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Jesus Prays

(Matthew 26.36-46; Mark 14.32-42)

39 Jesus went out to the Mount of Olives, as he often did, and his disciples went with him. 40 When they got there, he told them, “Pray that you won't be tested.”

41 Jesus walked on a little way before he knelt down and prayed, 42 “Father, if you will, please don't make me suffer by drinking from this cup.[a] But do what you want, and not what I want.”

43 Then an angel from heaven came to help him. 44 Jesus was in great pain and prayed so sincerely that his sweat fell to the ground like drops of blood.[b]

45 Jesus got up from praying and went over to his disciples. They were asleep and worn out from being so sad. 46 He said to them, “Why are you asleep? Wake up and pray that you won't be tested.”

Jesus Is Arrested

(Matthew 26.47-56; Mark 14.43-50; John 18.3-11)

47 While Jesus was still speaking, a crowd came up. It was led by Judas, one of the twelve apostles. He went over to Jesus and greeted him with a kiss.[c]

48 Jesus asked Judas, “Are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”

49 When Jesus' disciples saw what was about to happen, they asked, “Lord, should we attack them with a sword?” 50 One of the disciples even struck at the high priest's servant with his sword and cut off the servant's right ear.

51 “Enough of that!” Jesus said. Then he touched the servant's ear and healed it.

52 Jesus spoke to the chief priests, the temple police, and the leaders who had come to arrest him. He said, “Why do you come out with swords and clubs and treat me like a criminal? 53 (A) I was with you every day in the temple, and you didn't arrest me. But this is your time, and darkness[d] is in control.”

Peter Says He Doesn't Know Jesus

(Matthew 26.57,58,67-75; Mark 14.53,54,66-72; John 18.12-18,25-27)

54 Jesus was arrested and led away to the house of the high priest, while Peter followed at a distance. 55 Some people built a fire in the middle of the courtyard and were sitting around it. Peter sat there with them, 56 and a servant girl saw him. Then after she had looked at him carefully, she said, “This man was with Jesus!”

57 Peter said, “Woman, I don't even know that man!”

58 A little later someone else saw Peter and said, “You are one of them!”

“No, I'm not!” Peter replied.

59 About an hour later another man insisted, “This man must have been with Jesus. They both come from Galilee.”

60 Peter replied, “I don't know what you are talking about!” Right then, while Peter was still speaking, a rooster crowed.

61 The Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered that the Lord had said, “Before a rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will say three times that you don't know me.” 62 Then Peter went out and cried bitterly.

63 The men who were guarding Jesus made fun of him and beat him. 64 They put a blindfold on him and said, “Tell us who struck you!” 65 They kept on insulting Jesus in many other ways.

Jesus Is Questioned by the Council

(Matthew 26.59-66; Mark 14.55-64; John 18.19-24)

66 At daybreak the nation's leaders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law of Moses got together and brought Jesus before their council. 67 They said, “Tell us! Are you the Messiah?”

Jesus replied, “If I said so, you wouldn't believe me. 68 And if I asked you a question, you wouldn't answer. 69 But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right side of God All-Powerful.”

70 Then they asked, “Are you the Son of God?”[e]

Jesus answered, “You say I am!”[f]

71 They replied, “Why do we need more witnesses? He said it himself!”

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Footnotes

  1. 22.42 drinking from this cup: In the Scriptures “to drink from a cup” sometimes means to suffer.
  2. 22.43,44 Then an angel … like drops of blood: Verses 43,44 are not in some manuscripts.
  3. 22.47 greeted him with a kiss: It was the custom for people to greet each other with a kiss on the cheek.
  4. 22.53 darkness: Darkness stands for the power of the devil.
  5. 22.70 Son of God: This was one of the titles used for the kings of Israel.
  6. 22.70 You say I am: Or “That's what you say.”

Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives(A)

39 Jesus went out as usual(B) to the Mount of Olives,(C) and his disciples followed him. 40 On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.”(D) 41 He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down(E) and prayed, 42 “Father, if you are willing, take this cup(F) from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”(G) 43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.(H) 44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.[a]

45 When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. 46 “Why are you sleeping?” he asked them. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”(I)

Jesus Arrested(J)

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?”(K) 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,(L) 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,(M) and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour(N)—when darkness reigns.”(O)

Peter Disowns Jesus(P)

54 Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest.(Q) Peter followed at a distance.(R) 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.”(S)

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

The Guards Mock Jesus(V)

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.(W)

Jesus Before Pilate and Herod(X)(Y)(Z)

66 At daybreak the council(AA) of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the teachers of the law, met together,(AB) 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.(AC) 69 But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.”(AD)

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

He replied, “You say that I am.”(AF)

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

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 22:44 Many early manuscripts do not have verses 43 and 44.

Pilate Questions Jesus

(Matthew 27.1,2,11-14; Mark 15.1-5; John 18.28-38)

23 Everyone in the council got up and led Jesus off to Pilate. They started accusing him and said, “We caught this man trying to get our people to riot and to stop paying taxes to the Emperor. He also claims that he is the Messiah, our king.”

Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“Those are your words,” Jesus answered.

Pilate told the chief priests and the crowd, “I don't find him guilty of anything.”

But they all kept on saying, “He has been teaching and causing trouble all over Judea. He started in Galilee and has now come all the way here.”

