^aWhen He had completed all His discourse in the hearing of the people, ^bHe went to Capernaum.

2 And a centurion’s slave, ¹who was highly regarded by him, was sick and about to die. 3 When he heard about Jesus, ^ahe sent some ¹Jewish elders asking Him to come and ²save the life of his slave. 4 When they came to Jesus, they earnestly implored Him, saying, “He is worthy for You to grant this to him; 5 for he loves our nation and it was he who built us our synagogue.” 6 Now Jesus started on His way with them; and when He was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to Him, “¹Lord, do not trouble Yourself further, for I am not worthy for You to come under my roof; 7 for this reason I did not even consider myself worthy to come to You, but just ¹say the word, and my ²servant will be healed. 8 For I also am a man placed under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.” 9 Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled at him, and turned and said to the crowd that was following Him, “I say to you, ^anot even in Israel have I found such great faith.” 10 When those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.

11 Soon afterwards He went to a city called Nain; and His disciples were going along with Him, ¹accompanied by a large crowd. 12 Now as He approached the gate of the city, ¹a dead man was being carried out, the ²only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and a sizeable crowd from the city was with her. 13 When ^athe Lord saw her, He felt compassion for her, and said to her, “¹Do not weep.” 14 And He came up and touched the coffin; and the bearers came to a halt. And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise!” 15 The ¹dead man sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother. 16 ^aFear gripped them all, and they began ^bglorifying God, saying, “A great ^cprophet has arisen among us!” and, “God has ¹visited His people!” 17 ^aThis report concerning Him went out all over Judea and in all the surrounding district.

18 ^aThe disciples of John reported to him about all these things. 19 Summoning ¹two of his disciples, John sent them to ^athe Lord, saying, “Are You the ²Expected One, or do we look for someone else?” 20 When the men came to Him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to You, to ask, ‘Are You the ¹Expected One, or do we look for someone else?’” 21 At that ¹very time He ^acured many people of diseases and ^bafflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many who were blind. 22 And He answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: the ^aBLIND RECEIVE SIGHT, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the ^bPOOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM. 23 Blessed is he ¹who does not take offense at Me.”

24 When the messengers of John had left, He began to speak to the crowds about John, “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 25 ¹But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft ²clothing? Those who are splendidly clothed and live in luxury are found in royal palaces! 26 But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and one who is more than a prophet. 27 This is the one about whom it is written,‘^aBEHOLD, I SEND MY MESSENGER ¹AHEAD OF YOU,WHO WILL PREPARE YOUR WAY BEFORE YOU.’ 28 I say to you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet he who is ¹least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” 29 When all the people and the tax collectors heard this, they ¹acknowledged ^aGod’s justice, ^bhaving been baptized with ^cthe baptism of John. 30 But the Pharisees and the ^1alawyers rejected God’s purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by ²John.

31 “To what then shall I compare the men of this generation, and what are they like? 32 They are like children who sit in the market place and call to one another, and they say, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’ 33 For John the Baptist has come ^aeating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon!’ 34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a ¹drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and ²sinners!’ 35 Yet wisdom ^ais vindicated by all her children.”

36 Now one of the Pharisees was requesting Him to ¹dine with him, and He entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37 ^aAnd there was a woman in the city who was a ¹sinner; and when she learned that He was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster vial of perfume, 38 and standing behind Him at His feet, weeping, she began to wet His feet with her tears, and kept wiping them with the hair of her head, and kissing His feet and anointing them with the perfume. 39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were ^aa prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is who is touching Him, that she is a ¹sinner.”

40 And Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he ¹replied, “Say it, Teacher.” 41 “A moneylender had two debtors: one owed five hundred ^1adenarii, and the other fifty. 42 When they ^awere unable to repay, he graciously forgave them both. So which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.” And He said to him, “You have judged correctly.” 44 Turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you ^agave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You ^agave Me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet. 46 ^aYou did not anoint My head with oil, but she anointed My feet with perfume. 47 For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” 48 Then He said to her, “^aYour sins have been forgiven.” 49 Those who were reclining at the table with Him began to say ¹to themselves, “^aWho is this man who even forgives sins?” 50 And He said to the woman, “^aYour faith has saved you; ^bgo in peace.”

^aAfter He had finished all that He had to say in the hearing of the people, ^bHe went to Capernaum. Matt 8:5-13

2 Now a Roman ¹centurion’s slave, who was highly regarded by him, was sick and on the verge of death. 3 When the centurion heard about Jesus, ^ahe sent some Jewish elders to Him, asking Him to come and save the life of his slave. 4 When they reached Jesus, they pleaded with Him earnestly to come, saying, “He is worthy for You to do this for him, 5 because he loves our nation and he built us our synagogue at his own expense.” 6 And Jesus went with them. But when He was near the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying, “Lord, do not trouble Yourself further, for I am not worthy for You to come under my roof. 7 Therefore I did not even consider myself worthy to come to You. But just speak a word, and my slave will be healed. 8 For I also am a man subject to authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 9 Now when Jesus heard this, He was amazed at him, and turned and said to the crowd that was following Him, “I say to you, ^anot even in Israel have I found such great faith as this man’s.” 10 When the messengers who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.

