Luke 5:12-28

121While He was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man 2covered with leprosy; and when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” 13And He reached out with His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” And immediately the leprosy left him. 14And He ordered him to tell no one, saying, “But go and 3show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, just as Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” 15But 4the news about Him was spreading even farther, and large crowds were gathering to hear Him and to be healed of their sicknesses. 16But Jesus Himself would often slip away 5to the 6wilderness and 7pray.

178One day He was teaching, and 9there were some Pharisees and 10teachers of the Law sitting there who had 11come from every village of Galilee and Judea, and from Jerusalem; and 12the power of the Lord was present for Him to perform healing. 1813And some men were carrying a man on a stretcher who was paralyzed; and they were trying to bring him in and to set him down in front of Him. 19But when they did not find any way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on 14the roof and let him down 15through the tiles with his stretcher, into the middle of the crowd, in front of Jesus. 20And seeing their faith, He said, “16Friend, 17your sins are forgiven you.” 21The scribes and the Pharisees 18began thinking of the implications, saying, “19Who is this man who speaks blasphemies? 20Who can forgive sins, except God alone?” 22But Jesus, 21aware of their thoughts, responded and said to them, “Why are you thinking this way in your hearts? 23Which is easier, to say: ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 24But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,” He said to the 22man who was paralyzed, “I say to you, get up, and pick up your stretcher, and go home.” 25And immediately he got up before them, and picked up what he had been lying on, and went home 23glorifying God. 26And 24they were all struck with astonishment and began 25glorifying God. They were also filled 26with fear, saying, “We have seen remarkable things today!”

2727After that He went out and looked at a tax collector named 2829Levi sitting in the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me.” 28And he 30left everything behind, and got up and began following Him.