Peter Disowns Jesus^(A)

⁶⁹ Now Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a servant girl came to him. “You also were with Jesus of Galilee,” she said.

⁷⁰ But he denied it before them all. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said.

⁷¹ Then he went out to the gateway, where another servant girl saw him and said to the people there, “This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

⁷² He denied it again, with an oath: “I don’t know the man!”

⁷³ After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter and said, “Surely you are one of them; your accent gives you away.”

⁷⁴ Then he began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know the man!”

Immediately a rooster crowed. ⁷⁵ Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.”^(B) And he went outside and wept bitterly.

⁶⁸ But he denied it. “I don’t know or understand what you’re talking about,”^(A) he said, and went out into the entryway.^[a]

⁶⁹ When the servant girl saw him there, she said again to those standing around, “This fellow is one of them.” ⁷⁰ Again he denied it.^(B)

After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.”^(C)

⁷¹ He began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know this man you’re talking about.”^(D)

⁵⁶ A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.”

⁵⁷ But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said.

⁵⁸ A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.”

“Man, I am not!” Peter replied.

⁵⁹ About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.”^(A)

⁶⁰ Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. ⁶¹ The Lord^(B) turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.”^{(C) 62} And he went outside and wept bitterly.

Peter’s Second and Third Denials^(A)

²⁵ Meanwhile, Simon Peter was still standing there warming himself.^(B) So they asked him, “You aren’t one of his disciples too, are you?”

He denied it, saying, “I am not.”^(C)

²⁶ One of the high priest’s servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off,^(D) challenged him, “Didn’t I see you with him in the garden?”^{(E) 27} Again Peter denied it, and at that moment a rooster began to crow.^(F)

Jesus Before Pilate^(G)

²⁸ Then the Jewish leaders took Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor.^(H) By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness they did not enter the palace,^(I) because they wanted to be able to eat the Passover.^{(J) 29} So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?”

³⁰ “If he were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed him over to you.”

³¹ Pilate said, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.”

“But we have no right to execute anyone,” they objected. ³² This took place to fulfill what Jesus had said about the kind of death he was going to die.^(K)

³³ Pilate then went back inside the palace,^(L) summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”^(M)

³⁴ “Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?”

³⁵ “Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?”

³⁶ Jesus said, “My kingdom^(N) is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders.^(O) But now my kingdom is from another place.”^(P)

³⁷ “You are a king, then!” said Pilate.

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth.^(Q) Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”^(R)

³⁸ “What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.^{(S) 39} But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release ‘the king of the Jews’?”

⁴⁰ They shouted back, “No, not him! Give us Barabbas!” Now Barabbas had taken part in an uprising.^(T)