Jesus has been teaching about God's kingdom and responding to criticism from Pharisees and scribes who objected to His association with tax collectors and sinners. He told three parables about lost things—a lost sheep, a lost coin, and a lost son—emphasizing God's joy over repentant sinners. The parable of the prodigal son particularly illustrated the Father's compassionate reception of a wayward child who returned home, contrasting this with the elder brother's resentment. Having addressed the Pharisees' complaints about His ministry to outcasts, Jesus now turns to instruct His disciples about stewardship, wealth, and eternal priorities, though the Pharisees continue listening to His teaching. Jesus is addressing His disciples, though the Pharisees are also present and listening.
[1] He also said to His disciples: “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was wasting his goods. [2] So he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.’
[3] “Then the steward said within himself, ‘What shall I do? For my master is taking the stewardship away from me. I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg. [4] I have resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.’
[5] “So he called every one of his master’s debtors to him, and said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ [6] And he said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ So he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ [7] Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ So he said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ [8] So the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.
[9] “And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by unrighteous mammon, that when you fail, they may receive you into an everlasting home. [10] He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. [11] Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? [12] And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own?
[13] “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
[14] Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him. [15] And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
[16] “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it. [17] And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail.
[18] “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery.
[19] “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. [20] But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, [21] desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. [22] So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. [23] And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
[24] “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’ [25] But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. [26] And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’
[27] “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, [28] for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ [29] Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ [30] And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ [31] But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”
When Jesus, Peter, James, and John descend from the mountain where the Transfiguration occurred, they rejoin the other nine disciples who remained below. During Jesus's absence on the mountain, these disciples encountered a father who brought his demon-possessed son to them for healing. Despite their previous successful experiences casting out demons when Jesus sent them out on their mission, the nine disciples were unable to heal this particular boy. The crowd that gathered to witness this attempted healing has now grown, and the situation has created a moment of public failure for the disciples. The father, desperate for his son's deliverance, now approaches Jesus directly with his request. Jesus is addressing the crowd and his disciples.
[14] And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, [15] “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. [16] So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him.”
[17] Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.” [18] And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.
[19] Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?”
[20] So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. [21] However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”
After completing his third missionary journey through Macedonia and Greece, Paul travels by ship from Miletus toward Jerusalem despite repeated warnings. He sails to Cos, then Rhodes, and Patara, where he boards a vessel bound for Phoenicia. The ship passes Cyprus and docks at Tyre, where disciples, speaking through the Spirit, urge Paul not to go to Jerusalem. After a week, Paul continues to Ptolemais for a brief visit with believers, then proceeds to Caesarea. There he stays with Philip the evangelist, one of the seven deacons chosen earlier in Acts. A prophet named Agabus arrives from Judea and dramatically demonstrates through symbolic action that Paul will be bound and handed over to Gentiles if he continues to Jerusalem. Both local believers and Paul's traveling companions plead with him to abandon his plans, but Paul remains resolute, declaring his readiness to die in Jerusalem for the Lord's name.
[1] Now it came to pass, that when we had departed from them and set sail, running a straight course we came to Cos, the following day to Rhodes, and from there to Patara. [2] And finding a ship sailing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. [3] When we had sighted Cyprus, we passed it on the left, sailed to Syria, and landed at Tyre; for there the ship was to unload her cargo. [4] And finding disciples, we stayed there seven days. They told Paul through the Spirit not to go up to Jerusalem. [5] When we had come to the end of those days, we departed and went on our way; and they all accompanied us, with wives and children, till we were out of the city. And we knelt down on the shore and prayed. [6] When we had taken our leave of one another, we boarded the ship, and they returned home.
[7] And when we had finished our voyage from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais, greeted the brethren, and stayed with them one day. [8] On the next day we who were Paul’s companions departed and came to Caesarea, and entered the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, and stayed with him. [9] Now this man had four virgin daughters who prophesied. [10] And as we stayed many days, a certain prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. [11] When he had come to us, he took Paul’s belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt, and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ ”
[12] Now when we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem. [13] Then Paul answered, “What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”
[14] So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, “The will of the Lord be done.”
John has been contrasting the children of God with the children of the devil, emphasizing that those born of God practice righteousness because God's seed remains in them. He warns his readers not to be deceived by false teachers who might suggest that sinful behavior is compatible with being God's child. John establishes that righteousness distinguishes God's children from the devil's children, explaining that the Son of God appeared to destroy the devil's works. He stresses that genuine believers cannot continue in habitual sin because they have been born of God and possess His divine nature. The apostle now prepares to identify the clear marks that distinguish between these two spiritual families.
[7] Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. [8] He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. [9] Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
[10] In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.
Jesus has been teaching in Jerusalem during the Feast of Dedication, following a heated confrontation with Jewish leaders who questioned his authority and attempted to stone him for claiming equality with God. He previously declared himself the door of the sheep and contrasted true shepherds with thieves and hirelings who abandon the flock in danger. Jesus emphasized that his sheep hear his voice and follow him, while strangers they will not follow. He explained that he came to give abundant life to his sheep and warned against those who come only to steal, kill, and destroy. The religious leaders struggled to understand his figurative language about shepherds and sheep, failing to grasp that he was speaking about his relationship with believers and his mission from the Father. Jesus is addressing the Jewish leaders and crowds gathered in Jerusalem.
[11] “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. [12] But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. [13] The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. [14] I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. [15] As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. [16] And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.
[17] “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. [18] No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.”
[19] Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. [20] And many of them said, “He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?”
[21] Others said, “These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”
The disciples have just failed to cast out a demon from a boy while Jesus was on the Mount of Transfiguration with Peter, James, and John. The father brought his possessed son to the nine remaining disciples, but they were unable to help despite their previous successful ministry experiences. Jesus, Peter, James, and John have now descended from the mountain where they witnessed Jesus's transfiguration and heard God's voice declaring Jesus as His beloved Son. Upon arrival, Jesus finds a large crowd gathered around the disciples who are arguing with the scribes about their failure. The atmosphere is tense with questions about the disciples' inability to perform the exorcism and likely challenges to their authority from the religious leaders.
[15] Immediately, when they saw Him, all the people were greatly amazed, and running to Him, greeted Him. [16] And He asked the scribes, “What are you discussing with them?”
[17] Then one of the crowd answered and said, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. [18] And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.”
[19] He answered him and said, “O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me.” [20] Then they brought him to Him. And when he saw Him, immediately the spirit convulsed him, and he fell on the ground and wallowed, foaming at the mouth.
[21] So He asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?”
And he said, “From childhood. [22] And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”
[23] Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”
[24] Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”
[25] When Jesus saw that the people came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it: “Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more!” [26] Then the spirit cried out, convulsed him greatly, and came out of him. And he became as one dead, so that many said, “He is dead.” [27] But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose.
[28] And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?”
[29] So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.”