One Year Bible.

David Delivers Keilah

¹Now it was reported to David, “Look, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah and looting the threshing floors.”

²So David inquired of the LORD, “Should I go and attack these Philistines?”

And the LORD said to David, “Go and attack the Philistines and save Keilah.”

³But David’s men said to him, “Look, we are afraid here in Judah; how much more if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?”

⁴Once again, David inquired of the LORD, and the LORD answered him: “Go at once to Keilah, for I will deliver the Philistines into your hand.”

⁵Then David and his men went to Keilah, fought against the Philistines, and carried off their livestock, striking them with a mighty blow. So David saved the people of Keilah.

⁶(Now Abiathar son of Ahimelech had brought the ephod with him when he fled to David at Keilah.)

Saul Pursues David

⁷When Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah, he said, “God has delivered him into my hand, for he has trapped himself by entering a town with gates and bars.”

⁸Then Saul summoned all his troops to go to war at Keilah and besiege David and his men.

⁹When David learned that Saul was plotting evil against him, he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod.”

¹⁰And David said, “O LORD, God of Israel, Your servant has heard that Saul intends to come to Keilah and destroy the city on my account. ¹¹Will the citizens of Keilah surrender me into his hand? Will Saul come down, as Your servant has heard? O LORD, God of Israel, please tell Your servant.”

“He will,” said the LORD.

¹²So David asked, “Will the citizens of Keilah surrender me and my men into the hand of Saul?”

“They will,” said the LORD.

¹³Then David and his men, about six hundred strong, set out and departed from Keilah, moving from place to place. When Saul was told that David had escaped from Keilah, he declined to go forth.

¹⁴And David stayed in the wilderness strongholds and in the hill country of the Wilderness of Ziph. Day after day Saul searched for him, but God would not deliver David into his hand.

¹⁵While David was in Horesh in the Wilderness of Ziph, he saw that Saul had come out to take his life. ¹⁶And Saul’s son Jonathan came to David in Horesh and strengthened his hand in God, ¹⁷saying, “Do not be afraid, for my father Saul will never lay a hand on you. And you will be king over Israel, and I will be your second-in-command. Even my father Saul knows this is true.”

¹⁸So the two of them made a covenant before the LORD. And David remained in Horesh, while Jonathan went home.

¹⁹Then the Ziphites came up to Saul at Gibeah and said, “Is not David hiding among us in the strongholds at Horesh, on the hill of Hachilah south of Jeshimon? ²⁰Now, O king, come down whenever your soul desires, and we will be responsible for delivering him into your hand.”

²¹“May you be blessed by the LORD,” replied Saul, “for you have had compassion on me. ²²Please go and prepare further. Investigate and watch carefully where he goes and who has seen him there, for I am told that he is extremely cunning. ²³Observe and find out all the places where he hides. Then come back to me with certainty, and I will go with you. If he is in the land, I will search him out among all the clans of Judah.”

²⁴So they set out and went to Ziph ahead of Saul. Now David and his men were in the Wilderness of Maon in the Arabah south of Jeshimon, ²⁵and Saul and his men went to seek him. When David was told about it, he went down to the rock and stayed in the Wilderness of Maon. And when Saul heard of this, he pursued David there.

²⁶Saul was proceeding along one side of the mountain, and David and his men along the other side. Even though David was hurrying to get away, Saul and his men were closing in on David and his men to capture them.

²⁷Then a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Come quickly, for the Philistines have raided the land!” ²⁸So Saul broke off his pursuit of David and went to meet the Philistines. That is why that place is called Sela-hammahlekoth. ²⁹And David went up from there and lived in the strongholds of En-gedi.

Judging Others

¹“Do not judge, or you will be judged. ²For with the same judgment you pronounce, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

³Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye but fail to notice the beam in your own eye? ⁴How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while there is still a beam in your own eye? ⁵You hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

⁶Do not give dogs what is holy; do not throw your pearls before swine. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.

Ask, Seek, Knock

⁷Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. ⁸For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

⁹Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? ¹¹So if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

¹²In everything, then, do to others as you would have them do to you. For this is the essence of the Law and the Prophets.

The Narrow Gate

¹³Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. ¹⁴But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.

A Tree and Its Fruit

¹⁵Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. ¹⁶By their fruit you will recognize them. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. ¹⁹Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰So then, by their fruit you will recognize them.

²¹Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven. ²²Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’

²³Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’

The House on the Rock

²⁴Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵The rain fell, the torrents raged, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because its foundation was on the rock.

²⁶But everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. ²⁷The rain fell, the torrents raged, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell— and great was its collapse!”

The Authority of Jesus

²⁸When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astonished at His teaching, ²⁹because He taught as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.

The Mission of John the Baptist

¹This is the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. ²As it is written in Isaiah the prophet:

“Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You,

who will prepare Your way.”

³“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,

‘Prepare the way for the Lord,

make straight paths for Him.’”

