Mark 3

1 And he entered again into a synagogue, and there was a man there who had a withered hand. 2 And they were watching him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might bring a charge against him. 3 And he says to the man who had the withered hand, “Get up, into the middle.” 4 And he says to them, “Is it permitted on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save a life or to kill?” But they were silent.

5 And looking around at them with anger, grieved at the hardening of their heart, he says to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored. [a] 6 And the Pharisees went out and at once, with the Herodians, were giving counsel against him, how they might destroy him.

7 And Jesus with his disciples withdrew to the sea; and a great multitude from Galilee followed, and from Judea 8 and from Jerusalem and from Idumea and beyond the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon — a great multitude, hearing how much he was doing, came to him. 9 And he told his disciples that a small boat should stand ready for him because of the crowd, so that they would not press on him; 10 for he healed many, so that all who had scourges were falling upon him to touch him. [b] 11 And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw him, were falling down before him and crying out, saying, “You are the Son of God.” 12 And he rebuked them much, so that they should not make him known.

13 And he goes up onto the mountain and calls to himself those he himself wanted, and they went away to him. 14 And he made twelve, so that they might be with him and so that he might send them out to proclaim [c] 15 and to have authority to drive out the demons; 16 and he made the twelve, and he put the name Peter on Simon, 17 and James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (and he put on them the names Boanerges, which is Sons of Thunder), [d] † 18 and Andrew and Philip and Bartholomew and Matthew and Thomas and James the son of Alphaeus and Thaddaeus and Simon the Cananaean, [e] 19 and Judas Iscariot, who also handed him over.

20 And he comes into a house; and the crowd comes together again, so that they could not even eat bread. 21 And those close to him, hearing it, went out to take hold of him; for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.” [f] 22 And the scribes who had come down from Jerusalem were saying, “He has Beelzebul,” and, “By the ruler of the demons he drives out the demons.”

23 And calling them to himself he was saying to them in parables, “How can Satan drive out Satan? [g] 24 And if a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand; 25 and if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand; 26 and if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. 27 But no one is able to enter the house of the strong man and plunder his goods unless he first ties up the strong man, and then he will plunder his house.

28 “Amen I tell you that everything will be forgiven the sons of men — the sins and the abusive speech, however much they blaspheme; [h] 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit does not have forgiveness forever, but is guilty of an everlasting sin” — 30 because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

31 And his mother and his brothers come, and standing outside they sent to him, calling him. 32 And a crowd was sitting around him, and they say to him, “Look, your mother and your brothers are outside, looking for you.” [j] 33 And answering them he says, “Who is my mother, or my brothers?” 34 And looking around at those sitting around him in a circle he says, “Look, my mother and my brothers! 35 For whoever does the will of God, this one is my brother and sister and mother.” †