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VI. Job’s Final Summary of His Cause

Chapter 29

[a]Job took up his theme again and said:

Oh, that I were as in the months past,
    as in the days when God watched over me:(A)
While he kept his lamp shining above my head,
    and by his light I walked through darkness;
As I was in my flourishing days,
    when God sheltered my tent;
When the Almighty was still with me,
    and my children were round about me;
When my footsteps were bathed in cream,
    and the rock flowed with streams of oil.[b]
Whenever I went out to the gate of the city
    and took my seat in the square,
The young men saw me and withdrew,
    and the elders rose up and stood;
Officials refrained from speaking
    and covered their mouths with their hands;(B)
10 The voice of the princes was silenced,
    and their tongues stuck to the roofs of their mouths.
11 The ear that heard blessed me;
    the eye that saw acclaimed me.
12 For I rescued the poor who cried out for help,
    the orphans, and the unassisted;
13 The blessing of those in extremity came upon me,
    and the heart of the widow I made joyful.
14 I wore my righteousness like a garment;
    justice was my robe and my turban.
15 I was eyes to the blind,
    and feet to the lame was I.
16 I was a father to the poor;
    the complaint of the stranger I pursued,
17 And I broke the jaws of the wicked man;
    from his teeth I forced the prey.
18 I said: “In my own nest I shall grow old;
    I shall multiply years like the phoenix.[c]
19 My root is spread out to the waters;
    the dew rests by night on my branches.
20 My glory is fresh within me,
    and my bow is renewed in my hand!”
21 For me they listened and waited;
    they were silent for my counsel.
22 Once I spoke, they said no more,
    but received my pronouncement drop by drop.
23 They waited for me as for the rain;
    they drank in my words like the spring rains.
24 When I smiled on them they could not believe it;
    they would not let the light of my face be dimmed.
25 I decided their course and sat at their head,
    I lived like a king among the troops,
    like one who comforts mourners.

Chapter 30

But now they hold me in derision
    who are younger than I,(C)
Whose fathers I should have disdained
    to rank with the dogs of my flock.
Such strength as they had meant nothing to me;
    their vigor had perished.
In want and emaciating hunger(D)
    they fled to the parched lands:
    to the desolate wasteland by night.
They plucked saltwort[d] and shrubs;
    the roots of the broom plant were their food.
They were banished from the community,
    with an outcry like that against a thief—
To dwell on the slopes of the wadies,
    in caves of sand and stone;
Among the bushes they brayed;
    under the nettles they huddled together.
Irresponsible, of no account,
    they were driven out of the land.
Yet now they sing of me in mockery;
    I have become a byword among them.(E)
10 They abhor me, they stand aloof,
    they do not hesitate to spit in my face!
11 [e]Because he has loosened my bowstring and afflicted me,
    they have thrown off restraint in my presence.
12 On my right the young rabble rise up;
    they trip my feet,
    they build their approaches for my ruin.
13 They tear up my path,
    they promote my ruin,
    no helper is there against them.
14 As through a wide breach they advance;
    amid the uproar they come on in waves;
15     terrors roll over me.
My dignity is driven off like the wind,
    and my well-being vanishes like a cloud.
16 And now my life ebbs away from me,
    days of affliction have taken hold of me.
17 [f]At night he pierces my bones,
    my sinews have no rest.
18 With great difficulty I change my clothes,
    the collar of my tunic fits around my waist.
19 He has cast me into the mire;
    I have become like dust and ashes.
20 I cry to you, but you do not answer me;(F)
    I stand, but you take no notice.
21 You have turned into my tormentor,
    and with your strong hand you attack me.
22 You raise me up and drive me before the wind;
    I am tossed about by the tempest.
23 Indeed I know that you will return me to death
    to the house destined for everyone alive.(G)
24 Yet should not a hand be held out
    to help a wretched person in distress?
25 Did I not weep for the hardships of others;
    was not my soul grieved for the poor?(H)
26 Yet when I looked for good, evil came;
    when I expected light, darkness came.
27 My inward parts seethe and will not be stilled;
    days of affliction have overtaken me.
28 I go about in gloom, without the sun;
    I rise in the assembly and cry for help.
29 I have become a brother to jackals,
    a companion to ostriches.
30 My blackened skin falls away from me;
    my very frame is scorched by the heat.
31 My lyre is tuned to mourning,
    and my reed pipe to sounds of weeping.

