Read the Gospels in 40 Days
Various Episodes and Instructions
Chapter 17
Warning against Giving Scandal.[a] 1 Jesus said to his disciples, “Scandals are bound to occur, but woe to the man through whom they come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were fastened around his neck and he were thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. 3 Be on your guard!
The Need To Forgive.[b] “If your brother should sin, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. 4 Even if he wrongs you seven times a day, and comes back to you seven times to say, ‘I am sorry,’ you must forgive him.”
Faith Knows How To Make Miracles.[c] 5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” 6 The Lord replied, “If you had faith as tiny as a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.
Unprofitable Servants.[d] 7 “Which of you, when your servant returns from plowing or tending sheep in the fields, would say to him, ‘Come right away and sit down to eat’? 8 Would you not rather say, ‘Prepare my dinner, put on your apron, and wait on me while I eat and drink, and then afterward you yourself may eat and drink’? 9 Would you be grateful to that servant for doing what he was commanded? 10 So should it be with you. When you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have only done our duty.’ ”
11 Jesus Heals Ten Men with Leprosy.[e] As he continued on his journey to Jerusalem, he traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12 When he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Standing some distance away, 13 they called out to him, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us.” 14 When he saw them, he said, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.
15 One of them, when he realized that he had been cured, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He prostrated himself at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. This man was a Samaritan.
17 Jesus asked, “Were not all ten made clean? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one except this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” 19 Then he said to him, “Stand up and go on your way. Your faith has made you well.”
20 The Coming of the Kingdom of God.[f] Once, the Pharisees asked him when the kingdom of God was coming. He answered, “The coming of the kingdom of God will not occur with signs that can be observed. 21 Nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is.’ For the kingdom of God is in your midst.”
22 The Day of the Son of Man.[g] Then he said to his disciples, “The time will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. 23 People will say to you, ‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’ Do not go running after them. 24 For just as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. 25 But first he must endure great suffering and be rejected by this generation.
26 “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it also be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 People were eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, up to the day that Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed all of them. 28 “The same thing happened in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. 29 But on the day that Lot left Sodom, fire and brimstone rained down from heaven and destroyed all of them.
30 “It will be like that on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day, the one who is standing on the roof, with his possessions inside, must not come down to collect them, and someone who is in the field must not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Whoever tries to preserve his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will save it.
34 “I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed. One will be taken and the other will be left. 35 And there will be two women grinding grain together. One will be taken and the other will be left. [ 36 Two men will be out in the field. One will be taken and the other will be left.]”[h]
37 They asked him, “Where, Lord?” He said in reply, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”
Chapter 18
The Parable of the Importunate Widow.[i] 1 Then Jesus told them a parable about the need for them to pray always and never to lose heart. 2 He said, “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor had any respect for people. 3 In that same town there was a widow who kept coming to him and pleading, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’
4 “For a long time he refused her request, but finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I neither fear God nor have any respect for people, 5 yet because this widow keeps pestering me, I will see to it that she gets justice. Otherwise, she will keep coming and wear me out.’ ”
6 Then the Lord said, “You have heard what the unjust judge says. 7 Will not God, therefore, grant justice to his elect who cry out to him day and night? Will he delay in answering their pleas? 8 I tell you, he will grant them justice quickly. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector.[j] 9 He also told the following parable to some people who prided themselves about their own righteousness and regarded others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood up and said this prayer to himself: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people—greedy, dishonest, adulterous—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and pay tithes on all my income.’
13 “The tax collector, however, stood some distance away and would not even raise his eyes to heaven. Rather, he kept beating his breast as he said, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner.’ 14 This man, I tell you, returned to his home justified, whereas the other did not. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
15 Jesus Blesses the Children.[k] People were bringing even infants to Jesus so that he might touch them. When the disciples observed this, they rebuked them. 16 However, Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them. For it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. 17 Amen, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”
18 The Rich Young Man.[l]A certain ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 19 Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. 20 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery. Do not kill. Do not steal. Do not bear false witness. Honor your father and your mother.’ ”
21 The man replied, “I have kept all these since I was a child.” 22 On hearing this, Jesus said to him, “You need to do one further thing. Sell everything you own and distribute the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 23 But when he heard this, he became sad, because he was very rich.
24 Danger of Riches. Jesus looked at him and said, “How difficult it is for those who are rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 Those who heard this asked, “Then who can be saved?” 27 He replied, “What is impossible for men is possible for God.”
28 The Reward of Renunciation. Peter said to him, “We have given up our homes to follow you.” 29 Jesus replied, “Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God 30 who will not receive many times as much in this age, and eternal life in the age to come.”
31 Jesus Predicts His Passion a Third Time.[m] Then Jesus took the Twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are now going up to Jerusalem, and everything that has been written by the Prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. 32 He will be handed over to the Gentiles, and he will be mocked and insulted and spat upon. 33 After they have scourged him, they will put him to death, and on the third day he will rise again.”
34 But they understood nothing of this. Its meaning remained obscure to them, and they failed to comprehend what he was telling them.
35 Jesus Heals a Blind Man.[n] As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 When he heard the crowd going past, he inquired what was happening. 37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38 He shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!” 39 The people in front rebuked him and ordered him to be silent, but he only shouted all the louder, “Son of David, have pity on me!”
40 Jesus stopped and ordered that the man be brought to him. And when he had come near, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?” He answered, “Lord, let me receive my sight.” 42 Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight. Your faith has made you well.” 43 Immediately, he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. And all the people who witnessed this also gave praise to God.
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