QS 1. Title

<These are the teachings of Jesus.>

QS 2. The setting for the instructions

(The Q² addition of the John material erased the original introduction to Jesus and his teachings. See QS 7.)

QS 3. The appearance of John

<John appeared in the countryside along the Jordan river.>

QS 4. John's address to the people

He said to the people who were coming to be plunged (into the river), "You offspring of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming fury? Change your ways if you have changed your mind. Don't say, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I am telling you, God can raise up children for Abraham from these stones. Even now the ax is aimed at the root of the trees. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

QS 5. John's prediction of someone to come

"I am plunging you in water; but one who is stronger than I is coming, one whose sandals I am not worthy to touch. He will overwhelm you with holy spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and gather the wheat into his granary. The chaff he will burn with a fire that no one can put out."

QS 6. Jesus tempted by the accuser

Then Jesus was led into the wilderness by the spirit for trial by the accuser (diabolos, the prosecuting angel of the heavenly court). He fasted for forty days and was hungry. The accuser said, "If you are the son of God, tell this stone to become bread." But Jesus answered, "It is written, 'No one lives by bread alone.'" Then the accuser took him to Jerusalem and placed him at the highest point of the temple and said to him, "If you are the son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, 'He will command his angels to protect you,' and 'They will carry you with their hands so that your foot will not strike a stone.'" But Jesus answered him, "It is written, 'You shall not put the lord, your God to the test.'" Then the accuser took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor, and he said to him, "All these I will give you if you will do obeisance and reverence me." But Jesus answered him, "It is written, 'You shall reverence the lord your God and serve him alone.'" Then the accuser left him.

QS 7. Introduction

<Seeing the crowds, he said to his disciples,>

QS 8. On those who are fortunate

"How fortunate are the poor; they have God's kingdom.

How fortunate the hungry; they will be fed.

How fortunate are those who are crying; they will laugh."

"How fortunate you are when they reproach you as good-for-nothings because of the son of man (a Semitic idiom for "human being," capable of being used as a circumlocution, thus, "because of me" or "because of Jesus"). Rejoice, be glad, you have a great reward in heaven. That is exactly how they treated the prophets."

QS 9. On responding to reproach

"I am telling you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

If someone slaps you on the cheek, offer your other cheek as well. If anyone grabs your coat, let him have your shirt as well.

Give to anyone who asks, and if anyone takes away your belongings, do not ask to have them back.

As you want people to treat you, do the same to them."

"If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even tax collectors love those who love them, do they not? And if you embrace only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Doesn't everybody do that? If you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even wrongdoers lend to their kind because they expect to be repaid.

Instead, love your enemies, do good and lend without expecting anything in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of God.

For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good; he sends rain on the just and on the unjust."

QS 10. On making judgements

"Be merciful even as your Father is merciful.

Don't judge and you won't be judged.

For the standard you use (for judging) will be the standard used against you."

QS 11. On teacher and students

"Can the blind lead the blind? Won't they both fall into a pit?

A student is not better than his teacher. It is enough for a student to be like his teacher."

QS 12. On hypocrisy

"How can you look for the splinter in your brother's eye and not notice the stick in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me remove the splinter in your eye,' when you do not see the stick in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the stick from your own eye, and then you can see to remove the splinter that is in your brother's eye."

QS 13. On integrity

"A good tree does not bear rotten fruit; a rotten tree does not bear good fruit. Are figs gathered from thorns, or grapes from thistles? Every tree is known by its fruit. The good man produces good things from his store of goods and treasures; and the evil man evil things. For the mouth speaks from a full heart."

QS 14. On practical obedience

"Why do you call me 'Master, master,' and not do what I say?

Everyone who hears my words and does them is like a man who built a house on rock. The rain fell, a torrent broke against the house, and it did not fall, for it had a rock foundation.

But everyone who hears my words and does not do them is like a man who built a house on sand. The rain came, the torrent broke against it, and it collapsed. The ruin of that house was great."

QS 15. The occasion

After Jesus said these things, he went up into Capernaum. And a centurion (Roman army officer in charge of 100 soldiers), when he heard about Jesus, came to him begging him, "My servant is lying paralyzed at home about to die." Jesus said to him, "I will come to heal him." The centurion answered him, "Sir, I am not worthy to have you enter my home. Just say the word and my servant will be healed. For I am a man under orders, with soldiers under me. I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it." When Jesus heard this he was amazed and said to those who were following him, "I tell you, I have not found such confidence in Israel." And he said to the centurion, "Go." And when the centurion returned home, he found the servant well.

