Luke 9

The Sending of the Twelve Apostles

1 Aftert Jesust calledt the twelves together, he gave them power and authority over all demons and to cures diseases,2 and he sents them out to proclaimt the kingdom of Gods and to heal the sick.s3 Het said to them, “Take nothing for yourt journey – no staff,s no bag,t no bread, no money, and do not take an extra tunic.t4 Whatevert house you enter, stay theres until you leave the area.t5 Wherevert they do not receive you,t as you leave that town,t shake the dust offs your feet as a testimony against them.”

6 Thent they departed and went throughoutt the villages, proclaiming the good newsts and healing people everywhere.

Herod’s Confusion about Jesus

7 Now Herods the tetrarchs heard about everything that was happening, and he was thoroughly perplexed,t because some people were saying that Johns had been raised from the dead,8 while others were saying that Elijahs had appeared, and still others that one of the prophets of long ago had risen.s

9 Herod said, “I had Johnt beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” So Herod wanted to learn about Jesus.t

The Feeding of the Five Thousand

10 Whent the apostles returned,t they told Jesust everything they had done. Thent he took them with him and they withdrew privately to a townst called Bethsaida.s11 But when the crowds found out, they followed him. Het welcomed them, spoke to them about the kingdom of God,s and cured those who needed healing.s12 Now the day began to draw to a close,t sot the twelve came and said to Jesus,t “Send the crowd away, so they can go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodgingt and food, because we are in an isolated place.”t13 But he said to them, “Yout give them something to eat.” Theyt replied,t “We have no more than five loaves and two fish – unlesst we got and buy foods for all these people.”14 (Now about five thousand ment were there.)s Thent he said to his disciples, “Havet them sit down in groups of about fifty each.”

15 So they did as Jesus directed,t and the peoplet all sat down.
16 Thent he took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven he gave thankss and broke them. He gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.

17 They all ate and were satisfied, and what was left overs was picked up – twelve baskets of broken pieces.

Peter’s Confession

18 Oncet when Jesust was prayings by himself, and his disciples were nearby, he asked them,t “Who do the crowds say that I am?”s19 Theyt answered,t “John the Baptist; others say Elijah;s and still others that one of the prophets of long ago has risen.”s20 Thent he said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Petert answered,t “The Christts of God.”21 But he forcefully commandedt them not to tell this to anyone,s

22 saying, “The Son of Man must suffers many things and be rejected by the elders,s chief priests, and experts in the law,t and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”s

A Call to Discipleship

23 Thent he said to them all,s “If anyone wants to become my follower,t he must denyt himself, take up his cross daily,s and follow me.24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it,s but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.25 For what does it benefit a persont if he gains the whole world but loses or forfeits himself?26 For whoever is ashameds of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that persont when he comes in his glory and in the gloryt of the Father and of the holy angels.

27 But I tell you most certainly,t there are some standing here who will nott experiencet death before they see the kingdom of God.”s

The Transfiguration

28 Nowt about eight dayst after these sayings, Jesust took with him Peter, John, and James, and went up the mountain to pray.29 Ast he was praying,t the appearance of his face was transformed,ts and his clothes became very bright, a brilliant white.t30 Thent two men, Moses and Elijah,s began talking with him.t31 They appeared in glorious splendor and spoke about his departuret that he was about to carry outt at Jerusalem.s32 Now Peter and those with him were quite sleepy,t but as they became fully awake,t they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.33 Thent as the ment were starting to leave,t Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three shelters,ts one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah” – not knowing what he was saying.34 Ast he was saying this, a clouds camet and overshadowedt them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud.35 Thent a voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One.sts Listen to him!”s

36 Aftert the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. Sot they kept silent and told no ones at that timet anything of what they had seen.

