#knew about the David of it all but Jesus Christ

[bilestat]

I finally finished totbt

[madelynraemunson]

i need to know if we ever get jealous of eddie’s said short lived relationships. do we ever try to sabotage them? or are we the type to try and get along with them and thats when they’re like “oh no you two need to be together?”

(i know the answer in my heart but i want to hear what you think lol)

ex husband!eddie x reader

whaaat? sabotage eddie's relationships? 😵 that's diabolical. why on earth would we do that?

that one time we showed up to his house wearing a sundress after months of wearing sweats was TOTALLY unplanned! we had a date, after all.

and that one time we were dancing with eddie at the family bbq, rocking out to all our favorite songs like careless teenagers right in front of girlfriend #3 was all a ploy by our kiddos! right, kids? right? we do everything for the kids. they love seeing their parents happy and getting along. right, kids?

and are you really still on about the day of eli's talent show?? 🤦🏻‍♀️ we only asked girlfriend #9 to take a family photo of us because she was the only one that was around. that's all 😇 and she shouldn't be mad at us! eli LOVES taking pics with mommy and daddy. who is she to get in the way of a family, especially when kids are involved 🤨😤 (also, we didn't MAKE eddie place his hand where he did in the pictures. he literally did it by himself, on his own terms.)💋

...okay, bunnie you got me! we know damn well what we're doing 😅 but quite frankly, so does eddie.

you've got a date with david tonight. in fact, eddie knows was nice enough to house sit for you and help the kids with homework. an innocent, sweet little gesture. right?

you and david are watching a movie on his couch and things are getting steamy really fast. david is about to kiss you when...

RING! RING!

you pull away immediately. checking your phone to see who it is, you realize,

"it's my ex husband, that fucker. the house better be burning down." you go to answer it. "yes?"

“hey, sweetheart, this is eddie...the banished." he greets you. “i can't seem to find the measuring tape and was wondering if you knew where it was."

you're unsure as to why he would even need measuring tape. regardless, you reply,

"it's in with drawer of miscellaneous stuff. the one by the kitchen sink.”

"ahh, that's right. found it. thanks, babe."

but that's not the only useless call of the night. as your date with david continues, the calls keep coming through in seemingly calculated intervals. at the worst possible times. with the most irrelevant fucking questions.

“i can't find the baking soda." “where do you keep the batteries? the c batteries not the double As." "hey, just a heads up, you might wanna call somebody for this pipe." "what's the wifi password again?"

"EMUNSON1986!" you hiss. "the year you graduated high school."

"aww, really?" eddie coos. "that's endearing. thanks baby."

eventually after an hour, the calls stop. you and david were able to finish the movie, and get back to that steamy interaction before you were spammed mercilessly. david is now fiddling with your straps as you two are kissing, his available hand grazing your lower back, breath hitching when —

RING! RING!

"jesus h CHRIST!" you howl. "it's midnight for god's sake. this better be important. HELLO?”

"sorry," eddie mumbles on the other line. "remind me, i'm looking at your snake plant and was wondering how often these guys need watering? they look a little parched."

"once a day and i already did it," you say through gritted teeth.

"it's a new day, should they be watered again?"

"don't worry about it, eds."

"i always worry, sweetheart.”

david happens to hear this. giving you a side eye now, your date watches as you stay on the line with eddie for a couple of minutes. finally, you get eddie to agree to stop calling, which fills you with relief when you hang up the phone. your eyes then travel back to david, whom you begin to bat your flirty lashes at.

"now." you say. "where were we?"

"you should probably go home," david huffs. "looks like the fort still needs holding down."

you're seeing absolute red now. you are seething. that motherfucker.

your drive home is an angry, and sexually frustrated one. you can't believe eddie would sabotage your date like this, your only fun night out this week. he's in for it now.

"date ended early sweetheart?" eddie pouts at you the moment you walk into your house.

"bedroom," you order. "now."

tagging peeps who seemed interested in this lil universe! as always thank you for reading 💋

@highinmiamiii @potatobeans99 @mediocredreams @joshlmbrt @eddiesxangel @enam3l @mmunson86 @davidblowies-blog @thatissonnina @oskea93 @aurora-austen @lesservillain @madeofmunson @xxbimbobunnyxx @eddiesghxst @munsonssweets @nailbatanddungeon @swiss-mrs @winchester-angel @belokhvostikova @curlyjoequinn @strangereads @marrowfrog00 @shadyunknowncreation @tuolcaniacoc @catherinnn @prestinalove @pleuviors @cinemabean @calumfmu @littlexdeaths @let-the-music-take-c0ntrol @meetmeatyourworst @b-irock @spencerssatchel

divider by: @cafekitsune

[prolifeproliberty]

”In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.“

‭‭John‬ ‭1‬:‭1‬-‭14‬ ‭KJV‬‬

”Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me. But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one.“

‭‭John‬ ‭10‬:‭25‬-‭30‬ ‭KJV‬‬

”For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.“

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭9‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭KJV‬‬

”Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the ancient people? and the things that are coming, and shall come, let them shew unto them. Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any.“

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭44‬:‭6‬-‭8‬ ‭KJV‬‬

”Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.“

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭28‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭KJV‬‬

”In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.“

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭1‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭KJV‬‬

”And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.“

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭1‬:‭26‬-‭27‬ ‭KJV‬‬

”He said unto them, But whom say ye that I am? Peter answering said, The Christ of God. And he straitly charged them, and commanded them to tell no man that thing; saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day.“

‭‭Luke‬ ‭9‬:‭20‬-‭22‬ ‭KJV‬‬

”Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: and they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again.“

‭‭Luke‬ ‭18‬:‭31‬-‭33‬ ‭KJV‬‬

”Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.“

‭‭Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭3‬-‭11‬ ‭KJV‬‬

The doctrine of the Trinity is in the Bible. Jesus’ divinity is in the Bible. Jesus’ atonement for sins on the cross is in the Bible. If you believe the Bible but think you can “follow Jesus” while rejecting what He says about Himself, you are not actually following Jesus.

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible;

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, begotten of his Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father; by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; he suffered and was buried; and the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Father; and he shall come again, with glory, to judge both the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.

And I believe in the Holy Ghost the Lord, the Giver of Life, who proceedeth from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the Prophets. And I believe one holy Catholic and Apostolic Church; I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

[spaghetti-explosioned]

The Gospel According to Saint Matthew

1:1 The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

1:2 Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren; 1:3 And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram; 1:4 And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon; 1:5 And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse; 1:6 And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias; 1:7 And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa; 1:8 And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias; 1:9 And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias; 1:10 And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias; 1:11 And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon: 1:12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel; 1:13 And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor; 1:14 And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud; 1:15 And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob; 1:16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

1:17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations.

1:18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.

1:19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.

1:20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

1:22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

1:24 Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: 1:25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.

2:1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, 2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

2:3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

2:4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.

2:5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, 2:6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.

2:7 Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.

2:8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.

2:9 When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.

2:10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

2:11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh.

2:12 And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

2:13 And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.

2:14 When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: 2:15 And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.

2:16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.

2:17 Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, 2:18 In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.

2:19 But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 2:20 Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child’s life.

2:21 And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.

2:22 But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee: 2:23 And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene.

3:1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, 3:2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

3:3 For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

3:4 And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.

3:5 Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, 3:6 And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.

3:7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 3:8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: 3:9 And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.

3:10 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

3:11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: 3:12 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

3:13 Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.

3:14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 3:15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.

3:16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 3:17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

4:1 Then was Jesus led up of the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

4:2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.

4:3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.

4:4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

4:5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, 4:6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

4:7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

4:8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 4:9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

4:10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

4:11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

4:12 Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee; 4:13 And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim: 4:14 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, 4:15 The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; 4:16 The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.

4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

4:18 And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.

4:19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.

4:20 And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.

4:21 And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.

4:22 And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him.

4:23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.

4:24 And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them.

4:25 And there followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from Judaea, and from beyond Jordan.

5:1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: 5:2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

5:4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

5:5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

5:7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

5:10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

5:12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

5:13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.

5:14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

5:15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.

5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

5:19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

5:20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

5:21 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: 5:22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

5:23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; 5:24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

5:25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.

5:26 Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.

5:27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: 5:28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

5:29 And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

5:30 And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

5:31 It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement: 5:32 But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.

5:33 Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: 5:34 But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne: 5:35 Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.

5:36 Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.

5:37 But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.

5:38 Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: 5:39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

5:40 And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also.

5:41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.

5:42 Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.

5:43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.

5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 5:45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

5:46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? 5:47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? 5:48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

6:1 Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.

6:2 Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

6:3 But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: 6:4 That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.

6:5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

6:6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

6:7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

6:8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.

6:9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

6:10 Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

6:11 Give us this day our daily bread.

6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

6:13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

6:14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 6:15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

6:16 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

6:17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 6:18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.

6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

6:22 The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.

6:23 But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness.

If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

6:25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 6:26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 6:27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 6:28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 6:29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

6:30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 6:31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 6:32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

6:34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.

7:2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

7:3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? 7:4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? 7:5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.

7:6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 7:8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

7:9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? 7:10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? 7:11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? 7:12 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.

7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

7:15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

7:16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 7:17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

7:18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

7:19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

7:20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

7:24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 7:25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

7:26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 7:27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

7:28 And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: 7:29 For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

8:1 When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.

8:2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.

8:3 And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

8:4 And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.

8:5 And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, 8:6 And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented.

8:7 And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him.

8:8 The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.

8:9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.

8:10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.

8:11 And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.

8:12 But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

8:13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

8:14 And when Jesus was come into Peter’s house, he saw his wife’s mother laid, and sick of a fever.

8:15 And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she arose, and ministered unto them.

8:16 When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: 8:17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.

8:18 Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side.

8:19 And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.

8:20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.

8:21 And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.

8:22 But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.

8:23 And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him.

8:24 And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.

8:25 And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish.

8:26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.

8:27 But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him! 8:28 And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way.

8:29 And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time? 8:30 And there was a good way off from them an herd of many swine feeding.

8:31 So the devils besought him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine.

8:32 And he said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters.

8:33 And they that kept them fled, and went their ways into the city, and told every thing, and what was befallen to the possessed of the devils.

8:34 And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts.

9:1 And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city.

9:2 And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.

9:3 And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth.

9:4 And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? 9:5 For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? 9:6 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.

9:7 And he arose, and departed to his house.

9:8 But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.

9:9 And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.

9:10 And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.

9:11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners? 9:12 But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.

9:13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

9:14 Then came to him the disciples of John, saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not? 9:15 And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.

9:16 No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse.

9:17 Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.

9:18 While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live.

9:19 And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples.

9:20 And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment: 9:21 For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole.

9:22 But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.

9:23 And when Jesus came into the ruler’s house, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise, 9:24 He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn.

9:25 But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose.

9:26 And the fame hereof went abroad into all that land.

9:27 And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou son of David, have mercy on us.

9:28 And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord.

9:29 Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.

9:30 And their eyes were opened; and Jesus straitly charged them, saying, See that no man know it.

9:31 But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country.

9:32 As they went out, behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil.

9:33 And when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake: and the multitudes marvelled, saying, It was never so seen in Israel.

9:34 But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils.

9:35 And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

9:36 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.

9:37 Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; 9:38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.

10:1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.

10:2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 10:3 Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 10:4 Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

10:5 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: 10:6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

10:7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

10:8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

10:9 Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses, 10:10 Nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for the workman is worthy of his meat.

10:11 And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, enquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence.

10:12 And when ye come into an house, salute it.

10:13 And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you.

10:14 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet.

10:15 Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.

10:16 Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

10:17 But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; 10:18 And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles.

10:19 But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak.

10:20 For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.

10:21 And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death.

10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

10:23 But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.

10:24 The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.

10:25 It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household? 10:26 Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.

10:27 What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops.

10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.

10:30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

10:31 Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.

10:32 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.

10:33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

10:34 Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.

10:35 For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.

10:36 And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.

10:37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

10:38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.

10:39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

10:40 He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.

10:41 He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.

10:42 And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.

11:1 And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities.

11:2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, 11:3 And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? 11:4 Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: 11:5 The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.

11:6 And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.

11:7 And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind? 11:8 But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses.

11:9 But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet.

11:10 For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.

11:11 Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

11:12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.

11:13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.

11:14 And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come.

11:15 He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

11:16 But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows, 11:17 And saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented.

11:18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil.

11:19 The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.

11:20 Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not: 11:21 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

11:22 But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.

11:23 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

11:24 But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.

11:25 At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.

11:26 Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight.

11:27 All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.

11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

11:30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

12:1 At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn and to eat.

12:2 But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day.

12:3 But he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungred, and they that were with him; 12:4 How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests? 12:5 Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless? 12:6 But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple.

12:7 But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless.

12:8 For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day.

12:9 And when he was departed thence, he went into their synagogue: 12:10 And, behold, there was a man which had his hand withered. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him.

12:11 And he said unto them, What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out? 12:12 How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.

12:13 Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, like as the other.

12:14 Then the Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy him.

12:15 But when Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence: and great multitudes followed him, and he healed them all; 12:16 And charged them that they should not make him known: 12:17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, 12:18 Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.

12:19 He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets.

12:20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.

12:21 And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.

12:22 Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw.

12:23 And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David? 12:24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.

12:25 And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand: 12:26 And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand? 12:27 And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out? therefore they shall be your judges.

12:28 But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.

12:29 Or else how can one enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house.

12:30 He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.

12:31 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.

12:32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.

12:33 Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.

12:34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.

12:35 A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.

12:36 But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.

12:37 For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

12:38 Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee.

12:39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: 12:40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

12:41 The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.

12:42 The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.

12:43 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.

12:44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.

12:45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.

12:46 While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him.

12:47 Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee.

12:48 But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren? 12:49 And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! 12:50 For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.

13:1 The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side.

13:2 And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.

13:3 And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; 13:4 And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: 13:5 Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: 13:6 And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.

13:7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: 13:8 But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.

13:9 Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

13:10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 13:11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

13:12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.

13:13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.

13:14 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: 13:15 For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

13:16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

13:17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

13:18 Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.

13:19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.

13:20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 13:21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

13:22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

13:23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

13:24 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: 13:25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.

13:26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.

13:27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? 13:28 He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? 13:29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.

13:30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

13:31 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: 13:32 Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

13:33 Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.

13:34 All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them: 13:35 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.

13:36 Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.

13:37 He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; 13:38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; 13:39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.

13:40 As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.

13:41 The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; 13:42 And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

13:43 Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

13:44 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.

13:45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 13:46 Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

13:47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: 13:48 Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.

13:49 So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, 13:50 And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

13:51 Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord.

13:52 Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.

13:53 And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed thence.

13:54 And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works? 13:55 Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? 13:56 And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things? 13:57 And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house.

13:58 And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

14:1 At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of Jesus, 14:2 And said unto his servants, This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead; and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him.

14:3 For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put him in prison for Herodias’ sake, his brother Philip’s wife.

14:4 For John said unto him, It is not lawful for thee to have her.

14:5 And when he would have put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet.

14:6 But when Herod’s birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod.

14:7 Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask.

14:8 And she, being before instructed of her mother, said, Give me here John Baptist’s head in a charger.

14:9 And the king was sorry: nevertheless for the oath’s sake, and them which sat with him at meat, he commanded it to be given her.

14:10 And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison.

14:11 And his head was brought in a charger, and given to the damsel: and she brought it to her mother.

14:12 And his disciples came, and took up the body, and buried it, and went and told Jesus.

14:13 When Jesus heard of it, he departed thence by ship into a desert place apart: and when the people had heard thereof, they followed him on foot out of the cities.

14:14 And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.

14:15 And when it was evening, his disciples came to him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves victuals.

14:16 But Jesus said unto them, They need not depart; give ye them to eat.

14:17 And they say unto him, We have here but five loaves, and two fishes.

14:18 He said, Bring them hither to me.

14:19 And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.

14:20 And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full.

14:21 And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside women and children.

14:22 And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away.

14:23 And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.

14:24 But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.

14:25 And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.

14:26 And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.

14:27 But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.

14:28 And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.

14:29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

14:30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.

14:31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? 14:32 And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.

14:33 Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.

14:34 And when they were gone over, they came into the land of Gennesaret.

14:35 And when the men of that place had knowledge of him, they sent out into all that country round about, and brought unto him all that were diseased; 14:36 And besought him that they might only touch the hem of his garment: and as many as touched were made perfectly whole.

15:1 Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying, 15:2 Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread.

15:3 But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? 15:4 For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death.

15:5 But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; 15:6 And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.

15:7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, 15:8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

15:9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

15:10 And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand: 15:11 Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.

15:12 Then came his disciples, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Pharisees were offended, after they heard this saying? 15:13 But he answered and said, Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up.

15:14 Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.

15:15 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable.

15:16 And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding? 15:17 Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught? 15:18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.

15:19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: 15:20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.

15:21 Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon.

15:22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.

15:23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.

15:24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

15:25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.

15:26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs.

15:27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.

15:28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

15:29 And Jesus departed from thence, and came nigh unto the sea of Galilee; and went up into a mountain, and sat down there.

15:30 And great multitudes came unto him, having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus’ feet; and he healed them: 15:31 Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel.

15:32 Then Jesus called his disciples unto him, and said, I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way.

15:33 And his disciples say unto him, Whence should we have so much bread in the wilderness, as to fill so great a multitude? 15:34 And Jesus saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven, and a few little fishes.

15:35 And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.

15:36 And he took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks, and brake them, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.

15:37 And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets full.

15:38 And they that did eat were four thousand men, beside women and children.

15:39 And he sent away the multitude, and took ship, and came into the coasts of Magdala.

16:1 The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would shew them a sign from heaven.

16:2 He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.

16:3 And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times? 16:4 A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.

16:5 And when his disciples were come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread.

16:6 Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

16:7 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread.

16:8 Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread? 16:9 Do ye not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? 16:10 Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? 16:11 How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread, that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees? 16:12 Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

16:13 When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? 16:14 And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.

16:15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16:16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

16:17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

16:19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

16:20 Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ.

16:21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.

16:22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.

16:23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.

16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

16:25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.

16:26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? 16:27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.

16:28 Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.

17:1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, 17:2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.

17:3 And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.

17:4 Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.

17:5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.

17:6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.

17:7 And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid.

17:8 And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only.

17:9 And as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead.

17:10 And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? 17:11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things.

17:12 But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them.

