Luke 8

8 ¹ Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of our Father. And the twelve were with him, ² and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and illnesses: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, ³ and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who were supporting them out of their own means.

⁴ When a great crowd was gathering and people from town after town were coming to him, he told this parable: ⁵ "A sower went out to sow his seed. As he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled, and the birds of the sky devoured it. ⁶ Some fell on the rock, and as it grew up it withered away, because it had no moisture. ⁷ Some fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it. ⁸ And some fell into good soil and grew, and produced a hundredfold." As he said this, he called out, "Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear."

⁹ His disciples asked him what this parable meant.

¹⁰ He said, "To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of our Father, but to the rest they come in parables, so that 'seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.'"

¹¹ "Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of our Father. ¹² The ones along the path are those who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. ¹³ The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But they have no root; they believe for a while, and in the time of testing they fall away. ¹⁴ As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit never matures. ¹⁵ But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance."

Light That Cannot Be Hidden

¹⁶ "No one lights a lamp and covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed; instead he puts it on a stand, so that those who come in may see the light. ¹⁷ For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light. ¹⁸ Take care, then, how you hear; for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks he has will be taken away."

The Family of Our Father

¹⁹ Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. ²⁰ And he was told, "Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you."

²¹ But he answered them, "My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of our Father and do it."

Jesus Commands the Storm

²² One day he got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side of the lake." So they set out, ²³ and as they sailed, he fell asleep. A windstorm swept down on the lake, and the boat was filling with water, and they were in danger. ²⁴ They went and woke him, saying, "Master, Master, we are perishing!" Then he got up and rebuked the wind and the raging water, and they subsided, and there was a calm. ²⁵ He said to them, "Where is your faith?" And they were afraid, and they marveled, saying to one another, "Who then is this, that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?"

A Man Freed From Legion

²⁶ Then they sailed to the region of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. ²⁷ When Jesus stepped out on land, a man from the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he lived not in a house but among the tombs. ²⁸ When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him, and said with a loud voice, "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me!" ²⁹ For Jesus had commanded the evil spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had seized him, and though he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilderness.

³⁰ Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" He said, "Legion," for many demons had entered him.

³¹ And they begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss.

³² Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and the demons begged him to let them enter the pigs. So he gave them permission. ³³ Then the demons came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

³⁴ When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they fled and reported it in the city and in the countryside. ³⁵ Then the people went out to see what had happened. They came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had gone, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. ³⁶ And those who had seen it told them how the demon-possessed man had been healed. ³⁷ Then all the people of the surrounding region of the Gerasenes asked him to leave them, for they were gripped with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. ³⁸ The man from whom the demons had gone begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, ³⁹ "Return to your home, and tell how much our Father has done for you." And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.

Healed and Raised by Faith

⁴⁰ Now when Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed him, for they were all waiting for him. ⁴¹ And a man named Jairus came, who was a leader of the synagogue. Falling at Jesus' feet, he begged him to come to his house, ⁴² for he had an only daughter, about twelve years old, and she was dying. As Jesus went, the crowds pressed in around him. ⁴³ And there was a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years, and though she had spent all she had on physicians, no one could heal her. ⁴⁴ She came up behind him and touched the edge of his garment, and immediately her flow of blood stopped.

⁴⁵ And Jesus said, "Who touched me?" When all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the crowds surround you and press in on you."

⁴⁶ But Jesus said, "Someone touched me, for I felt that power had gone out from me." ⁴⁷ When the woman saw that she had not gone unnoticed, she came trembling and fell down before him, and in the presence of all the people she declared why she had touched him, and how she had been instantly healed. ⁴⁸ And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you; go in peace."

⁴⁹ While he was still speaking, someone came from the synagogue leader's house and said, "Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher anymore."

⁵⁰ But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, "Do not be afraid; only believe, and she will be saved."

⁵¹ When he came to the house, he let no one go in with him except Peter and John and James, and the child's father and mother. ⁵² All were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, "Do not weep; she is not dead but sleeping." ⁵³ And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. ⁵⁴ But he took her by the hand and called out, "Child, get up." ⁵⁵ And her spirit returned, and she got up at once. Then he told them to give her something to eat. ⁵⁶ Her parents were amazed, but he ordered them to tell no one what had happened.