Healing a Boy with an Unclean Spirit

37 Now ont the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a large crowd met him.38 Thent a man from the crowd cried out,t “Teacher, I beg you to look att my son – he is my only child!39 At spirit seizes him, and he suddenly screams;t it throws him into convulsionss and causes him to foam at the mouth. It hardly ever leaves him alone, torturingt him severely.40 It beggeds your disciples to cast it out, butt they could not do so.”t41 Jesus answered,t “Yout unbelievingts and perverse generation! How much longert must I be with you and enduret you?s Bring your son here.”42 Ast the boyt was approaching, the demon threw him to the grounds and shook him with convulsions.t But Jesus rebukedt the uncleans spirit, healed the boy, and gave him back to his father.

43 Thent they were all astonished at the mighty powers of God.
But while the entire crowdt was amazed at everything Jesusst was doing, he said to his disciples,

Another Prediction of Jesus’ Suffering

44 “Take these words to heart,t for the Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men.”t

45 But they did not understand this statement; its meaningt had been concealeds from them, so that they could not grasp it. Yett they were afraid to ask him about this statement.

Concerning the Greatest

46 Now an argument started among the disciplest as to which of them might bet the greatest.47 But when Jesus discerned their innermost thoughts,t he took a child, had him stand byt his side,

48 and said to them, “Whoever welcomest this childs in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me, for the one who is least among you all is the one who is great.”t

On the Right Side

49 John answered,t “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stops him because he is not a disciplet along with us.”

50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for whoever is not against you is for you.”

Rejection in Samaria

51 Now whent the days drew neart for him to be taken up,s Jesust set out resolutelyt to go to Jerusalem.s52 Het sent messengers on ahead of him.t As they went along,t they entered a Samaritan village to make things ready in advancet for him,53 but the villagerst refused to welcomet him, because he was determined to go to Jerusalem.ts54 Now when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do you want us to call fire to come down from heaven and consumetthem?”ss55 But Jesust turned and rebuked them,ss

56 and they went on to another village.

Challenging Professed Followers

57 Ast they were walkingt along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”ss58 Jesus said to him, “Foxes have dens and the birds in the skyt have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”s59 Jesust said to another, “Follow me.” But he replied,t “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”60 But Jesust said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead,s but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”s61 Yett another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say goodbye to my family.”t

62 Jesust said to him, “No one who puts hist hand to the plow and looks backs is fit for the kingdom of God.”s

LUKE 9

Instructions for //the Twelve Apostles

(Matthew 10.5-15; Mark 6.7-13)

1 Jesus called together his twelve apostles and gave them complete power over all demons and diseases. 2 Then he sent them to tell about God's kingdom and to heal the sick. 3 t He told them, “Don't take anything with you! Don't take a walking stick or a traveling bag or food or money or even a change of clothes. 4 When you are welcomed into a home, stay there until you leave that town.

5 t If people won't welcome you, leave the town and shake the dust from your feett as a warning to them.”

6 The apostles left and went from village to village, telling the good news and healing people everywhere.

Herod Is Worried

(Matthew 14.1-12; Mark 6.14-29)

9 But Herod said, “I had John's head cut off! Who is this I hear so much about?” Herod was eager to meet Jesus.

Jesus Feeds Five Thousand

(Matthew 14.13-21; Mark 6.30-44; John 6.1-14)

11 But a lot of people found out about this and followed him. Jesus welcomed them. He spoke about God's kingdom and healed everyone who was sick.

12 Late in the afternoon the twelve apostles came to Jesus and said, “Send the crowd to the villages and farms around here. They need to find a place to stay and something to eat. There is nothing in this place. It's like a desert!”

13 Jesus answered, “You give them something to eat.”
But they replied, “We have only five small loaves of breadt and two fish. If we are going to feed all these people, we will have to go and buy food.”

14 There were about 5,000 men in the crowd.
Jesus said to his disciples, “Tell the people to sit in groups of 50.” 15 They did this, and all the people sat down.

16 Jesus took the five loaves and the two fish. He looked up toward heaven and blessed the food. Then he broke the bread and fish and handed them to his disciples to give to the people.

17 Everyone ate all they wanted. What was left over filled twelve baskets.

Who Is Jesus?

