Repentance and Forgiveness

30 ^(A)“And ^(B)when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before you, and ^(C)you call them to mind among all the nations where the Lord your God has driven you, ² and ^(D)return to the Lord your God, you and your children, and obey his voice in all that I command you today, with all your heart and with all your soul, ³ then the Lord your God ^(E)will restore your fortunes and have mercy on you, and he will ^(F)gather you again from all the peoples where the Lord your God has scattered you. ^4 (G)If your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there he will take you. ⁵ And the Lord your God will bring you into the land that your fathers possessed, that you may possess it. ^(H)And he will make you more prosperous and numerous than your fathers. ⁶ And ^(I)the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, ^(J)so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live. ⁷ And the Lord your God will put all these curses on your foes and enemies who persecuted you. ⁸ And you shall again obey the voice of the Lord and keep all his commandments that I command you today. ^9 (K)The Lord your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your cattle and in the fruit of your ground. ^(L)For the Lord will again take delight in prospering you, as he took delight in your fathers, ¹⁰ when you obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, when you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

The Choice of Life and Death

¹¹ “For this commandment that I command you today ^(M)is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. ^12 (N)It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ ¹³ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ ¹⁴ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it.

¹⁵ “See, ^(O)I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. ¹⁶ If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God^[a] that I command you today, ^(P)by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules,^[b] then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. ¹⁷ But if ^(Q)your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, ^18 (R)I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess. ¹⁹ I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, ^(S)blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, ²⁰ loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice ^(T)and holding fast to him, for ^(U)he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in ^(V)the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”

Joshua to Succeed Moses

31 So Moses continued to speak these words to all Israel. ² And he said to them, “I am ^(W)120 years old today. I am no longer able to ^(X)go out and come in. The Lord has said to me, ^(Y)‘You shall not go over this Jordan.’ ³ The Lord your God ^(Z)himself will go over before you. He will destroy these nations before you, so that you shall dispossess them, and Joshua will go over at your head, ^(AA)as the Lord has spoken. ⁴ And the Lord will do to them ^(AB)as he did to Sihon ^(AC)and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when he destroyed them. ⁵ And the Lord will give them over to you, and you shall do to them ^(AD)according to the whole commandment that I have commanded you. ^6 (AE)Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, ^(AF)for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. ^(AG)He will not leave you or forsake you.”

⁷ Then ^(AH)Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, ^(AI)“Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land that the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall put them in possession of it. ⁸ It is the Lord ^(AJ)who goes before you. He will be with you; ^(AK)he will not leave you or forsake you. ^(AL)Do not fear or be dismayed.”

The Reading of the Law

⁹ Then Moses ^(AM)wrote this law and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi, ^(AN)who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel. ¹⁰ And Moses commanded them, ^(AO)“At the end of every seven years, at the set time in the year of release, at ^(AP)the Feast of Booths, ¹¹ when all Israel comes ^(AQ)to appear before the Lord your God at the place that he will choose, ^(AR)you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. ^12 (AS)Assemble the people, men, women, and little ones, and the sojourner within your towns, that they may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, and be careful to do all the words of this law, ¹³ and that their children, ^(AT)who have not known it, ^(AU)may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, ^(AV)as long as you live in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.”

Joshua Commissioned to Lead Israel

¹⁴ And the Lord said to Moses, ^(AW)“Behold, the days approach when you must die. Call Joshua and present yourselves in the tent of meeting, that ^(AX)I may commission him.” And Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves in the tent of meeting. ¹⁵ And ^(AY)the Lord appeared in the tent in a pillar of cloud. And the pillar of cloud stood over the entrance of the tent.

¹⁶ And the Lord said to Moses, ^(AZ)“Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers. Then this people will rise and ^(BA)whore after the foreign gods among them in the land that they are entering, and they will ^(BB)forsake me and ^(BC)break my covenant that I have made with them. ¹⁷ Then my anger will be kindled against them in that day, and ^(BD)I will forsake them and ^(BE)hide my face from them, and they will be devoured. And many evils and troubles will come upon them, so that they will say in that day, ^(BF)‘Have not these evils come upon us because ^(BG)our God is not among us?’ ¹⁸ And I will surely hide my face in that day because of all the evil that they have done, because ^(BH)they have turned to other gods.