17:13 Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.

17:14 And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying, 17:15 Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.

17:16 And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him.

17:17 Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.

17:18 And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.

17:19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? 17:20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

17:21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

17:22 And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men: 17:23 And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again.

And they were exceeding sorry.

17:24 And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute? 17:25 He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers? 17:26 Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free.

17:27 Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.

18:1 At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? 18:2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, 18:3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

18:4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

18:5 And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.

18:6 But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.

18:7 Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! 18:8 Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.

18:9 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.

18:10 Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.

18:11 For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.

18:12 How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray? 18:13 And if so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went not astray.

18:14 Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.

18:15 Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.

18:16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.

18:17 And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.

18:18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

18:19 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.

18:20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

18:21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? 18:22 Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.

18:23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.

18:24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents.

18:25 But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.

18:26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.

18:27 Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.

18:28 But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.

18:29 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.

18:30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.

18:31 So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done.

18:32 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: 18:33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? 18:34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.

18:35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.

19:1 And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these sayings, he departed from Galilee, and came into the coasts of Judaea beyond Jordan; 19:2 And great multitudes followed him; and he healed them there.

19:3 The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? 19:4 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, 19:5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? 19:6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.

19:7 They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away? 19:8 He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.

19:9 And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery.

19:10 His disciples say unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry.

19:11 But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given.

19:12 For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother’s womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.

19:13 Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them.

19:14 But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

19:15 And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.

19:16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 19:17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.

19:18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, 19:19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

19:20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? 19:21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.

19:22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.

19:23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.

19:24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

19:25 When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? 19:26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

19:27 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? 19:28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

19:29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.

19:30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.

20:1 For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard.

20:2 And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.

20:3 And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 20:4 And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way.

20:5 Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise.

20:6 And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? 20:7 They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.

20:8 So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.

20:9 And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny.

20:10 But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny.

20:11 And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house, 20:12 Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.

20:13 But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny? 20:14 Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee.

20:15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good? 20:16 So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

20:17 And Jesus going up to Jerusalem took the twelve disciples apart in the way, and said unto them, 20:18 Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death, 20:19 And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify him: and the third day he shall rise again.

20:20 Then came to him the mother of Zebedee’s children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him.

20:21 And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.

20:22 But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able.

20:23 And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father.

20:24 And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren.

20:25 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.

20:26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; 20:27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: 20:28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

20:29 And as they departed from Jericho, a great multitude followed him.

20:30 And, behold, two blind men sitting by the way side, when they heard that Jesus passed by, cried out, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son of David.

20:31 And the multitude rebuked them, because they should hold their peace: but they cried the more, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son of David.

20:32 And Jesus stood still, and called them, and said, What will ye that I shall do unto you? 20:33 They say unto him, Lord, that our eyes may be opened.

20:34 So Jesus had compassion on them, and touched their eyes: and immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed him.

21:1 And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, 21:2 Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.

21:3 And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them.

21:4 All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, 21:5 Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass.

21:6 And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, 21:7 And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon.

21:8 And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way.

21:9 And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.

21:10 And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? 21:11 And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.

21:12 And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, 21:13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

21:14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them.

21:15 And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the son of David; they were sore displeased, 21:16 And said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise? 21:17 And he left them, and went out of the city into Bethany; and he lodged there.

21:18 Now in the morning as he returned into the city, he hungered.

21:19 And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever. And presently the fig tree withered away.

21:20 And when the disciples saw it, they marvelled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away! 21:21 Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.

21:22 And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

21:23 And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority? 21:24 And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things.

21:25 The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him? 21:26 But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet.

21:27 And they answered Jesus, and said, We cannot tell. And he said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.

21:28 But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard.

21:29 He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went.

21:30 And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not.

21:31 Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.

21:32 For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him.

21:33 Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country: 21:34 And when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it.

21:35 And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another.

21:36 Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise.

21:37 But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son.

21:38 But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.

21:39 And they caught him, and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him.

21:40 When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen? 21:41 They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons.

21:42 Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes? 21:43 Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.

21:44 And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.

21:45 And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them.

21:46 But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a prophet.

22:1 And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, 22:2 The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son, 22:3 And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.

22:4 Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.

22:5 But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise: 22:6 And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.

22:7 But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.

22:8 Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.

22:9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.

22:10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.

22:11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: 22:12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.

22:13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

22:14 For many are called, but few are chosen.

22:15 Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk.

22:16 And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men.

22:17 Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not? 22:18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? 22:19 Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny.

22:20 And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? 22:21 They say unto him, Caesar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.

22:22 When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way.

22:23 The same day came to him the Sadducees, which say that there is no resurrection, and asked him, 22:24 Saying, Master, Moses said, If a man die, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.

22:25 Now there were with us seven brethren: and the first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and, having no issue, left his wife unto his brother: 22:26 Likewise the second also, and the third, unto the seventh.

22:27 And last of all the woman died also.

22:28 Therefore in the resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven? for they all had her.

22:29 Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.

22:30 For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.

22:31 But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, 22:32 I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.

22:33 And when the multitude heard this, they were astonished at his doctrine.

22:34 But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together.

22:35 Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, 22:36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

22:38 This is the first and great commandment.

22:39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

22:41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 22:42 Saying, What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, The son of David.

22:43 He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying, 22:44 The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool? 22:45 If David then call him Lord, how is he his son? 22:46 And no man was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask him any more questions.

23:1 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples, 23:2 Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: 23:3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.

23:4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.

23:5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, 23:6 And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, 23:7 And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.

23:8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.

23:9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.

23:10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.

23:11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

23:12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

23:14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.

23:15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

23:16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! 23:17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? 23:18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.

23:19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 23:20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.

23:21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.

23:22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.

23:23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

23:24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.

23:25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.

23:26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.

23:27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.

23:28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

23:29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 23:30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.

23:31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.

23:32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.

23:33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? 23:34 Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: 23:35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.

23:36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.

23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! 23:38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.

23:39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

24:1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple.

24:2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

24:3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? 24:4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

24:5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

24:6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

24:7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

24:8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

24:9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.

24:10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.

24:11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.

24:12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

24:15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 24:16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: 24:17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: 24:18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.

24:19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! 24:20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: 24:21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

24:22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.

24:23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.

24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

24:25 Behold, I have told you before.

24:26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.

24:27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

24:28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: 24:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

24:32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: 24:33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.

24:34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

24:36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

24:37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

24:38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 24:39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

24:40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

24:41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

24:42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

24:43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.

24:44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

24:45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? 24:46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

24:47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.

24:48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; 24:49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; 24:50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, 24:51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

25:1 Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.

25:2 And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.

25:3 They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: 25:4 But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

25:5 While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.

25:6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.

25:7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.

25:8 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.

25:9 But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.

25:10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.

25:11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.

25:12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.

25:13 Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.

25:14 For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods.

25:15 And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.

25:16 Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents.

25:17 And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two.

25:18 But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord’s money.

25:19 After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.

25:20 And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more.

25:21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

25:22 He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them.

25:23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

25:24 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: 25:25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.

25:26 His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: 25:27 Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.

25:28 Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.

25:29 For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.

25:30 And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

25:31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: 25:32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: 25:33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

25:34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 25:35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: 25:36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

25:37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? 25:38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? 25:39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? 25:40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

25:41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: 25:42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: 25:43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.

25:44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? 25:45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

25:46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

26:1 And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said unto his disciples, 26:2 Ye know that after two days is the feast of the passover, and the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified.

26:3 Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, 26:4 And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill him.

26:5 But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar among the people.

26:6 Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, 26:7 There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.

26:8 But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste? 26:9 For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor.

26:10 When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me.

26:11 For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.

26:12 For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.

26:13 Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.

26:14 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, 26:15 And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.

26:16 And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.

26:17 Now the first day of the feast of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare for thee to eat the passover? 26:18 And he said, Go into the city to such a man, and say unto him, The Master saith, My time is at hand; I will keep the passover at thy house with my disciples.

26:19 And the disciples did as Jesus had appointed them; and they made ready the passover.

26:20 Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve.

26:21 And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.

26:22 And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto him, Lord, is it I? 26:23 And he answered and said, He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me.

26:24 The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.

26:25 Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said.

26:26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.

26:27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 26:28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

26:29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.

26:30 And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.

26:31 Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad.

26:32 But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee.

26:33 Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended.

26:34 Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.

26:35 Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.

26:36 Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.

26:37 And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.

26:38 Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.

26:39 And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

26:40 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? 26:41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

26:42 He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.

26:43 And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy.

26:44 And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.

26:45 Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

26:46 Rise, let us be going: behold, he is at hand that doth betray me.

26:47 And while he yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people.

26:48 Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast.

26:49 And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, master; and kissed him.

26:50 And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus and took him.

26:51 And, behold, one of them which were with Jesus stretched out his hand, and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest’s, and smote off his ear.

26:52 Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.

26:53 Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels? 26:54 But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be? 26:55 In that same hour said Jesus to the multitudes, Are ye come out as against a thief with swords and staves for to take me? I sat daily with you teaching in the temple, and ye laid no hold on me.

26:56 But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled.

26:57 And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled.

26:58 But Peter followed him afar off unto the high priest’s palace, and went in, and sat with the servants, to see the end.

26:59 Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death; 26:60 But found none: yea, though many false witnesses came, yet found they none. At the last came two false witnesses, 26:61 And said, This fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to build it in three days.

26:62 And the high priest arose, and said unto him, Answerest thou nothing? what is it which these witness against thee? 26:63 But Jesus held his peace, And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God.

26:64 Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

26:65 Then the high priest rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy.

26:66 What think ye? They answered and said, He is guilty of death.

26:67 Then did they spit in his face, and buffeted him; and others smote him with the palms of their hands, 26:68 Saying, Prophesy unto us, thou Christ, Who is he that smote thee? 26:69 Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying, Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee.

26:70 But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest.

26:71 And when he was gone out into the porch, another maid saw him, and said unto them that were there, This fellow was also with Jesus of Nazareth.

26:72 And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man.

26:73 And after a while came unto him they that stood by, and said to Peter, Surely thou also art one of them; for thy speech bewrayeth thee.

26:74 Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew.

26:75 And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.

27:1 When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death: 27:2 And when they had bound him, they led him away, and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor.

27:3 Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 27:4 Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that.

27:5 And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.

27:6 And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood.

27:7 And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in.

27:8 Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day.

27:9 Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value; 27:10 And gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord appointed me.

27:11 And Jesus stood before the governor: and the governor asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And Jesus said unto him, Thou sayest.

27:12 And when he was accused of the chief priests and elders, he answered nothing.

27:13 Then said Pilate unto him, Hearest thou not how many things they witness against thee? 27:14 And he answered him to never a word; insomuch that the governor marvelled greatly.

27:15 Now at that feast the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner, whom they would.

27:16 And they had then a notable prisoner, called Barabbas.

27:17 Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ? 27:18 For he knew that for envy they had delivered him.

27:19 When he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him.

27:20 But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus.

27:21 The governor answered and said unto them, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas.

27:22 Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified.

27:23 And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified.

27:24 When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it.

27:25 Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.

27:26 Then released he Barabbas unto them: and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.

27:27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall, and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers.

27:28 And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe.

27:29 And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews! 27:30 And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head.

27:31 And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him.

27:32 And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to bear his cross.

27:33 And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull, 27:34 They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink.

27:35 And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.

27:36 And sitting down they watched him there; 27:37 And set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

27:38 Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left.

27:39 And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads, 27:40 And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.

27:41 Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, 27:42 He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him.

27:43 He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.

27:44 The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.

27:45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.

27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? 27:47 Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias.

27:48 And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink.

27:49 The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him.

27:50 Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.

27:51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; 27:52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, 27:53 And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.

27:54 Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.

27:55 And many women were there beholding afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him: 27:56 Among which was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s children.

27:57 When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathaea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus’ disciple: 27:58 He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered.

27:59 And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 27:60 And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed.

27:61 And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre.

27:62 Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate, 27:63 Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again.

27:64 Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first.

27:65 Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can.

27:66 So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch.

28:1 In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.

28:2 And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it.

28:3 His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: 28:4 And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men.

28:5 And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.

28:6 He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.

28:7 And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you.

28:8 And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word.

28:9 And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him.

28:10 Then said Jesus unto them, Be not afraid: go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me.

28:11 Now when they were going, behold, some of the watch came into the city, and shewed unto the chief priests all the things that were done.

28:12 And when they were assembled with the elders, and had taken counsel, they gave large money unto the soldiers, 28:13 Saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.

28:14 And if this come to the governor’s ears, we will persuade him, and secure you.

28:15 So they took the money, and did as they were taught: and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.

28:16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.

28:17 And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted.

28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. The Gospel According to Saint Mark

[walkswithmyfather]

“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him. The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” —Mark 10:51

“What Do You Want Me to Do For You?” By Today Devotions:

“When I am in my car alone, I often have conversations with God. It’s the perfect time to talk out loud and express what is going on in my thoughts and my life. This is really easy as long as I am doing the talking. But when I go silent and listen, it’s a different story. I hear the same question that Jesus asked Bartimaeus: “What do you want me to do for you?”

It seems like a straightforward question that I can answer easily. But, knowing about Jesus and how he calls us to live, I realize that I need to think carefully. Fulfilling a desire that is on my mind would be great—but what about that person I know who has not yet come to faith in Christ? Or what about that person who is suffering and needs healing? My list can be rather lengthy. And all of the things on my list are worth asking for.

Bartimeus believed in Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of David. He knew he was crying out to the Savior, and he was sure of his answer. And when he was healed, he left everything behind to follow Jesus.

As I write this, I realize that I too need to trust so fully in Jesus that I can see he is the one who is capable of doing anything. Sometimes I want the miracle more than I want the one performing it.

When Jesus asks us, “What do you want me to do for you?” may our trust in him clarify our answer. Then, like Bartimaeus, let us ask boldly.

Lord, have mercy on us. Hear our prayer. Thank you that you are indeed our Savior and Lord who cares for us. Amen.”

[queer-devil]

DRDR Incorrect Quotes Pt 3

Because I’m not ok and I will never be ok Jesus Christ why is October like this holy fucking—

Link to generator

Also warning most of these are prob ooc since they are emotion support

Ace: Can you be quiet?! I'm trying to think.

Arei: Don't worry. Doing anything for the first time is difficult.

Min: Hey, random question, what are your favorite flowers?

Teruko: Poppies, why?

Min:

Teruko: Were you going to get me flowers?

Min:

Teruko:

Min: ᶦᵗ’ˢ ᵃ ᵖᵒˢˢᶦᵇᶦˡᶦᵗʸ

Xander: And what do I get out of this?

David: I will give you a dollar.

Xander: What do you think I am? A chump? I would never do it for a dollar!

David: How about two dollars?

Xander: You got yourself a deal.

David: Ace, you're testifying in an aggravated assault case tomorrow, and the D.A. is worried about how you'll present yourself on the stand.

Ace: Why? I'm fine on the stand!

*flashback to Testimony #1*

Ace: Look, I'll make this real simple so even these dumdums can understand.

Ace, to the jury: MAN DID CRIME.

*flashback to Testimony #2*

Ace: I'm sorry, could you make her stop doing that weird thing with her face?

Defense Attorney, next to the crying defendant: ...Crying?

*flashback to Testimony #3*

Ace: And when this is over, I'm gonna find you and I'm gonna break those little fingers.

Judge: Could the witness please stop threatening the stenographer?

Xander: Oh, David, we have a visitor!

David: Don't tell me it's Teruko.

Xander: It's Teruko!

*Thump noise*

David, from the other room: What happened?!

Arei: Min’s shirt fell.

David: Why was it loud?

Arei: It had her inside.

*The Squad's cooking skills*

Whit: *master chef*

Eden: *knows a few recipes*

Rose: *can follow instructions on a box*

Charles: *made toast once*

Teruko: *banned from the kitchen*

Levi: Hopefully Ace has learned a lesson about respecting other people's feelings.

Ace: Oh, shut up and die Levi.

Min: Hey Arei, have you seen the photographer?

Arei: Nope. Have you seen the meat tenderizer?

Min, confused: What?

Arei, grabbing the meat tenderizer out of the drawer: No reason, cute girl things!

Rose: *working in a flower shop and minding her own business*

Ace, storming into the store and slapping $20 on the counter: HOW DO I PASSIVE-AGGRESSIVELY SAY “FUCK YOU” IN FLOWER???

*The squad has just arrived in a new city. Levi looks around at the wanted posters to see if he’s on any of them.*

Teruko: Levi, are you a criminal?

Levi: Not here, I’m not.

David: We’re all in this together. If one of us falls, we all fall. Nobody is expendable on this team.

Teruko: Sounds fake but ok.

Ace: I hate you.

Levi: Well, according to this picture I drew of us holding hands, that is untrue.

Min: If you bite it and you die, it's poisonous. If it bites you and you die, it's venomous.

Ace: What if it bites me and it dies?!

Min: Then you're poisonous. Jesus Christ, Ace, learn to listen.

Veronika: What if it bites itself and I die?

Min: That's voodoo.

Rose: What if it bites me and someone else dies?

Min: That's correlation, not causation.

J: What if we bite each other and neither of us die?

Arei: That's kinky.

Min: Oh my god.

Eden: Imagine if someone handed you a box full of all the things you lost throughout your life.

Min: It would be nice to have my sense of purpose back...

Whit: Oh wow, my childhood innocence! Thank you for finding this.

David: My will to live! I haven't seen this in years.

Rose: I knew I lost that potential somewhere.

Veronika: Mental stability, my old friend!

Eden: Jesus, could you guys lighten up a little?

Rose: Whoa, Min, what’s up with that angry face?

Min: Whit won’t stop talking about how “Ancient Egyptians were furries”.

Whit: But they were! Just looks at all their gods-

Min: Oh my god, SHUT UP!

Veronika: I refuse to apologize for being weird or off-putting. That’s actually your problem. I’m having a fantastic time!

All of the ones after this point are suggestive

Whit: You look good in that hoodie.

Charles: You know where else I'd look good?

Whit, zero hesitation: My bed.

Charles, at the same time: By your side- wait, what?

Whit: Charles, you do remember when we agreed we were better off as friends, right?

Charles, naked in Whit's bed: No, I absolutely do not.

Whit, already taking off his clothes: Fuck... Me neither.

Whit: There are 20 letters in the alphabet, right?

Charles: Nope, there's 26.