Chapter 31

I made a covenant with my eyes
    not to gaze upon a virgin.
What portion comes from God above,
    what heritage from the Almighty on high?
Is it not calamity for the unrighteous,
    and woe for evildoers?
Does he not see my ways,
    and number all my steps?(I)
If I have walked in falsehood[g]
    and my foot has hastened to deceit,
Let God weigh me in the scales of justice;
    thus will he know my innocence!(J)
If my steps have turned out of the way,
    and my heart has followed my eyes,
    or any stain clings to my hands,
Then may I sow, but another eat,
    and may my produce be rooted up!
If my heart has been enticed toward a woman,
    and I have lain in wait at my neighbor’s door;
10 Then may my wife grind for another,
    and may others kneel over her!
11 For that would be heinous,
    a crime to be condemned,(K)
12 A fire that would consume down to Abaddon[h]
    till it uprooted all my crops.(L)
13 Had I refused justice to my manservant
    or to my maidservant, when they had a complaint against me,
14 What then should I do when God rises up?
    What could I answer when he demands an account?
15 Did not he who made me in the belly make him?
    Did not the same One fashion us in the womb?
16 If I have denied anything that the poor desired,(M)
    or allowed the eyes of the widow to languish
17 While I ate my portion alone,
    with no share in it for the fatherless,
18 Though like a father he[i] has reared me from my youth,
    guiding me even from my mother’s womb—
19 If I have seen a wanderer without clothing,
    or a poor man without covering,
20 Whose limbs have not blessed me
    when warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
21 If I have raised my hand against the innocent
    because I saw that I had supporters at the gate—[j]
22 Then may my arm fall from the shoulder,
    my forearm be broken at the elbow!
23 For I dread calamity from God,
    and his majesty will overpower me.
24 Had I put my trust in gold
    or called fine gold my security;
25 Or had I rejoiced that my wealth was great,
    or that my hand had acquired abundance—
26 Had I looked upon the light[k] as it shone,(N)
    or the moon in the splendor of its progress,
27 And had my heart been secretly enticed
    to blow them a kiss with my hand,
28 This too would be a crime for condemnation,
    for I should have denied God above.(O)
29 Had I rejoiced at the destruction of my enemy
    or exulted when evil came upon him,(P)
30 Even though I had not allowed my mouth to sin
    by invoking a curse against his life—
31 Had not the men of my tent exclaimed,
    “Who has not been filled with his meat!”[l]
32 No stranger lodged in the street,
    for I opened my door to wayfarers—
33 [m]Had I, all too human, hidden my sins
    and buried my guilt in my bosom
34 Because I feared the great multitude
    and the scorn of the clans terrified me—
    then I should have remained silent, and not come out of doors!
35 [n]Oh, that I had one to hear my case:
    here is my signature:[o] let the Almighty answer me!
Let my accuser write out his indictment!(Q)
36 Surely, I should wear it on my shoulder[p]
    or put it on me like a diadem;
37 Of all my steps I should give him an account;
    like a prince[q] I should present myself before him.
38 If my land has cried out against me
    till its furrows wept together;
39 If I have eaten its strength without payment
    and grieved the hearts of its tenants;
40 Then let the thorns grow instead of wheat
    and stinkweed instead of barley!

The words of Job are ended.

