The Gospel According to St. Luke

⭑ Unlocked Dynamic Bible :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

- Chapter 4 -

(Matthew 4:1–11; Mark 1:12–13)

Then Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan River, and the Holy Spirit led him into the wilderness.

The Holy Spirit led him around in the wilderness for forty days. While he was there, the devil kept tempting him. During the entire time Jesus was in the wilderness he did not eat anything, so when the forty days were over, he was very hungry.

Then the devil said to Jesus, “If you really are the Son of God, command these stones to become bread for you to eat!”

Jesus replied, “No, I will not do that, because it is written in the scriptures, ‘People need more than just food in order to live.’”

Then the devil took Jesus up to the top of a high mountain and showed him in an instant all the nations in the world.

Then he said to Jesus, “I will give you the right to rule all these nations and you will possess all their splendor and wealth. God has permitted me to control them all, and so I can do whatever I want to do with them.

So if you worship me, I will let you rule them all!”

But Jesus replied, “No, I will not worship you, because it is written in the scriptures, ‘You must only worship Lord God. He is the only one you may serve!’”

Then the devil took Jesus to Jerusalem. He set him on the highest part of the temple and said to him, “If you really are the Son of God, jump down from here.

You will not be hurt, because it is written in the scriptures, ‘God will command his angels to protect you.’

And it also says, ‘They will lift you up in their hands when you are falling, so that you will not get hurt. You will not even strike your foot on a stone.’”

But Jesus replied, “No, I will not do that, because it is written in the scriptures: ‘Do not try to test Lord God’.”

Then, after the devil had finished trying to tempt Jesus in many ways, he left him until a later time.

Jesus Begins His Ministry

(Isaiah 9:1–7; Matthew 4:12–17; Mark 1:14–15)

After this, Jesus left the wilderness and returned to the district of Galilee. The Holy Spirit was empowering him. Throughout that region, people heard about Jesus and told others about him.

He taught people in their synagogues and they all spoke highly of him because of his teaching.

The Rejection at Nazareth

(Isaiah 61:1–11; Matthew 13:53–58; Mark 6:1–6)

Then Jesus went to Nazareth, the town where he grew up. On the Sabbath he went to the synagogue, as he usually did. He stood up to read aloud something from the scriptures.

A synagogue attendant handed him a scroll containing the words that the prophet Isaiah had written long ago. Jesus unrolled the scroll and found the place where these words were written:

“The Spirit of the Lord is in me. He has appointed me to declare God’s good news to people who are poor. He has sent me here to proclaim that the captives will go free, And will tell those who are blind that they will see again. I will free people who have been oppressed.

He sent me here to declare that now is the time when the Lord will act favorably toward people.”

Then he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. Everyone in the synagogue was looking intently at him.

He said to them, “Today this scripture passage was fulfilled as you heard it.”

Everyone there heard what he said and marveled at him, and they were amazed at how well he spoke. But some of them said, “This man is only Joseph’s son, right?”

He said to them, “Surely some of you will quote to me the proverb that says, ‘Doctor, heal yourself!’ You will say, ‘Do here in your hometown the same kind of miracles that you did in Capernaum!’”

Then he said, “It is certainly true that the people in a prophet’s own hometown do not accept his message.

But think about this: There were many widows in Israel during the time when the prophet Elijah lived, when there was a great famine throughout the country because there had been no rain for three and a half years.

But God did not send Elijah to help any of those Israelite widows. God sent him to the town of Zarephath near the city of Sidon, to help a widow.

There were also many Israelite lepers in Israel during the time when the prophet Elisha lived. But Elisha did not heal any of them. He healed only Naaman, a man from Syria.”

When all the people in the synagogue heard him say that, they were very angry.

So they all got up and shoved him out of the city. They took him to the top of the hill outside their city in order to throw him off the cliff and kill him.

But he simply walked through their midst and went away.

Jesus Expels an Unclean Spirit

(Mark 1:21–28)

One day he went down to Capernaum, a city in the district of Galilee. On the next Sabbath, he taught the people in the synagogue.

They were continually amazed at what he was teaching, because he spoke with confidence.

That day, there was a man in the synagogue who was controlled by an evil spirit. The man shouted very loudly,

“Ha! Jesus, from Nazareth! Evil spirits have nothing to do with you! Have you come to destroy us all? I know who you are. You are the Holy One from God!”

Jesus rebuked the evil spirit, saying, “Be quiet and come out of him!” The demon threw the man down on the ground in the midst of the people and came out of him without harming him.

