THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN COMES NEAR

Passage: Matthew 4:12-25

Key verse: 16

NIV

Jesus Begins to Preach

12 When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison,(A) he withdrew to Galilee.(B) 13 Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum,(C) which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali— 14 to fulfill(D) what was said through the prophet Isaiah:

15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
    the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan,
    Galilee of the Gentiles—
16 the people living in darkness
    have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
    a light has dawned.”[a](E)

17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven(F) has come near.”

Jesus Calls His First Disciples(G)

18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee,(H) he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter(I) and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 19 “Come, follow me,”(J) Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” 20 At once they left their nets and followed him.(K)

21 Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John.(L) They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.(M)

Jesus Heals the Sick

23 Jesus went throughout Galilee,(N) teaching in their synagogues,(O) proclaiming the good news(P) of the kingdom,(Q) and healing every disease and sickness among the people.(R) 24 News about him spread all over Syria,(S) and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed,(T) those having seizures,(U) and the paralyzed;(V) and he healed them. 25 Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis,[b] Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him.(W)

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Footnotes
  1. Matthew 4:16 Isaiah 9:1,2
  2. Matthew 4:25 That is, the Ten Cities
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

Jesus Begins His Ministry

12 Now when he heard that (A)John had been arrested, (B)he withdrew into Galilee. 13 And leaving (C)Nazareth he went and lived in (D)Capernaum by (E)the sea, in the territory of (F)Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 (G)so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

15 (H)“The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
    the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
16 (I)the people dwelling in darkness
    have seen a great light,
and for those dwelling in the region and (J)shadow of death,
    on them a light has dawned.”

17 (K)From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, (L)“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”[a]

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

18 (M)While walking by (N)the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you (O)fishers of men.”[b] 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

Jesus Ministers to Great Crowds

23 (P)And he went throughout all Galilee, (Q)teaching in their synagogues and (R)proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and (S)healing every disease and every affliction among the people. 24 So his fame spread throughout all (T)Syria, and (U)they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and (V)pains, (W)those oppressed by demons, (X)those having seizures, and (Y)paralytics, and he healed them. 25 (Z)And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the (AA)Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.

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Footnotes
  1. Matthew 4:17 Or the kingdom of heaven has come near
  2. Matthew 4:19 The Greek word anthropoi refers here to both men and women
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

First, the appearing of a great light (12-17)

Jesus did not begin his ministry in Jerusalem, but in the remote region of Galilee. Jesus served people who seemed far from God. He taught them that the kingdom of God was very near to them. All they had to do was repent and believe the good news. Jesus' ministry fulfilled the prophecy of a great light to light up people's lives. Jesus himself is that light. The kingdom of heaven came to us in Jesus.

Second, Jesus calls disciples and begins to serve (18-25)

Jesus also began to call disciples, whom he could train to be spiritual leaders and serve as he did. Jesus' calling gave ordinary fishermen a whole new life as fishers for people. Jesus also displayed God's love and light by healing all kinds of human suffering. Soon large crowds of people began to follow Jesus wherever he went. They saw in Jesus the true hope they had been seeking.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for opening the kingdom of heaven to us when we were lost in darkness. I will follow you with great hope.

One Word: A great light