Mark 3:1-21

Another time when Jesus went into a synagogue, a man with a crippled hand was there. Some people watched Jesus closely to see if he would heal the man on the Sabbath day so they could accuse him. Jesus said to the man with the crippled hand, “Stand up here in the middle of everyone.” Then Jesus asked the people, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath day: to do good or to do evil, to save a life or to kill?” But they said nothing to answer him. Jesus was angry as he looked at the people, and he felt very sad because they were stubborn. Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” The man held out his hand and it was healed. Then the Pharisees left and began making plans with the Herodians about a way to kill Jesus. Jesus left with his followers for the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed him. Also many people came from Judea, from Jerusalem, from Idumea, from the lands across the Jordan River, and from the area of Tyre and Sidon. When they heard what Jesus was doing, many people came to him. When Jesus saw the crowds, he told his followers to get a boat ready for him to keep people from crowding against him. He had healed many people, so all the sick were pushing toward him to touch him. When evil spirits saw Jesus, they fell down before him and shouted, “You are the Son of God!” But Jesus strongly warned them not to tell who he was. Then Jesus went up on a mountain and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. Jesus chose twelve and called them apostles. He wanted them to be with him, and he wanted to send them out to preach and to have the authority to force demons out of people. These are the twelve men he chose: Simon (Jesus named him Peter), James and John, the sons of Zebedee (Jesus named them Boanerges, which means “Sons of Thunder”), Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, who later turned against Jesus. Then Jesus went home, but again a crowd gathered. There were so many people that Jesus and his followers could not eat. When his family heard this, they went to get him because they thought he was out of his mind.