All the people in the synagogue were very amazed. They said to each other, “He speaks with confidence, and his words have so much power! Even evil spirits obey him and come out of people when he commands them to!”

And in every place throughout the surrounding regions, people kept talking about what Jesus had done.

Jesus Heals at Peter’s House

(Matthew 8:14–17; Mark 1:29–34)

Then Jesus left the synagogue and went to Simon’s house. Simon’s mother-in-law was sick and had a high fever. Some people who were there asked Jesus to heal her.

So he bent over her and commanded the fever to leave her. Immediately she became well! She got up and served them some food.

When the sun was setting that day, many people brought to Jesus their friends or relatives who were sick with various diseases. He put his hands on them and healed all of them.

He also was forcing evil spirits to come out of many people. As the evil spirits left those people, they shouted to Jesus, “You are the Son of God!” But he commanded those evil spirits not to tell people about him, because they knew that he was the Messiah.

Jesus Preaches in Judea

(Mark 1:35–39)

The next morning Jesus went out to an uninhabited place. Crowds of people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them.

But he said to them, “I must tell people in other cities also the message about how God is going to rule everyone, because that is what I was sent to do.”

So he kept preaching in the synagogues in various towns in the province of Judea.

(Matthew 4:1–11; Mark 1:12–13)

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness

for forty days, being tempted by the devil. He ate nothing in those days. Afterward, when they were completed, he was hungry.

The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”

Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’” (a)

The devil, leading him up on a high mountain, showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.

The devil said to him, “I will give you all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I want.

If you therefore will worship before me, it will all be yours.”

Jesus answered him, “Get behind me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only.’” (b)

He led him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down from here,

for it is written, ‘He will put his angels in charge of you, to guard you;’

and, ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest perhaps you dash your foot against a stone.’”(c)

Jesus answering, said to him, “It has been said, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’” (d)

When the devil had completed every temptation, he departed from him until another time.

Jesus Begins His Ministry

(Isaiah 9:1–7; Matthew 4:12–17; Mark 1:14–15)

Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee, and news about him spread through all the surrounding area.

He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.

The Rejection at Nazareth

(Isaiah 61:1–11; Matthew 13:53–58; Mark 6:1–6)

He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. He entered, as was his custom, into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.

The book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. He opened the book, and found the place where it was written,

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the broken hearted, (e) to proclaim release to the captives, recovering of sight to the blind, to deliver those who are crushed,

and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” (f)

He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fastened on him.

He began to tell them, “Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

All testified about him and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth; and they said, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”

He said to them, “Doubtless you will tell me this proverb, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done at Capernaum, do also here in your hometown.’”

He said, “Most certainly I tell you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown.

But truly I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut up three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land.

Elijah was sent to none of them, except to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.

There were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed, except Naaman, the Syrian.”

They were all filled with wrath in the synagogue as they heard these things.

They rose up, threw him out of the city, and led him to the brow of the hill that their city was built on, that they might throw him off the cliff.

But he, passing through the middle of them, went his way.

Jesus Expels an Unclean Spirit

(Mark 1:21–28)

He came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. He was teaching them on the Sabbath day,

and they were astonished at his teaching, for his word was with authority.

In the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon; and he cried out with a loud voice,

saying, “Ah! what have we to do with you, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are: the Holy One of God!”

Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent and come out of him!” When the demon had thrown him down in the middle of them, he came out of him, having done him no harm.

Amazement came on all and they spoke together, one with another, saying, “What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!”

News about him went out into every place of the surrounding region.

Jesus Heals at Peter’s House

(Matthew 8:14–17; Mark 1:29–34)

He rose up from the synagogue and entered into Simon’s house. Simon’s mother-in-law was afflicted with a great fever, and they begged him to help her.

He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. Immediately she rose up and served them.

When the sun was setting, all those who had any sick with various diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.

Demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, “You are the Christ, the Son of God!” Rebuking them, he didn’t allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Christ.

Jesus Preaches in Judea

(Mark 1:35–39)

When it was day, he departed and went into an uninhabited place and the multitudes looked for him, and came to him, and held on to him, so that he wouldn’t go away from them.

But he said to them, “I must preach the good news of God’s Kingdom to the other cities also. For this reason I have been sent.”

He was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee.

Footnotes

(a)4:4 ℘ Deuteronomy 8:3

(b)4:8 ℘ Deuteronomy 6:13

(d)4:12 ℘ Deuteronomy 6:16

(e)4:18 NU omits “to heal the broken hearted”

(f)4:19 ℘ Isaiah 61:1-2