Whit: Ah, I must have forgotten U, R, A, Q, T.

Charles: That’s cute, but you're still missing one.

Whit: You'll get the D later ;).

Whit: As top in this relationship, I think we should-

Charles: I can't believe you're pulling rank on me.

Whit: I like your new pants!

Charles: Thank you, they were 50% off.

Whit: I’d like them better if they were 100% off. *winks*

Charles: The store can’t just give away clothes for free.

Whit: Thats’s… not what I meant.

Charles: That’s a terrible way to run a business, Whit.

Whit, with a headache: Advil me up, daddy.

Charles: I will short out the language centre of your brain if you say anything like that ever again.

Teruko: Who do we know that has handcuffs?

Whit: Well Charles and I-

Charles: *elbows Whit*

Whit: ...wouldn't know.

Ace: Is there a cactus where your heart should be?

Arei: What’s up your ass this morning!

Levi: *walks in* ...Hey.

Arei: Hmm… nevermind.

Ace: WAIT NO!

Arei: What’s your body count?

Levi: Do you mean sex or murder?

Ace: There. How do I look?

Levi: Like a cheap French harlot.

Ace: French?!

Charles: What’s sexting?

Teruko: I'm not having this conversation with you.

Arei, turning to J: Stop calling yourself hot, the only thing you can turn on is the microwave.

Eden: So anyways have y'all seen Ace?

Whit: I think they went in Levi's room 'studying'.

J: Doubt that. I heard groans there.

*Meanwhile in Levi's room*

Ace & Levi, fighting:

Ace: *sucking on a popsicle*

J: Pfft, you practicing for when Levi gets here?

Ace: *takes a huge ass bite out of the popsicle*

J: *Concern*

[blood-mocha-latte]

ONE TOO MANY MORNINGS | 13K | RATED T

the last part of @dontirrigateme’s summer exchange gift! (part one and part two), i hope you enjoy <3. special thanks to @lamialamia for such a stellar beta, and thanks to absolutely everyone. wishing a lovely rest of summer to all ☀️

Web’s smile was warm, happy. He had a butterfly bandage at his temple, carefully placed, a cup of jello in one hand. He was, it seemed, fully intact. “Hey, Lieb.” He said as soon as he saw him, and didn’t even spare Joe the dignity of waving at him.

Joe leaned against the doorframe of the room, realized for the first time that he was wearing his left shoe on his right foot and vice versa. “I’m going to fucking kill you.” He said, heart still trying to beat through his chest.

(The fifth time they broke up, it was final. It was over, because Web put his foot down and Joe was half-convinced that their fate was to murder each other. They still didn’t change their emergency contact information.)

READ ON AO3 (RECOMMENDED) OR BELOW THE CUT

FEBRUARY

He got the call on a Thursday.

“I just don’t get it.” Chuck told him, and sounded entirely too exasperated over the phone. “You two are, like—”

“Chuck, can you cover me or not?” Joe interrupted him, pausing his subsequent ripping apart of the couch to adjust his phone against his ear, shoving his feet into his shoes with a free hand.

Chuck’s sigh sounded long-suffering. “Yeah, yeah.” He muttered, the receiver muffled. “But only for the morning, and then you’re on your own.” Joe was barely listening to him, already in the hallway, grabbing his jacket.

“Thanks.” He said, and hung up before Chuck could continue to explain, at length, what a bad idea this was.

He ended up on the street in a record two and a half minutes, nearly running by the time his feet hit the pavement.

He’d never, and he knew it certainly, been so goddamn grateful to live so close to the hospital.

--

The closer he got, the quicker his breathing echoed in his chest. It seemed like a side effect of everything from Joe’s sudden onslaught of worry and the aftermath of the phone call beginning to catch up to him.

A car crash. Jesus Christ.

Joe dragged a hand down his face as he found the front desk of the hospital, located the nurse behind it and nodded at her. “Hi.” He said, rather hoarse. “I’m, uh. Emergency contact?”

The nurse blinked at him. Joe grimaced at her, which was as close to a smile as he could manage. “Do you have a name?” She asked.

“Web.” He said without thinking, then blinked. “Uh, Webster. David. He’s — Kenyon.” 

The nurse’s eyes found the screen in front of her, and Joe cleared his throat, pushing his hair away from his forehead and looking vaguely over his shoulder, catching his breath. He could feel his phone vibrating against his leg as someone (probably Chuck) kept texting him about something or the other. Joe didn’t necessarily care.

“Joe Liebgott?” Joe’s gaze snapped back to the woman behind the desk.

“Yeah.” He said absently and she nodded, pointing with her nose down the hall. 

“You’ll see him.” She said, which seemed rather vague. Joe wasn’t sure if that was par for the course or not. “He’s definitely noticeable.”

And out of everything that Joe could think about hearing in a hospital, he’d have to think that would be one of the worst.

“Thanks.” He said, dry, and his own voice seemed to echo through his ears like coming from the end of a tunnel. Everything seemed to echo; from his breathing to his footsteps against the linoleum. 

A car crash. 

A car crash.

For all that Joe thought it over, it barely made any sense at all. Ridiculously, the only thing he seemed able to focus on was how they ended it.

His footsteps still echoed.

--

Joe was going to kill him.

Joe was going to fucking kill him.

David’s smile was warm, happy. He had a butterfly bandage at his temple, carefully placed, a cup of green jello in one hand. He was, it seemed, fully intact. “Hey, Lieb.” He said as soon as he saw him, and didn’t even spare Joe the dignity of waving at him.

Joe leaned against the doorframe of the room, realized for the first time that he was wearing his left shoe on his right foot and vice versa. “I’m going to fucking kill you.” He said, heart still trying to beat through his chest.

Web made a face at him, dipped his spoon back into the jello. “Please.” He said, dismissive. “Don’t be so dramatic. It’s not like I—”

“Dramatic?” Joe demanded over him, already beginning to see red again. “I get a fucking call at six in the goddamn morning saying that you’ve been in a crash and that you’ve been hospitalized—”

Web’s eyes flashed a brighter blue as he sat up slightly against the reclined hospital bed, brows furrowing. Upon a second glance, he didn’t seem as unharmed as previously thought, white gauze covering one of his collarbones and one of his fingers splinted. 

“I didn’t ask you to come!” He said, voice breaking around his own upset, and Joe can’t be bothered to care, spluttering and pointing at him in the bed, astutely not in the full body cast that he’d assumed he’d be in, with all limbs still attached. “They called you before I could say that I just haven’t changed my info—”

“It’s been a month!” Joe said, pointing vaguely at nothing over his shoulder. “How the hell haven’t you changed—”

“Have you?” Web demanded over him, cheeks a brighter red than before, flushed and neck turning a blotchy red. 

That gave Joe pause. “I…” He started, pressing his lips together, frustrated, and dropping his hand to point at Web, instead. “That’s besides the point.” Web’s eyes widened, and he pointed back at Joe, who was quick to drop his hand as soon as he realized how stupid they must look.

“You haven’t changed it either!” He said, sounding some strange mix of enraged and enthused. “So ha! How can you expect me to—”

“Don’t ha me.” Joe interrupted him, wrinkling his nose. “And I wasn’t in a fucking crash, so I think it’s slightly fucking different—”

“You could have been!” Web’s still red, fingertips tracing around the gauze at his collarbone as he watches Joe, eyes wide, crystal. “And then they would have called me, and it would be the same exact scenario.”

Joe leaned heavier against the doorway, pinched the bridge of his nose between his index finger and thumb. “Jesus Christ.” He told his hand, suddenly exhausted, and Web snorted, suddenly derivative. When Joe looked back up at him, he’d crossed his arms over his sternum, leaning back in the bed. 

“So there.” He said, entirely too smug. “You try to remember to change your emergency contact after six years.”

Joe stared at him. Web stared back for about fifteen seconds, and then grimaced, leaning further back to press his palm flat against his collarbone, breathing through his nose. “Fuck.” He muttered.

Joe sighed. As elaborately as he could, neatly enunciating, he said, “Are you okay?” 

Web frowned at him. “I mean.” He said. “Yeah. They’re just a couple of scratches.” Joe frowned back.

“Okay.” He said finally, pushing away from the doorway. “When are they releasing you?”

Though only fractionally, Web’s eyes widened as he shook his head, pointing at Joe again. “You are not taking me home.” He said, sounding entirely too contemptible. Joe just raised an eyebrow, held his arms out. 

“Is anyone else coming for you?” He asked, which may have hit the nail on the head, as Web just paused, mouth still open, and Joe nodded. “Yeah.” He muttered, hand coming up to rub across the nape of his neck. “I’ll talk to the desk. Get your shit together.”

“Joe.” Web said, suddenly more pitiful than before, some sort of game that he always took entirely too seriously. “Please don’t take me home.” 

Joe was already turning around in half of a circle, patting down his pockets as he tried to find the mental checklist for exactly what he needed to find. “Get your shit together, kid.” He said a second time, finding his phone in his back pocket.

Goddamn it. He walked here. They’d need to Uber back to Web’s place.

--

“One step at a time.”

“I’m not a fucking invalid.” 

“Okay, so get out on your own.”

Web shut his mouth real quick after that, and Joe went back to thinking absently about something else entirely. Like how he should have thought to make Web change his emergency contact information while they were still at the hospital.

The Uber driver was patient as Joe tugged Web out of the backseat of the car as gingerly as he could and the other elected to barely help at all. As soon as he was standing, Web groaned, one arm coming to wrap around his ribs, and Joe ignored him completely to tip the driver and thank him. 

When he turned around, Web was in the same place he deposited him, dip between his eyes heavy, breathing steady. “What’re you waiting for?” Joe asked him, moving forward enough to get to the apartment's fancy gate, gesturing at it impatiently. “Get your bitchass keycard and key us in.”

Web frowned at him. The corner of his mouth was slightly bloody, Joe was unsure if that was new or he just hadn’t noticed it before. “You’re so mean to me.” He said, voice taking on the same edge he’d use when they were together, when he was trying to make Joe feel like an asshole about something.

They weren’t together anymore, though. Joe just pointed at the gate again, raised an eyebrow. “I don’t have all day to baby you.” He said.

He didn’t have to feel like an asshole anymore; they weren’t together.

(He still kind of did. God fucking damn it.)

--

Web’s fancy apartment building had an elevator, and Joe ushered him into it before he himself stepped in, pushing for floor eight with his knuckle and leaning back against the wall.

Web leaned against the wall as well, still frowning at him. Joe ignored him.

“I still came and picked you up.” He said, after a moment. 

“Don’t try to score brownie points.” Web wrinkled his nose. “I didn’t want you to.”

Joe took a very deep, calming breath. “Who else would’ve come for you?” He asked again, hypothetical but also entirely not, as Hoobler was out of town and it was Monday morning.

Web looked away and pressed his lips together. “It’s embarrassing,” He said, overly articulate, “To have to have my ex come and pick me up.” 

Joe snorted. “How do you think I feel?” He asked, the elevator opening again with a ding. He pushed away from the wall to herd Web out of the elevator before he himself departed from it. 

Web just huffed. “My only solace is that I’m pretty sure everyone thought you were my dad.” Joe pushed at his back with two fingers, a careful prod to make him move quicker to his door. Web grumbled but complied, limping slightly.

“Hardy-har.” He said, dry, as Web fumbled with and subsequently jiggled open his apartment. “I should have told more nurses that we used to fuck.” 

Web’s cheeks were rosy, when he turned around. Probably a side effect of whatever painkillers they have him on. “That would simply be too humiliating for me.” He said. “I could hardly admit that I knew the arthritic that came over looking like he had just started smoking crack cocaine.”

Joe raised an eyebrow at him, but closed the apartment door behind him nonetheless. “Did you get meaner, since we broke up?”

Web frowned at him, eyes still bright, arm still wrapped around his ribs. “No,” He said, “I just got my brains back.”

Joe was already wandering towards Web’s kitchen as the other stayed standing, leaning against the wall, eyes half closed. “Stop repeating lines from shitty rom-coms.” He said, and Webster spluttered, already protesting.

If there was one thing he missed, Joe supposed, it was this sort of thing.

“Yeah, well, you’re old.” Web said, lackluster. Joe figured he couldn’t think of a better insult.

“That just makes me wise.” He said. When he looked over at Web, the other was glowering at something over his shoulder.

Joe was pretty sure that meant he won.

--

“You need to eat something.”

“Joe, you’re only old enough to be my dad. You’re not actually—” 

“Make that joke all you want, we’ll both be in our thirties in four years. You’re gettin’ on, too.”

“There’s a big difference between twenty-six and thirty-three—”

“Yeah, the thirty-three year old is used to driving, and therefore didn’t absolutely get his shit wrecked this morning—”

“Lieb.” Web said over him, voice taking on the same whining edge that he knew that Joe could hardly stand, and still did anyways. Like some sort of Pavlovian response, he shut up. It might have something to do with the fact that Web just looks so goddamn miserable, sitting at one of his stools at the kitchen counter, cheek resting on his arms and eyes a glassy, unfocused blue.

Instead of flipping him more shit, Joe turned around, opening the fridge. The avocado spread was in the same place it always was, always had been, and he pulled it out, setting it on the counter. The bread was kept in the cupboard under the counter – which Joe had always hated, and he pulled it out and tossed it down next to the avocado, raising an eyebrow at Web as he turned to the toaster.

“You’re a millennial, right?” He asked, and Web groaned, head still in his arms.

“You’re the worst person I’ve ever met.” He said, muffled. He was still in the same clothes that Joe had made him change into when they were at the hospital. “Change your emergency contact information.”

Joe dropped two pieces of bread into the toaster, turned the thing on, and turned back to Web, back to the counter as he crossed his arms over his sternum.

“You first.” He said, sort of a joke. Web just furrowed his eyebrows at him, still frowning.

“You.” He said.

“You.”

“You.”

The toaster dinged, already done. Joe turned back over to it and tossed the bread onto a plate, which he’d found easily enough in yet another cupboard.

“That’s another thing.” He said, absent. “You have terrible taste in toast. This isn’t even toast, it’s warm bread.”

Web scoffed, a little damp. “Well, I just don’t like eating hockey pucks, unlike you.”

He could feel Webster’s eyes on him as he knifed some avocado onto the bread and pushed it across the counter to him, dropping the spread back into the fridge and not bothering to tie back up the bread before putting it back on the cupboard.

“Eat your goddamn warm avocado bread, Webster.” He said absently, and Web snorted, picking up one of the pieces anyways.

“I’m not gonna change my contact until you do.” He said, overly childish for no absolute reason as he took a grudging bite out of the toast. Annoyance sparked easily in Joe’s chest the same way it always did. 

“Okay.” He said. “Well, I’m not, either. I’m the one who had to drag myself down to the hospital to get your melodramatic, miserable, shitty driving self, so the least you can do is change it first.”

“I did not ask you to take me home!” Web said over him, voice slightly higher. He had green on his cheek, and Joe had to stop to watch him for a moment, the corner of his mouth crooking up, amused. 

“You’ve got shit all over your face.” He said, and Web wrinkled his nose, scrubbing the back of his hand across his cheek. He somehow missed the avocado.

“I did not ask you to take me home.” He said again, slightly less enthused. “In fact, I think I did the opposite of that—”

“When are the painkillers gonna kick in?” Joe asked over him, half-ignoring him, and Web spluttered, unbelieving.

“Oh, yeah, slip the wounded ex a mickey—”

“Hey, I’m just saying, you’re getting very wound up and I think a little bit of valium would help—”

“Fuck you, Joe, that’s so fucked up.”

Web took another angry bite of warm bread. Joe still watched him, had to look away before he actually started smiling. 

“They give you vicodin?” He asked.

“You’re such an asshole. Change your emergency contact information.”

“Not until you do.”

--

The problem with even seeing Web was that they argued.

Joe didn’t know how he felt about the arguing. Never did. It wasn’t necessarily good, or bad, or anything in between. It was just entirely who they were, and who they were was two assholes that couldn’t stay together because they were both entirely too reactive.

“Just—” Joe started and cut himself off with a snort, slightly derivative. “One foot at a time. There you go.”

“Don’t patronize me.” Web grumbled into his shoulder, steadfastly not helping Joe remove his jeans. “We’re not even going to fuck after this.” 

Joe managed to get Web’s waistband over his hips and dragged them off of him, tossing them into the corner of the room as Web leaned further back into his mattress, groaning.

“Nope.” Joe told him, searching around for nothing in particular. “That is what broken up means.”

Web wrinkled his nose, staring at the ceiling. Joe found a dusty afghan in the corner of his room and tossed it over him absently. Web pretended not to notice.

“For our collective mental health.” He said, maybe a mimicry of themselves a month ago. Then, in a thoughtful addition, “And those of our friends.”

“Bless their souls.” Joe said absently, and smacked Web’s thigh — who groaned — as he passed him. “Okay, your drugs are in the kitchen. Go to sleep. I gotta get the fuck to work.”

He flicked off the lights in Web’s room as he passed the switch. “Joe.” Web said, when he was outside of the doorframe. 

Joe only turned around halfway, raising an eyebrow. Web’s eyes were dark, tired. 

“I’m going to change my emergency contact info.” He said, and Joe watched him for half of a second before knocking his knuckles against Web’s door frame, stepping further away from the bedroom.

“You do that.” He said, and Webster nodded, like it was final.

He could hear Web snoring before he was even fully out of the apartment.

--

MARCH

“It’s fine.” Joe said. “Shit from the shoulders up always bleed a lot.” Chuck looked over at him nervously, fingertips tapping against the steering wheel.

“Uh-huh.” He said, and didn’t sound convinced. “Please don’t get blood all over my seats.”

Joe grimaced, adjusting the bundled up wife beater at his neck. It caused blood to squelch between his fingers and he winced at the feel. “This is your fault.”

Chuck kept his eyes on the road. “Well.” He said. “If anything, I think it’s your own fault.”

Joe closed his eyes, letting his head thunk back against the headrest. “You’re hurrying, right?” He was starting to feel his heartbeat in his eyes, which probably wasn’t good. He closed them, and everything behind his lids were a fuzzy white. 

“Yeah.” Chuck said, but sounded slightly warped, strained. “Jesus Christ. Stay awake, Joe.”

“I’m awake, fuck you.” Joe said, and kept his eyes closed. Everything was still a fuzzy white. 

“Oh.” He said, and sounded like he was coming through a tunnel. “Web will probably show up, by the way. We’re playing gay chicken with our emergency contact information.” 