Footnotes

  1. 29:1 This chapter begins Job’s soliloquy, which will end in 31:40. He describes in florid and exaggerated terms his former lifestyle with all its blessings, a deliberate contrast to his current plight, which will be further described in chap. 30.
  2. 29:6 Hyperbole to express abundance; see note on 20:17.
  3. 29:18 Phoenix: a legendary bird which, after several centuries of life, consumed itself in fire, then rose from its ashes in youthful freshness.
  4. 30:4 Saltwort: found in salt marshes and very sour to the taste; eaten by the extremely poor as a cooked vegetable. Broom plant: the juniper or brushwood; cf. Ps 120:4; a figure of bitterness and poverty, because of its bitter-tasting roots which are practically inedible.
  5. 30:11 God is the subject of the verbs. Loosened my bowstring: i.e., disarmed and disabled me.
  6. 30:17–23 Job here refers to God’s harsh treatment of him. Cf. 16:9–17; 19:6–12.
  7. 31:5–34 In a series of purificatory oaths, Job protests his innocence.
  8. 31:12 Abaddon: see note on 26:6.
  9. 31:18 He: presumably God.
  10. 31:21 Gate: cf. notes on 5:4; Ru 4:1.
  11. 31:26–28 Light: of the sun. Job never sinned by worshiping the sun or the moon. Blow them a kiss: an act of idolatrous worship.
  12. 31:31 The members of his extended family will testify to his hospitality.
  13. 31:33–34 Job’s present protest is made, not in spite of hidden sins which he had been unwilling to disclose, but out of genuine innocence. All too human: can also be translated “like Adam.”
  14. 31:35–37 This concluding bravado fits better after v. 40a.
  15. 31:35 My signature: lit., “tau,” the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet, shaped like a cross. Job issues a subpoena to God, and challenges him to follow proper legal procedure as well.
  16. 31:36 On my shoulder: i.e., boldly, proudly.
  17. 31:37 Like a prince: not as a frightened criminal.

Job’s Final Defense

29 Job continued his discourse:(A)

“How I long for the months gone by,(B)
    for the days when God watched over me,(C)
when his lamp shone on my head
    and by his light I walked through darkness!(D)
Oh, for the days when I was in my prime,
    when God’s intimate friendship(E) blessed my house,(F)
when the Almighty was still with me
    and my children(G) were around me,(H)
when my path was drenched with cream(I)
    and the rock(J) poured out for me streams of olive oil.(K)

“When I went to the gate(L) of the city
    and took my seat in the public square,
the young men saw me and stepped aside(M)
    and the old men rose to their feet;(N)
the chief men refrained from speaking(O)
    and covered their mouths with their hands;(P)
10 the voices of the nobles were hushed,(Q)
    and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths.(R)
11 Whoever heard me spoke well of me,
    and those who saw me commended me,(S)
12 because I rescued the poor(T) who cried for help,
    and the fatherless(U) who had none to assist them.(V)
13 The one who was dying blessed me;(W)
    I made the widow’s(X) heart sing.
14 I put on righteousness(Y) as my clothing;
    justice was my robe and my turban.(Z)
15 I was eyes(AA) to the blind
    and feet to the lame.(AB)
16 I was a father to the needy;(AC)
    I took up the case(AD) of the stranger.(AE)
17 I broke the fangs of the wicked
    and snatched the victims(AF) from their teeth.(AG)

18 “I thought, ‘I will die in my own house,
    my days as numerous as the grains of sand.(AH)
19 My roots will reach to the water,(AI)
    and the dew will lie all night on my branches.(AJ)
20 My glory will not fade;(AK)
    the bow(AL) will be ever new in my hand.’(AM)

21 “People listened to me expectantly,
    waiting in silence for my counsel.(AN)
22 After I had spoken, they spoke no more;(AO)
    my words fell gently on their ears.(AP)
23 They waited for me as for showers
    and drank in my words as the spring rain.(AQ)
24 When I smiled at them, they scarcely believed it;
    the light of my face(AR) was precious to them.[a](AS)
25 I chose the way for them and sat as their chief;(AT)
    I dwelt as a king(AU) among his troops;
    I was like one who comforts mourners.(AV)

30 “But now they mock me,(AW)
    men younger than I,
whose fathers I would have disdained
    to put with my sheep dogs.(AX)
Of what use was the strength of their hands to me,
    since their vigor had gone from them?
Haggard from want and hunger,
    they roamed[b] the parched land(AY)
    in desolate wastelands(AZ) at night.(BA)
In the brush they gathered salt herbs,(BB)
    and their food[c] was the root of the broom bush.(BC)
They were banished from human society,
    shouted at as if they were thieves.
They were forced to live in the dry stream beds,
    among the rocks and in holes in the ground.(BD)
They brayed(BE) among the bushes(BF)
    and huddled in the undergrowth.
A base and nameless brood,(BG)
    they were driven out of the land.(BH)