QS 16. John's inquiry

John heard about this and sent his disciples to ask, "Are you the one to come, or should we look for another?" Jesus said, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind recovered their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed (healed and therefore made 'clean'), the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor are given good news."

"And fortunate is the one who is not disturbed (at hearing these things) about me."

QS 17. What Jesus said about John

When John's disciples left, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John:

"What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaking in the wind? (The implied answer is no.) Then tell me what you went out to see. A man in soft clothes? Look, those who wear soft clothes live in palaces. So what did you expect? A prophet? Yes, of course, and much more than a prophet. This is the one referred to in the writings, 'Look, I am sending my messenger before you. He will prepare your path ahead of you.' I am telling you, no one born of a woman is greater than John; yet the least in God's realm is greater than he."

QS 18. What Jesus said about this generation

"To what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to each other: 'We played the pipes for you and you did not dance.' 'We sang a dirge and you did not wail.' For John did not come eating or drinking, and they are saying, 'He is demon possessed.' The son of man (that is, Jesus; see QS 8) has come eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look at him, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.' But in spite of what they say, wisdom's children show that she is right."

QS 19. On becoming a follower of Jesus

When someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go," Jesus answered, "Foxes have dens, and birds of the sky have nests, but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head."
When another said, "Let me first go and bury my father," Jesus said, "Leave the dead to bury their dead."
Yet another said, "I will follow you, sir, but first let me say goodbye to my family." Jesus said to him, "No one who puts his hand on the plow and then looks back is fit for the kingdom of God."

QS 20. On working for the kingdom of God

He said, "The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few; beg therefore the master of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest."
"Go. Look, I send you out as lambs among wolves."
"Do not carry money, or bag, or sandals, or staff; and do not greet anyone on the road."
"Whatever house you enter, say, 'Peace be to this house!' And if a child of peace is there, your greeting will be received (literally, 'your peace will rest upon him'). But if not, let your peace return to you."
"And stay in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. And is you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Pay attention to the sick and say to them, 'God's kingdom has come near to you. But if you enter a town and they do not receive you, as you leave, shake the dust from your feet and say, 'Nevertheless, be sure of this, the realm of God has come to you.'"

QS 21. The unreceptive town

"I am telling you, Sodom will have a lighter punishment on the day of judgement than that town."

QS 22. The Galilean towns

"Woe for you, Chorazim! Woe for you, Bethsaida! If the forceful deeds performed among you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have changed their ways long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. In the judgement Tyre and Sidon will have a lighter punishment than you."
"And you, Capernaum, do you think you will be praised to high heaven? You will be told to go to hell."

QS 23. On the one who receives the worker

"Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me."

QS 24. On the one who receives revelation

Jesus declared, "I am grateful to father, master of heaven and earth, because you have kept these things hidden from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babies. Truly I am grateful, father, for that was your gracious will."
"Authority over all the world has been given to me by my father. No one recognizes the son except the father; and no one knows who the father is except the son and the one to whom the son chooses to reveal him."

QS 25. On the one who hears and sees

"How fortunate are the eyes that see what you see! for I'm telling you that many prophets and kings longed to see what you see and did not see it, and to hear what you hear and did not hear it."

QS 26. How to pray

"When you pray say,
'Father, may your name be holy.
May your rule take place.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Pardon our debts, for we ourselves pardon everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to trial (into a trying situation).'"

QS 27. Confidence in asking

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened for you."
"For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks the door will be opened."
"What father of yours, if the son asks for a loaf of bread, will give him a stone, or if he asks for a fish will give him a snake?"
"Therefore, if you, although you are not good, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the father above give good things to those who ask him!"

QS 28. On kingdoms in conflict

He exorcised a demon that had made a man a mute, and when the demon had been thrown out, the dumb man spoke and the people marveled. But some said, "He exorcises demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of demons."
Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is destroyed, and every house divided against itself will not stand. And if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?"
"You say that I exorcise demons be Beelzebul. If I exorcise demons be Beelzebul, by whom do your sons exorcise them? Why not ask them and see what they say?"
"But if I exorcise demons by the finger of God, then God's rule has caught up with you."
"When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger than he attacks and conquers him, the stronger demolishes his defenses and then plunders his goods."

QS 29. Those for and those against

"Whoever is not with me is against me, and the one who does not gather with me, scatters."

QS 30. The return of an evil spirit

"When an unclean spirit leaves a person, it wanders through arid region seeking rest without finding it. Then it says, 'I will return to my house from which it came,' And when it comes it finds the house swept and tidy. Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and settle there. And the last state of that person is worse than the first."

QS 31. Hearing and keeping the teaching of God

As he was saying these things, a woman from the crowd spoke up and said to him, "How fortunate is the womb that bore you, and the breasts that you sucked!" But he said, "How fortunate, rather, are those that listen to God's teaching and observe it!"