The last thing he heard before everything cut out altogether – like a lost radio signal – was Chuck swearing.

--

Joe hated IV’s. They were itchy. 

So was the bandage, but that was less so. “So help me god,” He said, slowly, elaborately. “I am fine. Someone just get me the fuck—”

He started reaching for the IV again and had his hand promptly smacked away from it again by David, who smoothly crossed his arms over his sternum again, stubborn face set.

“You’re staying here.” He said, smacked Joe away from the IV for the fifteenth time. “You lost a lot of blood, you’re going nowhere because if you do, you’ll die. Stop it with the IV, Joe, it’s not that bad.”

Chuck had to leave, and now Joe was stuck with Webster, who’d promptly filled out whatever paperwork that Chuck hadn’t had the knowledge to complete and then gone to immediately bothering Joe.

“I’m not gonna die if I leave the hospital.” Joe said, but didn’t reach for the IV again. “You just like me being miserable.”

Web was watching him, eyes bright and pale under the LED lights of the headache of a room they’d stuck him in. “Does it hurt?” He asked, voice rather tenuous. Joe rolled his eyes at him.

“No, David, I got stabbed in the neck and am ready to go run a marathon.” He said. “Be fucking serious. And get me out of here.”

Web dropped into the chair beside the bed with a sigh, which wasn’t exactly promising of a jailbreak. “You’re so mean.” He said. “Everytime I see you in person again I remember why we broke up.”

Joe turned to look at him, raised an eyebrow. “I almost died an hour and a half ago and this is how you choose to comfort me?”

Web frowned. “I’m seeing my therapist again.” He said, pointed. “She said it could help to tell you what I’m thinking of as closure.”

Joe frowned, eyes cloudy, and squinted up at the ceiling. “Is this the one with the nose ring or the one with the bad haircut?”

“Nose ring.”

“Huh. Well tell her that your unsocial dumbfuck ass decided that this was the perfect time to tell me that.” Web huffed, gentle and slightly quiet. 

“No.” He said. “She’d probably take your side.” 

“That’s because it’s a stupid thing to say. What’re you gonna tell me next? You went out on a date?”

Web hummed, thoughtful. “No.” He said. “Though I did get asked out, the other day.”

“You can do better.” Joe said, immediately. Web’s laugh seemed slightly lighter, than before. When Joe managed to turn to look at him, slightly gingerly, he was watching Joe with sparkling eyes, feet tucked up under him.

“You don’t even know who it is.” He said, smile a gentle curve. “But I said no, anyways. It doesn’t matter.”

Joe turned back to stare blearily at the ceiling again. He was thinking that the button by his bed actually worked, as his eyes were starting to get fuzzy again. 

“Shoulda said yes.” He said, and at Web’s soft snort, rather derivative, and he blinked, protesting. “Did nose ring want you to say yes?” Web hesitated, before answering.

“Yeah.” He said, slightly quiet. Joe yawned. It probably should have hurt his neck, but he was pleasantly numb, and everything just felt slightly strange. 

“Why didn’t you?”

His hand was laying, palm up, against the scratchy sheets of the bed, and Web’s fingertips were gentle against the inside of his wrist, trailing over Joe’s fingers before settling there lightly.

“Why do you think?” He asked, quiet and slightly hoarse.

Joe didn’t respond, kept his eyes on the ceiling. He was going to fall asleep, he thought absently, strangely, like he was taking note of it. The pads of Web’s fingers were still tracing along his own. 

“Change your emergency contact information.” He said, dizzy. Web laughed, it sounded from a tunnel.

“You first.” He said, like a dare.

--

He could actually leave a day later, and Web came back to the hospital, because of course he did.

“I hate your hair like that.” Joe told him, wincing as he pulled his fingers away from his neck, from where he’d been testing the gauze pressed there. “You look like fuckin’... John Travolta from Grease.”

David sighed. “God forbid someone try a new thing.” He said, hair slicked carefully away from his face. He was lingering near Joe gingerly, like someone would suddenly expect him to play goalie for a soccer game of life or death, and Joe didn’t look at him.

“Yeah, he’d better.” Joe retorted. 

Chuck had to go back to work, and had only texted him twice since what Webster was already referencing as The Incident.

Web hesitated, at the hospital exit, looking back at Joe. He had his phone out, probably to find an Uber, since he didn’t have a car anymore.

Joe raised an eyebrow at him. “What.” He said, ignoring the pain in his neck to focus on his distaste of Web’s hair.

“Do you…” Web started, and hesitated. “Want to go back to my place? Just so I can—”

“Exes, Web.” Joe said over him. “I’m not going back to your place, don’t be fucking crazy.”

Web sighed, but followed him outside. “Last time we broke up we still went over to each other's places.” He said, edged with protest.

“Yeah.” Joe said. “Last time we broke up. Not this time, last time. Which means that we needed to break up again, after that. Because going to each other's places did not work.”

Web sighed. “Yeah.” He said, rather dejectedly. “It was fun, though.”

“It was fun.” Joe confirmed, felt his mouth twitch up at the thought. “For the first, second, and third break-ups, too.”

Web huffed a laugh. “Maybe fifth is the charm.” He said lightly, and Joe had to look away from him before he did something stupid.

Neither of them mentioned the contact info. Joe didn’t really want to bring it up. His neck hurt.

--

APRIL

Joe was still sore most days, but his neck was starting to messily scar over in a mess of uneven skin and red staining, so he left it alone and ignored it to the best of his ability. 

He’d have to assume, as it had been two months, that Web’s subsequent injuries from the crash (he still didn’t have a new car, Joe was certain, and he was curious about the fallout of the accident. He hadn’t heard a goddamn thing about it.) had healed completely when Joe had gotten the call.

The call, in question, being from the hospital. Again.

“Jesus Christ, go fucking slow—” He said, holding up more of Web’s weight when the other leaned into him with a groan, edged with some semblance of complaint. 

“I’m okay.” Web said, and made to touch the side of his face — mottled all colors of green and purple and black — before Joe smacked his hand away. “My face hurts.”

From what Joe had gathered in the scant few hours he’d learned of Web’s slight misfortune — which had been lucky enough to happen on a Saturday, so he didn’t have to worry about work, thank god — was that Hoobler had hit him in the face with a skateboard in what was probably an accident (somehow) and then skipped out on him to study for some class final.

“People in college are fucking insane.” Joe muttered, in reference to that. Web just made a soft sound, protesting, still prodding gingerly at the side of his face.

“At least I didn’t lose any teeth.” He said, wincing when the pads of his fingers grazed his cheekbone, already pooling in such a dark purple that it looked almost black.

“Yeah, then you wouldn’t be pretty anymore.” Joe agreed, then batted his hand away again as he slung the other's bag over his shoulder. “Stop touching it, Jesus Christ. You’re lucky you didn’t break your fucking face.”

Web swayed slightly where he stood. Joe ignored him in order to turn around once, trying to find anything Web would have forgotten. “The doctor says I have contusions.” Web told him.

“The doctor said you have a concussion.” Joe returned. Web hummed, swaying slightly again. Before he could fall, Joe hooked a hand around his elbow as he moved forward. “C’mon, let’s get you home.”

“Ready to change your emergency contact yet?” Web asked him, going with him easily, and Joe hummed, looking back at him enough to raise his eyebrow.

“Are you?” He asked, wincing slightly at the way that Web tilted his head, as if to ponder the question. It turned his face towards the garish overhead LED lighting of the hospital, making the bruising look even worse, darker tones of putrid green and purples. “Jesus Christ, kid.”

Aware of Joe’s eyes on his face, Webster’s fingertips came up to poke at his cheekbone again. “My face hurts.” He told Joe a second time. “What drugs did they give me, again?”

He’d turned his hand over at some point, fingers shifting to hold onto Joe’s. Joe gripped him back absently, easily, and they hit the sidewalk outside of the hospital in the next heartbeat. 

“I called an Uber.” Joe told him. “It’ll be here in a minute. And all of them, apparently.”

Web huffed a laugh, coming to a stop next to Joe, fingers shifting slightly in his grip. “Okay.” He said, his same, ever-crooked, ever-ridiculous smile slightly lopsided as his hand came up to his face again, and Joe smacked it away for the thousandth time, gripping the fingers of that hand as well.

“Stop touching it.” He said again, and Web made a soft noise but just shifted enough to hold onto Joe’s hand with both of his own. 

“My face hurts.” He said. Again.

“I know.” Joe told him. “Your roommate hit you in the face with a fucking skateboard.”

Web looked at him, solemn. “It wasn’t on purpose.” He said, and Joe raised an eyebrow at him.

“I figured it wasn’t.” He said. “Care to tell me what it was, exactly?”

Web wrinkled his nose, winced when it moved the bruised side of his face. “He was late, and the skateboard was in his bag.” He said, like it made all the sense in the world. “And he turned around too fast. I was eating breakfast, so I wasn’t quick enough on my feet.”

Joe hummed. “Warm avocado bread, hm?” He asked, and Web rolled his eyes, brilliant and blue and reflecting off of the sky.

“Alright, alright.” He murmured, swaying again. Joe moved closer to him, Web held onto him slightly tighter. “You have me pegged, smartass.”

Joe looked back towards the street. Hoped the Uber would come soon. “I would hope so.” He said dryly. “We’ve known each other for six years.”

Web was quiet. When Joe looked over at him, the corner of his mouth was quirked upwards, all dopey and warm. “Did you have raisin bran this morning?” He asked, then flushed, proud, when Joe remained quiet. “Ha!”

Joe sighed. “I hate the ha, you know that.” He muttered, and Web just made a face. “And it’s not that impressive, wiseass.”

“Yeah.” Web agreed. “We’ve known each other for six years, after all.” Joe turned to see him again, watch his profile. He felt a sudden rush of relief, that Web hadn’t broken anything, and told him so.

“I’m glad Hoobler didn’t fuck up your face too bad.” He said, as an Uber pulled over at the curb and he pushed Web towards the car. “I’m less eager to help ugly people.”

Web spluttered, undignified and protesting, as he dropped down into the car. Joe shut his door and walked around to the other side of the car absently, exchanging a few absent words with the driver before getting into the back himself. 

“You’re a horrible person.” Web told him, and reached for his hand again. Joe snorted, closed the car door with his free hand.

“Only for you.” He said dryly, and wound their fingers back together.

--

Web sat on the couch with an ice pack over his face, feet tucked up under him, and he watched Joe move around in the kitchen unhelpfully. “I had dinner with my parents scheduled for next week.” He said, sounding utterly miserable.

Joe turned to look over his shoulder at Web, turning off the tap and turning around with a glass of water. “You can still go.” He said. Web made a face.

“No.” He said, shifting the ice pack over his cheek as Joe moved around the counter bar that separated the kitchen and living room, handing him the glass of water absently. “I don’t want to see my father when I look like this.”

Joe looked at him, unimpressed. “It’s not that bad.” He said, which was just an outright lie. Web sighed.

“Don’t bruises get the worst about a week in?” He asked, glass of water still in hand, and Joe pointed at it. 

“Drink that.” He said. “And yeah. But I’ve met your dad. He’ll probably just respect you for getting the shit beaten out of you.”

Web groaned, slouching further into the couch. He brought the glass to his lips absently, sipping at it clumsily. “It’s embarrassing.” He said. Joe dropped onto the couch on the opposite side of him, pulling out his phone absentmindedly.

“You say that everything is embarrassing.” He said dismissively. “And I don’t think you’ve ever been embarrassed in your life.”

Web’s eyes bore holes into the side of his face, though Joe wasn’t even looking at him. “When are you going away?” He asked, sounding irritable. Joe turned to look at him, unimpressed.

“You have a concussion.” He said. “I gotta stay here. I’m your emergency contact, dumbass.”

Web frowned at him, and looked so wholly miserable, face a hot mess, feet tucked up under him, slouched into the couch, icepack in one hand and water in the other, that Joe almost laughed out loud.

“Go away.” He said, and Joe went back to his phone. He had texted Chuck about Web being in the hospital, and was left on read. 

“Once Hoobler gets back.” He said, and Web groaned.

“Change your emergency contact.”

“Not until you do.”

--

When Hoobler finally got home, Web was out cold, breathing soft but steady against Joe’s shoulder as he scrolled mindlessly through his phone and did next to nothing.

The door creaked open, Hoobler’s bag over his shoulder, and when he saw them on the couch, he didn’t seem necessarily surprised.

“Oh.” He said. “Hi. How’s…” 

Web had fallen asleep on his shoulder, hand hooked under Joe’s arm, leaving the bad side of his face on full display. Hoobler winced when he got closer, dropping his bag on the floor.

“Eugh.” He said. Joe raised an eyebrow. 

“Yeah.” He said. “Concussion, contusions, nothing broken.”

“Gross.” Hoobler offered, but dropped down into the sofa chair that sat next to the couch anyways. “Thanks for staying here. Are you two. Uh—”

“Still broken up.” Joe confirmed, not really in the mood for the conversation on why he was here. He shifted against the couch, pushing up onto his feet. 

Web went with him with a groan, other hand joining his first at Joe’s arm. Joe shook him off easily. 

“You’re being a clingy bitch.” He said, and Web dropped down onto the couch, hand coming to cover his eyes. He winced when he did so, apparently having forgotten about the bruises.

“So mean.” He mumbled, and Joe ignored him.

“Drugs in the kitchen.” He told Hoobler, nodding to where he’d dropped the bag the hospital had given him on the counter. “Call me if you have to leave, or some shit.”

His neck was starting to hurt again, it was making him slightly more irritable than usual. Hoobler, probably reading that on his face, just nodded and let him pass. 

Joe didn’t bother to turn around, knew that Web was already out cold again. 

“Oh.” He said, halfway to the door, turned on his heel just enough to find Hoobler and point at him. “Take care of him.”

He didn’t tack on the or else, knew it wasn’t necessarily his place, but he must have implied it, based on Hoobler’s expression.

“Yeah, man.” He said. “‘Course.”

Joe nodded and turned back around.

When he checked his phone, out on the street, Chuck had left him on read again. Joe was starting to think that was maybe justified.

--

MAY

“This is your fucking fault.”

“Oh, please, as if—”

“You ran your mouth, so I had to kick your ass, and now we’re—”

“Oh, you kicked my ass? That fuckin’ gash isn’t very ass-kicking—”

“Fucker, if you think that—”

“Okay!” Chuck yelled over both of them, and Joe shut his mouth with a click. Next to him, Guarnere did as well, nursing a rag over the side of his face. “You were both dumbasses. Let’s leave it at that. You both need stitches, you’re both winners. Or losers.”

Joe made a protesting noise in the back of his throat. “Oh, c’mon, Chuck.” He said. “I’m less of a dumbass than he is. He had to go and say some—”

“I am not the only one at fault here—”

Chuck cleared his throat and they both shut up again. Stuck in the backseat of the truck, elbow knocking against Guarnere’s own, Joe glared at him. “Okay.” Chuck said. “Lieb is slightly more in the right than Bill is, here.”

“Ha!” Joe exclaimed, then grimaced. He hated the ha. Bill huffed.

“Fine.” He muttered. It was quiet, for a beat. “Sorry.” 

Joe grunted. “I won.” He said.

“It was a tie.” 

“No, I won.”

--

That was the first thing he told Web, too, when he arrived. “I won.” He said, and Web blinked at him, hands in his pockets. 

“I can see that.” He said. The bruising was starting to fade into yellows and greens instead of purple and black, and the ugly green that spread across the right side of his face made his eyes stand out even more. “Stitches?”

“Twelve.” Joe told him. “Guarnere needed eight more, so…”

The dip between Web’s eyes deepened. “Is he okay?” He asked and Joe snorted.

“He’s fine.” He said. He’d never even needed to change, still in the white shortsleeve he’d shown up in when they’d fixed his arm. “He’s a tough fucker. ‘Sides, he deserved it.”

Web hummed. He was leaning against the hallway wall, watching Joe turn in a half circle and collect whatever he needed to. “Chuck told me about that.” He said, light, and Joe hummed. 

“What, want to talk shit about that?” He asked, slightly defensive. The corner of Web’s mouth ticked up, amused, and Joe paused, watching how it made his eyes sparkle and his bruises slightly more shadowed.

“On the contrary, if we were still together, I think I’d suck you off.” Web told him, looking entirely too proud. Joe hummed.

“Yeah.” He said, low, starting his way down the hall. “If we were still together.”

Web followed him, close on his heels and obviously thinking about something or the other. “Want me to go with you to your place?” He asked, simple, hands in his pockets. 

Joe hesitated, but didn’t stop walking, turning just enough to look back at Web. His neck still almost hurt more than his arm did. 

“What the hell.” He said. “I’m injured, right?”

--

Web still didn’t have a car, and Joe didn’t necessarily need one, so they called another Uber and Joe watched Web, realized what was up with him.

“Finals season?” He asked. Web was leaning back against the seat of the car, cheek pressed to the headrest, and he opened vivid, vivid eyes to watch Joe balefully before huffing.

“They’re out to get me.” He told him. Joe huffed, looked back towards the front of the car.

“Yeah, I’ll bet.” He said.

“I’m serious. I’m quitting college.”

“You should. It would make you more bearable.” Joe told him. Web stared at the side of his head some more. Joe could tell from the itch at the back of his neck.

“Do you want to know what my therapist said about you?” Web asked him, and Joe snorted, looking back towards him with a raised eyebrow. 

“The one with the nose ring?”

“Yeah.”

“Did she say to tell me?” 

Webster hesitated, eyes sparking in fits and stops. “No.” He said, forever sounding at least slightly contemptible. “But she didn’t say not to, either.”

“I think because it’s implied that people don’t tell their exes about what their therapist says about them in therapy.” 

Web ignored him, sitting up straighter against the seat and sighing. In the front of the car, Joe caught the drivers eyes cutting to the mirror, listening to them. Slightly awkward.

“She said that you still care about me.” Web said simply, almost certainly leaving some details out. 

Joe blinked at him. Of course I do. He thought, and didn’t say. I think I always will. That’s why I’m in this goddamn car at all. 

He didn’t say anything. He didn’t say a goddamn thing and maybe didn’t need to, just looked back towards the front of the car. The driver was quiet.

“Don’t come up to my place.” Joe said. “Thanks for paying for the ride.”

Web’s voice was small, maybe thin, when he said, “okay.” 

