p. 54 Section VII.
[1] [Arabic, p. 26] 523 And in the morning of that day he went out very early, and went to a [2] desert place, and was there praying. 524 And Simon and those that were with [3] him sought him. 525 And when they found him, they said unto him, All the people seek for [4] thee. 526 He said unto them, Let us go into the adjacent villages and towns, that I may [5] preach there also; for to this end did I come. 527 And the multitudes were seeking him, and came till they reached him; and they took hold of him, that he should not [6] go away from them. 528 But Jesus said unto them, I must preach of the kingdom of [7] God in other cities also: for because of this gospel was I sent. 529 And Jesus was going about all the cities and the villages, and teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all the diseases and all the sicknesses, [8] 530 and casting out the devils. 531 And his fame became known 532 that 533 he was teaching in [9] every place and being glorified by every man. 534 And when he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphæus sitting among the tax-gatherers; 535 and he said unto him, Follow [10] me: and he rose and followed him. 536 And the news of him was heard of in all the land of Syria: and they brought unto him all those whom grievous ills had befallen through divers diseases, and those that were enduring torment, and those that were possessed, and lunatics, 537 and paralytics; and he healed them.
[11, 12] 538 And after some days Jesus entered into Capernaum again. 539 And when they heard that he was in the house, 540 many gathered, so that it could not hold them, even about [13] [Arabic, p. 27] the door; and he made known to them the word of God. 541 And there were there some of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, sitting, come from all the villages of Galilee, and Judæa, and Jerusalem; and the power of the Lord was [14] present to heal them. 542 And some men brought a bed with a man on it who was paralytic. [15] And they sought to bring him in and lay him before him. 543 And when they found no way to bring him in because of the multitude of people, they went up to the roof, and let him down with his bed from the roofing, 544 into the midst before Jesus. [16] 545 And when Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the paralytic, My son, thy sins are forgiven [17] thee. 546 And the scribes and Pharisees began to think within their hearts, Why doth this man blaspheme? 547 Who is it that is able to forgive sins, but God alone? [18] 548 And Jesus knew by the spirit that they were thinking this within themselves, and he [19] said unto them, Why do ye think this within your heart? 549 Which is better, 550 that it should be said to the paralytic, Thy sins are forgiven thee, or that it should be said [20] to him, Arise, and take thy bed, and walk? 551 That ye may know that the Son of man [21] is empowered on earth to forgive sins (and he said to the paralytic), 552 I say unto thee, [22] Arise, take thy bed, and go to thine house. 553 And he rose forthwith, and took his bed, and went out in the presence of all. 554 And he went to his house praising God. [23] 555 And when those multitudes saw, they feared; 556 and amazement took possession of [24] them, 557 and they praised God, who had given such power to men. 558 And they said, We have seen marvellous things to-day, 559 of which we have never before seen the like.
[25] [Arabic, p. 28] 560 And after that, Jesus went out, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting [26] among the publicans: 561 and he said unto him, Follow me. 562 And he left [27] everything, and rose, and followed him. 563 And Levi made him a great feast in his house. And there was a great multitude of the publicans and others sitting with him. [28] 564 And the scribes and Pharisees murmured, and said unto his disciples, Why do ye eat [29] and drink with the publicans and sinners? 565 Jesus answered and said unto them, The physician seeketh not those who are well, but those that are afflicted with grievous [30, 31] sickness. 566 567 I came not to call the righteous, but the sinners, to repentance. 568 And they said unto him, Why do the disciples of John fast always, and pray, and the [32] Pharisees also, but thy disciples eat and drink? 569 He said unto them, Ye cannot make [33] the sons of the marriage feast 570 fast, while the bridegroom is with them. 571 Days will p. 55 come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them; then will they fast in those [34] days. 572 And he spake unto them a parable: 573 No man inserteth a new patch and seweth it in a worn garment, lest the newness of the new take from the worn, and [35] there occur a great rent. 574 And no man putteth fresh wine into old skins, lest the wine burst the skins, and the skins be destroyed, and the wine spilled; but they put [36] the fresh wine in the new skins, and both are preserved. 575 And no man drinketh old wine and straightway desireth fresh; for he saith, The old is better.