¹⁹ “Now therefore write ^(BI)this song and ^(BJ)teach it to the people of Israel. Put it in their mouths, that this song may be ^(BK)a witness for me against the people of Israel. ²⁰ For when I have brought them into the land ^(BL)flowing with milk and honey, which I swore to give to their fathers, and they have eaten and are full and ^(BM)grown fat, ^(BN)they will turn to other gods and serve them, and ^(BO)despise me and ^(BP)break my covenant. ²¹ And when many evils and troubles have come upon them, this song shall confront them as ^(BQ)a witness (for it will live unforgotten in the mouths of their offspring). For ^(BR)I know what they are inclined to do even today, before I have brought them into the land that I swore to give.” ²² So Moses wrote this song the same day and taught it to the people of Israel.

^23 (BS)And the Lord^[c] commissioned Joshua the son of Nun and said, ^(BT)“Be strong and courageous, for you shall bring the people of Israel into the land that I swore to give them. ^(BU)I will be with you.”

²⁴ When Moses had finished ^(BV)writing the words of this law in a book to the very end, ²⁵ Moses commanded ^(BW)the Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, ²⁶ “Take this Book of the Law ^(BX)and put it by the side of the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there for ^(BY)a witness against you. ²⁷ For I know how rebellious and ^(BZ)stubborn you are. Behold, even today while I am yet alive with you, ^(CA)you have been rebellious against the Lord. How much more after my death! ²⁸ Assemble to me all the elders of your tribes and your officers, that I may speak ^(CB)these words in their ears and ^(CC)call heaven and earth to witness against them. ²⁹ For I know that after my death ^(CD)you will surely act corruptly and turn aside from the way that I have commanded you. And ^(CE)in the days to come ^(CF)evil will befall you, because you will do what is evil in the sight of the Lord, ^(CG)provoking him to anger through the work of your hands.”

The Song of Moses

³⁰ Then Moses spoke the words of this song until they were finished, in the ears of all the assembly of Israel:

Jesus Before Caiaphas and the Council

^57 (A)Then ^(B)those who had seized Jesus led him to ^(C)Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders had gathered. ⁵⁸ And ^(D)Peter was following him at a distance, as far as ^(E)the courtyard of the high priest, and going inside he sat with ^(F)the guards to see the end. ⁵⁹ Now the chief priests and the whole council^{[a] (G)}were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death, ⁶⁰ but they found none, ^(H)though many false witnesses came forward. At last ^(I)two came forward ⁶¹ and said, “This man said, ^(J)‘I am able to ^(K)destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days.’” ⁶² And the high priest stood up and said, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?”^{[b] 63 (L)}But Jesus remained silent. ^(M)And the high priest said to him, ^(N)“I adjure you by ^(O)the living God, ^(P)tell us if you are ^(Q)the Christ, ^(R)the Son of God.” ⁶⁴ Jesus said to him, ^(S)“You have said so. But I tell you, from now on ^(T)you will see the Son of Man ^(U)seated at the right hand of Power and ^(V)coming on the clouds of heaven.” ⁶⁵ Then the high priest ^(W)tore his robes and said, ^(X)“He has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy. ⁶⁶ What is your judgment?” They answered, ^(Y)“He deserves death.” ⁶⁷ Then ^(Z)they spit in his face ^(AA)and ^(AB)struck him. And some slapped him, ⁶⁸ saying, “Prophesy to us, you ^(AC)Christ! Who is it that struck you?”

Peter Denies Jesus

^69 (AD)Now Peter was sitting outside ^(AE)in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” ⁷⁰ But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.” ⁷¹ And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus ^(AF)of Nazareth.” ⁷² And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.” ⁷³ After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for ^(AG)your accent betrays you.” ⁷⁴ Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed. ⁷⁵ And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, ^(AH)“Before the rooster crows, you will ^(AI)deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