--

JUNE

David couldn’t stop crying, which Joe knew was just a side effect of someone breaking their nose, but it was still putting him on edge.

“It’s okay.” He said awkwardly, rubbing the heel of his hand in absent-minded circles against Web’s back as the other leaned against him, head tucked under his chin as he held Joe Toye’s button up to his face.

“Motherfucker.” Web said, muffled and nasally, and Joe looked up from him to raise an eyebrow at George Luz in the passenger seat of his car, instead.

Luz just raised his hands in the air, eyes widening in some picture of innocence as he looked back at them.

“I did not know he’d be standing there.” He said, for at least the tenth time. Toye, who was driving, just snorted.

“Let’s hope we can scrape together enough to pay for his goddamn medical bills.” He told Luz, sounding hoarse but not necessarily annoyed, and Luz winced.

“I’ll figure it out.” He said, like some sort of apology. 

“It’s fine.” Web said, shifting against Joe, who was still sweeping a hand up and down his back. “I can pay for them, it wasn’t, like, aggravated assault.” 

He sounded congested, like it hurt to speak, wincing when Toye hit a speed-bump and jostled them.

“Sorry.” Toye said, immediately afterwards, and Web just grimaced.

Joe was used to meeting David at the hospital; when he was semi-put together. Not when he was actively in pain and bloody, and it was sort of freaking him out. 

What had happened, in layman's terms: 

Webster had agreed to help Luz move him and Toye into their new apartment; which was bigger than before and in a better area.

Joe had agreed to help Toye fix Luz’s car, since between the two of them, they only had one, which was turning out to work out poorly when they had jobs on opposite sides of the city.

Joe wasn’t aware that Web was also going to be at the apartment until he’d seen him helping Luz move a potted plant.

(Side note, but also important: Joe didn’t think that Toye knew that Luz was having Web come over, either, from the look he shot at him and the way that Luz had smiled back.)

After figuring out what was wrong with Luz’s ancient Honda Civic, Joe had gone up to their apartment and washed his hands. 

He’d emerged from the bathroom at exactly the right time, which was to see Luz putting away pans in the kitchen, pick up another before turning to say something to Joe, and, moving so quickly that Webster, who was walking from the kitchen to the living room, was caught directly in the face by the brunt of it.

Joe was fairly certain that, in the now, Web was bleeding all over his shirt.

“Jesus Christ.” He said. “How the hell did you fuck him up so badly on accident?” 

Luz hummed. “It’s a special skill.” He said as Toye switched lanes, looking absently over his shoulder. They lived further away from the hospital than either Joe or Web did, and the extra dozen minutes seemed to stretch on for days. “Along with the shit that comes out of my mouth and what I put in—”

“George.” Toye said, perfunct, like a warning, and Luz shut up. Joe was glad for it, because he wasn’t sure how much longer he’d survive being in the back of this car, and he wasn’t even the one with the broken nose.

Speaking of Web, the man in question groaned again, shifting the shirt at his face. “Remember when you said you wouldn’t help me if I was ugly?” He asked, still ever-nasally, and Joe patted his back absently. 

“You’ve taken both a skateboard and a pan to the face, I can forgive you for being an uggo.” He told Web, solemn. Webster’s laugh sounded a bit more like he was choking to death.

“I mean.” Luz said from the front seat. “If it makes you feel better, it’s not that big of a deal. This one broke his nose and it just made him sexier.” He pointed over to Toye, who kept his eyes steadfastly on the road.

Joe made a face. Web groaned, again. It sounded painful.

“At least this time, they don’t have to call me.” Joe told him, after a moment. Web sighed. 

“And my face just healed, too.” He said, sounding entirely put-out. Joe turned his face enough to smile into his hair, not exactly amused, but finding it funny enough to figure to hide it. 

“Let’s just pray that nothing happens to your mouth.” He said grimly, but turned his hand over easily when Web reached for it, still bowed over and trying to stop the bleeding under Joe’s chin. “The one good quality you’ve got left.”

The sound Web made was slightly choked, Joe thought it could maybe be a scoff. “Thank you, Lieb, for your astounding and loving support in such painful times.” He said, all in one breath. “Y’know, when Tipper got hurt you were nice. Or when Tab got hurt—”

Joe winced. Autoshop work was, often and quite usually, dangerous. Everyone had at least one story; Joe’s neck twinged at the thought. “Tip broke his entire ass leg, Web.” Joe told him. “And Tab was impaled.” 

Web made a soft sound that sounded nigh on upset. “I broke my fucking nose, like, fifteen minutes ago!” He said, still muffled. Luz cleared his throat.

“Again.” He said. “Really sorry about that.” Joe ignored him, just pressed his mouth to the crown of Web’s head absently.

“Alright, fine.” He said, still rubbing Web’s back absently. “Poor baby. You precious rhinestone. The world truly collapses with your agony. Do you want me to kiss it better?”

“I hate you.” Web told him. For the second time in three minutes, Joe smiled into his hair. 

“Probably should change your contact info, then.” He said. 

--

Web was steadfastly not happy about the two black eyes.

The first thing Joe said (after the obligatory you look like a raccoon) was, “They could bring out your eyes, in the right lighting.”

Web stared at him like he was trying to set Joe on fire with his mind. “I don’t know how, and I don’t know why,” He said. “But this is your fault.”

“Uh-huh.” Joe said absently, looking over Web’s face carefully. “What’s the verdict on the aftermath?” He held out a hand warily, unsure of how good Web’s hand-eye coordination and depth perception would be after that.

Web took his hand, anyways, curling his fingers around Joe’s own and allowing himself to be tugged forwards. He shuffled, a bit, against the linoleum. “They said that it was, and I quote, a freak accident.” He said, and his voice was still slightly nasally. “But not too bad. It shouldn’t change, like, my entire face.”

“That’s good.” Joe said absently. “I like your face.”

“Thanks.” Web said, arid. “Next time, I’d prefer to just lose a leg.” 

Joe snorted. Toye and Luz had already left the hospital, as it had been a couple of hours and Joe had been starting to think that he was going to die if they stayed. Now alone, he’d already called the Uber and guided Web absently. 

“You planning on telling Toye that?”

“Do not tell him I said that.”

“Mm. Poor fucker broke the nose and then lost the leg.”

“And then his fiancé broke my nose.” Web said miserably. Joe hummed.

“Think they’ll go through with it?” He asked, Web’s fingers tightening around his own as he checked his phone again.

“What, the wedding?” He asked, like he was surprised. At Joe’s nonverbal affirmative, he huffed. “Of course they will.” He said. “They’re crazy about each other.”

He didn’t know why he said it. He didn’t even realize that he’d said it, maybe, until it was out of his mouth and too late. “So were we.” He said, and immediately winced.

They must have put Web on some sort of painkiller or whatever else, because he just hummed, rather quiet. “So were we.” He agreed, soft. “But we broke up six months ago, and you held me while we drove to the hospital, and waited for me, and are now holding my hand and taking me home.”

Joe blinked. “Using that literature degree already, huh?” He asked after a moment, hoarse. Web’s hand spasmed around his, sudden, and Joe dropped it like it was hot.

“Yeah.” Web said. “I guess so.”

The uber pulled up. Joe pushed Web inside of it, and hesitated for half of a second before sliding in himself.

It was silent for half of a second. They were moving by the time Joe thought of something else to say, feel more like himself again. “That has to be one of the douchiest things you’ve ever said to me.” He said suddenly.

Web’s laugh was nasally, tired. “I try.” He said, and would probably add an insult for good measure, if he didn’t seem to be so pained.

--

JULY

After it happened for the sixth time in as many months, Joe was starting to think that at least one of them had been cursed.

“It’s not that bad.” Joe said, and winced when Chuck switched lanes too quickly. “It’s just a bruise.”

“It’s broken.” Chuck told him, and sounded both entirely sure of his words and utterly exhausted. “Jesus Christ, how do I keep ending up here? Did you piss someone off?”

Joe contemplated the multitudes of people he’d managed to fuck over for half of a second. “Probably.” He said.

Out of getting clipped in the neck by a carburetor and getting into a fight with Guarnere, getting his foot run over was probably the stupidest reason that Joe would have to go to the hospital on account of himself.

Webster, who insofar had gotten into a car crash (and still hadn’t bothered to find a new car after his previous one was totaled), got smacked in the face, and had broken his nose, could afford to be a bit choosier.

Joe still hadn’t changed his contact information.

It didn’t seem to matter, anyways, because Web somehow met him at the hospital. Joe was in too much pain to care about the how or the why of it.

“What did you do?” Web asked before Joe had even managed to open the passenger door of Chuck’s truck all of the way, then looked to Chuck himself and demanded the same thing. “What did he do?”

The driver's side of Chuck’s truck opened and slammed shut again before Chuck answered, sounding both rather harried and annoyed in the same breath. “He ran over his foot.” He told Web.

Web, in turn, looked back to Joe, who was still trying to get out of the truck without jarring his foot. He was starting to think the adrenaline was wearing off, if the burning was any hint about it.

“You’re a fucking idiot.” Web told him.

“What was it that you were giving me shit about when you broke your nose?” Joe asked back, grimacing as his uninjured foot hit the ground. Web was quick to grab his arm and Joe leaned on him grudgingly, keeping the broken foot a good two feet above ground. “I was being mean.”

“Yeah, well, we work for a reason.” Web retorted, arm wrapping around his waist absently. “And breaking your own foot is more moronic than a friend breaking my nose.”

Joe grimaced. He’d forgotten to put the goddamn car in park, and he was never going to hear the end of it. He knew better than to say that to David. He wasn’t necessarily in the mood for old man memory loss jokes.

“If I’ll still help you when you’re ugly, will you help me when I’m crippled?” He asked drily as Web helped him limp into the hospital, Chuck already at the front desk.

“You’re already crippled.” Web told him. “Remember when we drove down to DC and your back gave out?”

“Yeah, and you left me in the truck to go see the National Archives?” Joe retorted, and Web sighed.

“Yeah, but afterwards I pulled you into the hotel room.”

“And then you left me there for another four hours.”

“We were in DC, I wasn’t going to stay in the room the whole time—”

“I couldn’t move!”

Webster was smiling, when Joe looked over at him. It was strangely endearing, underneath all of his annoyance, and he looked away just as quickly. 

“I seem to remember that you forgave me when I got back.” He said, ran the tip of his tongue along his bottom lip, as if to seal his point.

Joe snorted. “Yeah, well.” He said, dry. “When you get old and lose your looks, that shit won’t fly.”

“Oh, don’t worry.” Web told him, lowering his voice as Chuck finally finished talking to the desk about whatever, turning to point back at them. “You’ll be long dead by then.”

--

For basically crushing his foot, Joe thought, it wasn’t too bad.

Web was curled up in the uncomfortable chair next to his bed, bottom lip caught between his teeth as he texted someone back. Joe watched him absently, feeling slightly lighter from whatever they gave him, cheek pressed into the flat pillow under him. 

“I can feel your eyes.” David murmured after a moment, looking up at Joe, who didn’t look away. 

“Good.” Joe told him, hoarse. “That means you’re not entirely inept at social interaction.”

They’d deigned that Joe could leave the hospital on the same day he arrived, which was good, because he’d sooner eat a cockroach than stay for much longer. They’d also afforded him crutches, which Joe steadfastly did not want to see the bill for.

“All my injuries seem superficial next to yours.” Web told him, as Joe stood up, rather wobbly, but got the hang of the crutches quickly enough. Joe snorted.

“What, being stabbed in the neck and getting into a fight and breaking my foot compared to you getting wacked in the face by a skateboard, and then a frying pan?”

Web made a face. His nose looked, at least to Joe, exactly the same. He still had gray-green shadows under both of his eyes, remnants of the bruises that had bloomed there from the subsequent breaking, but looked fully intact all in all.

“You’re forgetting the car accident.” Webster told him, following close behind Joe as they made their way out of the hospital for what felt like the thousandth time. They were always in different rooms, or beds, or areas, but leaving always felt the same.

“Oh, yeah.” Joe said, arid. “The shitpot that started this horror. Did you make a deal with a witch? Did you get us bound by pain or some shit?”

“For your information.” Webster said, neatly enunciating and snorting a little around his words, already laughing at a joke he hadn’t even told yet. “It was a blood oath.”

“You’re too much of a pussy to make a blood oath.” Joe shot back immediately. Web laughed more fully, and Joe couldn’t tell if it was at him or his own joke.

“Everytime I get home, Hoobler asks if we’re back together.” He said, so entirely out of left-field and painfully clear that Joe almost paused for a moment, could feel the sharpness of it against his ribs.

“And what do you tell him?” Joe asked, already outside, knowing that Web had already called an Uber. Web, in question, came up behind him, eyes sparkling bright and grin as stupid as ever. He didn’t look at Joe, tried to bite back his smile.

“I don’t know.” He said, rather quiet. “What does having a best friend look like?”

He turned to look at Joe, so Joe looked away, cleared his throat. Not this. He thought, with some semblance of hurting. It doesn’t look like this. 

“You have more wrinkles.” Web said, immediately after that, and the nostalgic ache behind Joe’s ribs went away like Web had smacked him in the face with a cold, dead fish. “Around your eyes.”

“Your nose is crooked.” Joe said back, raising an eyebrow. “You look like Owen Wilson.”

Web’s laugh was quiet, clear, ducking his chin down and watching the floor quietly, the corner of his mouth crooking up as he kicked his heel against the ground absently.

Joe wondered, for the first time since he’d seen him earlier in the day, how in the hell Webster had been at the hospital before them.

Before he could think on it too long, the uber pulled up, and Web swore under his breath, apparently caught in some semblance of off guard, and moved forward to greet him.

Joe pushed the thought to the back of his mind to instead watch how Web’s thighs and ass flexed when he bent over enough to speak to the driver.

He was maybe a little loopy.

--

When they were back in Joe’s apartment, and Web was with him, for the first time in seven months (somehow), he realized what they were.

They were a car wreck, they always had been. And Joe could never look away. 

Webster pushed him down onto the couch immediately, kicking up the legrest and propping Joe’s foot up, already talking about something that Joe didn’t care about and therefore didn’t listen to, moving into the kitchen. 

“Fuck.” He said, eloquently. Web’s laugh was hushed, warm as he moved back into the living room, held a half-filled glass of water out to Joe and dropped onto the couch. 

He was laughing a lot more than Joe was used to, and it didn’t sound exactly happy. He decided that it was probably because of George Luz, who only had one coping mechanism, which Web seemed to be emulating. Joe couldn’t believe they still spent time together, after the nose incident.

When Joe looked more fully over to him, turning his head against the overstuffed headrest of the couch, Web’s bottom lip was in between his teeth again, worrying it as he stared at nothing.

They were thinking the same thing, Joe knew.

“This is torture.” He said, out loud. Web jumped slightly when he spoke, like he wasn’t expecting it. Joe didn’t look away, just raised an eyebrow, rather unimpressed, and Webster cleared his throat and pushed forward against the cushions, eyes dropping somewhere to Joe’s threadbare rug as he got back to his feet.

“Yeah.” He said, and Joe knew that they were thinking of the same thing. Car wreck. “I should go.”

The problem with car wrecks is that some are salvageable. And as with any accidents, one can never look away from them.

“Okay.” Joe said out loud. 

This was another part of it: of them being a car wreck. If Joe was going to blame why they kept doing this, when everything concerning their relationship was a thousand times harder than it would ever need to be, he’d point a finger at the fact that both of them knew they were salvageable and neither of them wanted to look away.

One of them would change in some small thought, or idea, or plan, and the other wouldn’t follow it. Web had thought of something, just barely, and Joe had missed it.

“Okay.” Web said back, quiet. He watched Joe, for half of a second, before looking away. “Have fun watching I Love Lucy. It’s a little after your time, but I think you’ll like it.”

The corner of Joe’s mouth curved up, independent of the rest of his body as he huffed a laugh, pushed a hand through his hair. “Fuck you.” He said, warmer than he’d like.

Web’s eyes were both freezing cold and burning, when he looked back, hesitant. Still, he elected to not say anything.

Car wrecks can be salvageable, Joe reminded himself, and the thought was unwelcome. 

--

SEPTEMBER

It took two more months, in which nothing happened, and then Chuck slipped.

Or, technically, Hoobler slipped, but Joe was slightly too panicked to really give a fuck who, in specifics, gave the whole fucked up, horrendous mind game away.

He wasn’t still sure on the specifics. Didn’t really give a shit about the specifics, anyways, just felt the same thrum of panic that always settled under his skin whenever something happened that felt too real. Too serious.

What he did know:

Hoobler had gotten back to his and Web’s apartment, and Web wasn’t there. He waited approximately three hours, and then, for some godforsaken reason that Joe hadn’t seen (at the time) had called Chuck.

Chuck had, in turn, because of course he did, called Joe.

“Have you seen Web?” He’d asked, and Joe had paused, immediately knew something was off. If not by the way that Chuck sounded than for how he seemed to hesitate, for how absolutely anything about Web seemed to raise some sort of instinct.

“No.” Joe’d said back, rather slowly, apprehensive. “Why?”

Chuck had been slow to answer, the static of the phone filling in his absence, Joe already putting the phone on speaker and moving to text Web. “Uh.” Chuck said, after a moment. “Hoobler can’t find him.”

“What, he can’t find him at the apartment?” Joe sent the text to Web and turned his full attention back to Chuck. 

“He can’t find him anywhere.” Chuck said, tone something that Joe was having trouble reading. “He won’t answer his phone, apparently. We figured that maybe he was with—”

It was midnight, and his curtains were still open. Light pollution managed to illuminate the entire city outside of his window, and Joe watched the cars pass absently. Tab was out of town from May until September, some sort of familial visit, so Joe’d had the apartment to himself for possibly too long. He felt the absence acutely when Web didn’t respond, and Chuck kept hesitating.

“Why the hell would he be with me?” Joe interrupted, not wanting to wait for him to finish, then paused for half of a second. “Wait, we?” 

Chuck sounded invariably uncomfortable when he said, tone of voice marred over the phone, “well, after how quick he’d been to get to the hospital last month, and how he’d barely asked any questions over the phone—”

And.

Wait a minute.

“What the fuck do you mean over the phone?” Joe demanded, pushing away from the window to bring his phone closer to his ear, making a split second decision and moving over to the door, finding his shoes.

