Jesus Heals a Man's Crippled Hand (Mk. 3:1-6; Lk. 6:6-11)

⁹Jesus left that place and went into their synagogue.* ¹⁰In the synagogue there was a man with a crippled hand. Some Jews there were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus of doing wrong. So they asked Jesus, "Is it right to heal on the Sabbath day?"* ¹¹Jesus answered, "If any of you has a sheep, and the sheep falls into a ditch on the Sabbath day,* then you will take the sheep and help it out of the ditch. ¹²Surely a man is more important than a sheep. So the law [of Moses] allows people to do good things on the Sabbath day." ¹³Then Jesus said to the man with the crippled hand, "Let me see your hand." The man put his hand out for Jesus, and the hand became well again, the same as the other hand. ¹⁴But the Pharisees* left and made plans to kill Jesus.

Jesus Is God's Chosen Servant

¹⁵Jesus knew what the Pharisees* were doing. So Jesus left that place. Many people followed Jesus, and he healed all the sick people. ¹⁶But Jesus warned the people not to tell other people who he was. ¹⁷Jesus did these things to make happen what Isaiah the prophet* said. Isaiah said, ¹⁸"Here is my servant; I (God) have chosen him. I love him, and I am pleased with him; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will judge the nations fairly. ¹⁹He will not argue or shout; People will not hear his voice in the streets. ²⁰He will not break the reed that is already bent; He will not stop the light that has almost stopped burning. He will continue until he makes fair judgment win the victory. ²¹All people will hope in him." Isaiah 42:1-4

Jesus' Power Is from God (Mk. 3:20-30; Lk. 11:14-23; 12:10)

²²Then some people brought a man to Jesus. This man was blind and could not talk, because he had a demon* inside him. Jesus healed the man, and the man could talk and see. ²³All the people were amazed. The people said, "Maybe this man (Jesus) is the Son of David* [that God promised to send to us]!" ²⁴The Pharisees* heard the people saying this. The Pharisees said, "Jesus uses the power of Beelzebul (the devil) to force demons* out of people. Beelzebul is the ruler of demons." ²⁵Jesus knew the things that the Pharisees* were thinking. So Jesus said to them, "Every kingdom that is fighting against itself will be destroyed. And every city that is divided cannot continue. And every family that is divided cannot succeed. ²⁶So if Satan (the devil) forces out his own demons,* then Satan is divided. And his kingdom will not be able to continue. ²⁷You say that I use the power of Satan when I force out demons.* If that is true, then what power do your people use when they force out demons? So your own people prove that you are wrong. ²⁸But I use the power of God's Spirit to force out demons. This shows that the kingdom of God has come to you. ²⁹"If a person wants to enter a strong man's house and steal his things, first the person must tie the strong man. Then the person can steal the things from the strong man's house. ³⁰"If a person is not with me, then he is against me. The person that does not work with me is working against me. ³¹So I tell you, people can be forgiven of every sin they do. And people can be forgiven for every bad thing they say. But if a person speaks against (refuses to accept) the Holy Spirit,* then that person will not be forgiven. ³²Any person that says things against the Son of Man* can be forgiven. But any person that says things against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. That person will not be forgiven now or in the future.

synagogue(s) Synagogues were places where Jews gathered for prayer, study of the Scriptures, and other public meetings. "Is it right ... day" It was against Jewish law to work on the Sabbath day. Sabbath day The seventh day of the Jewish week. It was a special religious day for the Jews. Pharisees The Pharisees were a Jewish religious group that claimed to follow carefully all Jewish laws and customs. prophet A person that spoke for God. Sometimes a prophet told things that would happen in the future. demon(s) Demons are evil spirits from the devil. Son of David Name for the Christ {(Messiah)}. He was from the family of David, king of Israel about 1000 years B.C. if Satan ... demons Literally, "if Satan forces out Satan." Holy Spirit Also called the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, and the Comforter. Joined with God and Christ, he does God's work among people in the world. Son of Man A name Jesus used for himself. In Dan. 7:13-14, this is the name for the Messiah, the one God chose to save his people.