Mar 3 | Comm | STEP | He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.

‏ Mark 3

1 He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand. 2 And they watched him closely, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3 And he said to the man who had the withered hand, "Come here." 4 Then he said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?" But they kept silent. 5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at the hardness of their hearts, and said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him. 7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great multitude from Galilee followed; also from Judea 8 and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan and from around Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they heard how many things he was doing, came to him. 9 And he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they should crush him. 10 For he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him. 11 And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, "You are the Son of God." 12 But he strictly ordered them not to make him known.

13 And he went up on the mountain, and called to him those he himself wanted. And they came to him. 14 Then he appointed twelve, that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach, 15 and to have authority to cast out the demons: 16 Simon, to whom he gave the name Peter; 17 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, "Sons of Thunder"; 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot; 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. 20 Then he went home; and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat. 21 When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, "He is out of his mind."

22 And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He is possessed by Beelzebub, and by the prince of demons he casts out the demons." 23 So he called them to himself and said to them in parables: "How can Satan cast out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26 And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. 27 No one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house. 28 Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter; 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin"— 30 because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."

31 Then his brothers and his mother came. And standing outside they sent to him, and called him. 32 And a crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him, "Your mother and your brothers are outside, asking for you." 33 And he replied, "Who are my mother and my brothers?" 34 And he looked at those who sat in a circle around him, and said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 Whoever does the will of God is my brother, and sister, and mother."