“Fuck.” Chuck said, which wasn’t promising, then, after a moment of contemplation, said, “okay, so it was Hoobler’s fault, but no one could figure out why in the hell you split this time ‘round, and he had this idea—”

“Have you been pretending to be the hospital?” Joe shoved his feet into his shoes and slid the lock on his door, barely thinking to grab a jacket and his keys before slamming the door shut behind him and barely sticking around long enough to lock it. Chuck just cleared his throat.

“You’re not stupid,” He started, voice low, and Joe thought his laugh might have been slightly frantic as he skipped down the steps of the apartment building, jacket tossed over his shoulder. His foot still ached with it, ever slight, and he ignored it. “So I’m not gonna bother lying to you—” 

“You pretended.” Joe said again, slowly, as if to properly digest the words. “To be the hospital.”

Over the phone, Chuck cleared his throat. The receiver crackled. “In our defense.” He said, “We didn’t call the first two times. And we didn’t think you’d come so easily.”

“What the fuck.” Joe said out loud, maybe still not properly digesting everything that had happened in the past five minutes. Web was missing. Chuck’s been lying, for some godforsaken reason. 

“I’m so fucking sorry.” Chuck told him, at least seemed to have some modicum of remorse, like he realized like he was doing suddenly, all at once. “It was so fucking dumb, but you two always showed up, and it was easier to leave you at the hospital if Web was there, or vice versa for Hoob—”

“What the fuck.” Joe said, hitting the ground floor at the same time, already moving towards the parking garage. He didn’t use the fucking car a lot, knew that he should probably sell it before something happened to it and he had to sink some godforsaken amount of money into it. Still, he couldn’t exactly call an Uber, and unlocked the car easily. 

“And it was easy to just change our voices slightly, and you never seemed to fucking notice, and the first two times were actually the hospital, but we were—” Chuck kept talking, like he was trying to explain what had to be one of the most fucked up things he’s ever done.

It was starting to make more sense, now. Joe didn’t know why he didn’t think to question it before: why they’d call Web if he just needed a few stitches and knew who he was. Why Web was at the fucking hospital before he was. Why they called him in when Hoobler hit Webster in the face, which led to another realization.

“Chuck.” He said, cutting the other off as he dropped into the driver's seat and started the engine, already looking over his shoulder. Something was cold, floating around his ribs, and Joe ignored it, pressing his mouth together impatiently. “Did Hoobler hurt Web on purpose?”

Chuck’s response was slow, unsure what Joe was talking about. Every slight turn Joe had to make with the car was slightly jerky. “With…” He started, and Joe had pulled out by the time he’d dragged on the word.

“With the skateboard.” Joe said, and knew where he was going. Knew where Web was, almost, except for it was more of a gut feeling than anything else. Web was, if not anything else, a predictable bitch. “Did he fucking—”

“Jesus Christ, Joe, no. Of course not.” Chuck said over him, immediately, the moment he realized what Joe was getting at. “It was psycho enough to call you like that to come to the hospital, we weren’t about to commit a felony—”

“Why the hell wouldn’t you just call us normally?” Joe pulled out onto the main road — which was still just as crowded as ever, even at nearly one in the morning. “Because it seems like that is illegal, Chuck. That straight up sounds like a crime.”

Chuck cleared his throat, again, before responding. His silence, it seemed, was almost as goddamn telling as the fact that Hoobler couldn’t call Web. “To be honest,” He said, low. “I didn’t think that you’d come if one of your friends called and told you.”

“So, what, you arrange a – a parent trap—”

“It wasn’t a parent trap! It was just—”

“You don’t even like Web!”

“I—” Chuck hesitated. “He’s alright.”

Joe breathed, once and very deeply, through his nose before changing lanes, which was a mess. “So why in the hell,” He said, very elaborately. “Would you—”

“No one can figure out why you broke up, this time.” Chuck said. “I — you’ve broken up five times, Joe, and you’re both miserable, and you’re both clearly so—”

“So your immediate reaction, instead of sitting us down and talking, was to pretend to be the hospital?” 

“Would you have listened to us if I’d sat you down and said you’re fucking miserable and I can’t figure out why you broke up with the same person for the fifth time?” Chuck asked him, and Joe was going to have a heart attack. 

“Oh my God.” He said. “What the fuck.”

Chuck didn’t say anything, for a moment, the line going static again. “Do you know where he is?” He asked, rather quiet. The question made Joe, somehow, madder than he’d been before.

“Yeah, I know where he fucking is, and I’m not about to tell you.” He said, looking over his shoulder to make a turn. “And tell Hoobler to go fuck himself, he can sweat it out. Does Web know about this shit?” 

Chuck hesitated for the thousandth time. “I don’t think so. It — it seems like he just left.” 

“What, and you can’t just leave him alone? He’s a fucking adult, for Christs’ sake.” Chuck made a noise at the back of his throat, sounding somewhat affronted.

“Okay,” He said, “So why are you going to go get him, then?”

Joe, who didn’t necessarily want to tell Chuck that absolutely zero amount of executive thought went into setting out to find Web, made an electoral decision and hung up on him.

--

As far as unbearable places on the face of the earth (the parts that Joe’s visited, anyways) go, Penn’s Landing was pretty far up on that list.

Web loved it, though. Always had. Probably always will.

It’s not really like the ocean, he’d told Joe four years ago, sounding like such an utter douche that Joe had to laugh at him, a little bit. But it’s water. It’s nice. 

Penn’s Landing was also fucking huge, so Joe was glad, at least, that Web always went to the same spot.

There was nothing special about the spot. It wasn’t better than anywhere else in the landing, it wasn’t necessarily even more interesting. It was just where he went, every time, for all the six years that he’d had dragged Joe to it.

Joe could see him immediately, the entire landing busy but Web somewhat by himself, leaning against one of the metal railings, his back to Joe.

“Your roommate’s worried about you.” Joe said, as he got closer. It was a testament, maybe, to how they are as people that Web didn’t even bother to turn around.

“What,” Web murmured, eyes on the water, lit by nothing and still glowing, somewhat. “Is he worried I’ll break my face for a third time?”

Joe came up to him, leaned up against the railing next to him. He watched the water. There was nothing enlightening about it. It was rather boring, actually.

“D’you know those fuckers were lying to us?” He asked, as casually as he could, and felt Web look over at him. “After my neck. They started calling us and pretending to be the goddamn hospital.”

Web was quiet for a moment. To his testament, he didn’t even seem slightly alarmed by anything that had happened so far, from Joe showing up to everything else. “I had a suspicion, maybe.” He said, low. “It’s — I dunno why they’d call me for stitches. When my grandfather died they only called my dad when he stopped being responsive.” 

Joe blinked. “Why the fuck didn’t you say anything, then?” He asked in the moment after that, near demanding, and David didn’t look at him. His bottom lip was caught between his teeth, again. 

“Why do you think?” He asked, entirely hypothetical. Joe knew the answer. He watched him carefully.

“Web.” Joe said, and when Web didn’t look at him, cleared his throat and tried again. “David. It was your idea to break up.”

Web laughed, and it wasn’t happy. He wiped his palm down the side of his face, and Joe realized too late why his eyes seemed to shine. “I’m so fucking stupid.” He said, twisting his lips together before smoothing his expression out, some sort of warped display of upset. “I’m such a moron.”

“You’re not stupid, you’re fucking crazy.” Joe told him, and moved closer to him anyway. Web kept his face turned out towards the water, lit by nothing but the slight glow of the city.

“I just got lazy, I think.” Web said, the moment after Joe finished talking, which made no sense whatsoever. “It’s — it’s just so hard, with us. And all we do is fight, and then break up, and then we’re miserable, so we get back together, and then it’s just the same thing. This was — this was supposed to be some sort of clean break.”

His bottom lip quivered slightly as he talked, and for a moment, Joe was so blindingly, frustratingly furious with Chuck and Hoobler and whoever else was involved for fucking with Web and fucking with his head that he had to breathe, for a moment. 

“That’s not lazy.” Joe told him, low. “That’s not lazy, that’s normal. That’s you trying to fix whatever—”

“I love you.” Web interrupted him, so, so quiet, and he finally turned to look at him, hands curled together with his arms propped on the railing, eyes shining and bright for all the wrong reasons as he found Joe’s face. “I love you, and I always will, and it makes me fucking miserable because we work, but it’s like we just take everything too far and it’s—”

He cut himself off with a shaky breath. 

Joe realized, in the second after that, that he had no idea what to say. What to do. What could he do, necessarily, when Web was right, when he hit the nail on the head on how they’d broken up five times in six years but, in all that time, only actually dated each other.

“It should be easy.” Web said, perfunct, emphatic, like he was trying to remind himself of something. “But it never, ever is.”

Joe hesitated, for half of a second, before speaking. “When they called me for the first time.” He said, quiet, and let his eyes leave Web, finally, going out to the water instead. “The first time. Not — not afterwards, or anything, but when it was actually the hospital. When you crashed. Hearing them say that shit was the most scared I’ve ever been, I think.”

Web let out a breath, soft and short, like an exhale, like some sort of a snort.

“It’s true.” Joe told him, still watching the water. “And it’s slightly pathetic. But they called me, and I was getting Chuck to cover me and fucking going by foot down to the hospital in under ten minutes.”

“Joe.” 

“Web.” Joe turned, looking back towards him. Web’s face was the same as it always was; too open, too guarded. “I’m fucking serious, okay? Because it’s one thing to break up, but if you’d been—” He paused, for a moment. Watched Web’s eyes. 

Web didn’t say anything, just watched him, but something in his face flickered, like he was thinking the same thing Joe was. Maybe about Joe’s own accident, with this neck.

“If something had happened that was permanent, I would’ve been there.” Joe said, and the words tasted rather like sawdust. “No matter what, no matter if we’re broken up or not, because I’ve loved you for six goddamn years and I’m gonna keep doing it, because I don’t know how to do anything else, at this point.”

Web’s expression was carefully held, carefully kept, and gouged wide open. “That was—” He started and stopped, swallowing like his mouth was dry. “That was strangely romantic, for you.” Joe made a face.

“Never expect it again.” He rasped. “But that’s how it is. It’s not — it ain’t like I stop loving you each time we break up.”

Something in Web’s expression twisted. He rubbed a palm against the side of his face again with a huff. “I don’t want to keep doing that, though.” He said, hoarse. “I – I mean, how fucking miserable were we, that Chuck got involved?”

Joe couldn’t help his smile, small and wry and slightly painful. “I’m still not sure if he committed a crime or not.” He said, hoarse, and Web laughed, just on the edge of too loud and too bright, fingertips coming to press against his chin, just below his lips, as his gaze dropped back out to the water.

“I’m fucked up for this.” He said, like a warning, and Joe watched his profile, the curve of his jaw, the hair that curled at the nape of his neck. The color of his eyes off of the water. “But it’s — I almost looked forward to getting hurt, because then I could see you.”

Something in his gaze wavered, slightly, and Joe’s mouth felt dry. He remembered breaking his foot, why it didn’t feel, necessarily, very big. Why nothing else really did, either.

Just another reason why they worked, he supposed. They were both fucked up.

“C’mere.” He said, hoarse, after a moment. Web turned just barely to look at him, not really moving, and Joe pushed away from the railing, one of his hands finding the nape of Web’s neck and tugging him forward by it. “C’mon, c’mere, you idiot.” 

Web went to him easily enough, reaching a hand out back to him, tangling it with Joe’s free one and laughing, slight, when Joe tugged carefully at the hair at his nape, leaning further forward.

Kissing him, Web tasted like a caramel frappe. 

Joe grimaced and pulled back. “You have the shittiest taste in coffee.” He said, half a joke, and Web’s smile was brilliant, crooked and dopey. 

“Don’t taste it, then.” He said, quiet, and pushed forward to kiss Joe again.

“Mm.” Joe said, anchoring his fingers more fully into Web’s hair, tapping his thumb along the back of his hand. “It’s almost two in the morning, why the hell are you drinking caffeine?” 

He kissed Web again, deeper, running his tongue along the seam of his lips as Web made a noise at the back of his throat, some sort of protest and sigh in one. 

“You taste like beer.” Web mumbled against his lips. “You’re not one to talk.” 

Joe almost smiled, and Web took the opportunity to lick into his mouth, tangling their fingers tighter together. “Guess not.” He murmured.

--

They would talk, in the morning.

About what this meant. About what they meant: because it got tiring, after a while. To keep going. To have to keep repeating the same section of life over and over again as everything else went on. 

They were work. They always would be. But they could put in the time. Joe knew they would.

(They could be salvageable.)

For now, Joe just drove back along and away from Penn’s Landing, one hand on the wheel and the other on the console, tangled with Web’s own.

The other was half asleep already, caffeine crash hooking into him, cheek pressed against the headrest, mouth open, eyes watching out the windshield blearily. He looked, Joe thought affectionately, like an absolute moron.

He gripped Joe tight, one of his feet tucked up under his thighs, hair stuck up in all directions. 

Joe watched him whenever he could, whenever he could take his eyes away from the road, neck aching slightly and foot slightly more, and couldn’t care less. 

He’d read somewhere (or, more likely, Web had read somewhere and Joe had osmosed the knowledge by proxy) that pain always put things into perspective. That risk always did. 

Perspective had changed since February. Had become more about Web and the future than of Web and the now. Than of whatever stupid fucking hill they’d decide to overreact and die on.

Joe hit a speed bump a little harder than he meant to and Web made a soft noise in the back of his throat, protesting. His fingers twitched slightly, where they were entwined with Joe’s, opening his eyes again, groggy.

Joe huffed a laugh, eyes on the road again, resisted the urge to do something stupid that Web would never let him live down, like lift their tangled fingers and kiss the back of his hand.

Yeah. They would talk in the morning.

--

He was still going to fucking kill Chuck and Hoobler, though.

[psalmsofpsychosis]

David advocating for batjokes is so cathartic bc i remember ages ago some were suggesting that gotham!batjokes wasn't really a two-hander and only Cameron was playing up the tragic love arc (which is crazy because david has talked about Jeremiah loving bruce before the ace chem episode dropped and the fact that he literally plays Bruce as though he's on the verge of crying in every other scene he has with post-reveal Jeremiah but okay)

I need to hear these two guys idea dumping on each other while filming season 5

postgrad David and Cameron are dream Gotham blunt rotation for real because i geniunely think they're both incredibly delightful and unhinged and strange individuals and i also think that they both knew what they were doing.

Like, putting it into context— Cameron was just coming off 11 years of Shameless US, jesus christ. He was a gayism veteran at that point, he knew what the tone oh his plot was, of course he was going to act it that way and talk about it that way. But also, David was a 16 years old kid. Like, i dont know what indepth philosophical nuance people expected him to bring to the table, he was a fucking child at the time, teens take things lightly, it's what they do. But still it's an insane, insane thing to me that some people thought that gotham!batjokes is an unintended one sided narrative because, as you yourself said, David's acting is incredibly deliberate and distinct, Bruce's body language is a whole world of its own when it comes to Miah, and we're not even talking about the plot points. So i think that in the specific S5 time frame he played it more intuitively and less philosophically like Cameron did, and he didn't necessarily have a grown up's vocabulary around the narrative, i honestly didn't expect him to. But now that he's older and has had time away from the clutches of DC and also more years on him, he's came back full force. His analysis and understanding of Joker is on point, and he took extra care to really highlight where his priorities lie in a "Joker Essey" video by sticking the fucking "only Batman would go to this length to find the good in Joker, because he's his one true love" comment sticker right on top. There was no reason for him to highlight that comment, or draw any attention to it at all, if he wasn't aboard the batjokes train of hell. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ and man does it heal me to the bone, i'm just so glad to know that everybody has been on the same page all along, it shows on screen and offscreen

[snowblossomreads]

Stormy Nights

Pairing: Detective David Friedman x Fem!Reader

Summary: In where David finds [Y/n] trembling at the sound of the storm outside and goes to comfort her.

Tag(s)/Warning(s): Fluff, Age Gap, Daddy Kink (Non Sexual), Fear of thunderstorms

Word Count: 2K

A/N: It's spring time where i live which means it storms every other day with the possible chance of tornadoes! I don't like storms (trauma) hence here is this cute lil story with our favorite southern detective : D

"Jesus Christ!" The boom of his voice, rivaled the boom of the thunder that followed David, as he slammed his front door close, to escape the torrential downpour happening outside.

"Fuckin' spring showers my ass," he hissed, as he began to peel off the damp clothes that stuck to him, not wanting to track mud and water all over the house. "Like a damn hurricane out there, I swear! Gets worse and worse every year."

Mumbling frustrated curses, he carried the clothes to the bathroom and dumped them in the laundry hamper, before going to grab a towel to dry himself a bit. Of course, he didn't bring an umbrella today, granted, the way the wind was blowing, it probably would have snatched it right out of his hands.

"Should have just stayed home and minded my business but-."

BOOM!

"AHHH!"

His complaints were interrupted by the loudest crash of thunder up to that point, which made the house rattle, and the lights flicker. And along with the crash of thunder, a familiar sounding screech drifted from his bedroom that gave him pause.

"What in the?"  

Tossing his towel back on the hook, he made his way to his bedroom, which had its door wide open, and light from the TV pouring out of it. When he reached the threshold of it, he immediately noticed the shaking lump in the middle of his bed. Blankets and pillows surrounded the figure even though he noticed one or two of the 'fort' walls had been kicked to the ground.

"[Y/n]?" He asked, approaching the trembling shape carefully as if it was a suspect who was in hiding.

There wasn't a reply, only more whimpering and shaking, as he sat on the edge of the bed. The shifting of the mattress only seemed to frighten the woman more, as she let out a little cry that caused his eyes to widen and worry to cord at his stomach.

"Doll it's just me, just Dave," he rumbled gently as he laid his hand on what he assumed was her back, and stroked her in a manner he hoped was comforting.

Her shaking seemed to ease with his touch, and so carefully, he peeled back the blankets to find her curled in a fetal position. The sight made his heart ache more than he thought it would considering [Y/n] was a fierce little thing at times. 

She was one to voluntarily put herself in danger by playing potential victims to catch a perp if needed without a blink of an eye. Even if he did complain. So seeing her curled up and scared was unnerving and it knawed at him painfully. 

"D-Dave," she whined, her eyes still shut tight as she gripped the sheets beneath her, not daring to move an inch.

"Doll what are you doing under there? What is all this?" Confusion was etched all over his face which was illuminated by the TV that was playing the local weather. 