“And now those young men mock me(BI) in song;(BJ)
    I have become a byword(BK) among them.
10 They detest me(BL) and keep their distance;
    they do not hesitate to spit in my face.(BM)
11 Now that God has unstrung my bow(BN) and afflicted me,(BO)
    they throw off restraint(BP) in my presence.
12 On my right(BQ) the tribe[d] attacks;
    they lay snares(BR) for my feet,(BS)
    they build their siege ramps against me.(BT)
13 They break up my road;(BU)
    they succeed in destroying me.(BV)
    ‘No one can help him,’ they say.
14 They advance as through a gaping breach;(BW)
    amid the ruins they come rolling in.
15 Terrors(BX) overwhelm me;(BY)
    my dignity is driven away as by the wind,
    my safety vanishes like a cloud.(BZ)

16 “And now my life ebbs away;(CA)
    days of suffering grip me.(CB)
17 Night pierces my bones;
    my gnawing pains never rest.(CC)
18 In his great power(CD) God becomes like clothing to me[e];
    he binds me like the neck of my garment.
19 He throws me into the mud,(CE)
    and I am reduced to dust and ashes.(CF)

20 “I cry out to you,(CG) God, but you do not answer;(CH)
    I stand up, but you merely look at me.
21 You turn on me ruthlessly;(CI)
    with the might of your hand(CJ) you attack me.(CK)
22 You snatch me up and drive me before the wind;(CL)
    you toss me about in the storm.(CM)
23 I know you will bring me down to death,(CN)
    to the place appointed for all the living.(CO)

24 “Surely no one lays a hand on a broken man(CP)
    when he cries for help in his distress.(CQ)
25 Have I not wept for those in trouble?(CR)
    Has not my soul grieved for the poor?(CS)
26 Yet when I hoped for good, evil came;
    when I looked for light, then came darkness.(CT)
27 The churning inside me never stops;(CU)
    days of suffering confront me.(CV)
28 I go about blackened,(CW) but not by the sun;
    I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.(CX)
29 I have become a brother of jackals,(CY)
    a companion of owls.(CZ)
30 My skin grows black(DA) and peels;(DB)
    my body burns with fever.(DC)
31 My lyre is tuned to mourning,(DD)
    and my pipe(DE) to the sound of wailing.

31 “I made a covenant with my eyes(DF)
    not to look lustfully at a young woman.(DG)
For what is our lot(DH) from God above,
    our heritage from the Almighty on high?(DI)
Is it not ruin(DJ) for the wicked,
    disaster(DK) for those who do wrong?(DL)
Does he not see my ways(DM)
    and count my every step?(DN)

“If I have walked with falsehood
    or my foot has hurried after deceit(DO)
let God weigh me(DP) in honest scales(DQ)
    and he will know that I am blameless(DR)
if my steps have turned from the path,(DS)
    if my heart has been led by my eyes,
    or if my hands(DT) have been defiled,(DU)
then may others eat what I have sown,(DV)
    and may my crops be uprooted.(DW)

“If my heart has been enticed(DX) by a woman,(DY)
    or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 then may my wife grind(DZ) another man’s grain,
    and may other men sleep with her.(EA)
11 For that would have been wicked,(EB)
    a sin to be judged.(EC)
12 It is a fire(ED) that burns to Destruction[f];(EE)
    it would have uprooted my harvest.(EF)

13 “If I have denied justice to any of my servants,(EG)
    whether male or female,
    when they had a grievance against me,(EH)
14 what will I do when God confronts me?(EI)
    What will I answer when called to account?(EJ)
15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them?(EK)
    Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?(EL)

