1
After this the Lord chose another seventy-two men and sent them out two by two, to go ahead of him to every town and place where he himself was about to go.
2
He said to them, "There is a large harvest, but few workers to gather it in. Pray to the owner of the harvest that he will send out workers to gather in his harvest.
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Go! I am sending you like lambs among wolves.
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Don't take a purse or a beggar's bag or shoes; don't stop to greet anyone on the road.
5
Whenever you go into a house, first say, 'Peace be with this house.'
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If someone who is peace-loving lives there, let your greeting of peace remain on that person; if not, take back your greeting of peace.
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Stay in that same house, eating and drinking whatever they offer you, for workers should be given their pay. Don't move around from one house to another.
8
Whenever you go into a town and are made welcome, eat what is set before you,
9
heal the sick in that town, and say to the people there, 'The Kingdom of God has come near you.'
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But whenever you go into a town and are not welcomed, go out in the streets and say,
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'Even the dust from your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. But remember that the Kingdom of God has come near you!'
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I assure you that on the Judgment Day God will show more mercy to Sodom than to that town!
13
"How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible for you too, Bethsaida! If the miracles which were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, the people there would have long ago sat down, put on sackcloth, and sprinkled ashes on themselves, to show that they had turned from their sins!
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God will show more mercy on the Judgment Day to Tyre and Sidon than to you.
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And as for you, Capernaum! Did you want to lift yourself up to heaven? You will be thrown down to hell!"
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Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me."
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The seventy-two men came back in great joy. "Lord," they said, "even the demons obeyed us when we gave them a command in your name!"
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Jesus answered them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.
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Listen! I have given you authority, so that you can walk on snakes and scorpions and overcome all the power of the Enemy, and nothing will hurt you.
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But don't be glad because the evil spirits obey you; rather be glad because your names are written in heaven."
21
At that time Jesus was filled with joy by the Holy Spirit and said, "Father, Lord of heaven and earth! I thank you because you have shown to the unlearned what you have hidden from the wise and learned. Yes, Father, this was how you were pleased to have it happen.
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"My Father has given me all things. 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."
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Then Jesus turned to the disciples and said to them privately, "How fortunate you are to see the things you see!
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I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see, but they could not, and to hear what you hear, but they did not."
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A teacher of the Law came up and tried to trap Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to receive eternal life?"
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Jesus answered him, "What do the Scriptures say? How do you interpret them?"
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The man answered, " '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 you love yourself.' "
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"You are right," Jesus replied; "do this and you will live."
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But the teacher of the Law wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "Who is my neighbor?"
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Jesus answered, "There was once a man who was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho when robbers attacked him, stripped him, and beat him up, leaving him half dead.
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It so happened that a priest was going down that road; but when he saw the man, he walked on by on the other side.
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In the same way a Levite also came there, went over and looked at the man, and then walked on by on the other side.
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But a Samaritan who was traveling that way came upon the man, and when he saw him, his heart was filled with pity.
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He went over to him, poured oil and wine on his wounds and bandaged them; then he put the man on his own animal and took him to an inn, where he took care of him.
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The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Take care of him,' he told the innkeeper, 'and when I come back this way, I will pay you whatever else you spend on him.' "
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And Jesus concluded, "In your opinion, which one of these three acted like a neighbor toward the man attacked by the robbers?"
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The teacher of the Law answered, "The one who was kind to him." Jesus replied, "You go, then, and do the same."
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As Jesus and his disciples went on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha welcomed him in her home.
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She had a sister named Mary, who sat down at the feet of the Lord and listened to his teaching.
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Martha was upset over all the work she had to do, so she came and said, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself ? Tell her to come and help me!"
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The Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha! You are worried and troubled over so many things,
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but just one is needed. Mary has chosen the right thing, and it will not be taken away from her."
1
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."
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Jesus said to them, "When you pray, say this: 'Father: May your holy name be honored; may your Kingdom come.
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Give us day by day the food we need.
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Forgive us our sins, for we forgive everyone who does us wrong. And do not bring us to hard testing.' "
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And Jesus said to his disciples, "Suppose one of you should go to a friend's house at midnight and say, 'Friend, let me borrow three loaves of bread.
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A friend of mine who is on a trip has just come to my house, and I don't have any food for him!'
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And suppose your friend should answer from inside, 'Don't bother me! The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can't get up and give you anything.'
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Well, what then? I tell you that even if he will not get up and give you the bread because you are his friend, yet he will get up and give you everything you need because you are not ashamed to keep on asking.
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And so I say to you: Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.
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For those who ask will receive, and those who seek will find, and the door will be opened to anyone who knocks.
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Would any of you who are fathers give your son a snake when he asks for fish?
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Or would you give him a scorpion when he asks for an egg?
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As bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
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Jesus was driving out a demon that could not talk; and when the demon went out, the man began to talk. The crowds were amazed,
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but some of the people said, "It is Beelzebul, the chief of the demons, who gives him the power to drive them out."
