Watchfulness^(A)(B)

³⁵ “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, ³⁶ like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. ³⁷ It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes.^(C) Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.^{(D) 38} It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or toward daybreak. ³⁹ But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief^(E) was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁰ You also must be ready,^(F) because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

⁴¹ Peter asked, “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?”

⁴² The Lord^(G) answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? ⁴³ It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. ⁴⁴ Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ⁴⁵ But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk. ⁴⁶ The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of.^(H) He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

⁴⁷ “The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows.^{(I) 48} But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows.^(J) From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

Not Peace but Division^(K)

⁴⁹ “I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! ⁵⁰ But I have a baptism^(L) to undergo, and what constraint I am under until it is completed!^{(M) 51} Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. ⁵² From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three. ⁵³ They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”^(N)

Interpreting the Times

⁵⁴ He said to the crowd: “When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, ‘It’s going to rain,’ and it does.^{(O) 55} And when the south wind blows, you say, ‘It’s going to be hot,’ and it is. ⁵⁶ Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don’t know how to interpret this present time?^(P)

⁵⁷ “Why don’t you judge for yourselves what is right? ⁵⁸ As you are going with your adversary to the magistrate, try hard to be reconciled on the way, or your adversary may drag you off to the judge, and the judge turn you over to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison.^{(Q) 59} I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.”^(R)

Repent or Perish

13 Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate^(S) had mixed with their sacrifices. ² Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way?^{(T) 3} I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. ⁴ Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam^(U) fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? ⁵ I tell you, no! But unless you repent,^(V) you too will all perish.”

⁶ Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any.^{(W) 7} So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down!^(X) Why should it use up the soil?’

⁸ “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. ⁹ If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”

Jesus Heals a Crippled Woman on the Sabbath

¹⁰ On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues,^{(Y) 11} and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years.^(Z) She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. ¹² When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.” ¹³ Then he put his hands on her,^(AA) and immediately she straightened up and praised God.

¹⁴ Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath,^(AB) the synagogue leader^(AC) said to the people, “There are six days for work.^(AD) So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath.”

¹⁵ The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie your ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water?^{(AE) 16} Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham,^(AF) whom Satan^(AG) has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?”

¹⁷ When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated,^(AH) but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing.

The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast^(AI)(AJ)

¹⁸ Then Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God^(AK) like?^(AL) What shall I compare it to? ¹⁹ It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree,^(AM) and the birds perched in its branches.”^(AN)

²⁰ Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? ²¹ It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds^[a] of flour until it worked all through the dough.”^(AO)

Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind

9 As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. ² His disciples asked him, “Rabbi,^(A) who sinned,^(B) this man^(C) or his parents,^(D) that he was born blind?”

³ “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.^{(E) 4} As long as it is day,^(F) we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. ⁵ While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”^(G)

⁶ After saying this, he spit^(H) on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. ⁷ “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam”^(I) (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.^(J)

⁸ His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, “Isn’t this the same man who used to sit and beg?”^{(K) 9} Some claimed that he was.

Others said, “No, he only looks like him.”

But he himself insisted, “I am the man.”

¹⁰ “How then were your eyes opened?” they asked.

¹¹ He replied, “The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see.”^(L)

¹² “Where is this man?” they asked him.

“I don’t know,” he said.

The Pharisees Investigate the Healing

¹³ They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. ¹⁴ Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man’s eyes was a Sabbath.^{(M) 15} Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight.^(N) “He put mud on my eyes,” the man replied, “and I washed, and now I see.”

¹⁶ Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.”^(O)

But others asked, “How can a sinner perform such signs?”^(P) So they were divided.^(Q)

¹⁷ Then they turned again to the blind man, “What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened.”

The man replied, “He is a prophet.”^(R)

¹⁸ They^(S) still did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man’s parents. ¹⁹ “Is this your son?” they asked. “Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?”

²⁰ “We know he is our son,” the parents answered, “and we know he was born blind. ²¹ But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don’t know. Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself.” ²² His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders,^(T) who already had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah would be put out^(U) of the synagogue.^{(V) 23} That was why his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”^(W)

²⁴ A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. “Give glory to God by telling the truth,”^(X) they said. “We know this man is a sinner.”^(Y)

²⁵ He replied, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”

²⁶ Then they asked him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?”

²⁷ He answered, “I have told you already^(Z) and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples too?”

²⁸ Then they hurled insults at him and said, “You are this fellow’s disciple! We are disciples of Moses!^{(AA) 29} We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don’t even know where he comes from.”^(AB)

³⁰ The man answered, “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. ³¹ We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will.^{(AC) 32} Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. ³³ If this man were not from God,^(AD) he could do nothing.”

³⁴ To this they replied, “You were steeped in sin at birth;^(AE) how dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out.^(AF)

Spiritual Blindness

³⁵ Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe^(AG) in the Son of Man?”^(AH)

³⁶ “Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.”^(AI)

³⁷ Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”^(AJ)

³⁸ Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.^(AK)

³⁹ Jesus said,^[a] “For judgment^(AL) I have come into this world,^(AM) so that the blind will see^(AN) and those who see will become blind.”^(AO)

⁴⁰ Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, “What? Are we blind too?”^(AP)

⁴¹ Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.^(AQ)