Mark 4-6

New King James Version

The Parable of the Sower^(A)

4 And ^(B)again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea. ² Then He taught them many things by parables, ^(C)and said to them in His teaching:

³ “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. ⁴ And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds ^[a]of the air came and devoured it. ⁵ Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. ⁶ But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. ⁷ And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no ^[b]crop. ⁸ But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”

⁹ And He said ^[c]to them, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

The Purpose of Parables^(D)

^10 (E)But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable. ¹¹ And He said to them, “To you it has been given to ^(F)know the ^[d]mystery of the kingdom of God; but to ^(G)those who are outside, all things come in parables, ¹² so that

The Parable of the Sower Explained^(I)

¹³ And He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? ^14 (J)The sower sows the word. ¹⁵ And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. ¹⁶ These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; ¹⁷ and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble. ¹⁸ Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, ¹⁹ and the ^(K)cares of this world, ^(L)the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. ²⁰ But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, ^[e]accept it, and bear ^(M)fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”

Light Under a Basket^(N)

^21 (O)Also He said to them, “Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand? ^22 (P)For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. ^23 (Q)If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.”

²⁴ Then He said to them, “Take heed what you hear. ^(R)With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given. ^25 (S)For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.”

The Parable of the Growing Seed

²⁶ And He said, ^(T)“The kingdom of God is as if a man should ^[f]scatter seed on the ground, ²⁷ and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and ^(U)grow, he himself does not know how. ²⁸ For the earth ^(V)yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head. ²⁹ But when the grain ripens, immediately ^(W)he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

The Parable of the Mustard Seed^(X)

³⁰ Then He said, ^(Y)“To what shall we liken the kingdom of God? Or with what parable shall we picture it? ³¹ It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; ³² but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade.”

Jesus’ Use of Parables

^33 (Z)And with many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it. ³⁴ But without a parable He did not speak to them. And when they were alone, ^(AA)He explained all things to His disciples.

Wind and Wave Obey Jesus^(AB)

^35 (AC)On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.” ³⁶ Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. ³⁷ And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. ³⁸ But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, ^(AD)“Teacher, ^(AE)do You not care that we are perishing?”

³⁹ Then He arose and ^(AF)rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ^(AG)“Peace,^[g] be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. ⁴⁰ But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? ^(AH)How^[h] is it that you have no faith?” ⁴¹ And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”

A Demon-Possessed Man Healed^(AI)

5 Then ^(AJ)they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the ^[i]Gadarenes. ² And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an ^(AK)unclean spirit, ³ who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind ^[j]him, not even with chains, ⁴ because he had often been bound with shackles and chains. And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him. ⁵ And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.

⁶ When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him. ⁷ And he cried out with a loud voice and said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I ^(AL)implore^[k] You by God that You do not torment me.”

⁸ For He said to him, ^(AM)“Come out of the man, unclean spirit!” ⁹ Then He asked him, “What is your name?”

And he answered, saying, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” ¹⁰ Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country.

¹¹ Now a large herd of ^(AN)swine was feeding there near the mountains. ¹² So all the demons begged Him, saying, “Send us to the swine, that we may enter them.” ¹³ And ^[l]at once Jesus gave them permission. Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea.

¹⁴ So those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that had happened. ¹⁵ Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been ^(AO)demon-possessed and had the legion, ^(AP)sitting and ^(AQ)clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. ¹⁶ And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine. ¹⁷ Then ^(AR)they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.

¹⁸ And when He got into the boat, ^(AS)he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him. ¹⁹ However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, “Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you.” ²⁰ And he departed and began to ^(AT)proclaim in ^[m]Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all ^(AU)marveled.

A Girl Restored to Life and a Woman Healed^(AV)

^21 (AW)Now when Jesus had crossed over again by boat to the other side, a great multitude gathered to Him; and He was by the sea. ^22 (AX)And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name. And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet ²³ and begged Him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter lies at the point of death. Come and ^(AY)lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live.” ²⁴ So Jesus went with him, and a great multitude followed Him and thronged Him.

²⁵ Now a certain woman ^(AZ)had a flow of blood for twelve years, ²⁶ and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. ²⁷ When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and ^(BA)touched His garment. ²⁸ For she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.”

²⁹ Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the ^[n]affliction. ³⁰ And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that ^(BB)power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My clothes?”

³¹ But His disciples said to Him, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’ ”

³² And He looked around to see her who had done this thing. ³³ But the woman, ^(BC)fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. ³⁴ And He said to her, “Daughter, ^(BD)your faith has made you well. ^(BE)Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”

^35 (BF)While He was still speaking, some came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?”

³⁶ As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not be afraid; only ^(BG)believe.” ³⁷ And He permitted no one to follow Him except Peter, James, and John the brother of James. ³⁸ Then He came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and saw ^[o]a tumult and those who ^(BH)wept and wailed loudly. ³⁹ When He came in, He said to them, “Why make this commotion and weep? The child is not dead, but ^(BI)sleeping.”

