Ten Commandments for the Covenant Community

5 Moses called all the people of Israel together and said, “Listen carefully, Israel. Hear the decrees and regulations I am giving you today, so you may learn them and obey them!

² “The Lord our God made a covenant with us at Mount Sinai.^{[a] 3} The Lord did not make this covenant with our ancestors, but with all of us who are alive today. ⁴ At the mountain the Lord spoke to you face to face from the heart of the fire. ⁵ I stood as an intermediary between you and the Lord, for you were afraid of the fire and did not want to approach the mountain. He spoke to me, and I passed his words on to you. This is what he said:

⁶ “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery.

⁷ “You must not have any other god but me.

⁸ “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind, or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. ⁹ You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. ¹⁰ But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those^[b] who love me and obey my commands.

¹¹ “You must not misuse the name of the Lord your God. The Lord will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name.

¹² “Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. ¹³ You have six days each week for your ordinary work, ¹⁴ but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your oxen and donkeys and other livestock, and any foreigners living among you. All your male and female servants must rest as you do. ¹⁵ Remember that you were once slaves in Egypt, but the Lord your God brought you out with his strong hand and powerful arm. That is why the Lord your God has commanded you to rest on the Sabbath day.

¹⁶ “Honor your father and mother, as the Lord your God commanded you. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

¹⁷ “You must not murder.

¹⁸ “You must not commit adultery.

¹⁹ “You must not steal.

²⁰ “You must not testify falsely against your neighbor.

²¹ “You must not covet your neighbor’s wife. You must not covet your neighbor’s house or land, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.

²² “The Lord spoke these words to all of you assembled there at the foot of the mountain. He spoke with a loud voice from the heart of the fire, surrounded by clouds and deep darkness. This was all he said at that time, and he wrote his words on two stone tablets and gave them to me.

²³ “But when you heard the voice from the heart of the darkness, while the mountain was blazing with fire, all your tribal leaders and elders came to me. ²⁴ They said, ‘Look, the Lord our God has shown us his glory and greatness, and we have heard his voice from the heart of the fire. Today we have seen that God can speak to us humans, and yet we live! ²⁵ But now, why should we risk death again? If the Lord our God speaks to us again, we will certainly die and be consumed by this awesome fire. ²⁶ Can any living thing hear the voice of the living God from the heart of the fire as we did and yet survive? ²⁷ Go yourself and listen to what the Lord our God says. Then come and tell us everything he tells you, and we will listen and obey.’

²⁸ “The Lord heard the request you made to me. And he said, ‘I have heard what the people said to you, and they are right. ²⁹ Oh, that they would always have hearts like this, that they might fear me and obey all my commands! If they did, they and their descendants would prosper forever. ³⁰ Go and tell them, “Return to your tents.” ³¹ But you stand here with me so I can give you all my commands, decrees, and regulations. You must teach them to the people so they can obey them in the land I am giving them as their possession.’”

³² So Moses told the people, “You must be careful to obey all the commands of the Lord your God, following his instructions in every detail. ³³ Stay on the path that the Lord your God has commanded you to follow. Then you will live long and prosperous lives in the land you are about to enter and occupy.

A Call for Wholehearted Commitment

6 “These are the commands, decrees, and regulations that the Lord your God commanded me to teach you. You must obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy, ² and you and your children and grandchildren must fear the Lord your God as long as you live. If you obey all his decrees and commands, you will enjoy a long life. ³ Listen closely, Israel, and be careful to obey. Then all will go well with you, and you will have many children in the land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you.

⁴ “Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone.^{[c] 5} And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. ⁶ And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. ⁷ Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. ⁸ Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. ⁹ Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

¹⁰ “The Lord your God will soon bring you into the land he swore to give you when he made a vow to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is a land with large, prosperous cities that you did not build. ¹¹ The houses will be richly stocked with goods you did not produce. You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant. When you have eaten your fill in this land, ¹² be careful not to forget the Lord, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt. ¹³ You must fear the Lord your God and serve him. When you take an oath, you must use only his name.

