Matthew Chapter 8

Cleansing a Leper

¹ When Jesus came down from the hillside, big crowds followed him. ² A leper came and knelt down to him, “Sir, if you’re willing, you can cleanse me.”

³ Jesus reached out and touched him, “I’m willing; be cleansed.” Instantly his leprosy disappeared. ⁴ Jesus told^p him, “Don’t tell anybody. Instead, for a public statement, show yourself to a priest and offer the gift Moses commanded.”

Mt 8:1-4

Healing the Centurion’s Servant

            ⁵ He went to Capernaum, and a centurion came and appealed to him, ⁶“Sir, my servant is laid up at home paralyzed and tormented terribly.”

            ⁷ Jesus said^p, “I’ll come and heal him.”

            ⁸ But the centurion answered, “I don’t deserve to have you under my roof. Just say the word, and my servant will be healed. ⁹ I’m under authority myself, with soldiers under me. I say, ‘Go.’ and they go; to another, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

                  ¹⁰ Jesus was impressed and told the people that were following him, “I haven’t found faith like that in Israel. ¹¹ Lots of people will come from the east and west, and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; ¹² but citizens of the kingdom will be thrown out into the dark. There’ll be crying and chattering of teeth.”

¹³ He told the centurion, “Go on, it’ll happen according to your faith.” His servant was cured the same hour.                                                                                                                

Mt 8:5-13

Teaching and Miracles in Capernaum

            ¹⁴ Jesus went to Peter’s house and saw his mother-in-law in bed with a fever. ¹⁵ He touched her hand and the fever left. She got up and started waiting on him.

¹⁶ That evening, people brought him a number of demon-possessed people, and he cast the spirits out with a word. ¹⁷ As Isaiah the prophet said,

“He took our weaknesses

and bore our illnesses” [Is 53:4].                                                    

Mt 8:14-17

A Conversation About Following Jesus

            ¹⁸ When Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave instructions to leave for the other side of the lake.

¹⁹ A scribe came, “Rabbi, I’ll go with you wherever you go.”

            ²⁰ Jesus said^p, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man doesn’t have a place to lay his head.”

            ²¹ Another of his disciples said, “Let me go bury my father first.”

²² “Come on with me; let the dead bury their dead.”                                           

Mt 8:18-22

Stilling the Storm

            ²³ He got in the boat, and his disciples left with him. ²⁴ A dangerous storm came up, and the waves were beginning to splash into the boat. He was sleeping. ²⁵ The disciples went and woke him up, “Lord, help us! We’re going to die!”

            ²⁶ “Why are you so scared? Where’s your faith?” He got up and rebuked the wind, and a general calm settled in.

²⁷ They were astounded, “What kind of man is this who can even make the wind and waves obey?”                  

Mt 8:23-27

Healing the Gadarene Demoniac

            ²⁸ When he got to the region of the Gadarenes on the other side, two demon-possessed men from the tombs met him. They were so vicious nobody dared to go around there. ²⁹ They started crying out, “What is this, you Son of God? Did you come to torment us ahead of time?”

            ³⁰ A little way off a tremendous herd of pigs was feeding. ³¹ The demons begged, “If you’re going to cast us out, send us into the pigs.”

            ³² “Go ahead.”

They went into the pigs, and the whole herd stampeded down the steep place into the lake and drowned. ³³ The herdsmen ran away to town and reported everything, including what had happened to the demoniacs. ³⁴ The whole town came out to meet Jesus. When they saw him, they begged him to leave.

Mt 8:28-34