Luke 6

6 ¹On a Sabbath, Jesus walked through grainfields; his disciples picked heads of grain, rubbed them in their hands, and ate. ²Some of the Pharisees said, "Why are you doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?"

³Jesus answered them, "Haven't you read what David did when he and those with him were hungry, ⁴how he entered our Father's house, took the bread of the Presence, ate it, gave some to his companions, though it's not lawful for any but the priests to eat it?" ⁵Then he said to them, "The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."

⁶On another Sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught; a man was there with a withered right hand. ⁷The scribes and Pharisees watched him closely to see if he would heal on the Sabbath, so they could find a charge against him.

⁸But knowing their thoughts, he told the man with the withered hand, "Get up and stand here." So he got up and stood there. ⁹Then Jesus said to them, "I ask you: is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or do harm, to save a life or destroy it?" ¹⁰Looking around at them all, he told the man, "Stretch out your hand." He did, and his hand was restored.

¹¹But filled with rage, they discussed with each other what to do to Jesus.

The Twelve Apostles Chosen

¹²In those days Jesus went out to the mountain to pray, spending the whole night in prayer to our Father. ¹³At daybreak he called his disciples and chose twelve of them, naming them apostles: ¹⁴Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; ¹⁵Matthew and Thomas; James son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; ¹⁶Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

The Father's Power Heals the Crowds

¹⁷He came down with them and stood on a level place, with a large crowd of his disciples and a large multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon. ¹⁸They came to hear him and be healed of their diseases; those troubled by unclean spirits were also cured. ¹⁹The whole crowd tried to touch him, since power went out from him, healing everyone.

²⁰Looking up at his disciples, he said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of our Father.

²¹"Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. ²²Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you and revile you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. ²³Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for your reward is great in heaven; for that is how the persecutors' ancestors treated the prophets.

²⁴But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. ²⁵Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. ²⁶Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how the flatterers' ancestors treated the false prophets.

Love Your Enemies

²⁷But I tell you who listen: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. ²⁹Whoever strikes you on one cheek, offer the other too; whoever takes your coat, do not hold back your shirt. ³⁰Give to everyone who asks you, and don't demand back what is taken from you. ³¹Do to others as you would have them do to you.

³²Loving those who love you—what credit is that? Even sinners love those who love them. ³³If you do good to those doing you good, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same. ³⁴And if you lend expecting repayment, what credit is that? Even sinners lend to sinners to get back the same amount. ³⁵But love your enemies, do good, and lend expecting nothing back; your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and evil. ³⁶Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

Do Not Judge

³⁷Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. ³⁸Give, and it will be given to you: a good measure—pressed down, shaken, overflowing—will be poured into your lap. For the measure you use will be measured back to you."

³⁹He also gave them a parable: "Can a blind person guide a blind person? Won't both fall into a pit? ⁴⁰No student surpasses their teacher; whoever is fully trained becomes like their teacher. ⁴¹Why do you see the speck in your brother's eye, yet miss the beam in your own eye? ⁴²How can you tell your brother, 'Brother, let me remove the speck from your eye,' when you don't see the beam in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye—then you'll see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.

Known by Your Fruit

⁴³For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit. ⁴⁴Each tree is known by its own fruit; figs aren't gathered from thornbushes, nor grapes picked from a bramble. ⁴⁵A good person produces good from the heart's good store; an evil person produces evil from the evil store; for the mouth speaks from the heart's overflow.

Build on the Rock

⁴⁶Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do what I say? ⁴⁷Everyone coming to me, hearing my words, and doing them—I'll show you what he's like: ⁴⁸He's like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid its foundation on rock. When the flood came, the river crashed into that house but couldn't shake it—it was built well. ⁴⁹But whoever hears my words and doesn't act on them is like a man who built a house on the ground, without a foundation. The flood crashed against it, and it collapsed at once—that house's ruin was great."