⁴John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵People went out to him from all of Jerusalem and the countryside of Judea. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

⁶John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. ⁷And he proclaimed: “After me will come One more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. ⁸I baptize you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

⁹In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. ¹⁰As soon as Jesus came up out of the water, He saw the heavens breaking open and the Spirit descending on Him like a dove. ¹¹And a voice came from heaven: “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.”

The Temptation and Preaching of Jesus

¹²At once the Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness, ¹³and He was there for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and the angels ministered to Him.

¹⁴After the arrest of John, Jesus went into Galilee and proclaimed the gospel of God. ¹⁵“The time is fulfilled,” He said, “and the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe in the gospel!”

The First Disciples

¹⁶As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. ¹⁷“Come, follow Me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” ¹⁸And at once they left their nets and followed Him.

¹⁹Going on a little farther, He saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat, mending their nets. ²⁰Immediately Jesus called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed Him.

Jesus Expels an Unclean Spirit

²¹Then Jesus and His companions went to Capernaum, and right away Jesus entered the synagogue on the Sabbath and began to teach. ²²The people were astonished at His teaching, because He taught as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.

²³Suddenly a man with an unclean spirit cried out in the synagogue: ²⁴“What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are — the Holy One of God!”

²⁵But Jesus rebuked the spirit. “Be silent!” He said. “Come out of him!” ²⁶At this, the unclean spirit threw the man into convulsions and came out with a loud shriek.

²⁷All the people were amazed and began to ask one another, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him!” ²⁸And the news about Jesus spread quickly through the whole region of Galilee.

Jesus Heals at Peter’s House

²⁹As soon as Jesus and His companions had left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. ³⁰Simon’s mother-in-law was sick in bed with a fever, and they promptly told Jesus about her. ³¹So He went to her, took her by the hand, and helped her up. The fever left her, and she began to serve them.

³²That evening, after sunset, people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed, ³³and the whole town gathered at the door. ³⁴And He healed many who were ill with various diseases and drove out many demons. But He would not allow the demons to speak, because they knew who He was.

Jesus Prays and Preaches

³⁵Early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up and went out to a solitary place to pray. ³⁶Simon and his companions went to look for Him, ³⁷and when they found Him, they said, “Everyone is looking for You!”

³⁸But Jesus answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns so I can preach there as well, for that is why I have come.” ³⁹So He went throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.

The Leper’s Prayer

⁴⁰Then a leper came to Jesus, begging on his knees: “If You are willing, You can make me clean.”

⁴¹Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” ⁴²And immediately the leprosy left him, and the man was cleansed.

⁴³Jesus promptly sent him away with a stern warning: ⁴⁴“See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and present the offering Moses prescribed for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.”

⁴⁵But the man went out and openly began to proclaim and spread the news.

Consequently, Jesus could no longer enter a town in plain view, but He stayed out in solitary places. Yet people came to Him from every quarter.

Jesus Heals a Paralytic

¹A few days later Jesus went back to Capernaum. And when the people heard that He was home, ²they gathered in such large numbers that there was no more room, not even outside the door, as Jesus spoke the word to them.

³Then a paralytic was brought to Him, carried by four men. ⁴Since they were unable to get to Jesus through the crowd, they uncovered the roof above Him, made an opening, and lowered the paralytic on his mat.

⁵When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

⁶But some of the scribes were sitting there and thinking in their hearts, ⁷“Why does this man speak like this? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

⁸At once Jesus knew in His spirit that they were thinking this way within themselves. “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts?” He asked. ⁹“Which is easier: to say to a paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, pick up your mat, and walk’? ¹⁰But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins...” He said to the paralytic, ¹¹“I tell you, get up, pick up your mat, and go home.”

¹²And immediately the man got up, picked up his mat, and walked out in front of them all. As a result, they were all astounded and glorified God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

Jesus Calls Levi

¹³Once again Jesus went out beside the sea. All the people came to Him, and He taught them there.

¹⁴As He was walking along, He saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth. “Follow Me,” He told him, and Levi got up and followed Him.

¹⁵While Jesus was dining at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with Him and His disciples — for there were many who followed Him. ¹⁶When the scribes who were Pharisees saw Jesus eating with these people, they asked His disciples, “Why does He eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

¹⁷On hearing this, Jesus told them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Questions about Fasting

¹⁸Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were often fasting. So people came to Jesus and asked, “Why don’t Your disciples fast like John’s disciples and those of the Pharisees?”

¹⁹Jesus replied, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while He is with them? As long as He is with them, they cannot fast. ²⁰But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.

The Patches and the Wineskins

²¹No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the new piece will pull away from the old, and a worse tear will result.

²²And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. Instead, new wine is poured into new wineskins.”

The Lord of the Sabbath

²³One Sabbath Jesus was passing through the grainfields, and His disciples began to pick the heads of grain as they walked along. ²⁴So the Pharisees said to Him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

²⁵Jesus replied, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? ²⁶During the high priesthood of Abiathar, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which was lawful only for the priests. And he gave some to his companions as well.”

²⁷Then Jesus declared, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. ²⁸Therefore, the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”