1 Soon afterward he traveled from town to town and village to village, preaching and announcing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him,
2 and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and illnesses: Mary, called Magdalene, out of whom seven demons had come,
3 Joanna wife of Chuza, Herod's household manager, Susanna, and many others, who were providing for him out of their own means.
4 When a large crowd was coming together and people from town after town were making their way to him, he spoke in a parable:
5 "The sower went out to sow his seed. As he sowed, some fell along the path; it was trodden down, and the birds of the sky ate it up.
6 Other seed fell on rock, and when it came up, it dried out, because it had no moisture.
7 Other seed fell in among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it.
8 And other seed fell into good soil; it grew up and yielded a crop a hundred times over." As he said this, he called out, "Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear."
9 His disciples asked him what this parable could mean.
10 He said, "To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the others it comes in parables, so that seeing they may not see and hearing they may not understand.
11 This is what the parable means: the seed is the word of God.
12 The ones along the path are those who hear; then the devil comes and snatches the word out of their hearts, so that they will not believe and be saved.
13 The ones on the rock are those who receive the word joyfully when they hear it; but these have no root. They believe for a time, and in a time of testing they drop away.
14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go along, they are choked by the worries, wealth, and pleasures of life, and their fruit never ripens.
15 But the seed in the good soil stands for those who hear the word with a noble and good heart, hold on to it, and bear fruit by enduring.
16 "No one lights a lamp and then hides it under a jar or puts it beneath a bed; he places it on a lampstand, so that those coming in can see the light.
17 For nothing is hidden that will not become evident, nor concealed that will not be made known and come into the open.
18 So be careful how you listen. Whoever has will be given more, and whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has will be taken away from him."
19 His mother and brothers came to him, but they were unable to get near him because of the crowd.
20 He was told, "Your mother and your brothers are standing outside and want to see you."
21 He answered them, "My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it."
22 One day he got into a boat with his disciples and said to them, "Let us cross to the other side of the lake." So they put out from shore.
23 As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall of wind swept down on the lake, and the boat was filling with water, and they were in danger.
24 They went and woke him up: "Master, Master, we are going under!" He got up and rebuked the wind and the rough water; they stopped, and it became calm.
25 Then he said to them, "Where is your faith?" Frightened and amazed, they said to one another, "Who can this be? He gives orders even to the winds and the water, and they obey him!"
26 They sailed on to the region of the Gadarenes, which lies across from Galilee.
27 As he stepped ashore, a man from the town met him who had been possessed by demons for a long time. He wore no clothes and did not live in a house, but in the tombs.
28 On seeing Jesus, he shrieked, fell down in front of him, and said with a loud voice, "What do I have to do with you, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me."
29 For Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had taken hold of him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and fetters, but he would snap the restraints and be driven by the demon into lonely places.
30 Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" He said, "Legion," because many demons had gone into him.
31 And they kept begging him not to order them to depart into the abyss.
32 A large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged him to let them go into the pigs. He gave them permission.
33 The demons came out of the man and went into the pigs, and the herd stampeded down the steep slope into the lake and drowned.
34 When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran off and reported it in the town and in the farms.
35 People went out to see what had happened. They came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had gone out sitting at Jesus' feet, dressed and of sound mind; and they were frightened.
36 Those who had seen it reported to them how the demon-possessed man had been delivered.
37 Then the entire population of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked him to leave them, because they were gripped by great fear. So he got into the boat and went back.
38 The man from whom the demons had gone out was pleading with him to be allowed to go with him, but Jesus sent him off, saying,
39 "Go back to your home and describe all that God has done for you." So he went off and announced throughout the whole town all that Jesus had done for him.
40 When Jesus came back, the crowd welcomed him gladly, for they had all been expecting him.
41 Just then a man named Jairus came, who was a leader of the synagogue. He fell at the feet of Jesus and pleaded with him to come to his house,
42 because his only begotten daughter, about twelve years old, was dying. As he went, the crowds were crushing in on him.
43 A woman was there who had suffered from bleeding for twelve years; she had spent everything she had on doctors, and no one had been able to cure her.
44 She came up from behind and touched the tassel of his cloak, and at once her bleeding stopped.
45 Jesus said, "Who was it that touched me?" As everyone was denying it, Peter and his companions said, "Master, the crowds are hemming you in and pressing against you, and you ask, 'Who touched me?'"
46 But Jesus said, "Someone did touch me; I know that power has gone out from me."
47 Seeing that she had not escaped notice, the woman came trembling and fell down before him, and in front of all the people she told why she had touched him and how she had been cured at once.
48 He said to her, "Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well. Go in peace."
49 While he was still talking, someone came from the house of the synagogue leader and said, "Your daughter has died; do not bother the Teacher."
50 Hearing this, Jesus said to him, "Do not fear. Just believe, and she will be saved."
51 When he reached the house, he let no one go in with him except Peter, James, and John, and the girl's father and mother.
52 Everyone was weeping and beating their breasts for her. But he said, "Stop weeping; she has not died but is asleep."
53 They ridiculed him, knowing that she had died.
54 But he sent them all out, took her hand, and called out, "Child, get up!"
55 Her spirit came back, and she stood up at once; and he told them to give her something to eat.
56 Her parents were stunned, but he ordered them not to tell anyone what had taken place.