John the Baptist Prepares the Way

3 In the fifteenth year of the reign of ^(A)Tiberius Caesar, ^(B)Pontius Pilate ^(C)being governor of Judea, and ^(D)Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, ² during ^(E)the high priesthood of Annas and ^(F)Caiaphas, ^(G)the word of God came to ^(H)John the son of Zechariah in ^(I)the wilderness. ³ And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming ^(J)a baptism of repentance ^(K)for the forgiveness of sins. ⁴ As it is written in ^(L)the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,

⁷ He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, ^(T)“You brood of ^(U)vipers! Who warned you to flee from ^(V)the wrath to come? ⁸ Bear fruits ^(W)in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ^(X)‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from ^(Y)these stones to raise up children for Abraham. ⁹ Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. ^(Z)Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰ And the crowds asked him, ^(AA)“What then shall we do?” ¹¹ And he answered them, ^(AB)“Whoever has two tunics^[b] is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.” ^12 (AC)Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, “Teacher, ^(AD)what shall we do?” ¹³ And he said to them, ^(AE)“Collect no more than you are authorized to do.” ¹⁴ Soldiers also asked him, “And we, ^(AF)what shall we do?” And he said to them, ^(AG)“Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your ^(AH)wages.”

¹⁵ As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, ^(AI)whether he might be ^(AJ)the Christ, ^16 (AK)John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but ^(AL)he who is mightier than I is coming, ^(AM)the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you ^(AN)with the Holy Spirit and ^(AO)fire. ¹⁷ His ^(AP)winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to ^(AQ)gather the wheat into his barn, ^(AR)but the chaff he will burn with ^(AS)unquenchable fire.”

¹⁸ So ^(AT)with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people. ¹⁹ But ^(AU)Herod the tetrarch, who had been reproved by him for Herodias, his brother's wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done, ²⁰ added this to them all, that ^(AV)he locked up John in prison.

²¹ Now when all the people were baptized, and when ^(AW)Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, ^(AX)the heavens were opened, ²² and ^(AY)the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and ^(AZ)a voice came from heaven, ^(BA)“You are my beloved Son;^[c] with you I am well pleased.”^[d]

The Genealogy of Jesus Christ

²³ Jesus, ^(BB)when he began his ministry, was about ^(BC)thirty years of age, being ^(BD)the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli, ²⁴ the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, ²⁵ the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai, ²⁶ the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda, ²⁷ the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, ^(BE)the son of Zerubbabel, the son ^(BF)of Shealtiel,^[e] the son of Neri, ²⁸ the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, ²⁹ the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, ³⁰ the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, ³¹ the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of ^(BG)Nathan, the son of David, ^32 (BH)the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Sala, the son of Nahshon, ³³ the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Arni, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, ^34 (BI)the son of Jacob, ^(BJ)the son of Isaac, ^(BK)the son of Abraham, ^(BL)the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, ³⁵ the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, ³⁶ the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, ³⁷ the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, ³⁸ the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.

The Plot to Kill Jesus

22 ^(A)Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called ^(B)the Passover. ² And the chief priests and the scribes ^(C)were seeking how to put him to death, for they feared the people.

Judas to Betray Jesus

^3 (D)Then ^(E)Satan entered into ^(F)Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. ⁴ He went away and conferred with the chief priests and ^(G)officers how he might betray him to them. ⁵ And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. ⁶ So he consented and sought an opportunity to ^(H)betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.

The Passover with the Disciples

^7 (I)Then came ^(J)the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. ⁸ So Jesus^[a] sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” ⁹ They said to him, “Where will you have us prepare it?” ¹⁰ He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters ¹¹ and tell the master of the house, ^(K)‘The Teacher says to you, Where is ^(L)the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ ¹² And he will show you ^(M)a large upper room furnished; prepare it there.” ¹³ And they went and found it ^(N)just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.

Institution of the Lord's Supper

^14 (O)And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. ¹⁵ And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. ¹⁶ For I tell you I will not eat it^{[b] (P)}until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” ¹⁷ And he took a cup, and ^(Q)when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. ^18 (R)For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine ^(S)until the kingdom of God comes.” ^19 (T)And he took bread, and ^(U)when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, ^(V)“This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” ²⁰ And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, ^(W)“This cup that is poured out for you is ^(X)the new ^(Y)covenant in my blood.^{[c] 21 (Z)}But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is ^(AA)with me on the table. ²² For the Son of Man goes ^(AB)as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” ²³ And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this.

Who Is the Greatest?

