Jesus Calls His
First
Disciples
1 One day as Jesus was
standing
by the
Lake of
Gennesaret,
the people
were
crowding
around him
and
listening
to the
word of
God.
2 He
saw at the
water’s
edge two
boats,
left there
by the
fishermen,
who were
washing
their
nets.
3 He
got into
one of the
boats, the
one
belonging
to Simon,
and asked
him to put
out a
little
from
shore.
Then he
sat down
and taught
the people
from the
boat.
4 When he had finished
speaking,
he said to
Simon,
“Put out
into deep
water, and
let down
the nets
for a
catch.”
5 Simon answered, “Master,
we’ve
worked
hard all
night and
haven’t
caught
anything.
But
because
you say
so, I will
let down
the nets.”
6 When they had done so,
they
caught
such a
large
number of
fish that
their nets
began to
break.
7 So
they
signaled
their
partners
in the
other boat
to come
and help
them, and
they came
and filled
both boats
so full
that they
began to
sink.
8 When Simon Peter saw
this, he
fell at
Jesus’
knees and
said, “Go
away from
me, Lord;
I am a
sinful
man!”
9 For
he and all
his
companions
were
astonished
at the
catch of
fish they
had taken,
10 and so
were James
and John,
the sons
of
Zebedee,
Simon’s
partners.
Then Jesus said to Simon,
“Don’t be
afraid;
from now
on you
will fish
for
people.”
11 So they
pulled
their
boats up
on shore,
left
everything
and
followed
him.
Jesus Heals a Man
With
Leprosy
12 While Jesus was in one
of the
towns, a
man came
along who
was
covered
with
leprosy.
When he
saw Jesus,
he fell
with his
face to
the ground
and begged
him,
“Lord, if
you are
willing,
you can
make me
clean.”
13 Jesus reached out his
hand and
touched
the man.
“I am
willing,”
he said.
“Be
clean!”
And
immediately
the
leprosy
left him.
14 Then Jesus ordered him,
“Don’t
tell
anyone,
but go,
show
yourself
to the
priest and
offer the
sacrifices
that Moses
commanded
for your
cleansing,
as a
testimony
to them.”
15 Yet the news about him
spread all
the more,
so that
crowds of
people
came to
hear him
and to be
healed of
their
sicknesses.
16 But
Jesus
often
withdrew
to lonely
places and
prayed.
Jesus Forgives and
Heals a
Paralyzed
Man
17 One day Jesus was
teaching,
and
Pharisees
and
teachers
of the law
were
sitting
there.
They had
come from
every
village of
Galilee
and from
Judea and
Jerusalem.
And the
power of
the Lord
was with
Jesus to
heal the
sick.
18 Some
men came
carrying a
paralyzed
man on a
mat and
tried to
take him
into the
house to
lay him
before
Jesus.
19 When
they could
not find a
way to do
this
because of
the crowd,
they went
up on the
roof and
lowered
him on his
mat
through
the tiles
into the
middle of
the crowd,
right in
front of
Jesus.
20 When Jesus saw their
faith, he
said,
“Friend,
your sins
are
forgiven.”
21 The Pharisees and the
teachers
of the law
began
thinking
to
themselves,
“Who is
this
fellow who
speaks
blasphemy?
Who can
forgive
sins but
God
alone?”
22 Jesus knew what they
were
thinking
and asked,
“Why are
you
thinking
these
things in
your
hearts?
23 Which
is easier:
to say,
‘Your sins
are
forgiven,’
or to say,
‘Get up
and walk’?
24 But I
want you
to know
that the
Son of Man
has
authority
on earth
to forgive
sins.” So
he said to
the
paralyzed
man, “I
tell you,
get up,
take your
mat and go
home.”
25 Immediately
he stood
up in
front of
them, took
what he
had been
lying on
and went
home
praising
God.
26 Everyone
was amazed
and gave
praise to
God. They
were
filled
with awe
and said,
“We have
seen
remarkable
things
today.”
Jesus Calls Levi
and Eats
With
Sinners
27 After this, Jesus went
out and
saw a tax
collector
by the
name of
Levi
sitting at
his tax
booth.
“Follow
me,” Jesus
said to
him,
28 and
Levi got
up, left
everything
and
followed
him.
29 Then Levi held a great
banquet
for Jesus
at his
house, and
a large
crowd of
tax
collectors
and others
were
eating
with them.
30 But the
Pharisees
and the
teachers
of the law
who
belonged
to their
sect
complained
to his
disciples,
“Why do
you eat
and drink
with tax
collectors
and
sinners?”
31 Jesus answered them,
“It is not
the
healthy
who need a
doctor,
but the
sick.
32 I
have not
come to
call the
righteous,
but
sinners to
repentance.”
Jesus Questioned
About
Fasting
33 They said to him,
“John’s
disciples
often fast
and pray,
and so do
the
disciples
of the
Pharisees,
but yours
go on
eating and
drinking.”
34 Jesus answered, “Can
you make
the
friends of
the
bridegroom
fast while
he is with
them?
35 But
the time
will come
when the
bridegroom
will be
taken from
them; in
those days
they will
fast.”
36 He told them this
parable:
“No one
tears a
piece out
of a new
garment to
patch an
old one.
Otherwise,
they will
have torn
the new
garment,
and the
patch from
the new
will not
match the
old.
37 And
no one
pours new
wine into
old
wineskins.
Otherwise,
the new
wine will
burst the
skins; the
wine will
run out
and the
wineskins
will be
ruined.
38 No, new
wine must
be poured
into new
wineskins.
39 And no
one after
drinking
old wine
wants the
new, for
they say,
‘The old
is
better.’”