(Matthew 16.13-19; Mark 8.27-29)

18 When Jesus was alone praying, his disciples came to him, and he asked them, “What do people say about me?”

19  t They answered, “Some say you are John the Baptist or Elijaht or a prophet from long ago who has come back to life.”

20  t Jesus then asked, “But who do you say I am?”
Peter answered, “You are the Messiah sent from God.”

21 Jesus strictly warned his disciples not to tell anyone about this.

Jesus Speaks about //His Suffering and Death

(Matthew 16.20-28; Mark 8.30—9.1)

22 Jesus told his disciples, “The nation's leaders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law of Moses will make the Son of Man suffer terribly. They will reject him and kill him, but three days later he will rise to life.”

23  t Then Jesus said to all the people:
If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross every day and follow me. 24 t If you want to save your life, t you will destroy it. But if you give up your life for me, you will save it. 25 What will you gain, if you own the whole world but destroy yourself or waste your life? 26 If you are ashamed of me and my message, the Son of Man will be ashamed of you when he comes in his glory and in the glory of his Father and the holy angels.

27 You can be sure some of the people standing here will not die before they see God's kingdom.

The True Glory of Jesus

(Matthew 17.1-8; Mark 9.2-8)

31 They appeared in heavenly glory and talked about all that Jesus' deatht in Jerusalem would mean.

32 Peter and the other two disciples had been sound asleep. All at once they woke up and saw how glorious Jesus was. They also saw the two men who were with him.

33 Moses and Elijah were about to leave, when Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here! Let us make three shelters, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” But Peter did not know what he was talking about.
34 While Peter was still speaking, a shadow from a cloud passed over, and they were frightened as the cloud covered them.

35 t From the cloud a voice spoke, “This is my chosen Son. Listen to what he says!”

36 After the voice had spoken, Peter, John, and James saw only Jesus. For some time they kept quiet and did not say anything about what they had seen.

Jesus Heals a Boy

(Matthew 17.14-18; Mark 9.14-27)

40 I begged your disciples to force out the demon, but they couldn't do it.”

41 Jesus said to them, “You people are stubborn and don't have any faith! How much longer must I be with you? Why do I have to put up with you?”
Then Jesus said to the man, “Bring your son to me.” 42 While the boy was being brought, the demon attacked him and made him shake all over. Jesus ordered the demon to stop. Then he healed the boy and gave him back to his father.

43 Everyone was amazed at God's great power.

Jesus Again Speaks //about His Death

(Matthew 17.22,23; Mark 9.30-32)

45 But the disciples did not know what he meant. The meaning was hidden from them. They could not understand it, and they were afraid to ask.

Who Is the Greatest?

(Matthew 18.1-5; Mark 9.33-37)

48 t Then he said to his disciples, “When you welcome even a child because of me, you welcome me. And when you welcome me, you welcome the one who sent me. Whichever one of you is the most humble is the greatest.”

For or against Jesus

(Mark 9.38-40)

49 John said, “Master, we saw a man using your name to force demons out of people. But we told him to stop, because he isn't one of us.”

50 “Don't stop him!” Jesus said. “Anyone who isn't against you is for you.”

A Samaritan Village Refuses //To Receive Jesus

54 t When the disciples James and John saw what was happening, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to destroy these people?”t
55 But Jesus turned and corrected them for what they had said.t

56 Then they all went on to another village.

Three People Who Wanted //To Be Followers

(Matthew 8.19-22)

57 Along the way someone said to Jesus, “I'll follow you anywhere!”

58 Jesus said, “Foxes have dens, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man doesn't have a place to call his own.”

59 Jesus told someone else to come with him. But the man said, “Lord, let me wait until I bury my father.”t

60 Jesus answered, “Let the dead take care of the dead, while you go and tell about God's kingdom.”

61  t Then someone said to Jesus, “I want to follow you, Lord, but first let me go back and take care of things at home.”
62 Jesus answered, “Anyone who starts plowing and keeps looking back isn't worth a thing to God's kingdom!”