Still, her eyes didn't open as she just laid there in a fetal position, as if not moving would keep the storms away. It didn't, and apparently to make sure she knew that, the storm began to rumble with thunder this time, though much softer than it had before. 

That didn't matter though as she shook so hard Dave thought she would end up breaking something with how tense she was.

To keep her from breaking, he leaned over her body, wrapping his arms around her as he tried to pull her close. Hopefully, she would excuse the bit of dampness on his skin as he hadn't had time to dry off all the way from the rain outside. Granted, by the way she hardly moved when he pulled her in his lap, and then buried herself deeper against him, she didn't seem to care much about it.

"Mmm s-sorry, didn't tell you I was coming over." Her voice was muffled, yet he could hear it quiver, as she kept herself hidden. "Didn't know- Didn't know if you were still at the station." 

"Yeah, I just got in. Was coming straight back here when the sky decided to open up and piss on me when I got on the bridge. Damn near skidded off of it."

There was another rumble of thunder just as he finished, and he felt her begin to tremble in his arms again before he hugged her tighter. Was she scared of storms? Obviously, she had to be considering the way she was vibrating. It was weird though, as he had been around her when it was storming and she seemed perfectly at ease. Well as much as ease as someone could be when lightning was illuminating the skies up while the wind whipped around. So he felt like he still had to ask.

Burying his face on top of her head and kissing it, he murmured his question in her hair, "Doll are you scared of storms?"

There was no use hiding it now considering she was shaking like a leaf on his bed, scared to move an inch. God, it was infuriating how weather like this could make her so uneasy and terrify her just like that. With a shaky breath, she nodded.

"Y-yeah don't like 'em too much. It got real bad after you know…" she paused, as the memory of Katrina was still fresh in her mind. 

Two years had already passed since that devastating hurricane and the weeks of hell that had followed. Scars and memories of it still littered the city and surrounding places so it was almost impossible to forget. 

Dave had seemed to understand as well as none of them had come out of that event without some sort of emotional scar. He held her more tightly at that and for a moment she couldn't be more than thankful to have him.

"B-but I still never liked 'em too much," she whispered, her voice barely audible over the rain hitting the roof and windows and the howl of the wind. There was also the sound of the weatherman talking about a severe thunderstorm warning was issued for Orleans Parish which probably explained the wild weather. 

"Especially when all they've been talking about and showing is all them tornadoes that come through all the other cities yesterday and today. Just scares me, always gets me thinking of the worst." 

Again, another loud gust of wind whistled and rattled the windows, followed by lighting and the crackle of thunder that caused the hair on the back of her neck to stand. She physically bristled, as a sharp sob left her lips, and goosebumps appeared on her skin while she attempted to bury herself closer to Dave even if there was nowhere else to go. 

Immediately, his arms tightened around her and he cradled the back of her head before going to stroke her in an attempt to calm her. They weren't in any danger, but at this point, all rational had left her mind and its replacement was worry. Maybe if he could quiet it down some would she feel better. And a thought came into his mind.

"Shhh, I got you doll, I got you," he hummed in that lovely drawl of his, as he rocked her back and forth, trying to soothe her frightened cries as the weather outside seemed to want to make it a point to terrify [Y/n]. "Daddy's got you don't worry," his voice a rumble that even the thunder outside couldn't compare to. "Ain't nothing gonna happen just some wind and noise."

"D-daddy, I'm sorry," she whined immediately latching on to what he was doing. Her hands balled in a fist as she stayed against him, letting him protect her from whatever was going on outside.

He was safety. She could always trust that he would do everything he could to keep her safe. Even if it was something as impossible as keeping the weather away. She could trust him. Her Dave, her daddy.

"You ain't got nothing to be sorry about," he murmured, "we all got something we're afraid of and we just need to ride this one out. We'll be okay, news said it'll pass over in about thirty so we'll just stay put right here doll." 

The continuous rumble of thunder made its way over the house as Dave kept his eye on the weather report. Each time it would thunder, he would try to block the sound of it using the deep rumble of his own voice and words of encouragement to [Y/n] who had continued to tremble but much less than before.

"Almost done doll." "Hear it lightnin' up out there we'll be okay." "That's my good girl."

Over and over he whispered sweet words, and each time she would tremble less and less. Whether it was because the words were actually calming, (they were to her), or if it was because the storms were slowly finishing their taunts against his [Y/n], he didn't know. But after an hour or so, everything seemed to quiet down outside, and her trembles had almost ceased completely. 

Rocking her back and forth and eyeing the news, he listened as the weatherman gave the all clear, saying that the worst of it was out of the station's viewing area, and it would only be light rain for the rest of the evening.

Good. He was tired of wondering if the lights were going to go out. Not only because he was getting a bit testy at the weather for how bad it was spooking his [Y/n]. But, he had just bought groceries the other day and would be pissed if they went bad. Hey, shit was expensive. 

"[Y/n], doll, you okay?" He asked softly as he slowed his caresses, listening to her steady breathing. 

It was a major difference from her more erratic and frightened breathing and it calmed him knowing she was alright. Though, he noticed there wasn't a response from her and it caused him to look down to check on her.

"[Y/n]?" 

Her eyes stayed closed as he called to her once more, and he couldn't stop the amused grin that spread on his thin lips. She had fallen asleep!  His shoulders shook with muted laughter, even more so when [Y/n] didn't stir at all.

"Tired yourself out with all that shakin' didn't you," he mused playfully, before he planted a quick kiss against the top of her head. "You're a silly little thing you know that darlin'?" 

Of course, there was no response, as she snoozed peacefully, having fallen asleep the moment things seemed to have started to wind down. Carefully, as to not wake her, even though he was sure she was out for the rest of the night, David gently laid her back down on the bed. Her body loosened up and unfurled on its own accord now that it was no longer balled up against him.  

Quietly, he shuffled off the bed, pulling the blankets up around her shoulders and then placing her head on one of the many pillows that she had scrounged up. Huh, he didn't even realize he had that many, he thought to himself, as he gathered the extras to put in the living room. 

Taking one more glance at her to make sure she was still snoozing, he made his way to the living room and tossed the pillows on the sofa. He would deal with them later. Next was the shower that he had forgone to comfort [Y/n] and after he had dried himself off he went back to the room to check on her. 

Still sleep. 

Walking over to the opposite side of the bed, David slipped underneath the blankets, a yawn already spilling from his lips as he scooted close to [Y/n]. Her body rose and fell steadily and he was sure the poor woman was gonna be sleeping until the next morning.

With a tired smile and warm eyes pointed in her direction, he threw an arm around her waist to scoot her close. Once she was tucked safely against his chest, he kissed the top of her head again before closing his eyes in hopes of finding sleep as quickly as she had done.

[dollarbin]

Kristofferson:

A Dollar Bin Primer

I saw an obligatory "ten essential songs" list alongside the very nice NYTimes Kris obituary following his passing yesterday. Suffice it to say that the assembler of that list doesn't dwell with you and me in the Dollar Bin. Rather they live in Obvious Town, otherwise known as Spodify.

But Kris is a true lord of the bin: he sold tons of records in the 70's that no one listens to any more except me and my famous brother.

And now you! Here are nine deep tracks (plus a tenth from Willie!) in chronological order, one from each of Kristofferson's fairly-easy-to-track-down-for-a-square-buck-each 70's albums...

(Yes: incredibly, Kris put out nine separate solo albums in the 70's, plus three more with his wife-for-a-decade Rita Coolidge, not to mention starring in a half dozen films. Nine plus three is twelve. I doubt Radiohead have issued that many albums in their nearly 40 years of existence...)

Casey's Last Ride from Kristofferson

Kris's self-titled first record is a downright mothercuddler: every song is titanic, funny and terrifying. Casey's Last Ride gives him room to swing from violent to sensitive; this perfectly miniaturized epic sounds like a blueprint for the film Peckinpah should have made with Kris instead of Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid...

Jodie and the Kid from The Silver Tongued Devil and I

Kris could write a weeper alright. I don't know if he ever really got over his first failed marriage and the ways it affected his children. Every time I was around Kris - he was a distant cousin - I'd see that he was most interested in the children at our gathering; the first time I ever met him he seemed literally covered in diapered offspring from his third marriage and he looked downright thrilled about it.

Jodie and the Kid was one of my grandmother's favorites of his songs - he loved her dearly and she loved the sensitive, ah shucks side of him on display in this perfect short story of a song.

Little Girl Lost from Border Lord

Kris always took a lot of pride in his band: guys stuck with him for decades and he made room for their songs and their voices on all of his records. Little Girl Lost is really three different songs artfully shuffled together: there's brooding Doors-like intro followed by a honky tonk stomp that fades into a prayer. Kris and the boys ride the changes with concise poise.

Jesus Was A Capricorn

He was just so good with words. Sure, this title track from his fourth solo record is a tossed off hoot. But there are poetic depths here, especially for a guy who was busy drinking himself to death. Just check out the verse work: he rhymes food and shoes and makes it work; he boils down an eight page paragraph from Dostoevsky about the return of Christ into about 6 words and then he lays this little nugget on us, all with a chuckle:

Some folks hate the whites who hate the blacks who hate the klan; most of us hate anything that we don't understand...

Lights of Magdala from Spooky Lady's Sideshow

Kris was also an occasionally brilliant interpreter of other people's songs. The drunkest of his records, 1974's Spooky Lady Sideshow, verges on unlistenable at moments but it also contains the fitting closure of what I consider his great Freedom Trilogy.

Buried in the mix is also one of the bleakest pleas for salvation ever issued by a white male on record. For me, Drake's Black Eyed Dog, Young's Borrowed Tune and Kris's Lights of Magdala work together to chart out the depths of hell. They also make us want to reach out and help everyone we see.

Stallion from Who's To Bless and Who's To Blame

Kris was always the first to put down his own singing and musicianship. Yeah, so he was no Mickey Newbury - but he knew his range and he knew enough chords to work with and there was never a truly dull moment in songs like Stallion. Indeed, it's hard to imagine a world where white dudes with oddball voices - think everyone from Michael Stipe to David Berman to Ira Kaplan - ever turn into rock and roll icons without the benefit of Kris's rickety but oh-so-cool foundation.

You Show Me Yours (And I'll Show You Mine) from Surreal Thing

Occasionally, however, he'd write something he really couldn't sing. The ridiculous, tequila soaked chorus for You Show Me Yours (And I'll Show You Mine) is a good example.

But Kris had an ace up his sleeve: his version features a heavenly choir led by his wife Rita Coolidge; and alternatively, he could always just let Willie sing it...

The Saber and the Rose from Easter Island

You can probably note a decrease in quality going on. As an old man, poor Kris couldn't remember too much about his life from this period. The guy had boxed too much, flown too many helicopters, surely blown out his hearing and drank way, way, too much - and none of that helps in the memory department - which is why I don't fly helicopters.

But in 1978 he made a concerted effort with Easter Island to reclaim some kind of high ground artistically. I have no idea what's really happening in this song but the piano pounds nicely and the storytelling is beginning to reemerge.

Come Sundown from Shake Hands with the Devil

Happily, he survived it all: he sobered up, met a rather perfect human being and talked them into being his wife for the next 45 years. Did he ever write a song again that matched the glorious initial tracks on this list and on everyone else's? Heck no!

But Come Sundown is sure lovely...

[protect-daniel-james]

Sneak peek of Jason/Eddie trying to figure out why Anthony Gordon is acting the way he is (trying to seduce Howe), a.k.a. the best detective duo ever. Under cut.

Jason tilted his head. "Eddie, come on. Where did Gordon come from?"

"Everton."

Jason raised his eyebrows. Come on, Eds. Think about it.

"Nah, nah - that's insane."

Jason's raised eyebrows and the doubtful smile that played on his lips didn't seem to agree with Eddie. He picked up the tablet that was on the table and after unlocking it, his fingers ran over the screen. Eddie waited tensely. "Anthony Michael Gordon," JT uttered in an almost solemn tone, as if he'd just announced the winner of a poll. "Born February 24, 2001. Youth team: Liverpool FC, was released from there. Everton since 2012." He put the tablet back down on the table and clasped his hands together. "He had been at Everton since he was eleven. Spent a few months at Preston North End. I think that narrows our circle of suspects quite a bit. If we reckon he was at least legal - "

"Jesus Christ. That's grim."

Instead of answering, JT picked up the tablet once again. "And that it wasn't anyone from here," he added to lighten up the mood but Eddie visibly jerked, as if stung by a bee.

"Here?" he said in disbelief. His eyes searched in JT's face for an assurance that it was meant as a joke. "No, no - " He slapped his palm triumphantly on the table. "He said something - wait! - he talked about before, before, he didn't say when but he mentioned something that made it clear it was elsewhere - "

Jason looked at him. "Yeah?"

"Yeah, I'm sure! He made this stupid joke about putting this - info - down in his contract. Or in his transfer request when he wanted to get out of Everton. Anyway - " Eddie cooled off his victorious grin. "That's beyond the point. I trust the people we work with here one hundred percent. Besides, he made it pretty clear this was about a gaffer, not a masseur or physio."

Jason nodded, working something out on his tablet. "Here we go." He smirked. "Koeman. Who the hell knows with him. But Anthony would have been barely sixteen and in the academy. Why would Koeman even know about him." 

Eddie shook his head. His teeth were clenched; the lighthearted tone in which JT spoke didn't seem appropriate for the subject.

"David Unsworth," Jason continued. "Who the hell is even that? Interim. How would he even have time for this? Keep in mind Anthony is still sixteen and not in the first team."

"Jesus Christ."

"Big Sam. Would you look at that. I doubt he even knew half of his first squad. But, this is where Tony lad debuts for the first team in Europe. Wow," he raised his eyes from the screen, ready to make the joke. "Everton in Europe. Must have been ages ago. Marco Silva? Who knows. Big Dunc Ferguson? Nah, he loves the club, he would never do something like that to an academy player. Ancelotti? Come on. Anthony would shit himself. Benítez? He hated Everton, and wouldn't touch him with a ten-foot pole. Big Dunc again, no chance." Eddie, who had been nodding along to the names, remembering the managers who led Everton for a few months or years throughout Gordon's spell, noticed the all-telling pause that Jason made. Their eyes met.

"Lampard."

One of them said it, or maybe they both did; maybe Jason voiced what Eddie's lips wordlessly whispered.

[murderoushagthesequel]

ok so.

i watched einstein and eddington today for the first time and oh my god.

i can't stop thinking about it

first of all, how have i never heard of eddington before?? i hope we talk about him when we talk about relativity in astronomy he needs more recognition than he has

second of all, how does this movie not have more attention? the science is fascinating even if you don't understand it, much of it is explained really well through conversations with children or non-scientists which i loved. plus the whole war vs science rhetoric was so interesting and i obviously was very for the anti-war sentiments

sorry this post is way longer than i intended but i feel like tumblr is the only place people will understand me about this 😔 my friends are sick of me

if you haven't seen it, watch it.

(spoilers below)

also the way the eddingtons took in the german family and brought them to church and stood by them and made sure they KNEW they belonged no matter what anyone said are you kidding me

and no, i will NEVER get over this fucking scene

nor the fucking one where sir oliver looks him straight in the face and says "what do you know of grief?" about ypres and eddington just has to stand there and take it while it kills him inside because he cant TELL ANYONE.

jesus fucking christ my emotions.

i love you david tennant. i love you for how you played this man and his love and loss and thirst for knowledge.

also hello? was not expecting planck to be suxh a dick :( pookie your constant is so helpful why don't you help out einstein

not to mention the time old stories that came along with einstein's story. not even getting into the whole cousin romance... but it honestly reminded me so much of the greatest showman and hamilton. the man with a wife and kids who works too much and grows more and more distant and cheats with another woman

honestly i would've written more but my autocorrect is not working and this is exhausting to type so goodbye for now 🫡

[scribeforchrist-blog]

Clothed With Christ

MEMORY VERSE OF THE WEEK

=======================

+ Psalm 1:2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law, he meditates day and night

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VERSE OF THE DAY

======================

+ Titus 2:12 Training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age,

=======================

** SAY THIS BEFORE YOU READ; HERE’S SOME CHRISTIAN TRUTHS **

I AM TRAINING TO RENOUNCE UNGODLINESS

I AM WALKING IN JESUS

I AM CLOTHED WITH CHRIST

I AM NOT FEARFUL

======================

READ TIME: 7 Minutes 38 Seconds

======================

THOUGHTS:

======================

  They always say do what is natural to you, and that could be in your life, with a new way of handling things; it could be anything, but what should feel natural to us as believers are praying, reading our word, meditating, worshiping God , David always did what was natural to him, he attended to sheep, he song praises to God, he didn’t let his life get too complicated where he wasn’t praising God.

  Many of us do; we forget what is natural and allow things that can cause chaos to rule our lives. I have had that in my life. I have had people who made things worse than they are, and I slowly asked God to remove them. I didn’t want him to remove them; to be honest, I still had attachment issues with them, to be honest, but I knew I needed them out of my life.

   As he removed this person, I remember saying to God, what's next, as I stood in my living room looking out the window, I repeated what was next because I knew I was alone. I knew nothing would ever be the same; he said you must start working on yourself, and that's what he’s been allowing me to do: work on me. And I've been allowing him to do that because sometimes we can know we need to change and fight against God about everything, but sometimes we can know we need to. However, it's like we still have some fight to do what we feel is natural, but God can make it so that we have no more fight in us to fight what he wants to do, and I have been there. I was stubborn,

and I was disobedient.

   I knew I needed to change those things but didn’t, and that is why he had to do that, and it made me better. I learned now I can't be that way. I learned that I can't allow this world to teach me, but I must let God teach me, and when we are in that stage or in that faze, we then can grow and change,

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

  God knows what he has planned for us. He knows what he wants us to have in our life, and He knows what will bring us this or that now when we start to change; it doesn’t mean we won't have problems and it won't be challenging, but actual change brings us to the point of doing things naturally, as we learn it easier to do things his way, and a lot of us learn that that’s not going to work for me anymore because what will work is when we are dedicated to prayer, dedicated to mediation, dedicated to a life of God when we truly dedicated out time to God he can truly change us to something natural.

  Philippians 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

  We can't be anxious about what's happening. We must remain calm and focused and allow what he is doing to take effect, and sometimes that’s hard to do; it's hard to allow God to take control over something we have been doing for the longest. We all want our lives to go a certain way, and that way can be this way or that way, but if it's not God's way, we will forever have a problem with our lives.

