Luke 9:18-62

English Standard Version

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

^18 (A)Now it happened that as he was praying alone, the disciples were with him. And he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” ¹⁹ And they answered, ^(B)“John the Baptist. But others say, ^(C)Elijah, and others, that one of the prophets of old has risen.” ²⁰ Then he said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered, ^(D)“The Christ of God.”

Jesus Foretells His Death

^21 (E)And he strictly charged and commanded them to tell this to no one, ^22 (F)saying, ^(G)“The Son of Man must ^(H)suffer many things and ^(I)be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on ^(J)the third day be raised.”

Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus

²³ And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him ^(K)deny himself and ^(L)take up his cross ^(M)daily and follow me. ²⁴ For ^(N)whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. ^25 (O)For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? ²⁶ For ^(P)whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed ^(Q)when he comes in ^(R)his glory and the glory of the Father and of ^(S)the holy angels. ²⁷ But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not ^(T)taste death ^(U)until they see the kingdom of God.”

The Transfiguration

^28 (V)Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him ^(W)Peter and John and James and ^(X)went up on the mountain to pray. ²⁹ And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was ^(Y)altered, and ^(Z)his clothing became dazzling white. ³⁰ And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, ³¹ who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure,^[a] which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. ³² Now Peter and those who were with him ^(AA)were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake ^(AB)they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. ³³ And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three ^(AC)tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—^(AD)not knowing what he said. ³⁴ As he was saying these things, ^(AE)a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. ³⁵ And ^(AF)a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, ^(AG)my Chosen One;^{[b] (AH)}listen to him!” ³⁶ And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. ^(AI)And they kept silent and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.

Jesus Heals a Boy with an Unclean Spirit

^37 (AJ)On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. ³⁸ And behold, a man from the crowd cried out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for ^(AK)he is my only child. ³⁹ And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out. It convulses him so that he foams at the mouth, and shatters him, and will hardly leave him. ⁴⁰ And I begged your disciples to cast it out, but ^(AL)they could not.” ⁴¹ Jesus answered, “O ^(AM)faithless and twisted generation, ^(AN)how long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.” ⁴² While he was coming, the demon threw him to the ground and convulsed him. But Jesus ^(AO)rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the boy, and ^(AP)gave him back to his father. ⁴³ And all were astonished at ^(AQ)the majesty of God.

Jesus Again Foretells His Death

^(AR)But while they were all marveling at everything he was doing, Jesus^[c] said ^(AS)to his disciples, ⁴⁴ “Let these words sink into your ears: ^(AT)The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.” ^45 (AU)But they did not understand this saying, and ^(AV)it was concealed from them, so that they might not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about this saying.

Who Is the Greatest?

^46 (AW)An argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest. ⁴⁷ But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his side ⁴⁸ and said to them, ^(AX)“Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and ^(AY)whoever receives me receives him who sent me. For ^(AZ)he who is least among you all is the one who is great.”

Anyone Not Against Us Is For Us

^49 (BA)John answered, “Master, we saw someone ^(BB)casting out demons in your name, and ^(BC)we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” ⁵⁰ But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, ^(BD)for the one who is not against you is for you.”

A Samaritan Village Rejects Jesus

⁵¹ When the days drew near for ^(BE)him to be taken up, ^(BF)he set his face ^(BG)to go to Jerusalem. ⁵² And ^(BH)he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of ^(BI)the Samaritans, to make preparations for him. ⁵³ But ^(BJ)the people did not receive him, because ^(BK)his face was set toward Jerusalem. ⁵⁴ And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell ^(BL)fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”^{[d] 55} But he turned and rebuked them.^{[e] 56} And they went on to another village.

The Cost of Following Jesus

⁵⁷ As they were going ^(BM)along the road, ^(BN)someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” ⁵⁸ And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” ⁵⁹ To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” ⁶⁰ And Jesus^[f] said to him, “Leave ^(BO)the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and ^(BP)proclaim the kingdom of God.” ⁶¹ Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, ^(BQ)but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” ⁶² Jesus said to him, ^(BR)“No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”