¹ And it was that Samuel was·​·old, and he set his sons as judges for Israel.

² And the name of his firstborn son was Joel; and the name of the second was Abijah. They were judges in Beer-sheba.

³ And his sons walked not in his way, but inclined after gain, and took bribes, and distorted^◦ judgment.^*

⁴ And all the elders of Israel came·​·together, and they came to^▵ Samuel unto Ramah

⁵ and they said to^▵ him, Behold, thou^◦ art·​·old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways; now set over us a king to judge us, as all the nations.

⁶ And the word was·​·evil in the eyes of Samuel, when^▵ they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto^▵ Jehovah.

⁷ And Jehovah said unto^▵ Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people, as to all they say unto^▵ thee; for^◦ they have not rejected thee, but^◦ they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them.

⁸ According·​·to all the deeds which they have done from the day that I brought· them ·up out·​·of Egypt, and even·​·to this day, and they have forsaken Me, and served other gods; so do they also to thee.

⁹ And now, obey their voice; only^▵ testifying testify against^◦ them, and tell them the judgment of the king who shall reign over them.

¹⁰ And Samuel said all the words of Jehovah unto^▵ the people who asked of him a king.

¹¹ And he said, These will be the rights^* of the king that shall reign over you; he will take your sons, and appoint them for his chariots and for his horsemen; and they shall run before his chariots.

¹² And he will set them for himself, as commanders^◦ of thousands and commanders^◦ of fifties, and to plow his plowing, and to harvest his harvest, and to make his instruments of war and the instruments of his chariots.

¹³ And he will take your daughters to be ointment·​·makers, and for cooks^◦ and for bakers.

¹⁴ And he will take your fields and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, the best of them, and give them to his servants.

¹⁵ And he will take a tithe of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his chamberlains and to his servants.

¹⁶ And he will take your menservants, and your handmaids, and your good young·​·men, and your donkeys, to do his work^▵*.

¹⁷ He will take the tithe of your flocks, and you^◦ shall be to him for servants.

¹⁸ And you shall cry out in that^◦ day because of your king whom you shall have chosen for you; and Jehovah will not answer you on that^◦ day.

¹⁹ And the people refused to hearken to the voice of Samuel; and they said, No, but^◦ there shall be a king over us,

²⁰ and we^◦ also may be as all the nations, and our king may judge us, and go·​·out before us, and fight our battles.

²¹ And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he spoke them in the ears of Jehovah.

²² And Jehovah said unto^▵ Samuel, Hearken unto their voice and make a king to reign over them. And Samuel said unto^▵ the men^◦ of Israel, Go^◦ ye every man^◦ unto his city.

¹ He entered again into the synagogue, and there was a man there who had his hand withered.

² They watched him, whether he would heal him on the Sabbath day, that they might accuse him.

³ He said to the man who had his hand withered, "Stand up."

⁴ He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath day to do good, or to do harm? To save a life, or to kill?" But they were silent.

⁵ When he had looked around at them with anger, being grieved at the hardening of their hearts, he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was restored as healthy as the other.

⁶ The Pharisees went out, and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him.

⁷ Jesus withdrew to the sea with his disciples, and a great multitude followed him from Galilee, from Judea,

⁸ from Jerusalem, from Idumaea, beyond the Jordan, and those from around Tyre and Sidon. A great multitude, hearing what great things he did, came to him.

⁹ He spoke to his disciples that a little boat should stay near him because of the crowd, so that they wouldn't press on him.

¹⁰ For he had healed many, so that as many as had diseases pressed on him that they might touch him.

¹¹ The unclean spirits, whenever they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, "You are the Son of God!"

¹² He sternly warned them that they should not make him known.

¹³ He went up into the mountain, and called to himself those whom he wanted, and they went to him.

¹⁴ He appointed twelve, that they might be with him, and that he might send them out to preach,

¹⁵ and to have authority to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons:

¹⁶ Simon, to whom he gave the name Peter;

¹⁷ James the son of Zebedee; John, the brother of James, and he surnamed them Boanerges, which means, Sons of Thunder;

¹⁸ Andrew; Philip; Bartholomew; Matthew; Thomas; James, the son of Alphaeus; Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot;

¹⁹ and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him. He came into a house.

²⁰ The multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.

²¹ When his friends heard it, they went out to seize him: for they said, "He is insane."

²² The scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebul," and, "By the prince of the demons he casts out the demons."

²³ He summoned them, 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 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.

²⁶ If Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he can't stand, but has an end.

²⁷ But no one can enter into the house of the strong man to plunder, unless he first binds the strong man; and then he will plunder his house.

²⁸ Most certainly I tell you, all sins of the descendants of man will be forgiven, including their blasphemies with which they may blaspheme;

²⁹ but whoever may blaspheme against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin"

³⁰ --because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."

³¹ His mother and his brothers came, and standing outside, they sent to him, calling him.

³² A multitude was sitting around him, and they told him, "Behold, your mother, your brothers, and your sisters are outside looking for you."

³³ He answered them, "Who are my mother and my brothers?"

³⁴ Looking around at those who sat around him, he said, "Behold, my mother and my brothers!

³⁵ For whoever does the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother."