Philistines Take the Ark in Victory

4 Thus the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out to meet the Philistines in battle and camped beside ^(A)Ebenezer while the Philistines camped in ^(B)Aphek. ² The Philistines drew up in battle array to meet Israel. When the battle spread, Israel was ^[a]defeated before the Philistines who killed about four thousand men on the battlefield. ³ When the people came into the camp, the elders of Israel said, “^(C)Why has the Lord defeated us today before the Philistines? ^(D)Let us take to ourselves from Shiloh the ark of the covenant of the Lord, that ^[b]it may come among us and deliver us from the power of our enemies.” ⁴ So the people sent to Shiloh, and from there they carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts ^(E)who sits above the cherubim; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God.

⁵ As the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, ^(F)all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth resounded. ⁶ When the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, “What does the noise of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews mean?” Then they understood that the ark of the Lord had come into the camp. ⁷ The Philistines were afraid, for they said, “God has come into the camp.” And they said, “^(G)Woe to us! For nothing like this has happened before. ⁸ Woe to us! Who shall deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who smote the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the wilderness. ^9 (H)Take courage and be men, O Philistines, or you will become slaves to the Hebrews, ^(I)as they have been slaves to you; therefore, be men and fight.”

¹⁰ So the Philistines fought and ^(J)Israel was ^[c]defeated, and ^(K)every man fled to his tent; and the slaughter was very great, for there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers. ¹¹ And the ark of God was taken; and ^(L)the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, died.

¹² Now a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh the same day with ^(M)his clothes torn and ^[d]dust on his head. ¹³ When he came, behold, ^(N)Eli was sitting on his seat ^[e]by the road eagerly watching, because his heart was trembling for the ark of God. So the man came to tell it in the city, and all the city cried out. ¹⁴ When Eli heard the noise of the outcry, he said, “What does the noise of this commotion mean?” Then the man came hurriedly and told Eli. ¹⁵ Now Eli was ninety-eight years old, and ^(O)his eyes were set so that he could not see. ¹⁶ The man said to Eli, “I am the one who came from the battle line. Indeed, I escaped from the battle line today.” And he said, “^(P)How did things go, my son?” ¹⁷ Then the one who brought the news replied, “Israel has fled before the Philistines and there has also been a great slaughter among the people, and your two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God has been taken.” ¹⁸ When he mentioned the ark of God, ^[f](Q)Eli fell off the seat backward beside the gate, and his neck was broken and he died, for ^[g]he was old and heavy. Thus he judged Israel forty years.

¹⁹ Now his daughter-in-law, Phinehas’s wife, was pregnant and about to give birth; and when she heard the news that the ark of God was taken and that her father-in-law and her husband had died, she kneeled down and gave birth, for her pains came upon her. ²⁰ And about the time of her death the women who stood by her said to her, “^(R)Do not be afraid, for you have given birth to a son.” But she did not answer or pay attention. ²¹ And she called the boy ^[h]Ichabod, saying, “^(S)The glory has departed from Israel,” because ^(T)the ark of God was taken and because of her father-in-law and her husband. ²² She said, “The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God was taken.”

Judas Betrays Jesus

18 When Jesus had spoken these words, ^(A)He went forth with His disciples over ^(B)the ^[a]ravine of the Kidron, where there was ^(C)a garden, in which He entered ^[b]with His disciples. ² Now Judas also, who was ^[c]betraying Him, knew the place, for Jesus had ^(D)often met there with His disciples. ^3 (E)Judas then, having received ^(F)the Roman ^[d]cohort and ^(G)officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, *came there with lanterns and ^(H)torches and weapons. ⁴ So Jesus, ^(I)knowing all the things that were coming upon Him, went forth and *said to them, “^(J)Whom do you seek?” ⁵ They answered Him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He *said to them, “I am He.” And Judas also, who was betraying Him, was standing with them. ⁶ So when He said to them, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground. ⁷ Therefore He again asked them, “^(K)Whom do you seek?” And they said, “Jesus the Nazarene.” ⁸ Jesus answered, “I told you that I am He; so if you seek Me, let these go their way,” ⁹ to fulfill the word which He spoke, “^(L)Of those whom You have given Me I lost not one.” ¹⁰ Simon Peter then, ^(M)having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s slave, and cut off his right ear; and the slave’s name was Malchus. ¹¹ So Jesus said to Peter, “Put the sword into the sheath; ^(N)the cup which the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?”

Jesus before the Priests

^12 (O)So ^(P)the Roman ^[e]cohort and the ^[f]commander and the ^(Q)officers of the Jews, arrested Jesus and bound Him, ¹³ and led Him to ^(R)Annas first; for he was father-in-law of ^(S)Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. ¹⁴ Now Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that ^(T)it was expedient for one man to die on behalf of the people.

^15 (U)Simon Peter was following Jesus, and so was another disciple. Now that disciple was known to the high priest, and entered with Jesus into ^(V)the court of the high priest, ^16 (W)but Peter was standing at the door outside. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the doorkeeper, and brought Peter in. ^17 (X)Then the slave-girl who kept the door *said to Peter, “^(Y)You are not also one of this man’s disciples, are you?” He *said, “I am not.” ¹⁸ Now the slaves and the ^(Z)officers were standing there, having made ^(AA)a charcoal fire, for it was cold and they were ^(AB)warming themselves; and Peter was also with them, standing and warming himself.

^19 (AC)The high priest then questioned Jesus about His disciples, and about His teaching. ²⁰ Jesus answered him, “I ^(AD)have spoken openly to the world; I always ^(AE)taught in ^[g]synagogues and ^(AF)in the temple, where all the Jews come together; and I spoke nothing in secret. ²¹ Why do you question Me? Question those who have heard what I spoke to them; they know what I said.” ²² When He had said this, one of the ^(AG)officers standing nearby ^(AH)struck Jesus, saying, “Is that the way You answer the high priest?” ^23 (AI)Jesus answered him, “If I have spoken wrongly, testify of the wrong; but if rightly, why do you strike Me?” ^24 (AJ)So Annas sent Him bound to ^(AK)Caiaphas the high priest.

Peter’s Denial of Jesus

^25 (AL)Now ^(AM)Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. So they said to him, “^(AN)You are not also one of His disciples, are you?” He denied it, and said, “I am not.” ²⁶ One of the slaves of the high priest, being a relative of the one ^(AO)whose ear Peter cut off, *said, “Did I not see you in ^(AP)the garden with Him?” ²⁷ Peter then denied it again, and immediately ^(AQ)a rooster crowed.

Jesus before Pilate

^28 (AR)Then they *led Jesus from ^(AS)Caiaphas into ^(AT)the ^[h]Praetorium, and it was early; and they themselves did not enter into ^(AU)the ^[i]Praetorium so that ^(AV)they would not be defiled, but might eat the Passover. ^29 (AW)Therefore Pilate went out to them and *said, “What accusation do you bring against this Man?” ³⁰ They answered and said to him, “If this Man were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered Him to you.” ³¹ So Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves, and judge Him according to your law.” The Jews said to him, “We are not permitted to put anyone to death,” ³² to fulfill ^(AX)the word of Jesus which He spoke, signifying by what kind of death He was about to die.

³³ Therefore Pilate ^(AY)entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, “^(AZ)Are You the King of the Jews?” ³⁴ Jesus answered, “Are you saying this ^[j]on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?” ³⁵ Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You to me; what have You done?” ³⁶ Jesus answered, “^(BA)My kingdom ^[k]is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not ^[l]of this realm.” ³⁷ Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “^(BB)You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, ^(BC)to testify to the truth. ^(BD)Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” ³⁸ Pilate *said to Him, “What is truth?”

And when he had said this, he ^(BE)went out again to the Jews and *said to them, “^(BF)I find no guilt in Him. ^39 (BG)But you have a custom that I release someone ^[m]for you at the Passover; do you wish then that I release ^[n]for you the King of the Jews?” ⁴⁰ So they cried out again, saying, “^(BH)Not this Man, but Barabbas.” Now Barabbas was a robber.

The Crown of Thorns

19 Pilate then took Jesus and ^[o](BI)scourged Him. ^2 (BJ)And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and put a purple robe on Him; ³ and they began to come up to Him and say, “^(BK)Hail, King of the Jews!” and to ^(BL)give Him slaps in the face. ⁴ Pilate ^(BM)came out again and *said to them, “Behold, I am bringing Him out to you so that you may know that ^(BN)I find no guilt in Him.” ⁵ Jesus then came out, ^(BO)wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate *said to them, “Behold, the Man!” ⁶ So when the chief priests and the ^(BP)officers saw Him, they cried out saying, “Crucify, crucify!” Pilate *said to them, “Take Him yourselves and crucify Him, for ^(BQ)I find no guilt in Him.” ⁷ The Jews answered him, “^(BR)We have a law, and by that law He ought to die because He ^(BS)made Himself out to be the Son of God.”