  What comes naturally to you? What feels like the right thing? Sometimes, even doing what’s natural to us can be the wrong thing; that’s why every day, we must go to God and say, God, remove what’s out of me, remove the unnatural for the natural, remove the impurities out, and help me to do what is right.

  1 Corinthians 6:18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body

  This Bible verse says flee; we should be fleeing from anything impure; we should be fleeing from anything that’s not of God; we can’t stay and entertain what’s of the flesh because then we are giving the enemy a foothold into our lives. God wants us to move away from things like this, not for us to entertain it, and sure, it might not feel that way, but we must let him order our steps.

 Colossians 3:5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

   The verse says put to death what is earthly in you! What is it that’s in you that could cause you to be the opposite of what Christ is telling you? The enemy has a grip on this world, and it’s so many people who are okay with what they are doing; they are okay with how they are living, and they aren’t thinking, does this please God we as believers must always please God we must always seek to make our creator happy and pleased if what we are doing doesn’t we must find a way back to his will.

 *** Today, we talked about what’s natural. Our sinful life is natural to us because it’s what we are used to, but when we hand over our walk and steps to God, we become listeners to God; we become pleasers of God because then we desire to do it .

 Romans 13:14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

  Every day, we must put on Christ, not what’s natural; every day, we walk in the steps of Christ, but we aren’t doing that, and we are doing what pleases our flesh; we will always have a problem; we will always be out of alignment with Christ, so if today we feel you are walking in the natural and you haven’t put on Christ stop and ask him to show you how to put on him, and to put him on we must read our word, pray, meditate, praise and worship him at all times ©Seer~ Prophetess Lee

======================

PRAYER

=====================

Heavenly Father, we thank you for everything you have done. We ask you right now to help us to put on you and not this world; we ask you to give us strength for our day. We thank you for giving us peace in our lives and we praise you for what you’re doing right now. Lord, if we aren’t clothed with you, help us to be. Lord, give us your guidance every day; we don’t want to be without you, Father; please pour fresh anointing on us this day in Jesus' Name, Amen

======================

REFERENCES

======================

+ Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

 

+ Ephesians 5:5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

 

+ James 4:8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

======================

FURTHER READINGS

======================

 Proverbs 31

Job 2

2 Chronicles 9

Exodus 35

======================

[oohbuggypie]

"and as he wept, he wept and said, 'Oh, my.. Oh, my.. Would to God I had died for He'"

this is fully inspired by @goferwashere 's PO!! Monster Hunter AU 🩷 depicted is Don Flamenco in his monster form being held in his last moments by Joe. the writing that describes their fight, Don's death, and Joe's regret are all below the cut as its very long. but WOW i just could not get this idea out of my head . thank u soo much Gofer for the amazing AU and thank u to the whole community for being my courage to be brave and release something a little less cutesie than usual ! 🥹 additional details i rlly want to be known::

-the tattoo on Don' torso is an altered version of that in the regular PO!! universe; the one depicted reads "COLOSSIANS 3:2" :: the verse's meaning is "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things". this is meant to reflect his disdain for humans, and how he views them as lesser

-the stab wound placement is below Don's right pectoral; this is in reflection of Jesus Christ's 5th wound he suffered whilst being crucified. additionally, it is said that what seeped from the wound wasn't only blood, but water as well; i found this very fitting for his character for obvious reasons lol

-the lyrics above the drawing are a condensed / altered version from the choral piece "David's Lamentation", one of my favorite songs ever !

phewph okay writing time ! unfortunately i have never written angst, let alone fighting OR death .. this is also being released about half an hour shy of midnight on bad sleep so proofreading is out of the question.. this is prob a hard read but I STAY CONFIDENT ! here we gooo 🩷::

-------------------------------------------------------

Don hissed and swung his fist in an aimless direction, hearing the collision's result come in the form of an agonized grunt from the man near him. Blind rage mingled with fear consumed Don's body in a way God himself forbade, yet he continued to batter any flesh that came into contact with his.

Joe's entire being ached, his eye now burning from the knuckles that dug into it just moments ago. He clenched it shut and let the obscurity of his vision drive his instincts to wherever they were necessary. He aimed to return the punch with his own fist plunging to meet Don's stomach, momentarily knocking the air from his lungs. As Don's arms instinctively lowered to gaurd where his sore flesh was struck, Joe snarled and drew his left arm back to slam a fist into Don's cheek. The siren felt a coursing agony not only externally, but through his heart. He knew what would come, yet he continued to bare his teeth. He ripped apart anything which bothered him and felt no haunting ring in his mind. Though this time, he feared that the bells would toll.

Joe took full advantage of the temporary stun he inflicted upon Don and wrapped his hands around the man's throat. Joe kicked Don's ankle in so that he buckled beneath his own weight, dropping them both to meet the floor. Joe felt a shake within his bones, like the structures in his own body didn't want him to do this. He didn't want to. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. Yet his body moved now without his mind, pressing his entire weight into the neck of the helpless man below him. Don couldn't stand the desperation that racked his body, and above that distaste, he couldn't bare to look up at the deathly eyes staring into his own. The man who he called a friend held less semblance to a human and now closer to a wraith, some wretched figure distorted by horror. His skin appeared a sickly gray in the darkness of the gym's room, and had his hands always been this coarse and cold? Nonetheless, for the present time Don disregarded the friend he once had and viewed him now as a step above a pet; competition.

Don snarled and thrashed beneath the body of Joe and locked his hands around the arms above. His brain felt like a searing gas within his head, but that lack of consciousness was immediately replaced by instinct. Don slid his hands down to grip Joe's wrists and ripped them outwards with a fell swipe. Joe wasn't spared a second to process the motion before his nose was slammed by Don's forehead. A pained cry was all his voice could manage before his vision flickered black.

-----

When he awoke, only seconds has passed since he blacked out. With a horrified start, Joe began to thrash his arms through the water engulfing him. His legs kicked in the same motion, his left heel slamming into an excruciating pressure seeming to bind his right ankle. The force released as soon as it felt his bruising strike against it. Joe desperately made strokes with his arms upwards, looking for any form of light to signify what differentiated the surface from the bottom. Joe felt a darkness reigning upon him as another figure trailed close behind, its presence growing heavier with each struggling wave of his arms throughout the pool.

Joe's face broke the surface. Without a second to catch his breath, he began scanning the area with bewildered eyes for the nearest edge. His loafers felt like bricks tied to his ankles, and the turtleneck he donned was quickly becoming suffocating. A short distance behind him, a splash breaking the water's tension drove Joe into fight or flight. His arms clawed in front of him with strokes large enough to leave his arms aching the next day, yet that same pain was his drive to reach the edge quicker. He gripped the ledge of the hard floor and hoisted himself above the edge, rushing into a position where his knees and one arm balanced his body upright. With his unoccupied hand, he reached where the bells tolled and the colors sank. Joe frantically patted his pocket for where the knife's sheath bulged.

Don arose from the water he resided in just seconds after his former partner. Joe ripped the leather from his pocket and reached into it, gripping the handle as if he was warding death itself away. His knuckles were white with pressure, and his wide eyes locked on the man inches from himself. Don's eyes were sickly and no longer passing as human; the bags beneath them were a bruised purple, and where the whites of his eyes should be were replaced by a glassy blue. His brows dug wrinkles into his forehead like malicious scars upon skin. And the worst of it all was the death-like frown that crumpled his entire facial structure; it drew his eyes in a downward spiral, and his lips curled against his flesh like desperate hands digging into anything for hold.

With his chest exposed and either arms beside him as means to lift himself, Joe raised his blade and drudged it into Don's flesh.

Don's eyes fell like the world's light upon an empty room, and the sharp inhale in his throat thrummed akin to the death rattle. Despite the metal lodged deep within his chest, he managed the strength to drag himself from his home's grasp and to lay on the freezing tile below him. Joe's hands left his mouth as he let out some visceral shout that made cherubs above weep. He scurried across the soaked floor to examine the man before him. Joe slammed himself down upon the floor and struggled to lift him, eventually draping Don's being across his own. Don's arms rested against Joe's bent knees, and his head tilted into his chest with slowing breaths beating against his sweater. The remaining warmth of his breath settling on his own shoulder resembled the comfort of a blanket upon a child's cold body. Joe felt static piercing through his brain and throughout his ears.

He slid his trembling hand to grab the hilt of his blade, yanking it from between Don's ribs with a crumbling expression upon his face. Where the stab wound remained open, Joe rested his hand on its opening and let the blood seep onto his skin. He lowered them to graze the rest of Don's torso, creating an up and down rhythm almost as if to comfort him. He felt a dread in his stomach nothing in his life had ever compared to; he had killed numerous times before this, and for pettier reasons. But the understanding of what he had just done settled upon him like the smothering embrace of a rotting being. Joe lost any remaining thoughts in his mind as small, breaking moans passed the pursing lips of Don.

Don's body felt washed by shades of baby blue. His eyed fixated on an empty and quickly fading horizon. The right side of his body held a sensation that reminded him of familiarity; dripping water and warm waves caressing his flesh. Though this time, the sea seemed to be accompanied by rainfall. Don couldn't muster the strength to look up, let alone turn his head, but he felt warm droplets fall upon his hair. The fog that began swallowing his mind didn't allow him to understand where the water's source was coming from. They dropped rapidly now, dripping enough so that they slid across his own cheeks; they made up for the lack of his own tears. The air that was becoming increasingly hard to keep in his grasp now filled with a tune, a rhythm similar to those he practiced when dancing.

"Je suis désolé, je suis vraiment désolé, oh..."

Don couldn't understand the words, couldn't sing along to the beautiful tune that seemed to hail from Heaven itself. It broke his heart a bit, seeing that one of his greatest attributes was his ethereal singing voice. But the words soothed his soul, and held this wonderous ability to make his eyes feel comfortable closing.

"Oh, mon Dieu... Oh, mon Dieu, pardonne-moi... Pardonne-lui aussi..." Joe heaved, his hands clutching the bloodied skin of Don's torso. His body shook with a might that caused Don's own body to tremor along with his.

Don wished he knew what those words meant. Don wished he could hear the voice sing in his ears forever, let the melody echo throughout the chambers of his fading mind every second of every waking moment. Don's face fell cold, and his body felt as if it was losing its occupation; but fear never crossed his mind when his vision finally began to fade. He loved the hands running up and down his body, loved the warmth cascading against his side, loved the song, he loved this moment. He let his breath soften and slip from his mind's priorities, and now focused on shutting his eyes to rest.

The last thing Don truly felt was the slipping of beads across his collar bones.

-----

Joe removed the rosary from around Don's neck and let its wooden roses slide into a pile inside his unused pocket. He vowed that the blade would make no contact with the necklace.

Joe couldn't and didn't think as he laid the body of his sweet friend down to rest away from his own. He looked once more into the drained yet softened features of Don's face; his lips looked soft against his chin, and his brows no longer furrowed in such a dreadful way. Joe stood for moments, spending minutes staring down at the body now devoid of life on the floor. The worst sight of the entire night was the wound beneath the right side of Don's chest. And even upon staring at it, running his eyes over it again and again, Joe just couldn't think deeper about it.

He turned his back from the death that loomed behind him and exited through the double doors of the room. Joe stalked off into the night, letting the world's air solidify the agonizing tears that stained his cheeks, down to his neck.

END !! thanks 4 reading if u did and thank u 2 anybody who sees this !! now im gonna go ahead and pass out it's 11:45 PM and im sick 🩷

[hiswordsarekisses]

THE QUESTION THAT CHANGED MY LIFE:

‼️LOVER OR PROSTITUTE?‼️

by Dr. David Ryser:

A number of years ago, I had the privilege of teaching at a school of ministry. My students were hungry for God, and I was constantly searching for ways to challenge them to fall more in love with Jesus and to become voices for revival in the Church. I came across a quote attributed most often to Rev. Sam Pascoe. It is a short version of the history of Christianity, and it goes like this: Christianity started in Palestine as a fellowship; it moved to Greece and became a philosophy; it moved to Italy and became an institution; it moved to Europe and became a culture; it came to America and became an enterprise. Some of the students were only 18 or 19 years old--barely out of diapers--and I wanted them to understand and appreciate the import of the last line, so I clarified it by adding, "An enterprise. That's a business." After a few moments Martha, the youngest student in the class, raised her hand. I could not imagine what her question might be. I thought the little vignette was self-explanatory, and that I had performed it brilliantly. Nevertheless, I acknowledged Martha's raised hand, "Yes, Martha." She asked such a simple question, "A business? But isn't it supposed to be a body?" I could not envision where this line of questioning was going, and the only response I could think of was, "Yes." She continued, "But when a body becomes a business, isn't that a prostitute?" The room went dead silent. For several seconds no one moved or spoke. We were stunned, afraid to make a sound because the presence of God had flooded into the room, and we knew we were on holy ground. All I could think in those sacred moments was, "Wow, I wish I'd thought of that." I didn't dare express that thought aloud. God had taken over the class.

Martha's question changed my life. For six months, I thought about her question at least once every day. "When a body becomes a business, isn't that a prostitute?" There is only one answer to her question. The answer is "Yes." The American Church, tragically, is heavily populated by people who do not love God. How can we love Him? We don't even know Him; and I mean really know Him.... I stand by my statement that most American Christians do not know God--much less love Him. The root of this condition originates in how we came to God. Most of us came to Him because of what we were told He would do for us. We were promised that He would bless us in life and take us to heaven after death. We married Him for His money, and we don't care if He lives or dies as long as we can get His stuff. We have made the Kingdom of God into a business, merchandising His anointing. This should not be.

We are commanded to love God, and are called to be the Bride of Christ--that's pretty intimate stuff. We are supposed to be His lovers. How can we love someone we don't even know? And even if we do know someone, is that a guarantee that we truly love them? Are we lovers or prostitutes? I was pondering Martha's question again one day, and considered the question, "What's the difference between a lover and a prostitute?" I realized that both do many of the same things, but a lover does what she does because she loves. A prostitute pretends to love, but only as long as you pay. Then I asked the question, "What would happen if God stopped paying me?"

For the next several months, I allowed God to search me to uncover my motives for loving and serving Him. Was I really a true lover of God? What would happen if He stopped blessing me? What if He never did another thing for me? Would I still love Him? Please understand, I believe in the promises and blessings of God. The issue here is not whether God blesses His children; the issue is the condition of my heart. Why do I serve Him? Are His blessings in my life the gifts of a loving Father, or are they a wage that I have earned or a bribe/payment to love Him? Do I love God without any conditions? It took several months to work through these questions. Even now I wonder if my desire to love God is always matched by my attitude and behavior. I still catch myself being disappointed with God and angry that He has not met some perceived need in my life. I suspect this is something which is never fully resolved, but I want more than anything else to be a true lover of God.

So what is it going to be? Which are we, lover or prostitute? There are no prostitutes in heaven, or in the Kingdom of God for that matter, but there are plenty of former prostitutes in both places. Take it from a recovering prostitute when I say there is no substitute or unconditional, intimate relationship with God. And I mean there is no palatable substitute available to us (take another look at Matthew 7:21-23 sometime). We must choose.

[tanadrin]

went back and listened to the episodes on david bokovoy's personal experience with religion, and man, it's funny just how different the stuff that people twig on in their experience of faith is--for bokovoy, even as a scholar of biblical criticism, it really isn't the truth claims of the LDS church that were ever a problem for him. like his academic career definitely primed him to move from a more orthodox, small-c conservative theology to a more expansive one (and he remains a pretty spiritual guy in general from the sound of it), but the thing that really started to fuck him up was the church's insistence on beating the anti-gay-marriage drum, starting with proposition 8, and culminating in the 2015 declaration about the children of gay parents not being welcome in the church unless they denounced them.

and it's a little infuriating to listen to him talk about how he feels about the LDS church after all of that--this whole "the leadership are good people deep down, i just disagree with them on this." like, come on, dude. i get that you're a straight guy whose experiences with mormonism have been generally very positive, but you are also self-aware enough to talk with compassion about LGBT people, about the experience of having a gay daughter, about the way in which people raised in Mormonism who are gay or even just a little bit nonconformist in some aspect of their life can have a really brutal time of it, and yet you cling to this idea of the organization as having some noble core, some inherently good quality that is only failing in its ultimate expression. he even talks about the experience of watching a movie that dramatizes the way different faith leaders came together during the civil rights movement, and having a moment of acute discomfort remembering that at the same time the leadership of the LDS church was still racist as hell in its teachings and policy

like, you should not be afraid to admit that the LDS church fucking sucks! it's always fucking sucked! most organized religion fucking sucks, and the organized religion that doesn't fucking suck has mostly gotten there by virtue of progressives splintering off and forming organizations that retain only a general flavor of the awful bullshit they grew up with and none of the core dogmas. i don't know of a human organization from the beginning of time that rigidly patrols boundaries of identity politics and creates structures of authority based on spirituality that didn't rapidly collapse into tyranny, a grift, or both, except the ones that were already that from the beginning.

and this, i suppose, is my disappointment with even the very open-minded progressives that John Dehlin interviews, which is that they want to redeem an organization that i think is fundamentally unredeemable. no particular shade to mormonism here--I think the Catholic church is also fundamentally unredeemable. hell, if i knew more about tibetan buddhism, i'd probably think that whole hierarchy was fundamentally unredeemable as well. the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints cannot become progressive on LGBT issues and honestly pursue truth and cease to misrepresent its history and spend its money on helping the poor and needy instead of conservative political campaigns and exploiting eighteen year olds to do morally questionable missionary work in third world countries without ceasing to be the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and its leadership knows this. for the exact same reason the Roman Catholic church can't go "lol you know what, our bad, this Pope guy isn't all that he's cracked up to be" and remain the Roman Catholic church.

i mean ultimately bokovoy doesn't go to church anymore; he says that the 2015 declaration was kind of the straw that broke the camel's back, and even if it was revoked tomorrow, it's not like he'd start going back. i assume he's not tithing anymore either. and he seems like a generally very gentle soul who wants to see the best in people, and i don't want to get on his case too much about that, because i admire that. but man, i think it's kind of disappointing to watch someone as apparently smart and compassionate as he is work himself into knots to excuse the behavior of the leadership of an organization like that when the simplest explanation is just that these people are assholes on a fundamental level and always have been.