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Others wanted to trap Jesus, so they asked him to perform a miracle to show that God approved of him.
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But Jesus knew what they were thinking, so he said to them, "Any country that divides itself into groups which fight each other will not last very long; a family divided against itself falls apart.
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So if Satan's kingdom has groups fighting each other, how can it last? You say that I drive out demons because Beelzebul gives me the power to do so.
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If this is how I drive them out, how do your followers drive them out? Your own followers prove that you are wrong!
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No, it is rather by means of God's power that I drive out demons, and this proves that the Kingdom of God has already come to you.
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"When a strong man, with all his weapons ready, guards his own house, all his belongings are safe.
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But when a stronger man attacks him and defeats him, he carries away all the weapons the owner was depending on and divides up what he stole.
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"Anyone who is not for me is really against me; anyone who does not help me gather is really scattering.
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"When an evil spirit goes out of a person, it travels over dry country looking for a place to rest. If it can't find one, it says to itself, 'I will go back to my house.'
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So it goes back and finds the house clean and all fixed up.
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Then it goes out and brings seven other spirits even worse than itself, and they come and live there. So when it is all over, that person is in worse shape than at the beginning."
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When Jesus had said this, a woman spoke up from the crowd and said to him, "How happy is the woman who bore you and nursed you!"
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But Jesus answered, "Rather, how happy are those who hear the word of God and obey it!"
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As the people crowded around Jesus, he went on to say, "How evil are the people of this day! They ask for a miracle, but none will be given them except the miracle of Jonah.
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In the same way that the prophet Jonah was a sign for the people of Nineveh, so the Son of Man will be a sign for the people of this day.
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On the Judgment Day the Queen of Sheba will stand up and accuse the people of today, because she traveled all the way from her country to listen to King Solomon's wise teaching; and there is something here, I tell you, greater than Solomon.
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On the Judgment Day the people of Nineveh will stand up and accuse you, because they turned from their sins when they heard Jonah preach; and I assure you that there is something here greater than Jonah!
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"No one lights a lamp and then hides it or puts it under a bowl; instead, it is put on the lampstand, so that people may see the light as they come in.
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Your eyes are like a lamp for the body. When your eyes are sound, your whole body is full of light; but when your eyes are no good, your whole body will be in darkness.
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Make certain, then, that the light in you is not darkness.
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If your whole body is full of light, with no part of it in darkness, it will be bright all over, as when a lamp shines on you with its brightness."
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When Jesus finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him; so he went in and sat down to eat.
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The Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus had not washed before eating.
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So the Lord said to him, "Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of your cup and plate, but inside you are full of violence and evil.
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Fools! Did not God, who made the outside, also make the inside?
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But give what is in your cups and plates to the poor, and everything will be ritually clean for you.
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"How terrible for you Pharisees! You give to God one tenth of the seasoning herbs, such as mint and rue and all the other herbs, but you neglect justice and love for God. These you should practice, without neglecting the others.
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"How terrible for you Pharisees! You love the reserved seats in the synagogues and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces.
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How terrible for you! You are like unmarked graves which people walk on without knowing it."
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One of the teachers of the Law said to him, "Teacher, when you say this, you insult us too!"
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Jesus answered, "How terrible also for you teachers of the Law! You put onto people's backs loads which are hard to carry, but you yourselves will not stretch out a finger to help them carry those loads.
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How terrible for you! You make fine tombs for the prophets---the very prophets your ancestors murdered.
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You yourselves admit, then, that you approve of what your ancestors did; they murdered the prophets, and you build their tombs.
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For this reason the Wisdom of God said, 'I will send them prophets and messengers; they will kill some of them and persecute others.'
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So the people of this time will be punished for the murder of all the prophets killed since the creation of the world,
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from the murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the Holy Place. Yes, I tell you, the people of this time will be punished for them all!
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"How terrible for you teachers of the Law! You have kept the key that opens the door to the house of knowledge; you yourselves will not go in, and you stop those who are trying to go in!"
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When Jesus left that place, the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees began to criticize him bitterly and ask him questions about many things,
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trying to lay traps for him and catch him saying something wrong.
1
As thousands of people crowded together, so that they were stepping on each other, Jesus said first to his disciples, "Be on guard against the yeast of the Pharisees---I mean their hypocrisy.
2
Whatever is covered up will be uncovered, and every secret will be made known.
3
So then, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in broad daylight, and whatever you have whispered in private in a closed room will be shouted from the housetops.
4
"I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot afterward do anything worse.
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I will show you whom to fear: fear God, who, after killing, has the authority to throw into hell. Believe me, he is the one you must fear!
6
"Aren't five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one sparrow is forgotten by God.
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Even the hairs of your head have all been counted. So do not be afraid; you are worth much more than many sparrows!