¹⁴ “You must not worship any of the gods of neighboring nations, ¹⁵ for the Lord your God, who lives among you, is a jealous God. His anger will flare up against you, and he will wipe you from the face of the earth. ¹⁶ You must not test the Lord your God as you did when you complained at Massah. ¹⁷ You must diligently obey the commands of the Lord your God—all the laws and decrees he has given you. ¹⁸ Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so all will go well with you. Then you will enter and occupy the good land that the Lord swore to give your ancestors. ¹⁹ You will drive out all the enemies living in the land, just as the Lord said you would.

²⁰ “In the future your children will ask you, ‘What is the meaning of these laws, decrees, and regulations that the Lord our God has commanded us to obey?’

²¹ “Then you must tell them, ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with his strong hand. ²² The Lord did miraculous signs and wonders before our eyes, dealing terrifying blows against Egypt and Pharaoh and all his people. ²³ He brought us out of Egypt so he could give us this land he had sworn to give our ancestors. ²⁴ And the Lord our God commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear him so he can continue to bless us and preserve our lives, as he has done to this day. ²⁵ For we will be counted as righteous when we obey all the commands the Lord our God has given us.’

Psalm 43

Jesus Anointed at Bethany

14 It was now two days before Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread. The leading priests and the teachers of religious law were still looking for an opportunity to capture Jesus secretly and kill him. ² “But not during the Passover celebration,” they agreed, “or the people may riot.”

³ Meanwhile, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon, a man who had previously had leprosy. While he was eating,^[a] a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard. She broke open the jar and poured the perfume over his head.

⁴ Some of those at the table were indignant. “Why waste such expensive perfume?” they asked. ⁵ “It could have been sold for a year’s wages^[b] and the money given to the poor!” So they scolded her harshly.

⁶ But Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. Why criticize her for doing such a good thing to me? ⁷ You will always have the poor among you, and you can help them whenever you want to. But you will not always have me. ⁸ She has done what she could and has anointed my body for burial ahead of time. ⁹ I tell you the truth, wherever the Good News is preached throughout the world, this woman’s deed will be remembered and discussed.”

Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus

¹⁰ Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples, went to the leading priests to arrange to betray Jesus to them. ¹¹ They were delighted when they heard why he had come, and they promised to give him money. So he began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus.

The Last Supper

¹² On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb is sacrificed, Jesus’ disciples asked him, “Where do you want us to go to prepare the Passover meal for you?”

¹³ So Jesus sent two of them into Jerusalem with these instructions: “As you go into the city, a man carrying a pitcher of water will meet you. Follow him. ¹⁴ At the house he enters, say to the owner, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room where I can eat the Passover meal with my disciples?’ ¹⁵ He will take you upstairs to a large room that is already set up. That is where you should prepare our meal.” ¹⁶ So the two disciples went into the city and found everything just as Jesus had said, and they prepared the Passover meal there.

¹⁷ In the evening Jesus arrived with the Twelve. ¹⁸ As they were at the table^[c] eating, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, one of you eating with me here will betray me.”

¹⁹ Greatly distressed, each one asked in turn, “Am I the one?”

²⁰ He replied, “It is one of you twelve who is eating from this bowl with me. ²¹ For the Son of Man^[d] must die, as the Scriptures declared long ago. But how terrible it will be for the one who betrays him. It would be far better for that man if he had never been born!”

²² As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take it, for this is my body.”

²³ And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. ²⁴ And he said to them, “This is my blood, which confirms the covenant^[e] between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice for many. ²⁵ I tell you the truth, I will not drink wine again until the day I drink it new in the Kingdom of God.”

²⁶ Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.

Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial

²⁷ On the way, Jesus told them, “All of you will desert me. For the Scriptures say,

²⁸ But after I am raised from the dead, I will go ahead of you to Galilee and meet you there.”

²⁹ Peter said to him, “Even if everyone else deserts you, I never will.”

³⁰ Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, Peter—this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny three times that you even know me.”

³¹ “No!” Peter declared emphatically. “Even if I have to die with you, I will never deny you!” And all the others vowed the same.

