12:1 Meanwhile, 1 when many thousands of the crowd had gathered so that they were trampling on one another, Jesus 2 began to speak first to his disciples, “Be on your guard against 3 the yeast of the Pharisees, 4 which is hypocrisy. 5 12:2 Nothing is hidden 6 that will not be revealed, 7 and nothing is secret that will not be made known. 12:3 So then 8 whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered 9 in private rooms 10 will be proclaimed from the housetops. 11
12:4 “I 12 tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, 13 and after that have nothing more they can do. 12:5 But I will warn 14 you whom you should fear: Fear the one who, after the killing, 15 has authority to throw you 16 into hell. 17 Yes, I tell you, fear him! 12:6 Aren’t five sparrows sold for two pennies? 18 Yet not one of them is forgotten before God. 12:7 In fact, even the hairs on your head are all numbered. Do not be afraid; 19 you are more valuable than many sparrows.
12:8 “I 20 tell you, whoever acknowledges 21 me before men, 22 the Son of Man will also acknowledge 23 before God’s angels. 12:9 But the one who denies me before men will be denied before God’s angels. 12:10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the person who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit 24 will not be forgiven. 25 12:11 But when they bring you before the synagogues, 26 the 27 rulers, and the authorities, do not worry about how you should make your defense 28 or what you should say, 12:12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that moment 29 what you must say.” 30
12:13 Then 31 someone from the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell 32 my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 12:14 But Jesus 33 said to him, “Man, 34 who made me a judge or arbitrator between you two?” 35 12:15 Then 36 he said to them, “Watch out and guard yourself from 37 all types of greed, 38 because one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” 12:16 He then 39 told them a parable: 40 “The land of a certain rich man produced 41 an abundant crop, 12:17 so 42 he thought to himself, 43 ‘What should I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 44 12:18 Then 45 he said, ‘I 46 will do this: I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 12:19 And I will say to myself, 47 “You have plenty of goods stored up for many years; relax, eat, drink, celebrate!”’ 12:20 But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life 48 will be demanded back from 49 you, but who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ 50 12:21 So it is with the one who stores up riches for himself, 51 but is not rich toward God.”
12:22 Then 52 Jesus 53 said to his 54 disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry 55 about your 56 life, what you will eat, or about your 57 body, what you will wear. 12:23 For there is more to life than food, and more to the body than clothing. 12:24 Consider the ravens: 58 They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn, yet God feeds 59 them. How much more valuable are you than the birds!