Jesus Sends the Seventy-Two (Matthew 9:35–38)
1 UDB After that, the Lord Jesus appointed seventy other people to go and preach. He prepared to send them out in pairs to go ahead of him to every town and village where he intended to go. BSB BSB: After this, the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of Him to every town and place He was about to visit.
2 UDB He said to them, "The harvest is certainly plentiful, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord of the harvest and plead with him to send more workers to reap his harvest. BSB BSB: And He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest.
3 UDB Go now, but remember that I am sending you out to tell my message to people who will try to get rid of you. You will be like lambs among wolves. BSB BSB: Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.
4 UDB Do not take along any money. Do not take a traveler's bag. Do not take extra shoes. Do not stop to greet people along the way. BSB BSB: Carry no purse or bag or sandals. Do not greet anyone along the road.
5 UDB Whenever you enter a house, first say to those people, 'May God give peace to you who are in this house!' BSB BSB: Whatever house you enter, begin by saying, ‘Peace to this house.’
7 UDB Stay in that same house until you leave that village. Do not move around from one house to another. Eat and drink whatever they provide for you because a worker deserves to receive payment for his work. BSB BSB: Stay at the same house, eating and drinking whatever you are offered. For the worker is worthy of his wages. Do not move around from house to house.
8 UDB Whenever you enter a town and the people there welcome you, eat whatever food they provide for you. BSB BSB: If you enter a town and they welcome you, eat whatever is set before you.
9 UDB Heal the people there who are sick. Tell them, 'God will soon rule everywhere as king.' BSB BSB: Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God is near you.’
10 UDB But if you enter a town whose people do not welcome you, go into its main streets and say, BSB BSB: But if you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go into the streets and declare,
11 UDB 'As a warning against you, we will wipe off even the dust that sticks to our feet as we are leaving your town. Yet be sure of this: God will soon rule everything as king.' BSB BSB: ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off as a testimony against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.’
12 UDB I tell you that on the final day when God judges everyone, the people of that town will be punished even more severely than the wicked people who lived long ago in the city of Sodom! BSB BSB: I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.
Woe to the Unrepentant (Matthew 11:20–24)
13 UDB "How terrible it will be for you people who live in the cities of Chorazin and Bethsaida because you refuse to repent! If the miracles that I performed for you had been done in the ancient cities of Tyre and Sidon, the wicked people who lived there would long ago have shown that they were sorry for their sins by sitting on the ground wearing coarse cloth and putting ashes on their heads. BSB BSB: Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
14 UDB So on the final day when God judges everyone, he will punish you more severely than the wicked people who lived in Tyre and Sidon because you did not repent and believe in me, even though you saw me do miracles! BSB BSB: But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.
15 UDB I also have something to say to you people who live in the town of Capernaum. Do you think you will be honored up in heaven? On the contrary, you will be brought down to the place of the dead!" BSB BSB: And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades!
16 UDB Jesus also said to the disciples, "Whoever listens to your message is listening to me, and whoever rejects your message is rejecting me. And whoever rejects me is rejecting God, the one who sent me." BSB BSB: Whoever listens to you listens to Me; whoever rejects you rejects Me; and whoever rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”
The Joyful Return 17 UDB The seventy people whom Jesus appointed went and did as he told them to do. When they returned, they were very joyful. They said, "Lord, even the demons obeyed us when by your authority we commanded them to leave people!" BSB BSB: The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in Your name.”
18 UDB He replied, "While you were away doing that, I saw Satan fall from heaven as suddenly and quickly as lightning strikes! BSB BSB: So He told them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.
19 UDB Listen! I have given you the right to attack evil spirits. They will not hurt you. I have given you the right to be stronger than our enemy, Satan. Nothing will hurt you at all. BSB BSB: Behold, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will harm you.
20 UDB But as you rejoice that evil spirits obey you, you should rejoice even more that your names have been written in heaven." BSB BSB: Nevertheless, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
Jesus’ Prayer of Thanksgiving (Matthew 11:25–30)
21 UDB Right then, Jesus was filled with great joy from the Holy Spirit. He said, "Father, you are Lord over everything in heaven and on earth. Some people think that they are wise because they are well educated. But I praise you that you have prevented them from knowing these things. Instead, you have revealed them to people who accept your truth as readily as little children do. Yes, Father, you have done that because it pleased you to do so." BSB BSB: At that time Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was well-pleasing in Your sight.