11 Soon afterward Jesus went to a city called Nain near Nazareth, and His disciples and a large crowd accompanied Him. 12 Now as He approached the city gate, a dead man was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her in the funeral procession. 13 When ^athe Lord saw her, He felt great compassion for her, and said to her, “Do not weep.” 14 And He came up and touched the bier on which the body rested, and the pallbearers stood still. And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise from death!” 15 The man who was dead sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother. 16 ^aFear and profound awe gripped them all, and they began ^bglorifying and honoring and praising God, saying, “A great ^cprophet has arisen among us!” and, “God has visited His people to help and care for and provide for them!” 17 ^aThis news about Him spread through all of Judea and in all the surrounding countryside. 1+@Kin 17:17-24; 2+@Kin 4:32-37

18 ^aJohn’s disciples brought word to him in prison of all these things. Matt 11:2-19 19 John called two of his disciples and sent them to ^athe Lord, saying, “Are You the ¹Expected One (the Messiah) , or should we look for someone else?” 20 So the men came to Jesus and said, “John the Baptist sent us to You to ask, ‘Are You the Expected One (the Messiah) , or should we look for someone else?’” 21 At that very hour Jesus ^ahealed many people of sicknesses and ^binfirmities and evil spirits; and He gave the gracious gift of sight to many who were blind. 22 So He replied to them, “Go and tell John about everything you have seen and heard: the ^aBLIND RECEIVE SIGHT, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the ^bPOOR HAVE THE GOOD NEWS (gospel) PREACHED TO THEM. Is 29:18, 19; 35:5, 6; 61:1 23 Blessed joyful, spiritually favored is he who does not take offense at Me.”

24 When John’s messengers left, Jesus began speaking to the crowds about John: “What did you go out to the wilderness to see? ¹A reed shaken by the wind? 25 But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing entirely unsuited for the harsh wilderness? Those who wear splendid clothing and live in luxury are in royal palaces! 26 But what did you really go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and one ¹far more eminent and remarkable than a prophet who foretells the future. 27 This is the one of whom it is written by the prophet Malachi,‘^aBEHOLD, I SEND MY MESSENGER AHEAD OF YOU,WHO WILL PREPARE YOUR WAY BEFORE YOU.’ Mal 3:1 28 I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater in privilege than he.” 29 All the people and the tax collectors who heard Jesus, acknowledged the validity of ^aGod’s justice, ^bhaving been baptized with ^cthe baptism of John. 30 But the Pharisees and the ^alawyers who were experts in the Mosaic Law annulled and set aside God’s purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John.

31 “To what then shall I compare the people of this generation who set aside God’s plan, and what are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the market place and calling to one another, and saying, ‘We played the flute for you pretending to be at a wedding, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge pretending to be at a funeral, and you did not weep so nothing we did appealed to you.’ 33 For John the Baptist has come ^aneither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon!’ 34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a man who is a glutton and a heavy wine-drinker, a friend of tax collectors and sinners including non-observant Jews.’ 35 Yet wisdom ^ais vindicated and shown to be right by all her children by the lifestyle, moral character, and good deeds of her followers.”

36 One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him, and He went into the Pharisee’s house in the region of Galilee and reclined at the table. 37 ^aNow there was a woman in the city who was known as a ¹sinner; and ²when she found out that He was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster vial of perfume; 38 and standing behind Him at His feet, weeping, she began wetting His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head, and respectfully kissed His feet as an act signifying both affection and submission and ¹anointed them with the perfume. 39 Now when Simon the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, “If this Man were ^aa prophet He would know who and what sort of woman this is who is touching Him, that she is a notorious sinner an outcast, devoted to sin.”

40 Jesus, answering, said to the Pharisee, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he replied, “Teacher, say it.” 41 “A certain moneylender had two debtors: one owed him five hundred ^1adenarii, and the other fifty. 42 When they ^ahad no means of repaying the debts, he freely forgave them both. So which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon answered, “The one, I take it, for whom he forgave more.” Jesus said to him, “You have decided correctly.” 44 Then turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house but you failed to extend to Me the usual courtesies shown to a guest; you ^agave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair demonstrating her love. 45 You ^agave Me no welcoming kiss, but from the moment I came in, she has not ceased to kiss My feet. 46 ^aYou did not even anoint My head with ordinary oil, but she has anointed My feet with costly and rare perfume. 47 Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” 48 Then He said to her, “^aYour sins are forgiven.” 49 Those who were reclining at the table with Him began saying among themselves, “^aWho is this who even forgives sins?” 50 Jesus said to the woman, “^aYour faith in Me has saved you; ^bgo in peace free from the distress experienced because of sin.”