⁴⁰ And they ridiculed Him. ^(BJ)But when He had put them all outside, He took the father and the mother of the child, and those who were with Him, and entered where the child was lying. ⁴¹ Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her, “Talitha, cumi,” which is translated, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.” ⁴² Immediately the girl arose and walked, for she was twelve years of age. And they were ^(BK)overcome with great amazement. ⁴³ But ^(BL)He commanded them strictly that no one should know it, and said that something should be given her to eat.

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth^(BM)

6 Then ^(BN)He went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him. ² And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were ^(BO)astonished, saying, ^(BP)“Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! ³ Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and ^(BQ)brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?” So they ^(BR)were offended at Him.

⁴ But Jesus said to them, ^(BS)“A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.” ^5 (BT)Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. ⁶ And ^(BU)He marveled because of their unbelief. ^(BV)Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.

Sending Out the Twelve^(BW)

^7 (BX)And He called the twelve to Himself, and began to send them out ^(BY)two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits. ⁸ He commanded them to take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bag, no bread, no copper in their money belts— ⁹ but ^(BZ)to wear sandals, and not to put on two tunics.

^10 (CA)Also He said to them, “In whatever place you enter a house, stay there till you depart from that place. ^11 (CB)And ^[p]whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, ^(CC)shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. ^[q]Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!”

¹² So they went out and preached that people should repent. ¹³ And they cast out many demons, ^(CD)and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.

John the Baptist Beheaded^(CE)

^14 (CF)Now King Herod heard of Him, for His name had become well known. And he said, “John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore ^(CG)these powers are at work in him.”

^15 (CH)Others said, “It is Elijah.”

And others said, “It is ^[r]the Prophet, ^(CI)or like one of the prophets.”

^16 (CJ)But when Herod heard, he said, “This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!” ¹⁷ For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife; for he had married her. ¹⁸ Because John had said to Herod, ^(CK)“It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”

¹⁹ Therefore Herodias ^[s]held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not; ²⁰ for Herod ^(CL)feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him. And when he heard him, he ^[t]did many things, and heard him gladly.

^21 (CM)Then an opportune day came when Herod ^(CN)on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee. ²² And when Herodias’ daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.” ²³ He also swore to her, ^(CO)“Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”

²⁴ So she went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask?”

And she said, “The head of John the Baptist!”

²⁵ Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”

^26 (CP)And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her. ²⁷ Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in prison, ²⁸ brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. ²⁹ When his disciples heard of it, they came and ^(CQ)took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.

Feeding the Five Thousand^(CR)

^30 (CS)Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught. ^31 (CT)And He said to them, “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” For ^(CU)there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat. ^32 (CV)So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.

³³ But ^[u]the multitudes saw them departing, and many ^(CW)knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to Him. ^34 (CX)And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like ^(CY)sheep not having a shepherd. So ^(CZ)He began to teach them many things. ^35 (DA)When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, “This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late. ³⁶ Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves ^[v]bread; for they have nothing to eat.”

³⁷ But He answered and said to them, “You give them something to eat.”

And they said to Him, ^(DB)“Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?”

³⁸ But He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”

And when they found out they said, ^(DC)“Five, and two fish.”

³⁹ Then He ^(DD)commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass. ⁴⁰ So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties. ⁴¹ And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He ^(DE)looked up to heaven, ^(DF)blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all. ⁴² So they all ate and were filled. ⁴³ And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish. ⁴⁴ Now those who had eaten the loaves were ^[w]about five thousand men.

Jesus Walks on the Sea^(DG)

^45 (DH)Immediately He ^[x]made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away. ⁴⁶ And when He had sent them away, He ^(DI)departed to the mountain to pray. ⁴⁷ Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea; and He was alone on the land. ⁴⁸ Then He saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them. Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and ^(DJ)would have passed them by. ⁴⁹ And when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed it was a ^(DK)ghost, and cried out; ⁵⁰ for they all saw Him and were troubled. But immediately He talked with them and said to them, ^(DL)“Be^[y] of good cheer! It is I; do not be ^(DM)afraid.” ⁵¹ Then He went up into the boat to them, and the wind ^(DN)ceased. And they were greatly ^(DO)amazed in themselves beyond measure, and marveled. ⁵² For ^(DP)they had not understood about the loaves, because their ^(DQ)heart was hardened.

Many Touch Him and Are Made Well^(DR)

^53 (DS)When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret and anchored there. ⁵⁴ And when they came out of the boat, immediately ^[z]the people recognized Him, ⁵⁵ ran through that whole surrounding region, and began to carry about on beds those who were sick to wherever they heard He was. ⁵⁶ Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that ^(DT)they might just touch the ^(DU)hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well.