John 18
Lexham English Bible
Jesus Is Betrayed and Arrested
18 When[a] Jesus had said these things, he went out with his disciples to the other side of the ravine of the Kidron, where there was a garden into which he and his disciples entered. 2 (Now Judas, the one who betrayed him, also knew about the place, because Jesus often gathered there with his disciples.) 3 So Judas, taking the cohort and officers from the chief priests and from the Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons. 4 Then Jesus, because he[b] knew all the things that were coming upon him, went out and said to them, “Who are you looking for?” 5 They replied to him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He said to them, “I am he.”[c] (Now Judas, the one who betrayed him, was also standing with them.) 6 So when he said to them, “I am he,”[d] they drew back[e] and fell to the ground. 7 Then he asked them again, “Who are you looking for?” And they said, “Jesus the Nazarene.” 8 Jesus replied, “I said to you that I am he![f] So if you are looking for me, let these men go,” 9 in order that the word that he had spoken would be fulfilled: “Those whom you have given to me—I have not lost anyone of them.”[g]
10 Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. (Now the name of the slave was Malchus.) 11 So Jesus said to Peter, “Put the sword into its[h] sheath! The cup that the Father has given me—shall I not drink it?”
Jesus Taken to Annas
12 Then the cohort and the military tribune and the officers of the Jews seized Jesus and tied him up, 13 and brought him[i] to Annas first, for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. 14 (Now it was Caiaphas who had advised the Jews that it was better that one man die for the people.)
Peter Denies Jesus the First Time
15 So Simon Peter and another disciple followed Jesus. (Now that disciple was known to the high priest, and entered with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest.) 16 But Peter was standing by 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 Then the female slave who was the doorkeeper said to Peter, “You are not also one of the disciples of this man, are you?”[j] He said, “I am not!” 18 (Now the slaves and the officers were standing there, having made a charcoal fire because it was cold, and they were warming themselves. And Peter was also standing there with them and warming himself.)
Jesus Before Annas
19 So the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and about his teaching. 20 Jesus replied to him, “I have spoken openly to the world. I always taught in the synagogue and in the temple courts[k] where all the Jews assemble, and I have said nothing in secret. 21 Why are you asking me? Ask those who heard what I have said to them! Behold, these people know what I said.” 22 Now when[l] he had said these things, one of the officers who was standing by gave a slap in the face to Jesus, saying, “Do you reply to the high priest in this way?” 23 Jesus replied to him, “If I have spoken wrongly, testify about what is wrong! But if I have spoken[m] correctly, why do you strike me?” 24 Then Annas sent him, tied up, to Caiaphas the high priest.
Peter Denies Jesus the Second and Third Times
25 Now Simon Peter was standing there and warming himself. So they said to him, “You are not also one of his disciples, are you?”[n] He denied it[o] and said, “I am not!” 26 One of the slaves of the high priest, who was related to the one whose ear Peter had cut off, said, “Did I not see you in the garden with him?” 27 So Peter denied it[p] again, and immediately a rooster crowed.
Jesus Brought Before Pilate
28 Then they brought Jesus from Caiaphas to the governor’s residence. Now it was early, and they did not enter into the governor’s residence so that they would not be defiled, but could eat the Passover. 29 So Pilate came outside to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?” 30 They answered and said to him, “If this man were not doing evil, we would not have handed him over to you!” 31 So Pilate said to them, “You take him and judge him according to your law!” The Jews said to him, “It is not permitted for us to kill anyone,” 32 in order that the word of Jesus would be fulfilled that he had spoken, indicating by what sort of death he was going to die.
Pilate Questions Jesus
33 Then Pilate entered again into the governor’s residence and summoned Jesus and said to him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” 34 Jesus replied, “Do you say this from yourself, or have others said this[q] to you about me?” 35 Pilate replied, “I am not a Jew, am I?[r] Your people and the chief priests handed you over to me! What have you done?” 36 Jesus replied, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews. But now my kingdom is not from here.” 37 Then Pilate said to him, “So then you are a king!” Jesus replied, “You say that I am a king. For this reason I was born, and for this reason I have come into the world: in order that I can testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.” 38 Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”
And when he[s] had said this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them, “I find no basis for an accusation against him. 39 But it is your custom that I release for you one prisoner[t] at the Passover. So do you want me[u] to release for you the king of the Jews?” 40 Then they shouted again, saying, “Not this man, but Barabbas!” (Now Barabbas was a revolutionary.)[v]
Footnotes
- John 18:1 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had said”) which is understood as temporal
- John 18:4 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“knew”) which is understood as causal
- John 18:5 *Here the predicate nominative is supplied from context in the English translation
- John 18:6 *Here the predicate nominative is supplied from context in the English translation
- John 18:6 Literally “they went to the back”
- John 18:8 *Here the predicate nominative is supplied from context in the English translation
- John 18:9 A paraphrase of the statement in John 17:12
- John 18:11 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
- John 18:13 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- John 18:17 *The negative construction in Greek anticipates a negative answer here, indicated in the translation by the phrase “are you”
- John 18:20 Here “courts” is supplied to distinguish this area from the interior of the temple building itself
- John 18:22 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“had said”)
- John 18:23 The phrase “I have spoken” is an implied repetition of the earlier phrase in this verse
- John 18:25 *The negative construction in Greek anticipates a negative answer here, indicated in the translation by the phrase “are you”
- John 18:25 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- John 18:27 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- John 18:34 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- John 18:35 *The negative construction in Greek anticipates a negative answer here, indicated in the translation by the phrase “am I”
- John 18:38 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had said”) which is understood as temporal
- John 18:39 The word “prisoner” is not in the Greek text, but is implied
- John 18:39 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- John 18:40 Or perhaps “robber”
John 18
New International Reader's Version
Jesus Is Arrested
18 When Jesus had finished praying, he left with his disciples. They crossed the Kidron Valley. On the other side there was a garden. Jesus and his disciples went into it.