^24 (AC)A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. ^25 (AD)And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles ^(AE)exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. ^26 (AF)But not so with you. Rather, let ^(AG)the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. ²⁷ For who is the greater, ^(AH)one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But ^(AI)I am among you as the one who serves.

²⁸ “You are those who have stayed with me ^(AJ)in my trials, ²⁹ and ^(AK)I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, ^30 (AL)that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and ^(AM)sit on thrones judging ^(AN)the twelve tribes of Israel.

Jesus Foretells Peter's Denial

³¹ “Simon, Simon, behold, ^(AO)Satan demanded to have you,^{[d] (AP)}that he might sift you like wheat, ³² but ^(AQ)I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, ^(AR)strengthen your brothers.” ³³ Peter^[e] said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both ^(AS)to prison and ^(AT)to death.” ^34 (AU)Jesus^[f] said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me.”

Scripture Must Be Fulfilled in Jesus

³⁵ And he said to them, ^(AV)“When I sent you out with no moneybag or knapsack or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “Nothing.” ³⁶ He said to them, “But now let the one who has a moneybag take it, and likewise a knapsack. And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one. ³⁷ For I tell you that ^(AW)this Scripture must be fulfilled in me: ^(AX)‘And he was numbered with the transgressors.’ For ^(AY)what is written about me has its fulfillment.” ³⁸ And they said, “Look, Lord, here are two ^(AZ)swords.” And he said to them, ^(BA)“It is enough.”

Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives

^39 (BB)And he came out and went, ^(BC)as was his custom, to ^(BD)the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. ^40 (BE)And when he came to ^(BF)the place, he said to them, ^(BG)“Pray that you may not ^(BH)enter into temptation.” ⁴¹ And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and ^(BI)knelt down and prayed, ⁴² saying, ^(BJ)“Father, if you are willing, remove ^(BK)this cup from me. ^(BL)Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” ⁴³ And there appeared to him ^(BM)an angel from heaven, strengthening him. ⁴⁴ And ^(BN)being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.^{[g] 45} And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow, ⁴⁶ and he said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Rise and ^(BO)pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus

^47 (BP)While he was still speaking, there came a crowd, and the man called ^(BQ)Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He drew near to Jesus to kiss him, ⁴⁸ but Jesus said to him, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?” ⁴⁹ And when those who were around him saw what would follow, they said, “Lord, shall we strike ^(BR)with the sword?” ⁵⁰ And one of them struck the servant^[h] of the high priest and cut off his right ear. ⁵¹ But Jesus said, “No more of this!” And he touched his ear and healed him. ⁵² Then Jesus said to the chief priests and ^(BS)officers of the temple and elders, who had come out against him, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs? ⁵³ When ^(BT)I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is ^(BU)your hour, and ^(BV)the power of darkness.”

Peter Denies Jesus

^54 (BW)Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest's house, ^(BX)and Peter was following at a distance. ^55 (BY)And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of ^(BZ)the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. ⁵⁶ Then a servant girl, seeing him as he sat in the light and looking closely at him, said, “This man also was with him.” ⁵⁷ But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know him.” ⁵⁸ And a little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not.” ⁵⁹ And after an interval of about an hour still another ^(CA)insisted, saying, “Certainly this man also was with him, for he too is a Galilean.” ⁶⁰ But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. ⁶¹ And the Lord turned and ^(CB)looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, ^(CC)“Before the rooster crows today, you will ^(CD)deny me three times.” ⁶² And he went out and wept bitterly.

Jesus Is Mocked

^63 (CE)Now the men who were holding Jesus in custody were mocking him as they beat him. ^64 (CF)They also blindfolded him and kept asking him, ^(CG)“Prophesy! ^(CH)Who is it that struck you?” ⁶⁵ And they said many other things against him, ^(CI)blaspheming him.

Jesus Before the Council

^66 (CJ)When day came, ^(CK)the assembly of the elders of the people gathered together, both chief priests and scribes. And they led him away to their ^(CL)council, and they ^(CM)said, ^67 (CN)“If you are ^(CO)the Christ, tell us.” But he said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe, ⁶⁸ and if I ask you, you will not answer. ⁶⁹ But from now on the Son of Man shall be seated ^(CP)at the right hand of the power of God.” ⁷⁰ So they all said, “Are you ^(CQ)the Son of God, then?” And he said to them, ^(CR)“You say that I am.” ⁷¹ Then they said, “What further testimony do we need? We have heard it ourselves from his own lips.”