Mar 6 | BSB | STEP | [Jesus] went on from there and came to His hometown, accompanied by His disciples.

‏ Mark 6

The Rejection at Nazareth

1 [Jesus] went on from there and came to His hometown, accompanied by His disciples. 2 [When] [the] Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard [Him] were astonished. “Where [did] this [man get] these [ideas] ?” they asked. “ - What [is] [this] wisdom He has been given? And [how can] He perform such miracles? 3 Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary and [the] brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon? Aren’t His sisters here with us as well?” And they took offense at Him. 4 Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is without honor only in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his [own] household.” 5 [So] He could not perform [any] miracles there, except to lay [His] hands on a few of the sick [and] heal [them] . 6 And He was amazed at their unbelief. And He went around from village to village, teaching [the people] .

The Ministry of the Twelve

7 Then [Jesus] called the Twelve {to Him} and began to send them out two [by] two, giving them authority over unclean spirits. 8 He instructed them to take nothing but a staff for [the] journey— no bread, no bag, no money in their belts— 9 [and] to wear sandals, [but] not a second tunic. 10 And He told them, “When you enter a house, stay there until you leave that area. 11 If anyone will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that place, as a testimony against them.” ^{▼▼BYZ and TR include Truly I tell you, It will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that town.} 12 [So] they set out [and] preached that [the people] should repent. 13 They also drove out many demons and healed many of the sick, anointing [them] with oil.

The Beheading of John

14 Now King Herod heard about this, for [Jesus’] name had become well known, and [people] were saying, “John the Baptist has risen from [the] dead! That is why miraculous powers are at work in him.” 15 Others said, “He is Elijah,” and still others, “ [He is] a prophet, like one of the prophets [of old] .” 16 But when Herod heard this, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised [from the dead] !” 17 For Herod himself had ordered that John be arrested and bound [and] imprisoned, on account of his brother Philip’s wife Herodias, [whom] [Herod] had married. 18 For John had been telling Herod, “vvv It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife!” 19 So Herodias held a grudge against [John] and wanted to kill him. But she had been unable, 20 because Herod feared John and protected him, knowing he [was] a righteous and holy man. When he heard [John’s words] , he was greatly perplexed; yet he listened to him gladly. 21 On [Herod’s] birthday, [her] opportunity arose. Herod held a banquet for his nobles and military commanders, as well as the leading [men] of Galilee. 22 [When] the daughter of Herodias came and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests, and the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give [it] to you.” 23 And he swore to her, “Whatever you ask of me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom!” 24 Then she went out [and] said to her mother, “What should I ask for?” And [Herodias] answered, “The head of John the Baptist.” 25 At once [the girl] hurried back to the king with her request: “I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist on a platter immediately.” 26 The king was overwhelmed with sorrow, but because of [his] oaths and his guests, he did not want to refuse her. 27 So without delay, the king commanded that John’s head be brought in. He sent an executioner who went [and] beheaded him in the prison. 28 [The man] brought [John’s] head on a platter and presented it to the girl, [who] gave it to her mother. 29 When [John’s] disciples heard about [this] , they came and took his body and laid it in [a] tomb.

The Feeding of the Five Thousand

30 Meanwhile, the apostles gathered around Jesus and brought Him news of all they had done and taught. 31 And He said to them, “Come with Me privately to [a] solitary place, and let us rest for a while.” For many [people] were coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat. 32 So they went away in a boat by themselves to a solitary place. 33 But many [people] saw them leaving and recognized [them] . They ran together on foot from all the towns and arrived before them. 34 When [Jesus] stepped ashore [and] saw a large crowd, He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And He began to teach them many things. 35 By now the hour was already late. [So] the disciples came to [Jesus] [and] said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour [is] already late. 36 Dismiss [the crowd] so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages [and] buy themselves something to eat.” 37 But [Jesus] told them, “You give them [something] to eat.” They asked Him, “Should we go out [and] spend two hundred denarii ^{▼▼A denarius was customarily a day's wage for a laborer (see Matthew 20:2)} to give all of them bread to eat?” 38 “Go [and] see how many loaves you have,” He told them. And after checking, they said, “Five— and two fish.” 39 Then [Jesus] directed them to have [the people] sit in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. 41 Taking the five loaves and the two fish [and] looking up to heaven, [Jesus] spoke a blessing and broke the loaves. Then He gave [them] to His disciples to set before [the people] . And He divided the two fish among them all. 42 {They} all ate and were satisfied, 43 and [the disciples] picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. 44 And there were five thousand men who had eaten the loaves.

Jesus Walks on Water

45 Immediately [Jesus] made His disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of [Him] to Bethsaida, while He dismissed the crowd. 46 After bidding them farewell, He went up on the mountain to pray. 47 When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and [Jesus was] alone on land. 48 He could see that [the disciples] were straining to row, because the wind was against them. About [the] fourth watch of the night, [Jesus] went out to them, walking on the sea. He intended to pass by them, 49 but when they saw Him walking on the sea, they cried out, thinking [He] was a ghost— 50 for they all saw Him and were terrified. But [Jesus] spoke up at once: “Take courage! [It] is I. {Do} not be afraid.” 51 Then He climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. And [the disciples were] utterly astounded, 52 for they had not understood about the loaves, but their hearts had been hardened.

Jesus Heals at Gennesaret

53 When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret and moored [the boat] . 54 As soon as they got out of the boat, [the people] recognized [Jesus] 55 [and] ran through that whole region, carrying the sick on mats to wherever they heard He was. 56 And wherever He went— villages [and] towns [and] countrysides— they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged Him to let them just touch the fringe of His cloak. And all who touched Him were healed.