Jesus sends out The Twelve
1 Now Jesus called the Twelve together and gave them power and authority over all the demons, and to cure diseases. 2 He dispatched them to proclaim the kingdom of God and to restore the weak to health. 3 And he said to them, “Take nothing with you on the trip: not a walking stick, not a money pouch, no bread, no money, and no extra clothing. 4 Stay in whichever house you enter until you leave that area. 5 If anyone refuses to accept you, leave that city and shake the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.” 6 So they went off through all the villages, announcing the good news and healing people everywhere.
7 Now Herod, the ruler over one-fourth the country, heard about all this and was baffled; some said that John had been raised from the dead, 8 while others said that Elijah had appeared, and still others that one of the ancient prophets had been raised up. 9 And Herod said, “I beheaded John, so who is this that I’m hearing about?” And he tried to see him.
10 When the apostles returned, they gave Jesus a complete report of all they had done. Then he took them off by themselves to a city called Bethsaida, 11 but the crowd found out and followed him. So he talked to them about the kingdom of God, and he miraculously healed all who needed it.
Jesus feeds five thousand
12 As daylight began to fade, the Twelve came to Jesus and said, “Dismiss the crowd, so they can go to the surrounding villages and farms to spend the night and get a meal, because we’re out in the middle of nowhere.”
13 “You give them something to eat,” Jesus replied.
“But all we have is five loaves of bread and two fish,” they said, “unless we go and buy food for all these people.” 14 (There were about five thousand men there.)
“Have them recline for dinner, and divide them into groups of fifty each,” he told his disciples. 15 So they did as he said, and everyone reclined.
16 Taking the five loaves and two fish, Jesus looked up into the sky and blessed them. Then he broke them in pieces and gave them to his disciples to put before the crowd. 17 They all ate and were satisfied, and it took twelve wicker baskets to hold the leftovers.
Peter identifies Jesus as Christ
18 Once when Jesus was praying alone, the disciples came to him, so he asked them, “Who are all the people saying I am?”
19 “Some say John the Immerser,” they replied, “Others say Elijah, and still others say one of the ancient prophets has come back.”
20 “And who do you say I am?” he asked.
And Peter responded, “You are Christ of God.” 21 Then Jesus warned them and instructed them to say nothing about this, 22 and he added, “The Human must suffer many things. He will be rejected by the elders, high priests, and scribes, and then he is to be killed but arise on the third day.”
The cost of following Jesus
23 Then he said to them all, “If anyone decides to follow me, they must renounce themselves, pick up their cross each day, and follow me. 24 Those who decide to save themselves will lose themselves, but those who lose themselves on my account will save themselves. 25 What good is it for people to gain the whole world but destroy or forfeit themselves? 26 For whoever is ashamed of me and what I say, the Human will be ashamed of them when he comes in his majesty and in the majesty of the Father and the holy angels. 27 I tell you truly, there are some who have stood here who will absolutely not face death before they see the kingdom of God.”
The Transfiguration
28 About eight days after he said these things, he took Peter, James, and John with him up into the mountain to pray. 29 And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed and his clothing became a dazzling white. 30 Suddenly two men appeared in the majestic scene: Moses and Elijah! 31 They were talking with him about his leaving the world, which was about to take place in Jerusalem.
32 Now Peter and the others had been in a deep sleep, but when they fully awakened they saw Jesus’ majesty and the two men with him. 33 After those two left, Peter said to Jesus, “Exalted One, it’s great to be here! We should put up three temporary sanctuaries: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah” (he didn’t know what he was saying).
34 As he was saying this, a cloud appeared and overshadowed them, but they were afraid as they entered into it. 35 Then a voice came out from the cloud and said, “This is my chosen Son; hear him!” 36 And at that point they saw that Jesus was alone. But they said nothing about this to anyone at that time.
Jesus evicts a demon from a boy
37 Now the next day as they were going down the mountain, they were met by a large crowd. 38 Suddenly a man in the crowd cried out, “Teacher, I beg you, please take notice of my son, my only son! 39 A spirit takes him without warning, making him shout and convulse and foam at the mouth. When it leaves it does so with great difficulty and it bruises him. 40 I begged your disciples to throw it out but they couldn’t.”
41 So Jesus responded, “You faithless, twisted generation! How long must I stay and put up with you? Bring your son here.” 42 Yet while he was coming, the demon tore into him and made him convulse violently. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and miraculously healed the boy, and he gave him back to his father. 43 And they were all awestruck at the magnificence of God.
While they were all still marveling at what Jesus did, he said to his disciples, 44 “Keep these sayings in mind, because the Human is about to be handed over into people’s clutches.” 45 But they had no idea what he was talking about, because it was completely hidden from them so that they wouldn’t understand it, and they were afraid to ask him about it.
Humility is greatness
46 Now a dispute broke out among the disciples over which of them was greater. 47 Jesus perceived what they were considering, so he got hold of a small child to stand beside him. 48 And he said to them, “Whoever will accept this little one in my name is actually accepting me, and whoever will accept me is actually accepting the one who sent me. For the one who is less esteemed among you is actually important.”
For and against
49 Then John responded, “Exalted One, we saw someone throwing out demons in your name, and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us who follow you.” 50 But Jesus replied, “Don’t stop anyone, because whoever is not opposing you is on your side.”
The desire to play God
51 As the time drew near for Jesus to be taken up, he was determined to go to Jerusalem. 52 He sent messengers ahead to go into a Samaritan village, to prepare for his arrival. 53 But they did not accept him because he was on his way to Jerusalem. 54 When his disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Master, do you want us to call fire down from the sky to consume them?” 55 But Jesus turned around and rebuked them, 56 and they went on to another village.
The cost of following Jesus
57 As they went along the road, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go,” 58 and he replied, “Foxes have burrows and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Human has no place to lay his head.”
59 To another person Jesus said, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Master, first let me go and bury my father.” 60 And Jesus replied, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you should publicize the kingdom of God.”
61 Yet another person said to Jesus, “Master, first let me say goodbye to the people in my household.” 62 But he replied, “No one who puts their hand to the plow while looking back is fit for the kingdom of God.”