Study Desk

In front of everyone the man got up, picked up his stretcher at once and left. They were all utterly amazed and praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!"

As he passed on from there, he saw Levi Ben-Halfai sitting in his tax-collection booth and said to him, "Follow me!" And he got up and followed him.

As Yeshua was in Levi's house eating, many tax-collectors and sinners were sitting with Yeshua and his talmidim, for there were many of them among his followers.

When the Torah-teachers and the P'rushim saw that he was eating with sinners and tax-collectors, they said to his talmidim, "Why does he eat with tax-collectors and sinners?"

One Shabbat Yeshua was passing through some wheat fields; and as they went along, his talmidim began picking heads of grain.

He entered the House of God when Evyatar was cohen gadol and ate the Bread of the Presence," — which is forbidden for anyone to eat but the cohanim — "and even gave some to his companions."

Yeshua went off with his talmidim to the lake, and great numbers followed him from the Galil.

He told his talmidim to have a boat ready for him, so that he could escape the crush of the crowd if necessary,

When his family heard about this, they set out to take charge of him; for they said, "He's out of his mind!"

Furthermore, no one can break into a strong man's house and make off with his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. After that, he can ransack his house.

Then his mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent a message asking for him.

He taught them many things in parables. In the course of his teaching, he said to them:

"Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed.

But as soon as the crop is ready, the man comes with his sickle, because it's harvest-time."

He did not say a thing to them without using a parable; when he was alone with his own talmidim he explained everything to them.

Yeshua and his talmidim arrived at the other side of the lake, in the Gerasenes' territory.

He had often been chained hand and foot, but he would snap the chains and break the irons off his feet, and no one was strong enough to control him.

Seeing Yeshua from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him

and screamed at the top of his voice, "What do you want with me, Yeshua, Son of God Ha‘Elyon? I implore you in God's name! Don't torture me!"

They came to Yeshua and saw the man who had had the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were frightened.