Mark 2:16

The Passion Translation

But when the religious scholars and the Pharisees found out that Jesus was keeping company and dining with sinners and tax collectors, they were indignant. So they approached Jesus’ disciples and said to them, “Why is it that someone like Jesus defiles himself by eating with sinners and tax collectors?”

Cross References

Isaiah 65:5

They tell others, ‘Stay away! Don’t come near; I’m too holy for you to touch.’ These people are like a stench in my nostrils, a smoldering fire that doesn’t go out!

Matthew 18:17

And if he refuses to listen, then share the issue with the congregation in hopes of restoration. If he still refuses to respond, even to the church, then you must disregard him as though he were an outsider, on the same level as an unrepentant sinner.

Matthew 5:46

What reward do you deserve if you only love the loveable? Don’t even the tax collectors do that?

Matthew 9:11

When those known as the Pharisees saw what was happening, they were indignant, and they kept asking Jesus’ disciples, “Why would your Master dine with such lowlifes?”

Mark 2:15

Later, Jesus and his disciples went to have a meal with Levi. Among the guests in Levi’s home were many tax collectors and notable sinners sharing a meal with Jesus, for there were many kinds of people who followed him.

Mark 2:7

“Who does he think he is to speak this way? This is blasphemy for sure! Only God himself can forgive sins!”

Luke 18:11

The religious leader stood apart from the others and prayed, ‘How I thank you, O God, that I’m not wicked like everyone else. They’re cheaters, swindlers, and crooks—like that tax collector over there. God, you know that I never cheat or commit adultery; I fast from food twice a week and I give you a tenth of all I earn.’

Luke 19:10

The Son of Man has come to seek out and to give life to those who are lost.”

Luke 19:7

As Jesus left to go with Zacchaeus, many in the crowd complained, “Look at this! Of all the people to have dinner with, he’s going to eat in the house of a crook.”

Acts 23:9

This sparked an even greater uproar among them. Finally, some of the separated ones who were religious scholars stood up and protested strongly, saying, “We find nothing wrong with this man. It could be that the Spirit has spoken to him or an angel came to him.”

1 Corinthians 2:15

Those who live in the Spirit are able to carefully evaluate all things, and they are subject to the scrutiny of no one but God.

Hebrews 12:3

So consider carefully how Jesus faced such intense opposition from sinners who opposed their own souls, so that you won’t become worn down and cave in under life’s pressures.