[37] 576 And while Jesus was walking on the sabbath day among the sown fields, his disciples [Arabic, p. 29] hungered. And they were rubbing the ears with their hands, and [38] eating. 577 But some of the Pharisees, when they saw them, 578 said unto him, See, [39] why 579 do thy disciples on the sabbath day that which is not lawful? 580 But Jesus said unto them, Have ye not read in olden time what David did, when he had need and [40] hungered, he and those that were with him? 581 how he entered the house of God, when Abiathar was high priest, and ate the bread of the table of the Lord, which it was not lawful that any should eat, save the priests, and gave to them that were with him also? [41] 582 And he said unto them, The sabbath was created because of man, and man was not [42] created because of the sabbath. 583 Or have ye not read in the law, that the priests in [43] the temple profane the sabbath, and yet they are blameless? 584 I say unto you now, [44] that here is what 585 is greater than the temple. 586 If ye had known this: 587 I love mercy, [45] not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned 588 those on whom is no blame. 589 The [46] Lord of the sabbath is the Son of man. 590 And his relatives heard, and went out to take him, and said, He hath gone out of his mind.
[47] 591 And on the next 592 sabbath day he entered 593 into the synagogue and was teaching. [48] 594 And there was there a man whose right hand was withered. And the scribes and the Pharisees were watching him, whether he would heal on the sabbath day, [49] that they might find the means of accusing him. 595 But he knew their thoughts, and said unto the man whose hand was withered, Rise and come near into the midst of [50] the synagogue. 596 And when he came and stood, Jesus said unto them, I ask you, which is lawful to be done on the sabbath day, good or evil? shall lives be saved or [51] [Arabic, p. 30] destroyed? 597 But they were silent. 598 Regarding 599 them with anger, being grieved because of the hardness of their hearts. And he said unto the man, Stretch out thy hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand became straight. [52] 600 Then he said unto them, What man of you shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a [53] well on the sabbath day, will not take it and lift it out? 601 And how much is man better than a sheep! Wherefore it is lawful on the sabbath to do good.
This may represent a Syriac as.
54:534 54:535See above, note to § 6, 46, which applies, although the Arabic words are different.
54:536 54:537Lit. son-of-the-roofs, a Syriac expression (cf. § 24, 31, note).
54:538 54:539 54:540This is the end of verse 1 in the Greek.
54:541 54:542 54:543 54:544This word may be either a singular or a plural.
54:545 54:546 54:547This word ordinarily means to forge lies against; but our translator uses it regularly as here.
54:548 54:549 54:550 54:551 54:552 54:553 54:554 54:555 54:556 54:557 54:558 54:559 54:560 54:561 54:562 54:563 54:564 54:565 54:566 54:567 54:568 54:569 54:570The Arabic word, which occurs here in many of the Arabic versions, could also be read bridegroom. The Syriac word for marriage chamber is also used in the sense of marriage feast.
54:571 55:572 55:573 55:574 55:575 55:576 55:577 55:578 55:579 55:580 55:581 55:582 55:583 55:584 55:585This may be simply a misinterpretation of the ordinary Syriac reading, which in all probability agrees with the masculine reading found in the Text. Rec. of the Greek.
55:586 55:587Is it possible that the Arabic word after known is not meant simply to introduce the quotation, but is to be taken in the adverbial sense, how representing the Syriac what that is?
55:588 55:589 55:590 55:591 55:592Lit. other. The definite article is a mistake of the translator.
55:593Here, at the end of leaf 17 of Vat. ms., is a note by a later hand: “Here a leaf is missing.” This first lacuna extends from § 7, 47 to § 8, 17.
55:594 55:595 55:596 55:597 55:598 55:599An easy clerical error for And so he regarded (cf. Peshitta).
55:600 55:601