Jesus Prays in Gethsemane

³² They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, “Sit here while I go and pray.” ³³ He took Peter, James, and John with him, and he became deeply troubled and distressed. ³⁴ He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

³⁵ He went on a little farther and fell to the ground. He prayed that, if it were possible, the awful hour awaiting him might pass him by. ³⁶ “Abba, Father,”^[g] he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”

³⁷ Then he returned and found the disciples asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Couldn’t you watch with me even one hour? ³⁸ Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”

³⁹ Then Jesus left them again and prayed the same prayer as before. ⁴⁰ When he returned to them again, he found them sleeping, for they couldn’t keep their eyes open. And they didn’t know what to say.

⁴¹ When he returned to them the third time, he said, “Go ahead and sleep. Have your rest. But no—the time has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. ⁴² Up, let’s be going. Look, my betrayer is here!”

Jesus Is Betrayed and Arrested

⁴³ And immediately, even as Jesus said this, Judas, one of the twelve disciples, arrived with a crowd of men armed with swords and clubs. They had been sent by the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders. ⁴⁴ The traitor, Judas, had given them a prearranged signal: “You will know which one to arrest when I greet him with a kiss. Then you can take him away under guard.” ⁴⁵ As soon as they arrived, Judas walked up to Jesus. “Rabbi!” he exclaimed, and gave him the kiss.

⁴⁶ Then the others grabbed Jesus and arrested him. ⁴⁷ But one of the men with Jesus pulled out his sword and struck the high priest’s slave, slashing off his ear.

⁴⁸ Jesus asked them, “Am I some dangerous revolutionary, that you come with swords and clubs to arrest me? ⁴⁹ Why didn’t you arrest me in the Temple? I was there among you teaching every day. But these things are happening to fulfill what the Scriptures say about me.”

⁵⁰ Then all his disciples deserted him and ran away. ⁵¹ One young man following behind was clothed only in a long linen shirt. When the mob tried to grab him, ⁵² he slipped out of his shirt and ran away naked.

Jesus before the Council

⁵³ They took Jesus to the high priest’s home where the leading priests, the elders, and the teachers of religious law had gathered. ⁵⁴ Meanwhile, Peter followed him at a distance and went right into the high priest’s courtyard. There he sat with the guards, warming himself by the fire.

⁵⁵ Inside, the leading priests and the entire high council^[h] were trying to find evidence against Jesus, so they could put him to death. But they couldn’t find any. ⁵⁶ Many false witnesses spoke against him, but they contradicted each other. ⁵⁷ Finally, some men stood up and gave this false testimony: ⁵⁸ “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this Temple made with human hands, and in three days I will build another, made without human hands.’” ⁵⁹ But even then they didn’t get their stories straight!

⁶⁰ Then the high priest stood up before the others and asked Jesus, “Well, aren’t you going to answer these charges? What do you have to say for yourself?” ⁶¹ But Jesus was silent and made no reply. Then the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”

⁶² Jesus said, “I am.^[i] And you will see the Son of Man seated in the place of power at God’s right hand^[j] and coming on the clouds of heaven.^[k]”

⁶³ Then the high priest tore his clothing to show his horror and said, “Why do we need other witnesses? ⁶⁴ You have all heard his blasphemy. What is your verdict?”

“Guilty!” they all cried. “He deserves to die!”

⁶⁵ Then some of them began to spit at him, and they blindfolded him and beat him with their fists. “Prophesy to us,” they jeered. And the guards slapped him as they took him away.

Peter Denies Jesus

⁶⁶ Meanwhile, Peter was in the courtyard below. One of the servant girls who worked for the high priest came by ⁶⁷ and noticed Peter warming himself at the fire. She looked at him closely and said, “You were one of those with Jesus of Nazareth.^[l]”

⁶⁸ But Peter denied it. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said, and he went out into the entryway. Just then, a rooster crowed.^[m]

⁶⁹ When the servant girl saw him standing there, she began telling the others, “This man is definitely one of them!” ⁷⁰ But Peter denied it again.

A little later some of the other bystanders confronted Peter and said, “You must be one of them, because you are a Galilean.”

⁷¹ Peter swore, “A curse on me if I’m lying—I don’t know this man you’re talking about!” ⁷² And immediately the rooster crowed the second time.

Suddenly, Jesus’ words flashed through Peter’s mind: “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny three times that you even know me.” And he broke down and wept.