Matthew 12
1Around that time, Jesus walked through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His students were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and eat them. 2When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, "Look! Your students are doing what is not permitted on the Sabbath."
3But he said to them, "Have you not read what David did when he and those with him were hungry? 4How he entered the house of God and they ate the Bread of the Presence—which was not permitted for him to eat, nor for those with him, but only for the priests? 5Or have you not read in the Torah that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and yet are innocent? 6I tell you that something greater than the temple is here. 7If you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent. 8For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."
9Moving on from there, he went into their synagogue. 10And look, there was a man with a withered hand. To find an accusation against Jesus, they questioned him, "Is it permitted to heal on the Sabbath?"
11He said to them, "Which of you, if you have a single sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out? 12How much more valuable is a human being than a sheep! So then, it is permitted to do good on the Sabbath." 13Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and it was restored to health, just like the other one. 14But the Pharisees went out and conspired against him, plotting how they might destroy him.
15Aware of this, Jesus withdrew from there. Large crowds followed him, and he healed them all, 16but he strictly ordered them not to make him known. 17This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:
18"Look, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom my soul delights; I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations. 19He will not wrangle or cry out, nor will anyone hear his voice in the wide streets. 20A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not extinguish, until he leads justice to victory. 21And in his name the nations will hope."
22Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to him. Jesus healed him, so that the man could both speak and see. 23All the crowds were amazed and began to say, "Could this be the Son of David?"
24But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, "This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons."
25Knowing their deliberations, Jesus said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to ruin, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. 26If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? 27And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason, they will be your judges. 28But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
29Or how can someone enter the house of a strong man and plunder his possessions unless he first binds the strong man? Then he will plunder his house. 30Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
31Because of this, I tell you, every sin and defamation will be forgiven people, but defamation of the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
33Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree rotten and its fruit rotten; for the tree is known by its fruit. 34You brood of vipers! How can you speak good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks from the heart's overflow. 35The good person brings good things out of a good treasure-store, and the evil person brings evil things out of an evil treasure-store. 36I tell you that for every careless word people speak, they will give an account on the day of judgment. 37For by your words you will be declared just, and by your words you will be condemned."
38Then some of the scholars and Pharisees answered him, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from you."
39But he answered them, "A wicked and unfaithful generation demands a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40For just as Jonah was in the belly of the sea-monster for three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights. 41The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they changed their minds at the preaching of Jonah—and look, something greater than Jonah is here! 42The Queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon—and look, something greater than Solomon is here!
43When an unclean spirit comes out of a person, it wanders through waterless places seeking rest but finds none. 44Then it says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept, and put in order. 45Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and settle there. The final state of that person becomes worse than the first. So it will be also for this wicked generation."
46While he was still speaking to the crowds, look, his mother and his brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. 47Someone told him, "Look, your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you."
48But he replied to the one telling him, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?" 49And stretching out his hand toward his students, he said, "Look, here are my mother and my brothers! 50For whoever does the will of my Father in the heavens is my brother and sister and mother."