8
"I assure you that those who declare publicly that they belong to me, the Son of Man will do the same for them before the angels of God.
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But those who reject me publicly, the Son of Man will also reject them before the angels of God.
10
"Whoever says a word against the Son of Man can be forgiven; but whoever says evil things against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.
11
"When they bring you to be tried in the synagogues or before governors or rulers, do not be worried about how you will defend yourself or what you will say.
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For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say."
13
A man in the crowd said to Jesus, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide with me the property our father left us."
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Jesus answered him, "Friend, who gave me the right to judge or to divide the property between you two?"
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And he went on to say to them all, "Watch out and guard yourselves from every kind of greed; because your true life is not made up of the things you own, no matter how rich you may be."
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Then Jesus told them this parable: "There was once a rich man who had land which bore good crops.
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He began to think to himself, 'I don't have a place to keep all my crops. What can I do?
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This is what I will do,' he told himself; 'I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, where I will store the grain and all my other goods.
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Then I will say to myself, Lucky man! You have all the good things you need for many years. Take life easy, eat, drink, and enjoy yourself !'
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But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night you will have to give up your life; then who will get all these things you have kept for yourself ? ' "
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And Jesus concluded, "This is how it is with those who pile up riches for themselves but are not rich in God's sight."
22
Then Jesus said to the disciples, "And so I tell you not to worry about the food you need to stay alive or about the clothes you need for your body.
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Life is much more important than food, and the body much more important than clothes.
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Look at the crows: they don't plant seeds or gather a harvest; they don't have storage rooms or barns; God feeds them! You are worth so much more than birds!
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Can any of you live a bit longer by worrying about it?
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If you can't manage even such a small thing, why worry about the other things?
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Look how the wild flowers grow: they don't work or make clothes for themselves. But I tell you that not even King Solomon with all his wealth had clothes as beautiful as one of these flowers.
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It is God who clothes the wild grass---grass that is here today and gone tomorrow, burned up in the oven. Won't he be all the more sure to clothe you? What little faith you have!
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"So don't be all upset, always concerned about what you will eat and drink.
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(For the pagans of this world are always concerned about all these things.) Your Father knows that you need these things.
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Instead, be concerned with his Kingdom, and he will provide you with these things.
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"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the Kingdom.
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Sell all your belongings and give the money to the poor. Provide for yourselves purses that don't wear out, and save your riches in heaven, where they will never decrease, because no thief can get to them, and no moth can destroy them.
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For your heart will always be where your riches are.
35
"Be ready for whatever comes, dressed for action and with your lamps lit,
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like servants who are waiting for their master to come back from a wedding feast. When he comes and knocks, they will open the door for him at once.
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How happy are those servants whose master finds them awake and ready when he returns! I tell you, he will take off his coat, have them sit down, and will wait on them.
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How happy they are if he finds them ready, even if he should come at midnight or even later!
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And you can be sure that if the owner of a house knew the time when the thief would come, he would not let the thief break into his house.
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And you, too, must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you are not expecting him."
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Peter said, "Lord, does this parable apply to us, or do you mean it for everyone?"
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The Lord answered, "Who, then, is the faithful and wise servant? He is the one that his master will put in charge, to run the household and give the other servants their share of the food at the proper time.
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How happy that servant is if his master finds him doing this when he comes home!
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Indeed, I tell you, the master will put that servant in charge of all his property.
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But if that servant says to himself that his master is taking a long time to come back and if he begins to beat the other servants, both the men and the women, and eats and drinks and gets drunk,
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then the master will come back one day when the servant does not expect him and at a time he does not know. The master will cut him in pieces and make him share the fate of the disobedient.
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"The servant who knows what his master wants him to do, but does not get himself ready and do it, will be punished with a heavy whipping.
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But the servant who does not know what his master wants, and yet does something for which he deserves a whipping, will be punished with a light whipping. Much is required from the person to whom much is given; much more is required from the person to whom much more is given.
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"I came to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already kindled!
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I have a baptism to receive, and how distressed I am until it is over!
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Do you suppose that I came to bring peace to the world? No, not peace, but division.
52
From now on a family of five will be divided, three against two and two against three.
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Fathers will be against their sons, and sons against their fathers; mothers will be against their daughters, and daughters against their mothers; mothers-in-law will be against their daughters-in-law, and daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law."
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Jesus said also to the people, "When you see a cloud coming up in the west, at once you say that it is going to rain---and it does.
55
And when you feel the south wind blowing, you say that it is going to get hot---and it does.
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Hypocrites! You can look at the earth and the sky and predict the weather; why, then, don't you know the meaning of this present time?
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"Why do you not judge for yourselves the right thing to do?
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If someone brings a lawsuit against you and takes you to court, do your best to settle the dispute before you get to court. If you don't, you will be dragged before the judge, who will hand you over to the police, and you will be put in jail.
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There you will stay, I tell you, until you pay the last penny of your fine."
