World English Bible · Under Rome
Luke 5
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Now while pressed on him and heard the word of , he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret. He saw two boats standing by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. He entered into one of the boats, which was , and asked him to put out a little from the land. He sat down and taught the from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to , "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." answered him, "Master, we worked all night and caught nothing; but at your word I will let down the net." When they had done this, they caught a great multitude of fish, and their net was breaking. They beckoned to their partners in the other boat, that they should come and help them. They came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. But , when he saw it, fell down at ' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a man, ." For he was amazed, and all who were with him, at the catch of fish which they had caught; and so also were and , sons of , who were partners with . said to , "Don't be afraid. From now on you will be catching people alive." When they had brought their boats to land, they left everything, and followed him. While he was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man full of . When he saw , he fell on and begged him, saying, ", if you want to, you can make me clean." He stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, "I want to. Be made clean." Immediately the left him. He commanded him to tell no one, "But go your way and show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing according to what commanded, for a to them." But the report concerning him spread much more, and came together to hear and to be healed by him of their infirmities. But he withdrew himself into and . On one of those days, he was teaching; and there were and sitting by who had come out of every village of , , and . The of was with him to heal them. Behold, men brought a paralyzed man on a cot, and they sought to bring him in to lay before . Not finding a way to bring him in because of , they went up to the housetop and let him down through the tiles with his cot into the middle before . Seeing their , he said to him, "Man, your are forgiven you." The and the began to reason, saying, "Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive , but alone?" But , perceiving their , answered them, "Why are you reasoning so in your ? Which is easier to say, 'Your are forgiven you,' or to say, 'Arise and walk'? But that you may know that has on earth to forgive ," he said to the paralyzed man, "I tell you, arise, take up your cot, and go to your house." Immediately he rose up before them, and took up that which he was laying on, and departed to his house, glorifying . Amazement took hold on all, and they glorified . They were filled with fear, saying, "We have seen strange things today." After these things he went out and saw a named sitting at the tax office, and said to him, "Follow me!" He left everything, and rose up and followed him. made a great feast for him in his house. There was a great of and others who were with them. Their and the murmured against his , saying, "Why do you eat and drink with the and ?" answered them, "Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do. I have not come to call , but , to ." They said to him, "Why do often and , likewise also of the , but yours eat and drink?" He said to them, "Can you make the friends of the while the is with them? But the days will come when the will be taken away from them. Then they will in those days." He also told to them. "No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old garment, or else he will tear the new, and also the piece from the new will not match the old. No one puts into old wineskins, or else the will burst the skins, and it will be spilled and the skins will be destroyed. But must be put into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved. No man having drunk old immediately new, for he says, 'The old is better.'"
A public domain modern English translation, free to read and share. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · Under Rome, 63 BC to AD 100 ›
Judea as a client kingdom and then a province. Roads, garrisons, taxes, crucifixion, and a common Greek language that let a message travel the empire faster than any before it.
- Rome
- The republic tears itself apart in civil war and comes out as an empire under Augustus. What follows is two centuries of relative peace across the whole Mediterranean, enforced by legions and paid for by taxes, with safe roads and safe sea lanes. Every one of Paul's journeys depends on that.
- Judea
- Governed first through Herod the Great, a client king of enormous ability and enormous brutality who rebuilds the temple into one of the wonders of the ancient world, then directly by Roman prefects. Crucifixion is the standard penalty for sedition and is used often and publicly.
- The wider world
- Greek is spoken from Spain to Syria, which means a letter written in Corinth can be read in Rome without translation. Jewish communities already exist in most major cities, which is where the first Christian preaching lands. Mystery religions, imperial cult, and philosophy all compete in the same marketplace.
- Further afield
- The Han dynasty rules China and trades silk westward along routes that touch the Roman world at second hand. In Britain the Roman conquest begins within a decade of the crucifixion.