16 “If I have denied the desires of the poor(EM)
    or let the eyes of the widow(EN) grow weary,(EO)
17 if I have kept my bread to myself,
    not sharing it with the fatherless(EP)
18 but from my youth I reared them as a father would,
    and from my birth I guided the widow(EQ)
19 if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing,(ER)
    or the needy(ES) without garments,
20 and their hearts did not bless me(ET)
    for warming them with the fleece(EU) from my sheep,
21 if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,(EV)
    knowing that I had influence in court,(EW)
22 then let my arm fall from the shoulder,
    let it be broken off at the joint.(EX)
23 For I dreaded destruction from God,(EY)
    and for fear of his splendor(EZ) I could not do such things.(FA)

24 “If I have put my trust in gold(FB)
    or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’(FC)
25 if I have rejoiced over my great wealth,(FD)
    the fortune my hands had gained,(FE)
26 if I have regarded the sun(FF) in its radiance
    or the moon(FG) moving in splendor,
27 so that my heart was secretly enticed(FH)
    and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,(FI)
28 then these also would be sins to be judged,(FJ)
    for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.(FK)

29 “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune(FL)
    or gloated over the trouble that came to him(FM)
30 I have not allowed my mouth to sin
    by invoking a curse against their life(FN)
31 if those of my household have never said,
    ‘Who has not been filled with Job’s meat?’(FO)
32 but no stranger had to spend the night in the street,
    for my door was always open to the traveler(FP)
33 if I have concealed(FQ) my sin as people do,[g]
    by hiding(FR) my guilt in my heart
34 because I so feared the crowd(FS)
    and so dreaded the contempt of the clans
    that I kept silent(FT) and would not go outside—

35 (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me!(FU)
    I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me;
    let my accuser(FV) put his indictment in writing.
36 Surely I would wear it on my shoulder,(FW)
    I would put it on like a crown.(FX)
37 I would give him an account of my every step;(FY)
    I would present it to him as to a ruler.(FZ))—

38 “if my land cries out against me(GA)
    and all its furrows are wet(GB) with tears,
39 if I have devoured its yield without payment(GC)
    or broken the spirit of its tenants,(GD)
40 then let briers(GE) come up instead of wheat
    and stinkweed(GF) instead of barley.”

The words of Job are ended.(GG)

Footnotes

  1. Job 29:24 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain.
  2. Job 30:3 Or gnawed
  3. Job 30:4 Or fuel
  4. Job 30:12 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  5. Job 30:18 Hebrew; Septuagint power he grasps my clothing
  6. Job 31:12 Hebrew Abaddon
  7. Job 31:33 Or as Adam did

13 She did not abandon a righteous man[a] when he was sold,(A)
    but rescued him from sin.(B)
14 She went down with him into the dungeon,
    and did not desert him in his bonds,
Until she brought him the scepter of royalty
    and authority over his oppressors,
Proved false those who had defamed him,
    and gave him eternal glory.

15 The holy people and their blameless descendants—it was she
    who rescued them from the nation that oppressed them.(C)
16 She entered the soul of the Lord’s servant,[b]
    and withstood fearsome kings with signs and wonders;(D)
17     she gave the holy ones the reward of their labors,(E)
Conducted them by a wondrous road,
    became a shelter for them by day
    a starry flame by night.
18 She took them across the Red Sea
    and brought them through the deep waters.
19 Their enemies she overwhelmed,
    and churned them up[c] from the bottom of the depths.
20 Therefore the righteous despoiled the wicked;
    and they sang of your holy name, Lord,
    and praised in unison your conquering hand,(F)
21 Because Wisdom opened the mouths of the mute,
    and gave ready speech to infants.(G)

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Footnotes

  1. 10:13–14 Joseph.
  2. 10:16 Moses.
  3. 10:19 Churned them up: casting their bodies on the shore.
'Wisdom 10:13-21' not found for the version: New International Version.

