, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees became hostile and tried to provoke him with many questions.

54plotting against Him to catch Him in something He might say.

54They wanted to trap him into saying something they could use against him.

New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org

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.