1:1  The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

1:2  As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: "BEHOLD, I SEND MY MESSENGER AHEAD OF YOU, WHO WILL PREPARE YOUR WAY;

1:3  THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, `MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT.'"

1:4  John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

1:5  And all the country of Judea was going out to him, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.

1:6  John was clothed with camel's hair and {wore} a leather belt around his waist, and his diet was locusts and wild honey.

1:7  And he was preaching, and saying, "After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals.

1:8  "I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."

1:9  In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

1:10  Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him;

1:11  and a voice came out of the heavens: "You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased."

1:12  Immediately the Spirit *impelled Him {to go} out into the wilderness.

1:13  And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him.

1:14  Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God,

1:15  and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."

1:16  As He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen.

1:17  And Jesus said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men."

1:18  Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.

1:19  Going on a little farther, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets.

1:20  Immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went away to follow Him.

1:21  They *went into Capernaum; and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and {began} to teach.

1:22  They were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as {one} having authority, and not as the scribes.

1:23  Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out,

1:24  saying, "What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are--the Holy One of God!"

1:25  And Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"

1:26  Throwing him into convulsions, the unclean spirit cried out with a loud voice and came out of him.

1:27  They were all amazed, so that they debated among themselves, saying, "What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him."

1:28  Immediately the news about Him spread everywhere into all the surrounding district of Galilee.

1:29  And immediately after they came out of the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.

1:30  Now Simon's mother-in-law was lying sick with a fever; and immediately they *spoke to Jesus about her.

1:31  And He came to her and raised her up, taking her by the hand, and the fever left her, and she waited on them.

1:32  When evening came, after the sun had set, they {began} bringing to Him all who were ill and those who were demon-possessed.

1:33  And the whole city had gathered at the door.

1:34  And He healed many who were ill with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He was not permitting the demons to speak, because they knew who He was.

1:35  In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left {the house,} and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.

1:36  Simon and his companions searched for Him;

1:37  they found Him, and *said to Him, "Everyone is looking for You."

1:38  He *said to them, "Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may preach there also; for that is what I came for."

1:39  And He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, preaching and casting out the demons.

1:40  And a leper *came to Jesus, beseeching Him and falling on his knees before Him, and saying, "If You are willing, You can make me clean."

1:41  Moved with compassion, Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, and *said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed."

1:42  Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed.

1:43  And He sternly warned him and immediately sent him away,

1:44  and He *said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."

1:45  But he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the news around, to such an extent that Jesus could no longer publicly enter a city, but stayed out in unpopulated areas; and they were coming to Him from everywhere.