Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Slave

¹After He had finished all that He had to say in the hearing of the people, He went to Capernaum.

² Now a [Roman] ^[a]centurion’s slave, who was highly regarded by him, was sick and on the verge of death. ³ When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to Him, asking Him to come and save the life of his slave. ⁴ When they reached Jesus, they pleaded with Him earnestly [to come], saying, “He is worthy for You to do this for him, ⁵ because he loves our nation and he built us our synagogue [at his own expense].” ⁶ And Jesus went with them. But when He was near the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying, “Lord, do not trouble Yourself further, for I am not worthy for You to come under my roof. ⁷ Therefore I did not even consider myself worthy to come to You. But just speak a word, and my slave will be healed. ⁸ For I also am a man subject to authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” ⁹ Now when Jesus heard this, He was amazed at him, and turned and said to the crowd that was following Him, “I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith [as this man’s].” ¹⁰ When the messengers who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.

¹¹ Soon afterward Jesus went to a city called Nain [near Nazareth], and His disciples and a large crowd accompanied Him. ¹² Now as He approached the city gate, a dead man was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her [in the funeral procession]. ¹³ When the Lord saw her, He felt [great] compassion for her, and said to her, “Do not weep.” ¹⁴ And He came up and touched the bier [on which the body rested], and the pallbearers stood still. And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise [from death]!” ¹⁵ The man who was dead sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother. ¹⁶ Fear and profound awe gripped them all, and they began glorifying and honoring and praising God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and, “God has visited His people [to help and care for and provide for them]!” ¹⁷ This news about Him spread through all of Judea and in all the surrounding countryside.

A Delegation from John

¹⁸ John’s disciples brought word to him [in prison] of all these things. ¹⁹ John called two of his disciples and sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are You the ^[b]Expected One (the Messiah), or should we look for someone else?” ²⁰ So the men came to Jesus and said, “John the Baptist sent us to You to ask, ‘Are You the Expected One (the Messiah), or should we look for someone else?’” ²¹ At that very hour Jesus healed many people of sicknesses and infirmities and evil spirits; and He gave [the gracious gift of] sight to many who were blind. ²² So He replied to them, “Go and tell John about everything you have seen and heard: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the good news (gospel) preached to them. ²³ Blessed [joyful, spiritually favored] is he who does not take offense at Me.”

²⁴ When John’s messengers left, Jesus began speaking to the crowds about John: “What did you go out to the wilderness to see? ^[c]A reed shaken by the wind? ²⁵ But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing [entirely unsuited for the harsh wilderness]? Those who wear splendid clothing and live in luxury are in royal palaces! ²⁶ But what did you [really] go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and one ^[d]far more [eminent and remarkable] than a prophet [who foretells the future]. ²⁷ This is the one of whom it is written [by the prophet Malachi],

²⁸ I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater [in privilege] than he.” ²⁹ All the people and the tax collectors who heard Jesus, acknowledged [the validity of] God’s justice, having been baptized with the baptism of John. ³⁰ But the Pharisees and the lawyers [who were experts in the Mosaic Law] annulled and set aside God’s purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John.

³¹ “To what then shall I compare the people of this generation [who set aside God’s plan], and what are they like? ³² They are like children sitting in the market place and calling to one another, and saying, ‘We played the flute for you [pretending to be at a wedding], and you did not dance; we sang a dirge [pretending to be at a funeral], and you did not weep [so nothing we did appealed to you].’ ³³ For John the Baptist has come neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon!’ ³⁴ The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a man who is a glutton and a [heavy] wine-drinker, a friend of tax collectors and sinners [including non-observant Jews].’ ³⁵ Yet wisdom is vindicated and shown to be right by all her children [by the lifestyle, moral character, and good deeds of her followers].”

The Anointing in Galilee

³⁶ One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him, and He went into the Pharisee’s house [in the region of Galilee] and reclined at the table. ³⁷ Now there was a woman in the city who was [known as] a ^[e]sinner; and ^[f]when she found out that He was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster vial of perfume; ³⁸ and standing behind Him at His feet, weeping, she began wetting His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head, and [respectfully] kissed His feet [as an act signifying both affection and submission] and ^[g]anointed them with the perfume. ³⁹ Now when [Simon] the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, “If this Man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of woman this is who is touching Him, that she is a [notorious] sinner [an outcast, devoted to sin].”

Parable of Two Debtors

⁴⁰ Jesus, answering, said to the Pharisee, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he replied, “Teacher, say it.” ⁴¹ “A certain moneylender had two debtors: one owed him five hundred ^[h]denarii, and the other fifty. ⁴² When they had no means of repaying [the debts], he freely forgave them both. So which of them will love him more?” ⁴³ Simon answered, “The one, I take it, for whom he forgave more.” Jesus said to him, “You have decided correctly.” ⁴⁴ Then turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house [but you failed to extend to Me the usual courtesies shown to a guest]; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair [demonstrating her love]. ⁴⁵ You gave Me no [welcoming] kiss, but from the moment I came in, she has not ceased to kiss My feet. ⁴⁶ You did not [even] anoint My head with [ordinary] oil, but she has anointed My feet with [costly and rare] perfume. ⁴⁷ Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” ⁴⁸ Then He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” ⁴⁹ Those who were reclining at the table with Him began saying among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” ⁵⁰ Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith [in Me] has saved you; go in peace [free from the distress experienced because of sin].”