QS 32. The sign of Jonah

Some said to him, "Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you."
He answered them, "A wicked generation looks for a sign, but no sign will be shown to it, except the sign of Jonah."
"For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the son of man be to this generation."
"The queen of the south (the Queen of Sheba) will arise at the judgement and condemn this generation. For she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and look, something greater than Solomon is here."
"The men of Nineveh will arise at the judgement and condemn this generation. For they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and look, something greater than Jonah is here."

QS 33. The lamp and the eye

"No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bushel basket, but on a lampstand. And those in the house see the light."
"The lamp of the body is the eye. If your eye is good your whole body will be full of light. But if it is bad your whole body will be full of darkness. If the light in you is darkness, how great is that darkness."

QS 34. O you Pharisees

"Shame on you Pharisees! for you are scrupulous about giving a tithe of mint and dill and cumin to the priests, but you neglect justice and the love of God."
"These things you ought to have done, without neglecting the others."
"Shame on you Pharisees! for you clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside are full of greed and incontinence. Foolish Pharisees! Clean the inside and the outside will also be clean."
"Shame on you Pharisees! for you love the front seats in the assemblies and greetings in the marketplaces. Shame on you! for you are like graves, outwardly beautiful, but full of pollution inside."
"Shame on you lawyers! for you load people with burdens heavy to bear, but you yourselves refuse to carry even a light load."
"Shame on you! for you erect memorials for the prophets, the prophets your fathers killed. Thus you witness and consent to the deeds of your fathers; for they killed the prophets and you build monuments to them."
"For this reason the wisdom of God said, 'I will send them prophets and wise men, some of whom they will kill and prosecute,' in order to hold this generation accountable for the blood of all the prophets shed from the foundation of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Truly, I tell you, this generation will be held accountable."
"Shame on you lawyers! for you have taken the key of knowledge away from the people. You yourselves do not enter the kingdom of God, and you prevent those who would enter from going in."

QS 35. On speaking out

"Nothing is hidden that will not be made known, or secret that will not come to light."
"What I tell you in the dark, speak in the light. And what you hear as a whisper, proclaim on the housetops."

QS 36. On fear

"Don't be afraid of those who can kill the body, but cant kill the soul."
Rather fear the one who is able to destroy both body and soul in Gehenna (hell fire).
"Can't you buy five sparrows for two cents? Not one of them will fall to the ground without God knowing about it. Even the hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows."

QS 37. On public confessions

"Every one who admits in public that they know me, the son of man will acknowledge before the angels of God. But the one who disowns me in public, the son of man will disown before the angels of God."
"Whoever makes a speech against the son of man will be forgiven. But whoever speaks against the holy spirit will not be forgiven."
"When they bring you before the assemblies of the people, don't worry about what you are to say. When the time comes, the holy spirit will teach you what to say."

QS 38. Foolish possessions

Someone from the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me" But he said to him, "Sir, who made me your judge or lawyer?
He told them a parable, saying, "The land of a rich man produced in abundance, and he thought to himself, "What should I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?' Then he said, 'I will do this. I will put down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods stored up for many years. Take it easy. Eat, drink, and be merry." But God said to him, 'Foolish man! This very night you will have to give back your soul, and the things you produced, whose will they be? That is what happens to the one who stores up treasure for himself and is not rich in the sight of God."

QS 39. On food and clothing

"I am telling you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. Isn't life more than food, and the body more than clothing?"
"Think of the ravens. They do not plant, harvest, or store grain in barns, and God feeds them. Aren't you worth more than the birds? Which one of you can add a single day to your life by worrying?"
"And why do you worry about clothing? Think of the way lilies grow. They do not work or spin But even Solomon in all his splendor was not as magnificent. If God puts beautiful clothes on the grass that is in the field today and tomorrow is thrown into a furnace, won't he put clothes on you, faint hearts?"
"So, don't worry, thinking, 'What will we eat,' or 'What will we drink,' or, What will we wear?' For everybody in the whole world does that, and your father knows that you need these things."
"Instead, make sure of his rule over you, and all these things will be yours as well."

QS 40. On heavenly treasure

"Sell your possessions and give to charity (alms). Store up treasure for yourselves in a heavenly account, where moths and rust do not consume, and where thieves cannot break in and steal."
"For where your treasure is, there your heart will also be. "

QS 47. The narrow gate and the closed door

"Strive to enter by the narrow, for many, I tell you, will try to enter by it and will not be able."
"Once the owner of the house has locked the door, you will stand outside, knock at the door, and say, 'We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets,' But he will say to you, 'I do not know where you are from. Get away from me, all you unrighteous people.'"