2 Judas knew the place. He was going to hand Jesus over to his enemies. Jesus had often met in that place with his disciples. 3 So Judas came to the garden. He was guiding a group of soldiers and some officials. The chief priests and the Pharisees had sent them. They were carrying torches, lanterns and weapons.
4 Jesus knew everything that was going to happen to him. So he went out and asked them, “Who do you want?”
5 “Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied.
“I am he,” Jesus said. Judas, who was going to hand Jesus over, was standing there with them. 6 When Jesus said, “I am he,” they moved back. Then they fell to the ground.
7 He asked them again, “Who do you want?”
“Jesus of Nazareth,” they said.
8 Jesus answered, “I told you I am he. If you are looking for me, then let these men go.” 9 This happened so that the words Jesus had spoken would come true. He had said, “I have not lost anyone God has given me.” (John 6:39)
10 Simon Peter had a sword and pulled it out. He struck the high priest’s slave and cut off his right ear. The slave’s name was Malchus.
11 Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shouldn’t I drink the cup of suffering the Father has given me?”
12 Then the group of soldiers, their commander and the Jewish officials arrested Jesus. They tied him up 13 and brought him first to Annas. He was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest at that time. 14 Caiaphas had advised the Jewish leaders that it would be good if one man died for the people.
Peter Says He Is Not Jesus’ Disciple
15 Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus. The high priest knew the other disciple. So that disciple went with Jesus into the high priest’s courtyard. 16 But Peter had to wait outside by the door. The other disciple came back. He was the one the high priest knew. He spoke to the servant woman who was on duty there. Then he brought Peter in.
17 She asked Peter, “You aren’t one of Jesus’ disciples too, are you?”
“I am not,” he replied.
18 It was cold. The slaves and officials stood around a fire. They had made it to keep warm. Peter was also standing with them. He was warming himself.
The High Priest Questions Jesus
19 Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus. He asked him about his disciples and his teaching.
20 “I have spoken openly to the world,” Jesus replied. “I always taught in synagogues or at the temple, where all the Jews come together. I didn’t say anything in secret. 21 Why question me? Ask the people who heard me. They certainly know what I said.”
22 When Jesus said that, one of the officials nearby slapped him in the face. “Is this any way to answer the high priest?” he asked.
23 “Have I said something wrong?” Jesus replied. “If I have, then tell everyone what it was. But if I spoke the truth, why did you hit me?” 24 Annas sent him, tied up, to Caiaphas, the high priest.
Peter Again Says He Is Not Jesus’ Disciple
25 Meanwhile, Simon Peter was still standing there warming himself by the fire. So they asked him, “You aren’t one of Jesus’ disciples too, are you?”
He said, “I am not.”
26 One of the high priest’s slaves was a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off. He said to Peter, “Didn’t I see you with Jesus in the garden?” 27 Again Peter said no. At that exact moment a rooster began to crow.
Jesus Is Brought to Pilate
28 Then the Jewish leaders took Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning. The Jewish leaders did not want to be made “unclean.” They wanted to be able to eat the Passover meal. So they did not enter the palace. 29 Pilate came out to them. He asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?”
30 “He has committed crimes,” they replied. “If he hadn’t, we would not have handed him over to you.”
31 Pilate said, “Take him yourselves. Judge him by your own law.”
“But we don’t have the right to put anyone to death,” they complained. 32 This happened so that what Jesus said about how he was going to die would come true.
33 Then Pilate went back inside the palace. He ordered Jesus to be brought to him. Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”
34 “Is that your own idea?” Jesus asked. “Or did others talk to you about me?”
35 “Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?”
36 Jesus said, “My kingdom is not from this world. If it were, those who serve me would fight. They would try to keep the Jewish leaders from arresting me. My kingdom is from another place.”
37 “So you are a king, then!” said Pilate.
Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, that’s the reason I was born. I was born and came into the world to be a witness to the truth. Everyone who is on the side of truth listens to me.”
38 “What is truth?” Pilate replied. Then Pilate went out again to the Jews gathered there. He said, “I find no basis for any charge against him. 39 But you have a practice at Passover time. At that time, you ask me to set one prisoner free for you. Do you want me to set ‘the king of the Jews’ free?”
40 They shouted back, “No! Not him! Give us Barabbas!” Barabbas had taken part in an armed struggle against the country’s rulers.
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