Jesus Before the Council

^53 (A)And ^(B)they led Jesus to the high priest. And all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together. ^54 (C)And ^(D)Peter had followed him at a distance, ^(E)right into ^(F)the courtyard of the high priest. And he was sitting with ^(G)the guards and ^(H)warming himself at the fire. ⁵⁵ Now the chief priests and the whole council^[a] were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none. ^56 (I)For many bore false witness against him, but their testimony ^(J)did not agree. ⁵⁷ And some stood up and bore false witness against him, saying, ^58 (K)“We heard him say, ^(L)‘I will destroy this temple ^(M)that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, ^(N)not made with hands.’” ⁵⁹ Yet even about this their testimony did not agree. ⁶⁰ And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?”^{[b] 61} But ^(O)he remained silent and made no answer. ^(P)Again the high priest asked him, “Are you ^(Q)the Christ, the Son of ^(R)the Blessed?” ⁶² And Jesus said, “I am, and ^(S)you will see the Son of Man ^(T)seated at the right hand of Power, and ^(U)coming with the clouds of heaven.” ⁶³ And the high priest ^(V)tore his garments and said, “What further witnesses do we need? ⁶⁴ You have heard ^(W)his blasphemy. What is your decision?” And they ^(X)all condemned him as ^(Y)deserving death. ^65 (Z)And some began ^(AA)to spit on him and ^(AB)to cover his face and to strike him, saying to him, “Prophesy!” And the guards received him ^(AC)with blows.

Peter Denies Jesus

^66 (AD)And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came, ⁶⁷ and seeing Peter ^(AE)warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus.” ⁶⁸ But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you mean.” And he went out into the gateway^[c] and ^(AF)the rooster crowed.^{[d] 69} And the servant girl saw him and began again to say to the bystanders, “This man is one of them.” ⁷⁰ But again he denied it. And after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter, “Certainly you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.” ⁷¹ But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak.” ⁷² And immediately the rooster crowed ^(AG)a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, ^(AH)“Before the rooster crows twice, you will ^(AI)deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept.^[e]

Peter Denies Jesus

^54 (A)Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest's house, ^(B)and Peter was following at a distance. ^55 (C)And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of ^(D)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 ^(E)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 ^(F)looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, ^(G)“Before the rooster crows today, you will ^(H)deny me three times.” ⁶² And he went out and wept bitterly.

Jesus Is Mocked

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

Jesus Before the Council

^66 (N)When day came, ^(O)the assembly of the elders of the people gathered together, both chief priests and scribes. And they led him away to their ^(P)council, and they ^(Q)said, ^67 (R)“If you are ^(S)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 ^(T)at the right hand of the power of God.”

Jesus Faces Annas and Caiaphas

¹² So the band of soldiers and their captain and the officers of the Jews^[a] arrested Jesus and bound him. ¹³ First they ^(A)led him to ^(B)Annas, for he was the father-in-law of ^(C)Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. ¹⁴ It was Caiaphas who had advised the Jews ^(D)that it would be expedient that one man should die for the people.

Peter Denies Jesus

^15 (E)Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. Since that disciple was known to the high priest, he entered with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest, ^16 (F)but Peter stood outside at the door. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the servant girl who kept watch at the door, and brought Peter in. ^17 (G)The servant girl at the door said to Peter, “You also are not one of this man's disciples, are you?” He said, “I am not.” ¹⁸ Now the servants^[b] and officers had made a charcoal fire, because it was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves. ^(H)Peter also was with them, standing and warming himself.

The High Priest Questions Jesus

^19 (I)The high priest then questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. ²⁰ Jesus answered him, “I have spoken ^(J)openly ^(K)to the world. I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come together. ^(L)I have said nothing in secret. ²¹ Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me what I said to them; they know what I said.” ²² When he had said these things, one of the officers standing by struck Jesus with his hand, saying, ^(M)“Is that how you answer the high priest?” ²³ Jesus answered him, “If what I said is wrong, bear witness about the wrong; but if what I said is right, why do you strike me?” ^24 (N)Annas then sent him bound to ^(O)Caiaphas the high priest.

Peter Denies Jesus Again

^25 (P)Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. So they said to him, “You also are not one of his disciples, are you?” He denied it and said, “I am not.” ²⁶ One of the servants of the high priest, a relative of ^(Q)the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, “Did I not see you ^(R)in the garden with him?” ²⁷ Peter again denied it, and ^(S)at once a rooster crowed.