Chapter 5

¹Now it happened, while the multitude pressed on him and heard the word of God, that he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret. ²He saw two boats standing by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them, and were washing their nets. ³He entered into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat. ⁴When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep, and let down your nets for a catch.”

⁵Simon answered him, “Master, we worked all night, and took nothing; but at your word I will let down the net.” ⁶When they had done this, they caught a great multitude of fish, and their net was breaking. ⁷They beckoned to their partners in the other boat, that they should come and help them. They came, and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. ⁸But Simon Peter, when he saw it, fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, Lord.” ⁹For he was amazed, and all who were with him, at the catch of fish which they had caught; ¹⁰and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon.

Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid. From now on you will be catching people alive.”

¹¹When they had brought their boats to land, they left everything, and followed him. ¹²It happened, while he was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man full of leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he fell on his face, and begged him, saying, “Lord, if you want to, you can make me clean.”

¹³He stretched out his hand, and touched him, saying, “I want to. Be made clean.”

Immediately the leprosy left him. ¹⁴He charged him to tell no one, “But go your way, and show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing according to what Moses commanded, for a testimony to them.” ¹⁵But the report concerning him spread much more, and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by him of their infirmities. ¹⁶But he withdrew himself into the desert, and prayed.

¹⁷It happened on one of those days, that he was teaching; and there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every village of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. The power of the Lord was with him to heal them. ¹⁸Behold, men brought a paralyzed man on a cot, and they sought to bring him in to lay before Jesus. ¹⁹Not finding a way to bring him in because of the multitude, they went up to the housetop, and let him down through the tiles with his cot into the midst before Jesus. ²⁰Seeing their faith, he said to him, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.”

²¹The scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, “Who is this that speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?”

²²But Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, answered them, “Why are you reasoning so in your hearts? ²³Which is easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you;’ or to say, ‘Arise and walk?’ ²⁴But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” (he said to the paralyzed man), “I tell you, arise, and take up your cot, and go to your house.”

²⁵Immediately he rose up before them, and took up that which he was laying on, and departed to his house, glorifying God. ²⁶Amazement took hold on all, and they glorified God. They were filled with fear, saying, “We have seen strange things today.”

²⁷After these things he went out, and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax office, and said to him, “Follow me!”

²⁸He left everything, and rose up and followed him. ²⁹Levi made a great feast for him in his house. There was a great crowd of tax collectors and others who were reclining with them. ³⁰Their scribes and the Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?” ³¹Jesus answered them, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do. ³²I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

³³They said to him, “Why do John’s disciples often fast and pray, likewise also the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink?”

³⁴He said to them, “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast, while the bridegroom is with them? ³⁵But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them. Then they will fast in those days.” ³⁶He also told a parable to them. “No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old garment, or else he will tear the new, and also the piece from the new will not match the old. ³⁷No one puts new wine into old wineskins, or else the new wine will burst the skins, and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. ³⁸But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved. ³⁹No man having drunk old wine immediately desires new, for he says, ‘The old is better.’”