22 UDB Jesus also said to the disciples, "God, my Father, has given everything to me. Only my Father really knows me, his Son. Furthermore, only I, the Son, really know who the Father is—that is, only I and those people to whom I choose to reveal him really know him." BSB BSB: All things have been entrusted to Me by My Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.”
23 UDB Then when his disciples were alone with him, he turned toward them and said, "God has given you a great gift by letting you see the things that I have done! BSB BSB: Then Jesus turned to the disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.
24 UDB I want you to know that many prophets and kings who lived long ago desired to see the things that you are seeing me do, but they could not, because those things did not happen then. They longed to hear the things that you have been hearing me say, but I had not yet revealed those things at that time." BSB BSB: For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”
The Parable of the Good Samaritan 25 UDB One day an expert in the Jewish law came to the place where Jesus was teaching. He wanted to test Jesus by asking him a difficult question. So he stood up and asked, "Teacher, what must I do in order to live with God forever?" BSB BSB: One day an expert in the law stood up to test Him. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
26 UDB Jesus said to him, "You have read what Moses has written in the laws that God gave him. What do the laws say?" BSB BSB: “What is written in the Law?” Jesus replied. “How do you read it?”
27 UDB The man replied, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind. And love your neighbor as much as you love yourself." BSB BSB: He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’ and ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
28 UDB Jesus replied, "You have answered correctly. If you do all that, you will live with God forever." BSB BSB: “You have answered correctly,” Jesus said. “Do this and you will live.”
29 UDB But the man wanted to find a reason to justify the way he treated other people. So he said to Jesus, "Which people are my neighbors that I should love?" BSB BSB: But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30 UDB Jesus replied, "One day, a Jewish man was traveling along the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. As he was traveling, some bandits attacked him. They took away most of the man's clothes and everything else that he had, and they beat him until he was almost dead. Then they left him. BSB BSB: Jesus took up this question and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead.
31 UDB It happened that a Jewish priest was going along that road. When he saw that man, instead of helping him, he passed by on the other side of the road. BSB BSB: Now by chance a priest was going down the same road, but when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32 UDB Similarly, a Levite, who worked in God's temple, came to that place and saw the man. But he also passed by on the other side of the road. BSB BSB: So too, when a Levite came to that spot and saw him, he passed by on the other side.
33 UDB Then a man from the region of Samaria came along that road to where the man was lying. When he saw that man, he pitied him. BSB BSB: But a Samaritan on a journey came upon him, and when he saw him, he had compassion.
34 UDB He went close to him and put some olive oil and wine on the wounds to help heal them. He wrapped strips of cloth around the wounds. Then he placed the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn and took care of him. BSB BSB: He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
35 UDB The next morning he gave two silver coins to the innkeeper and said, 'Take care of this man. If you spend more than this amount to care for him, I will pay you back when I return.'" BSB BSB: The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Take care of him,’ he said, ‘and on my return I will repay you for any additional expense.’
36 UDB Then Jesus said, "Three people saw the man whom bandits attacked. Which one of them showed he was a true neighbor to the man?" BSB BSB: Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
37 UDB The teacher of the law replied, "The one who acted mercifully toward him." Jesus said to him, "Yes, so now you should go and act like that toward everyone whom you can help!" BSB BSB: “The one who showed him mercy,” replied the expert in the law. Then Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
Martha and Mary 39 UDB Her younger sister, whose name was Mary, was sitting near Jesus's feet. She was listening to what he was teaching. BSB BSB: She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to His message.
40 UDB But Martha was very much concerned about preparing the meal. She went to Jesus and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to prepare everything by myself? Please tell her that she should help me!" BSB BSB: But Martha was distracted by all the preparations to be made. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her to help me!”
41 UDB But the Lord replied, "Martha, Martha, you are very worried about many things. BSB BSB: “Martha, Martha,” the Lord replied, “you are worried and upset about many things.
42 UDB But the only thing that is truly necessary is to listen to what I am teaching. Mary has made the best choice. The blessing that she is receiving from doing that will not be taken away from her." BSB BSB: But only one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, and it will not be taken away from her.”