Jan 12: Matthew 8
Jesus Cleanses a Man with Leprosy
8 When [a]Jesus came down from the mountain, [b]large crowds followed Him. 2 And a man with [c]leprosy came to Him and [d]bowed down before Him, and said, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” 3 [e]Jesus reached out with His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4 And Jesus *said to him, “See that you tell no one; but go, show yourself to the priest and present the [f]offering that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
The Centurion’s Faith
5 And when [g]Jesus entered Capernaum, a [h]centurion came to Him, begging Him, 6 and saying, “[i]Lord, my [j]servant is lying paralyzed at home, terribly tormented.” 7 Jesus *said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8 But the centurion replied, “[k]Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just [l]say the word, and my [m]servant will be healed. 9 For I also am a man under 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.” 10 Now when Jesus heard this, He was amazed and said to those who were following, “Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith [n]with anyone in Israel. 11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and [o]recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; 12 but the sons of the kingdom will be thrown out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 13 And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; [p]it shall be done for you as you have believed.” And the [q]servant was healed at that very [r]moment.
Peter’s Mother-in-law and Many Others Healed
14 When Jesus came into Peter’s [s]home, He saw his mother-in-law lying sick in bed with a fever. 15 And He touched her hand, and the fever left her; and she got up and [t]waited on Him. 16 Now when evening came, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were ill. 17 This happened so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet would be fulfilled: “He Himself took our illnesses and [u]carried away our diseases.”
Discipleship Tested
18 Now when Jesus saw a crowd around Him, He gave orders to depart to the other side of the sea. 19 Then a scribe came and said to Him, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.” 20 And Jesus *said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”21 And another of the disciples said to Him, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father.” 22 But Jesus *said to him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”
Jesus Calms the Storm
23 When He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. 24 And behold, a [v]violent storm developed on the sea, so that the boat was being covered by the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep.25 And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing!” 26 He *said to them, “Why are you [w]afraid, you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and [x]it became perfectly calm. 27 The men were amazed, and said, “What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”
Jesus Sends Demons into Pigs
28 And when He came to the other side into the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men confronted Him as they were coming out of the tombs. They were so extremely violent that no one could pass by that way. 29 And they cried out, saying, “[y]What business do You have with us, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before [z]the time?” 30 Now there was a herd of many pigs feeding at a distance from them. 31 And the demons begged Him, saying, “If You are going to cast us out, send us into the herd of pigs.” 32 And He said to them, “Go!” And they came out and went into the pigs; and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and [aa]drowned in the waters. 33 And the herdsmen ran away, and went to the city and reported everything, [ab]including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. 34 And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw Him, they pleaded with Him to leave their region.