⁸ Therefore when Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid; ⁹ and he ^(BT)entered into the ^[p]Praetorium again and *said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But ^(BU)Jesus gave him no answer. ¹⁰ So Pilate *said to Him, “You do not speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?” ¹¹ Jesus answered, “^(BV)You would have no authority ^[q]over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason ^(BW)he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.” ¹² As a result of this Pilate ^[r]made efforts to release Him, but the Jews cried out saying, “^(BX)If you release this Man, you are no friend of Caesar; everyone who makes himself out to be a king ^[s]opposes Caesar.”

¹³ Therefore when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out, and ^(BY)sat down on the judgment seat at a place called ^[t]The Pavement, but ^(BZ)in ^[u]Hebrew, Gabbatha. ¹⁴ Now it was ^(CA)the day of preparation for the Passover; it was about the ^[v](CB)sixth hour. And he *said to the Jews, “Behold, ^(CC)your King!” ¹⁵ So they cried out, “^(CD)Away with Him, away with Him, crucify Him!” Pilate *said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.”

The Crucifixion

¹⁶ So he then ^(CE)handed Him over to them to be crucified.

^17 (CF)They took Jesus, therefore, and He went out, ^[w](CG)bearing His own cross, to the place called ^(CH)the Place of a Skull, which is called ^(CI)in ^[x]Hebrew, Golgotha. ¹⁸ There they crucified Him, and with Him ^(CJ)two other men, one on either side, and Jesus in between. ¹⁹ Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It was written, “^(CK)JESUS THE NAZARENE, ^(CL)THE KING OF THE JEWS.” ²⁰ Therefore many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written ^(CM)in ^[y]Hebrew, Latin and in Greek. ²¹ So the chief priests of the Jews were saying to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘^(CN)The King of the Jews’; but that He said, ‘I am ^(CO)King of the Jews.’” ²² Pilate answered, “^(CP)What I have written I have written.”

²³ Then ^(CQ)the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His outer garments and made ^(CR)four parts, a part to every soldier and also the ^[z]tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven ^[aa]in one piece. ²⁴ So they said to one another, “^(CS)Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to decide whose it shall be”; ^(CT)this was to fulfill the Scripture: “They ^(CU)divided My outer garments among them, and for My clothing they cast ^[ab]lots.” ²⁵ Therefore the soldiers did these things.

^(CV)But standing by the cross of Jesus were ^(CW)His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and ^(CX)Mary Magdalene. ²⁶ When Jesus then saw His mother, and ^(CY)the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He *said to His mother, “^(CZ)Woman, behold, your son!” ²⁷ Then He *said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” From that hour the disciple took her into ^(DA)his own household.

²⁸ After this, Jesus, ^(DB)knowing that all things had already been accomplished, ^(DC)to fulfill the Scripture, *said, “^(DD)I am thirsty.” ²⁹ A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so ^(DE)they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon a branch of hyssop and brought it up to His mouth. ³⁰ Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “^(DF)It is finished!” And He bowed His head and ^(DG)gave up His spirit.

Care of the Body of Jesus

³¹ Then the Jews, because it was ^(DH)the day of preparation, so that ^(DI)the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (^[ac]for that Sabbath was a ^(DJ)high day), asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. ³² So the soldiers came, and broke the legs of the first man and of the other who was ^(DK)crucified with Him; ³³ but coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. ³⁴ But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately ^(DL)blood and water came out. ³⁵ And he who has seen has ^(DM)testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you also may believe. ³⁶ For these things came to pass ^(DN)to fulfill the Scripture, “^(DO)Not a bone of Him shall be ^[ad]broken.” ³⁷ And again another Scripture says, “^(DP)They shall look on Him whom they pierced.”

^38 (DQ)After these things Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but a ^(DR)secret one for ^(DS)fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate granted permission. So he came and took away His body. ^39 (DT)Nicodemus, who had first come to Him by night, also came, ^(DU)bringing a ^[ae]mixture of ^(DV)myrrh and aloes, about a ^(DW)hundred ^[af]pounds weight. ⁴⁰ So they took the body of Jesus and ^(DX)bound it in ^(DY)linen wrappings with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. ⁴¹ Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a ^(DZ)new tomb ^(EA)in which no one had yet been laid. ⁴² Therefore because of the Jewish day of ^(EB)preparation, since the tomb was ^(EC)nearby, they laid Jesus there.

The Vanity of Life.

For the choir director, for ^[a]Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.