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Matthew 12 :: New King James Version (NKJV)

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath
Sabbath Works, Good Fruit, and Jesus’ True Family
(Mark 2:23–28; Luke 6:1–5 )

Mat 12:1

Mat 12:1At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. And His disciples were hungry, and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat.

Mat 12:2

Mat 12:2And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!”

Mat 12:3

Mat 12:3But He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him:

Mat 12:4

Mat 12:4“how he entered the house of God and ate the showbread which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests?

Mat 12:5

Mat 12:5“Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are blameless?

Mat 12:6

Mat 12:6“Yet I say to you that in this place there is One greater than the temple.

Mat 12:7

Mat 12:7“But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’[fn] you would not have condemned the guiltless.

Mat 12:8

Mat 12:8“For the Son of Man is Lord even[fn] of the Sabbath.”
Healing on the Sabbath
(Mark 3:1–6; Luke 6:6–11 )

Mat 12:9

Mat 12:9Now when He had departed from there, He went into their synagogue.

Mat 12:10

Mat 12:10And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand. And they asked Him, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—that they might accuse Him.

Mat 12:11

Mat 12:11Then He said to them, “What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out?

Mat 12:12

Mat 12:12“Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep? Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.”

Mat 12:13

Mat 12:13Then He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and it was restored as whole as the other.

Mat 12:14

Mat 12:14Then the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him.
Behold, My Servant

Mat 12:15

Mat 12:15But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there. And great multitudes[fn] followed Him, and He healed them all.

Mat 12:16

Mat 12:16Yet He warned them not to make Him known,

Mat 12:17

Mat 12:17that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:

Mat 12:18

Mat 12:18“Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen,
My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!
I will put My Spirit upon Him,
And He will declare justice to the Gentiles.

Mat 12:19

Mat 12:19He will not quarrel nor cry out,
Nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets.

Mat 12:20

Mat 12:20A bruised reed He will not break,
And smoking flax He will not quench,
Till He sends forth justice to victory;

Mat 12:21

Mat 12:21And in His name Gentiles will trust.”[fn]
A House Divided Cannot Stand
(Mark 3:22–27; Luke 11:14–23 )

Mat 12:22

Mat 12:22Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and[fn] mute man both spoke and saw.

Mat 12:23

Mat 12:23And all the multitudes were amazed and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”

Mat 12:24

Mat 12:24Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub,[fn] the ruler of the demons.”

Mat 12:25

Mat 12:25But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.

Mat 12:26

Mat 12:26“If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?

Mat 12:27

Mat 12:27“And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges.

Mat 12:28

Mat 12:28“But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.

Mat 12:29

Mat 12:29“Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.

Mat 12:30

Mat 12:30“He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.
The Unpardonable Sin
(Mark 3:28–30 )

Mat 12:31

Mat 12:31“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.

Mat 12:32

Mat 12:32“Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.
A Tree Known by Its Fruit
(Matt. 7:15–20 )

Mat 12:33

Mat 12:33“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.

Mat 12:34

Mat 12:34“Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

Mat 12:35

Mat 12:35“A good man out of the good treasure of his heart[fn] brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.

Mat 12:36

Mat 12:36“But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.

Mat 12:37

Mat 12:37“For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”
The Scribes and Pharisees Ask for a Sign
(Luke 11:29–32 )

Mat 12:38

Mat 12:38Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.”

Mat 12:39

Mat 12:39But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.

Mat 12:40

Mat 12:40“For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Mat 12:41

Mat 12:41“The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.

Mat 12:42

Mat 12:42“The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.
An Unclean Spirit Returns
(Luke 11:24–26 )

Mat 12:43

Mat 12:43“When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none.

Mat 12:44

Mat 12:44“Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order.

Mat 12:45

Mat 12:45“Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.”
Jesus’ Mother and Brothers Send for Him
(Mark 3:31–35; Luke 8:19–21 )

Mat 12:46

Mat 12:46While He was still talking to the multitudes, behold, His mother and brothers stood outside, seeking to speak with Him.

Mat 12:47

Mat 12:47Then one said to Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak with You.”

Mat 12:48

Mat 12:48But He answered and said to the one who told Him, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?”

Mat 12:49

Mat 12:49And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and said, “Here are My mother and My brothers!

Mat 12:50

Mat 12:50“For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother.”
See the NKJV Preface (Especially for Parenthesis, Brackets, & Asterisks).
NKJV Footnotes
NU-Text and M-Text omit even.
NU-Text brackets multitudes as disputed.
NU-Text omits blind and.
NU-Text and M-Text read Beelzebul.
NU-Text and M-Text omit of his heart.
Translation Copyright Logo

New King James Version, © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

The text of the New King James Version (NKJV) appearing on or deriving from this or any other web page is for personal use only. Any other use of the NKJV must be in conformity with the Quotation Policy for the New King James Version. For more information about the New King James Version, the Quotation Policy, and for inquiries about permission to use the New King James Version, go to Thomas Nelson, Inc..

For more information on this translation, see the NKJV Preface.

Matthew Chapter 12 — Additional Translations:

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