47 While he was still speaking, a crowd approached and in front was one of the Twelve, a man named Judas. He went up to Jesus to kiss him. 48 Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” 49 His disciples realized what was about to happen, and they asked, “Lord, shall we strike with a sword?”(A) 50 And one of them struck the high priest’s servant and cut off his right ear.(B) 51 [a]But Jesus said in reply, “Stop, no more of this!” Then he touched the servant’s ear and healed him. 52 And Jesus said to the chief priests and temple guards and elders who had come for him, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs?(C) 53 Day after day I was with you in the temple area, and you did not seize me; but this is your hour, the time for the power of darkness.”(D)

Peter’s Denial of Jesus. 54 (E)After arresting him they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest; Peter was following at a distance.(F) 55 They lit a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat around it, and Peter sat down with them. 56 When a maid saw him seated in the light, she looked intently at him and said, “This man too was with him.” 57 But he denied it saying, “Woman, I do not know him.” 58 A short while later someone else saw him and said, “You too are one of them”; but Peter answered, “My friend, I am not.” 59 About an hour later, still another insisted, “Assuredly, this man too was with him, for he also is a Galilean.” 60 But Peter said, “My friend, I do not know what you are talking about.” Just as he was saying this, the cock crowed, 61 and the Lord turned and looked at Peter;[b] and Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the cock crows today, you will deny me three times.”(G) 62 He went out and began to weep bitterly. 63 (H)The men who held Jesus in custody were ridiculing and beating him. 64 They blindfolded him and questioned him, saying, “Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?” 65 And they reviled him in saying many other things against him.

Jesus Before the Sanhedrin.[c] 66 (I)When day came the council of elders of the people met, both chief priests and scribes,(J) and they brought him before their Sanhedrin.[d] 67 They said, “If you are the Messiah, tell us,” but he replied to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe,(K) 68 and if I question, you will not respond. 69 But from this time on the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.”(L) 70 They all asked, “Are you then the Son of God?” He replied to them, “You say that I am.” 71 Then they said, “What further need have we for testimony? We have heard it from his own mouth.”

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Footnotes

  1. 22:51 And healed him: only Luke recounts this healing of the injured servant.
  2. 22:61 Only Luke recounts that the Lord turned and looked at Peter. This look of Jesus leads to Peter’s weeping bitterly over his denial (Lk 22:62).
  3. 22:66–71 Luke recounts one daytime trial of Jesus (Lk 22:66–71) and hints at some type of preliminary nighttime investigation (Lk 22:54–65). Mark (and Matthew who follows Mark) has transferred incidents of this day into the nighttime interrogation with the result that there appear to be two Sanhedrin trials of Jesus in Mark (and Matthew); see note on Mk 14:53.
  4. 22:66 Sanhedrin: the word is a Hebraized form of a Greek word meaning a “council,” and refers to the elders, chief priests, and scribes who met under the high priest’s leadership to decide religious and legal questions that did not pertain to Rome’s interests. Jewish sources are not clear on the competence of the Sanhedrin to sentence and to execute during this period.

Jesus Arrested(A)

47 While he was still speaking a crowd came up, and the man who was called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him, 48 but Jesus asked him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”

49 When Jesus’ followers saw what was going to happen, they said, “Lord, should we strike with our swords?”(B) 50 And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear.

51 But Jesus answered, “No more of this!” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.

52 Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard,(C) and the elders, who had come for him, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords and clubs? 53 Every day I was with you in the temple courts,(D) and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour(E)—when darkness reigns.”(F)

Peter Disowns Jesus(G)

54 Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest.(H) Peter followed at a distance.(I) 55 And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. 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.”(J)

60 Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. 61 The Lord(K) 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.”(L) 62 And he went outside and wept bitterly.

The Guards Mock Jesus(M)

63 The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him. 64 They blindfolded him and demanded, “Prophesy! Who hit you?” 65 And they said many other insulting things to him.(N)

Jesus Before Pilate and Herod(O)(P)(Q)

66 At daybreak the council(R) of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the teachers of the law, met together,(S) and Jesus was led before them. 67 “If you are the Messiah,” they said, “tell us.”

Jesus answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe me, 68 and if I asked you, you would not answer.(T) 69 But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.”(U)

70 They all asked, “Are you then the Son of God?”(V)

He replied, “You say that I am.”(W)

71 Then they said, “Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips.”

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