1-2◄This is/I want to tell you► the good message about Jesus Christ, the Son of God (OR, the man who was also God). What I want to tell you begins just like the prophet Isaiah said it would begin, when he wrote these words that God said to Jesus: Listen! I am sending my messenger ahead of you. He will prepare people for your coming.
3He will call out to people who pass by where he is in the desolate area, “As people improve and straighten out pathways before an important official arrives [MET], make yourselves ready [DOU] in order that you will be prepared when the Lord comes.”
4The messenger that Isaiah predicted was John. People called him ‘The Baptizer’. In the desolate area near the Jordan River he kept telling people, “If you want God to forgive you for having sinned, you must turn away from your sinful behavior before you ask me to baptize you.”
5A great number [HYP] of people who lived in Jerusalem city and elsewhere in the Judea district were going out to where John was. There, after hearing John’s message, they responded by confessing the sinful things that they had done. Then they were being baptized by John {John was baptizing them} in the Jordan River.
6John wore rough clothes made of camel’s hair. And as the prophet Elijah had done, he wore a leather belt around his waist; and what he ate was only grasshoppers and honey that he found in that desolate area.
7He was preaching, “Very shortly a man will come who is very great. I am nothing compared to him. Because he is so superior to me, I am not even worthy to serve him like a slave by stooping down and untying his sandals.
8I used only water when I baptized you because you said that you wanted to change your lives, but he will put his Holy Spirit within you to truly change your lives.”
9During that time when John was preaching, Jesus came from Nazareth town, which is in Galilee district. He went to where John was preaching and he was baptized by John {John baptized him} in the Jordan River.
10Immediately after Jesus came up out of the water, he saw heaven opened up and he saw the Spirit of God descending on himself. He came in the form of a dove.
11And God [MTY] spoke to him from heaven saying, “You are my Son, whom I love dearly. I am very pleased with you.”
12◄Then/Right away► the Spirit of God sent Jesus into the desolate area.
13He was there for 40 days. During that time, he was tempted by Satan {Satan tempted him}. There were wild animals there also. But angels took care of him.
14Later, after John was put in prison {after soldiers put John in prison} because he had rebuked the governor Herod Antipas for his sins, Jesus went to Galilee district. There he was preaching the good message that came from God.
15He was repeatedly saying, “Now is the time when God will begin to rule people’s lives in a new way. So turn away from your sinful behavior! Believe the good message in order ◄to belong to him/to become those whose lives he will rule►!”
16One day, while Jesus was walking along by Galilee Lake, he saw two men, Simon and Simon’s younger brother, Andrew. They were casting their fishing net into the lake. They earned money by catching and selling fish.
17Then Jesus said to them, “Just like you have been gathering fish, come with me and I will teach you how to gather people to become my disciples” [MET].
18Immediately they abandoned the work that they were doing with their nets, and they went with him.
19After they had gone on a little further, Jesus saw two other men, James and James’ younger brother, John. They were the sons of a man named Zebedee. They were both in a boat mending fishing nets.
20As soon as Jesus saw them, he told them that they should leave their work and to come with him. So they left their father, who remained in the boat with the hired servants, and they went away with Jesus.
21Later Jesus and those disciples arrived at Capernaum town. On the next ◄Sabbath/Jewish rest day►, after Jesus had entered ◄the synagogue/the Jewish meeting place►, he began teaching the people who had gathered there.
22They were continually amazed at the way he taught. He did not just teach what others had taught, like the men who teach the Jewish laws did. They habitually just repeated what other people had taught. Instead, he taught with his own authority.
23Suddenly, while he was teaching, a man appeared in their worship place who had an evil spirit in him, and he shouted,
24“Jesus, from Nazareth town, since we evil spirits have nothing in common with you, ◄do not interfere with us!/what do you want with us evil spirits?► [RHQ] ◄Do not destroy us now!/Have you come to destroy us now?► [RHQ] I know who you are. I know that you are the holy one who has come from God!”
25Jesus rebuked the evil spirit, saying, “Be quiet! And come out of the man!”
26The evil spirit shook the man hard. He screamed loudly, and then he came out of the man and left.
27All the people who were there were amazed. As a result, they discussed this among themselves, exclaiming, “◄This is amazing!/What is this?► [RHQ] Not only does he teach in a new and authoritative way, but also the evil spirits obey him when he commands them!”
28The people very soon told many others throughout the whole Galilee district what Jesus had done.
29After they left ◄the synagogue/the Jewish meeting place►, Jesus, Simon and Andrew, along with James and John went directly to Simon and Andrew’s house.
30Simon’s mother-in-law was lying in bed because she had a high fever. Right away someone told Jesus about her being sick.
31He went to her, and helped her up by taking hold of her hand. She recovered at once from the fever, and then she got up and served them some food.
32That evening, after the sun had gone down and restrictions about travel on the Sabbath/on the Jewish rest day► were ended, some people brought to Jesus many people who were sick and others whose lives evil spirits were controlling.
33It seemed as though everyone [HYP, MTY] who lived in the town was gathered at the doorway of Simon’s house.
34Jesus healed many people who were ill with various diseases. He also expelled many demons from people. He did not allow the demons to tell people about him, because they knew that he had come from God, and for various reasons he did not want everyone to know that yet.
35Jesus got up very early the next morning while it was still dark. He left the house and went away from the town to a place where there were no people. Then he prayed there.
36Simon and his companions searched for him. When they found him, wanting him to go back to town to help other people, they said to him,
37“Come back to the town with us, because many [HYP] people in Capernaum are looking for you!”
38He said to them, “No, let’s go on to the neighboring towns in order that I can preach there also, because the reason that I came into the world was to preach to people in many places!”
39So they went throughout Galilee district. As they did so, each ◄Sabbath/Jewish rest day► he preached in ◄synagogues/Jewish meeting places►. He was also expelling evil spirits from people.
40One day a man who had a bad skin disease called leprosy came to Jesus. He knelt down in front of Jesus and then he pleaded with him saying, “Please heal me, because I know you are able to heal me if you want to!”
41Jesus felt very sorry for him. So he ignored the religious laws about coming close to people who had that disease. He reached out his hand and touched the man. Then he said to him, “Since I am willing to heal you, be healed {I heal you} now!”
42Immediately the man was healed! He was no longer a leper!
43Jesus spoke sternly to him before he sent him away.
44What Jesus said was, “Go to a local priest and show yourself to him in order that he may examine you and verify that you are healed. Then, after the priest tells the local people, they will know that you have been healed, and you will be able to associate with them again. Make sure that you do not tell others about what happened Then go to Jerusalem and take to the priest what Moses commanded that people who have been healed from leprosy should offer, in order that he may offer it as a sacrifice to God.”
45The man went and presented himself to the priest. But then he began to tell many people about how Jesus had healed him [DOU]. As a result, Jesus was no longer able to enter any town publicly because the crowds would surround him. Instead, he remained outside the towns in places where no people lived. But people kept coming to him from all over that region.