Mary Anoints Jesus at Bethany

12 Six days before ^(A)the Passover, ^(B)Jesus therefore came to Bethany, ^(C)where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. ² So they gave a dinner for him there. ^(D)Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. ^3 (E)Mary therefore took a pound^[a] of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. ⁴ But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, ⁵ “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii^[b] and ^(F)given to the poor?” ⁶ He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and ^(G)having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. ⁷ Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it^[c] for the day of my burial. ⁸ For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.”

The Plot to Kill Lazarus

⁹ When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus^[d] was there, they came, not only on account of him but also to see Lazarus, ^(H)whom he had raised from the dead. ^10 (I)So the chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well, ¹¹ because ^(J)on account of him many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus.

The Triumphal Entry

¹² The next day ^(K)the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. ¹³ So they took branches of ^(L)palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, ^(M)“Hosanna! Blessed is ^(N)he who comes in the name of the Lord, even ^(O)the King of Israel!” ¹⁴ And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,

^16 (Q)His disciples did not understand these things at first, but ^(R)when Jesus was glorified, then ^(S)they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. ^17 (T)The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. ¹⁸ The reason why the crowd went to meet him ^(U)was that they heard he had done this sign. ¹⁹ So the Pharisees said to one another, ^(V)“You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, ^(W)the world has gone after him.”

Some Greeks Seek Jesus

²⁰ Now ^(X)among those who went up to worship at the feast were some ^(Y)Greeks. ²¹ So these came to ^(Z)Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” ²² Philip went and told ^(AA)Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. ²³ And Jesus answered them, ^(AB)“The hour has come ^(AC)for the Son of Man to be glorified. ²⁴ Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(AD)unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. ^25 (AE)Whoever loves his life loses it, and ^(AF)whoever ^(AG)hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. ²⁶ If anyone serves me, he must ^(AH)follow me; and ^(AI)where I am, there will my servant be also. ^(AJ)If anyone serves me, ^(AK)the Father will honor him.

The Son of Man Must Be Lifted Up

^27 (AL)“Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, ^(AM)save me from ^(AN)this hour’? But ^(AO)for this purpose I have come to ^(AP)this hour. ²⁸ Father, glorify your name.” Then ^(AQ)a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” ²⁹ The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, ^(AR)“An angel has spoken to him.” ³⁰ Jesus answered, ^(AS)“This voice has come for your sake, not mine. ^31 (AT)Now is the judgment of this world; now will ^(AU)the ruler of this world ^(AV)be cast out. ³² And I, ^(AW)when I am lifted up from the earth, ^(AX)will draw ^(AY)all people to myself.” ³³ He said this ^(AZ)to show by what kind of death he was going to die. ³⁴ So the crowd answered him, “We have heard from the Law that ^(BA)the Christ remains forever. How can you say that ^(BB)the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” ³⁵ So Jesus said to them, ^(BC)“The light is among you ^(BD)for a little while longer. ^(BE)Walk while you have the light, lest darkness ^(BF)overtake you. ^(BG)The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. ³⁶ While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become ^(BH)sons of light.”

The Unbelief of the People

When Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them. ³⁷ Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, ^38 (BI)so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

³⁹ Therefore they ^(BK)could not believe. For again Isaiah said,

⁴¹ Isaiah said these things because ^(BN)he saw his glory and ^(BO)spoke of him. ⁴² Nevertheless, ^(BP)many even of the authorities believed in him, but ^(BQ)for fear of the Pharisees they did not ^(BR)confess it, so that they would not be ^(BS)put out of the synagogue; ^43 (BT)for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.

Jesus Came to Save the World

⁴⁴ And Jesus cried out and said, ^(BU)“Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but ^(BV)in him who sent me. ⁴⁵ And ^(BW)whoever ^(BX)sees me sees him who sent me. ^46 (BY)I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. ⁴⁷ If anyone ^(BZ)hears my words and does not keep them, ^(CA)I do not judge him; for ^(CB)I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. ^48 (CC)The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; ^(CD)the word that I have spoken will judge him ^(CE)on the last day. ⁴⁹ For ^(CF)I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father ^(CG)who sent me has himself given me ^(CH)a commandment—what to say and what to speak. ⁵⁰ And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.”

The Plot to Kill Jesus

14 ^(A)It was now two days before ^(B)the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and the scribes ^(C)were seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him, ² for they said, “Not during the feast, ^(D)lest there be an uproar from the people.”

Jesus Anointed at Bethany

^3 (E)And while he was at ^(F)Bethany in the house of Simon the leper,^[a] as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. ⁴ There were some who said to themselves indignantly, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? ⁵ For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii^[b] and ^(G)given to the poor.” And they ^(H)scolded her. ⁶ But Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. ⁷ For ^(I)you always have the poor with you, and whenever ^(J)you want, you can do good for them. But ^(K)you will not always have me. ^8 (L)She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand ^(M)for burial. ⁹ And truly, I say to you, wherever ^(N)the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told ^(O)in memory of her.”

Judas to Betray Jesus

^10 (P)Then ^(Q)Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, ^(R)went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them. ¹¹ And when they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money. And he sought an opportunity to ^(S)betray him.