QS 48. Exclusion from the kingdom

"Many will come from the east and west and sit at table in the kingdom of God."
"There will be wailing and clenching of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves excluded."
"Look, the last will be first, and the first will be last."

QS 49. Lament over Jerusalem

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the prophets and stoning those who are sent to you! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you refused."
"Look, your house is left desolate. Now, I tell you, you will not see me until you say, 'Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.'"

QS 50. On humility

"Everyone who glorifies himself will be humiliated, and the one that humbles himself will be praised."

QS 51. The great supper

"A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. At the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, 'Please come, for everything is now ready.' But they all began to make excuses. The first said to him, 'I've bought a farm and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.' And another said, "I've just bought five pair of oxen and I need to check them out. Please excuse me.' And another said, 'I've just married a woman and so I can't come.' The servant came and reported this to his master. Then the owner in anger said to his servant, 'Go out quickly to the streets of the town and bring in as many people as you find.' And the servant went out into the streets and brought together everybody he could find. That way the house was filled with guests."

QS 52. On the cost of being a disciple

"Whoever does not hate his father and mother will not be able to learn from me. Whoever does not hate his son and daughter cannot belong to my school."
"Whoever does not accept his cross {bear up under condemnation) and so become my follower, cannot be one of my students."
"Whoever tries to protect his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life on account of me will preserve it."

QS 53. Savorless salt

"Salt is good; but if salt loses its taste , how can it be restored? It is not good for either the land or the manure pile. People just throw it out."

QS 54. When to rejoice

"What do you think? If a man had a hundred sheep and lost one of them, wouldn't he leave the ninety-nine and go look for the one that was lost? And if he should find it, I tell you, he will rejoice more over that one sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray."
"Or which woman, if she had ten drachmas and lost one, would not light a lamp, sweep the house, and look until she finds it? And when she finds it, she invites her friends and her neighbors in saying, ''rejoice with me for I have found the drachma which I'd lost.'"

QS 55. Either/or

"No one can serve two masters. Either he hates the one and loves the other, or he is loyal to one and despises the other. You cannot serve God and wealth (mammon)."

QS 56. The kingdom and the law

"The law of Moses and the prophets (of Israel) were authorities until John. Since then the kingdom of God has been overpowered by violent men."
"It is easier for the heavens and the earth to pass away than for one stroke of the law to lose its force."
"Everyone who divorces his wife commits adultery, and the one who marries a divorced woman commits adultery."

QS 57. On scandals

"Scandals are sure to come; but shame on the one through whom they come. It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea than for him to lead astray one of these little people."

QS 58. On forgiveness

"If your brother sins, warn him. If he listens to you, forgive him. Even if he sins against you seven times in a day, you must forgive him."

QS 59. On faith

"If you have faith like a grain of mustard, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Begone and plant yourself in the sea,' and it would obey you."

QS 60. The day of separation

"The days are coming when they will say to you, 'Look, he is in the wilderness.' Do not go out. Or 'Look, he is sequestered in some house.' Do not follow them. For just as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so it will be on the day when the son of man appears."
"Just as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be on the day of the son of man. They ate, they drank, they married, they were given in marriage right up until the day when Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and took them all."
"In the days of Lot it was the same - they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built. But on the day when Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all."
"This is how it will be on the day when the son of man appears."
"I am telling you, on that night there will be two in the field. One will be seized and the other left. Two women will be grinding together. One will be taken and the other left."
"Where the corpse is, there the eagles (vultures?) will gather."

QS 61. Squaring accounts

"That day is like a man who took a trip. He called his servants together and gave them full responsibility for his possessions. To one he gave five talents (a large sum of money), to another two, to another one. When he returned the master ordered his servants to settle their accounts. The first said, "Sir, your five talents have earned another five talents.' The master said, 'Well done, good servant. You have been reliable in financial matters; I will put you in charge of more important affairs.' The second approached and said, 'Sir, your two talents have earned another two talents.' The master said to him, 'Well done, good servant. You have been reliable in financial matters; I will put you in charge of more important affairs.' The third approached and said, 'Sir, I was afraid, because you are a hard man. You withdraw what you did not deposit, and reap where you did not sow. Here is your talent which I safely hid away for you.' His master said to him, 'You good-for-nothing servant. You knew that I reap what I did not sow? Why then didn't you invest my money so that when I returned I might get it back with interest? Take the talent and give it to the one who has the ten talents.'"
"I tell you, everyone who has will receive more, and from the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away."

QS 62. Judging Israel

"And you who have followed me will sit on the thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."