(Tap footnote to read it. Old Testament quotations are underlined. "Love" with a caret ("^love") is agapé.1"agapé" The Greek words ἀγάπη (agapé, noun), and ἀγαπάω (agapaó; verb) are typically translated "love". However, unlike our English word "love" – which primarily speaks of affection and feelings – agapé centers on choice and behavior. It’s the "love" based on will, choice, behavior, and action; not feelings. (Feelings-based love is the Greek word φιλέω (phileó), which properly means "brotherly love/affection".) Thus, you could hate someone passionately and still treat him with "agapé". Agapé "love" is best understood as the pursuit of what is most beneficial to someone or something, regardless of the cost to yourself or the type of response received from the person or thing. It can also indicate a preference for someone or something over other things. )
Jesus in His hometown
- And He went out from there and comes into His hometown,1“hometown” is literally “fatherland”, as in the place his father lived/lives. This was another way of saying the place He came from, i.e. His hometown and His disciples are following Him.
- And it having become the Sabbath, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many of the men listening were being stunned, saying: “From where did this man get these teachings, and what’s this wisdom that was given to Him? And such miracles are happening through His hands.
- “Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James, and Joseph, and Judas, and Simon? And aren’t His sisters here with us?” And they were being offended by Him.
- And Jesus was telling them: “A prophet isn’t without honor except in his hometown, and among his kinsmen, and in his household.”
- And He wasn’t able to do even one miracle there, except having laid hands on a few sick, He healed them.
- And He was marveling because of their unbelief. And He was traveling around the villages teaching.
Sending out The Twelve
- And He summons the twelve, and began to send them out two-by-two, and He was giving them authority over the unclean spirits.
- And He instructed them that they should take nothing for the road, except a staff only; not bread, not a traveler’s bag, not money in the belt,
- but *putting sandals on their feet, and not to clothe themselves with two tunics.
- And He was telling them: “Wherever you enter into a house, remain there until you go out from that town.
- “And whatever place didn’t welcome you nor listen to you; departing from there, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. [Amen I tell you: it will be more tolerable for Sodom or Gomorrah in the day of judgement than for that town.]”
- And having gone out, they proclaimed that all should repent.
- And they were casting out many demons, and were anointing many sick with oil and were healing them.
The death of John the Baptizer
- And King Herod heard, for His name became well known. And they were saying: “John the Baptizer has been raised from the dead and these miraculous powers are working in Him because of this.”
- But others were saying: “He’s Elijah.” Yet others were saying: “He’s a prophet like one of the prophets.”
- And having heard of it, Herod was saying: “John whom I beheaded; that man was raised from the dead.”
- For having sent men, Herod himself seized John and bound him in prison because of Herodias, the wife of Philip his brother, because he married her.
- For John was saying to Herod: “It’s not lawful for you to have the wife of your brother.”
- Now, Herodias was holding a grudge against him and was wanting to kill him, and wasn’t able to
- for Herod was fearing John, *knowing him to be a righteous and holy man, and he was keeping him safe. And having heard him, he was perplexed often and was hearing him gladly.
- And an opportune day came when Herod made a dinner on his birthday for his nobles, and commanders, and the leading men of Galilee.
- And having come in and danced, the daughter of Herodias2“daughter of Herodias” History tells us that her name was Salome, who had become Herod’s stepdaughter at this point. A common estimate for her birth year is 14 AD, meaning she was in her mid-teens when she danced before Herod. One common theory is that Salome danced sensually to entice, but that seems unlikely given these two facts. pleased Herod and the men reclining at the table with him. And the king told the young girl: “Ask me for whatever you desire and I will give it to you.”
- And he swore an oath to her: “Whatever that you ask me for, I will give it to you; up to half my kingdom.”
- And having gone out, she said to her mother: “What shall I ask for?” Now, she said: “The head of John the Baptizer.”
- And having immediately entered with haste to see the king, she asked saying: “I desire that you give me the head of John the Baptizer on a platter at once.”
- And having become deeply grieved because of his oaths and the men reclining at the table with him, the king didn’t want to refuse her.
- And having immediately sent an executioner, the king commanded him to bring his head. And having gone, he beheaded him in the prison.
- And he brought his head on a platter and gave it to the young girl, and the young girl gave it to her mother.
- And having heard this, his disciples came and picked up his body and put it in a tomb.
The apostles return from being sent out
- And the apostles assemble themselves to Jesus and reported to Him all things; whatever they did and whatever they taught.
- And He tells them: “You come here by yourselves to a secluded place on your own and rest a little.” For the men coming and the men going were many and they weren’t even having an opportunity to eat.
- And they departed in the boat into a secluded place on their own.
- And many saw them traveling and recognized them. And they ran with them there on foot from all the cities and arrived before them.
- And having gone out, He saw a numerous crowd and was moved with compassion on them because they were like sheep not having a shepherd, and He began to teach them many things.
Feeding 5000
- And the hour was already late, so having approached Him, His disciples were saying: “This place is secluded and the hour is already late.
- “Send them away, so that having gone into the surrounding country and villages, they might buy something to eat for themselves.”
- But answering, He told them: “You give them something to eat.” And they tell Him: “Having departed, should we buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?”
- But He says to them: “How many loaves do you have? Go see.” And having learned, they say: “Five, and two fish.”
- And He commanded them to make all the groups recline by groups on the green grass.
- And the groups reclined by groups of hundreds and of fifties.
- And having taken the five loaves and the two fish, and having looked up to heaven, He blessed and broke the loaves, and He was giving them to His disciples so they might set it before them. And He divided the two fish among all of them.
- And all ate and were satisfied.
- And they picked up twelve baskets full of bread pieces and of fish.
- And the men who ate the bread were five thousand men.
Jesus calms a storm
- And He immediately compelled His disciples to embark into the boat and to go before Him to the other side of the sea, to Bethsaida, while He dismisses the crowd.
- And having withdrawn from them, He departed to the mountain to pray.
- And it having become evening, the boat was in the middle of the sea and He was alone on the land.
- And having seen them being buffeted while rowing (for the wind was hostile to them), He comes to them walking on the sea3quotation/allusions to Job 9:8 at about the fourth watch of the night,4The fourth watch of the night was from 3am until 6am. and He was intending to pass by them.
- But having seen Him walking on the sea, they thought that it’s a ghost and cried out,
- for all saw Him and were deeply shaken. And He immediately spoke with them and tells them: “Be courageous; I Am; don’t be frightened.”
- And He came up into the boat to them, and the wind ceased raging. And they were exceedingly abundantly marveling in themselves,
- for they didn’t understand from the bread, but their hearts were *hardened.
Jesus heals many
- And having crossed over to the land, they came to Gennesaret and were anchored,
- and having immediately recognized Him as they departed from the boat,
- some men ran around that whole region and began to carry the men having afflictions on bed mats to wherever they were hearing that He is.
- And wherever He was entering – into villages, or into cities, or into countrysides – they were putting the sick men in the marketplaces, and were begging Him so they might just touch the fringe of His clothing; and as many as touched Him were being healed.5In Malachi 4:2, it says that “the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in his wings.” The Hebrew word translated “wings” in that verse is “כָּנָף” (kanaph). It means any extremity, including wings and also the edge of a garment. It could be accurately translated “healing in the edge of His clothes”. These people likely knew this verse, and that’s probably why they specifically wanted to touch the fringe of His cloak. The Jews believed Malachi 4:2 was a prophecy about the Messiah, so by touching His clothing, they were almost certainly expressing their faith that Jesus was the Messiah.
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