Matthew the Tax Collector^(A)

^13 (B)Then He went out again by the sea; and all the multitude came to Him, and He taught them. ^14 (C)As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, ^(D)“Follow Me.” So he arose and ^(E)followed Him.

^15 (F)Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi’s house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him. ¹⁶ And when the scribes ^[a]and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, “How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?”

¹⁷ When Jesus heard it, He said to them, ^(G)“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, ^[b]to repentance.”