against covetousness. For in what affluence soever a man may 16 be, his life doth not depend on his possessions. Then he spoke

a parable to them saying, There was a certain rich man, whose 17 ground produced plenteously. Whereupon he reasoned within himself, saying, What shall I do; for I have not room to store 18 my crops. Then he said,. I will do this. I will pull down my store-houses and build larger, and there lay up all my pro19 duce and my good things. And I will say to my soul; Soul, thou hast many good things laid up in store for many years: 20 take thine ease; eat; drink; and be joyful. Whereupon God said to him; Fool, this very night this soul of thine will be demanded of thee. Whose then will those things be which thou 21 hast provided? Thus let every one [say] to himself who is heaping up treasure and is not rich for God.

22

Then he said to his disciples, For this cause I say to you, be not anxious about your life, what you shall eat; nor for 23 your body, what you shall wear. Life is a greater gift than 24 food, and the body than raiment. Observe those ravens! they

neither sow nor reap; nor have they cellar or barn; yet God 25 feedeth them. Of how much greater value are you than these birds? Now which of you can, with all his solicitude, add 26 a moment to his life? If therefore, you cannot make the smallest addition to it, why are you anxious about the rest? 27 Observe those lilies how they grow! They neither toil nor spin;

yet I say to you, Even Solomon in all his glory, was not ar28 rayed like one of these. Now if God doth thus clothe the

herbage, which is in the field to-day, and to-morrow is cast into a furnace, how much more will he clothe you, O dis29 trustful men? As for you, therefore, be not inquisitive about what you shall eat, or what you shall drink, nor agitated with 30 restless thoughts. For about all these things the nations of the

world are inquisitive: but your Father knoweth that you have 31 need of all these things. But seek the kingdom of God, and 32 all these things will be superadded to you. Fear not, little

flock. Because it hath pleased your Father to give you that 33 kingdom, sell your possessions and give alms: provide for yourselves purses which do not wear out-a treasure in the heavens, which will never fail; where no thief approacheth, nor 34 moth spoileth: for where your treasure is, there will your heart

35 be also. Let your loins be girded, and your lamps burning: 36 and be like men who are waiting their master's return from a

wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may instant37 ly open for him. Happy those servants, whom the master, when he cometh, shall find watching. Verily I say to you, he will gird himself, and having placed them at table, will come and 38 wait upon them. And whether he come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them in such a state, hap39 py are those servants. Now this you know, that if the master

of a family knew at what hour a thief would come, he would 40 watch, and not suffer him to break into his house. Be ye there. fore also prepared, because at the hour of which you are not aware, the Son of man cometh.

41

45 you,

Then Peter said to him, Master, dost thou speak this para42 ble to us, or to all in general? Thereupon the Lord said, Who is indeed the faithful and prudent steward, whom his master 43 shall have set over his family to dispense regularly the stated allowance of food? Happy is that servant, whom his master, 44 when he cometh, shall find thus employed. Verily I say to he will appoint him overseer of all his estate. But should that servant say in his heart, My master delayeth his coming, and begin to beat the men servants, and maid servants, and to 46 eat and drink and carouse; the master of that servant will come on a day when he doth not expect him, and in an hour he is not aware of, and will scourge him in the severest manner, and 47 assign him his portion with the unfaithful. Now that servant who knew his master's will, and did not keep himself ready, nor act agreeably to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes; 48 but he who did not know it, and did things deserving chastisement, shall be beaten with few. For to whom much is given, of him much will be required. And the more a man is entrusted with, the more will be demanded from him. I came 49 to put fire on the earth; and what would I but that it were now 50 kindled! I have also a baptism to be baptized with, and how am 51 I straightened until it be accomplished. Do you imagine that

I am come to give peace on the earth? I tell you, No; but rather 52 division. For henceforth five in one house will be divided; 53 three against two and two against three. Father will be divid

ed against son, and son against father; mother against daugh

54

ter, and daughter against mother; mother in law against daughter in law, and daughter in law against mother in law.

Then addressing the multitudes, he said, When you see the cloud rising from the west, presently, say you, there is a 55 shower coming. And so it happeneth. And when the south 56 wind bloweth, you say, It will be hot. And so it happeneth.

Hypocrites! you have knowledge to discern the face of the 57 earth and the sky; how is it then that you do not discern 58 this time? And why do ye not, even for your own sakes, judge aright? For when thou art going with thine adversary to a magistrate, endeavour to come to an agreement* with him on the way, lest he bring thee before the judge; and the judge deliver thee up to the officer, and the officer commit thee to 59 prison: I tell thee thou canst not get out of that, till thou hast paid the last farthing.

