Jesus Calls the First Disciples

1On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret,  2and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets.  3Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat.  4And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.”  5And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.”  6And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking.  7They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink.  8But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”  9For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken,  10and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.”  11And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.

Jesus Cleanses a Leper

12While he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.”  13And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him.  14And he charged him to tell no one, but “go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to them.”  15But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities.  16But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.

Jesus Heals a Paralytic

17On one of those days, as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with him to heal.  18And behold, some men were bringing on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and they were seeking to bring him in and lay him before Jesus,  19but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus.  20And when he saw their faith, he said, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.”  21And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”  22When Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts?  23Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’?  24But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.”  25And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, glorifying God.  26And amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.”

Jesus Calls Levi

27After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, “Follow me.”  28And leaving everything, he rose and followed him.

29And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them.  30And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”  31And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  32I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

A Question About Fasting

33And they said to him, “The disciples of John fast often and offer prayers, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink.”  34And Jesus said to them, “Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them?  35The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.”  36He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old.  37And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, 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.  39And no one after drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good.’”