XIII. Now there were some present who, on that occasion 2 told him of the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices: whereupon Jesus, in reply, said to them, Do you imagine that those Galileans were the greatest sinners in all Galilee, because they suffered these things? I tell you, 3 No. But, unless you reform, you shall all perish in like man4 ner. Or those eighteen men, upon whom the tower of Siloam fell, and killed them, do you think that they were the greatest offenders of all the men who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, 5 No; but unless you reform, you shall all perish in like man

ner.

6 Then he spake this parable. A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he went seeking fruit on it, but 7 found none. Whereupon he said to the vine dresser, Behold this is the third year that I have come, seeking fruit on this fig treee, without finding any. Cut it down. Why doth it 8 cumber the ground? To which he replied, Master, let it alone 9 one year longer, until I dig about it and dung it. Perhaps it may bear fruit: if not; then cut it down.

10

When he was teaching in one of the synagogues on 11 the sabbath day, behold there was a woman there, who

* Literally, to be freed from him.

for eighteen years had a spirit of infirmity, and was so bowed 12 down that she could in no wise look up. And when Jesus saw

her he called her to him, and said to her, Woman, thou art 13 loosed from this thine infirmity, and laid his hands on her. 14 And instantly she stood upright and glorified God. Upon which the ruler of the synagogue, to express his indignation because Jesus cured on the sabbath day, addressed the people and said, There are six days on which work should be done: come therefore on those days and be cured, and not on the 15 sabbath day. Thereupon the Lord answered him, and said,

Hypocrite! Doth not every one of you, on the sabbath day, 16 loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead it to water? And

ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo! these eighteen years, to be loosed from this 17 bond on the sabbath day? And upon his saying this, all his opposers were ashamed, and the whole multitude expressed joy for all the glorious things which were done by him. 18 Then he said, To what is the kingdom of God like? and 19 to what shall I compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed,

20

which a man took and threw in his garden, and it grew and became a great tree, and the birds of the air lodged among its branches.

Again he said, To what shall I compare the reign of God? 21 It is like leaven, which a woman took and mixed up with three measures of meal till the whole was leavened.

22 When he was passing through cities and towns, teaching, and continuing his journey to Jerusalem, and one said to him, 23 Master, are there few who are saved? He said to them, Strive 24 with all your might to enter in through the narrow gate; for many, I assure you, will seek to enter, who will not be able. 25 When the master of the house is raised up, and shall have shut

the door and you begin to stand without and knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us, he will answer and say 26 to you, I do not know you, whence you are. Then you will

begin to say, We have caten and drunk in thy presence, 27 and thou hast taught in our streets. But he will say, I tell

you I do not know you whence you are. Depart from me all you 28 workers ofiniquity. Weeping and gnashing of teeth will be there, when you shall see Abraham, and Isaak, and Jacob, and

all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves 29 cast out. People indeed will come from the east and west, 30 and from the north and south, and be entertained in the kingdom of God. And behold there are last, who shall be first; and there are first, who shall be last.

31

On that same day, some Pharisees came and said to him, Get away and depart hence; for Herod intendeth to kill thee. 32 Whereupon he said to them, Go and tell that fox, Behold I cast out demons, and perform cures to-day and to-morrow, 33 and on the third day I am perfected. But I must continue my course to-day and to-morrow, and the day following; for it is not to be supposed that a prophet will be destroyed any where 34 but in Jerusalem. O Jerusalem! Jerusalem! thou that killest the prophets and stonest them who are sent to thee! How of ten would I have gathered thy children, as a hen doth her 35 brood under her wings; and ye would not. Behold your house is left for you a desolation. And verily I say to you, You shall not see me until the time come when you will say, Blessed he, who is coming in the name of the Lord!

XIV.

It happened also on a sabbath day, when he went to eat at the house of one of the chiefs who were Pharisees, and they 2 were watching him, behold there was before him a man, who 3 had a dropsy; thereupon Jesus, addressing the teachers of the law, and the Pharisees, said, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath 4 day? But they were silent. Then taking the man by the hand, 5 he healed him. And having dismissed him, he continued his discourse to them, and said, Who amongst you, if his ass or 6 his ox fall into a pit, will not instantly pull it out on the sabbath day? And to this they could not make reply.

7

Then observing how eager the guests were for the first 8 places at table, he addressed them in a parable, and said, When thou art invited by any one to a wedding, do not take the uppermost place, lest a person of greater distinction than 9 thou be invited by him. In which case he who invited thee and him will come and say to thee, Give place to this man. 10 Then thou, with confusion, must take the lower place. But when thou art invited, go and take the lowest place, that when he who invited thee cometh, he may say to thee, Friend, go up higher. Then thou wilt have honour in the sight of them