Jesus Is Brought before Herod

When Pilate heard this, he asked, “Is this man from Galilee?” After Pilate learned that Jesus came from the region ruled by Herod,[a] he sent him to Herod, who was in Jerusalem at that time.

For a long time Herod had wanted to see Jesus and was very happy because he finally had this chance. He had heard many things about Jesus and hoped to see him work a miracle.

Herod asked him a lot of questions, but Jesus did not answer. 10 Then the chief priests and the teachers of the Law of Moses stood up and accused him of all kinds of bad things.

11 Herod and his soldiers made fun of Jesus and insulted him. They put a fine robe on him and sent him back to Pilate. 12 That same day Herod and Pilate became friends, even though they had been enemies before this.

The Death Sentence

(Matthew 27.15-26; Mark 15.6-15; John 18.39—19.16)

13 Pilate called together the chief priests, the leaders, and the people. 14 He told them, “You brought Jesus to me and said he was a troublemaker. But I have questioned him here in front of you, and I have not found him guilty of anything that you say he has done. 15 Herod didn't find him guilty either and sent him back. This man doesn't deserve to be put to death! 16-17 I will just have him beaten with a whip and set free.”[b]

18 But the whole crowd shouted, “Kill Jesus! Give us Barabbas!” 19 Now Barabbas was in jail because he had started a riot in the city and had murdered someone.

20 Pilate wanted to set Jesus free, so he spoke again to the crowds. 21 But they kept shouting, “Nail him to a cross! Nail him to a cross!”

22 Pilate spoke to them a third time, “But what crime has he done? I have not found him guilty of anything for which he should be put to death. I will have him beaten with a whip and set free.”

23 The people kept on shouting as loud as they could for Jesus to be put to death. 24 Finally, Pilate gave in. 25 He freed the man who was in jail for rioting and murder, because he was the one the crowd wanted to be set free. Then Pilate handed Jesus over for them to do what they wanted with him.

Jesus Is Nailed to a Cross

(Matthew 27.31-44; Mark 15.21-32; John 19.17-27)

26 As Jesus was being led away, some soldiers grabbed hold of a man named Simon who was from Cyrene. He was coming in from the fields, but they put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus.

27 A large crowd was following Jesus, and in the crowd a lot of women were crying and weeping for him. 28 Jesus turned to the women and said:

Women of Jerusalem, don't cry for me! Cry for yourselves and for your children. 29 Someday people will say, “Women who never had children are really fortunate!” 30 (A) At that time everyone will say to the mountains, “Fall on us!” They will say to the hills, “Hide us!” 31 If this can happen when the wood is green, what do you think will happen when it is dry?[c]

32 Two criminals were led out to be put to death with Jesus. 33 When the soldiers came to the place called “The Skull,”[d] they nailed Jesus to a cross. They also nailed the two criminals to crosses, one on each side of Jesus.

34-35 (B) Jesus said, “Father, forgive these people! They don't know what they're doing.”[e]

While the crowd stood there watching Jesus, the soldiers gambled for his clothes. The leaders insulted him by saying, “He saved others. Now he should save himself, if he really is God's chosen Messiah!”

36 (C) The soldiers made fun of Jesus and brought him some wine. 37 They said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself!”

38 Above him was a sign that said, “This is the King of the Jews.”

39 One of the criminals hanging there also insulted Jesus by saying, “Aren't you the Messiah? Save yourself and save us!”

40 But the other criminal told the first one off, “Don't you fear God? Aren't you getting the same punishment as this man? 41 We got what was coming to us, but he didn't do anything wrong.” 42 Then he said to Jesus, “Remember me when you come into power!”

43 Jesus replied, “I promise that today you will be with me in paradise.”[f]

The Death of Jesus

(Matthew 27.45-56; Mark 15.33-41; John 19.28-30)

44 Around noon the sky turned dark and stayed that way until the middle of the afternoon. 45 (D) The sun stopped shining, and the curtain in the temple[g] split down the middle. 46 (E) Jesus shouted, “Father, I put myself in your hands!” Then he died.

47 When the Roman officer saw what had happened, he praised God and said, “Jesus must really have been a good man!”

48 A crowd had gathered to see the terrible sight. Then after they had seen it, they felt brokenhearted and went home. 49 (F) All of Jesus' close friends and the women who had come with him from Galilee stood at a distance and watched.

Jesus Is Buried

(Matthew 27.57-61; Mark 15.42-47; John 19.38-42)

50-51 There was a man named Joseph, who was from Arimathea in Judea. Joseph was a good and honest man, and he was eager for God's kingdom to come. He was also a member of the council, but he did not agree with what they had decided.

52 Joseph went to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body. 53 He took the body down from the cross and wrapped it in fine cloth. Then he put it in a tomb that had been cut out of solid rock and had never been used. 54 It was Friday, and the Sabbath was about to begin.[h]

55 The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and watched how Jesus' body was placed in the tomb. 56 (G) Then they went to prepare some sweet-smelling spices for his burial. But on the Sabbath they rested, as the Law of Moses commands.

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Footnotes

  1. 23.7 Herod: Herod Antipas, the son of Herod the Great.
  2. 23.16,17 set free: Some manuscripts add, “Pilate said this, because at every Passover he was supposed to set one prisoner free for the Jewish people.”
  3. 23.31 If this can happen when the wood is green, what do you think will happen when it is dry: This saying probably means, “If this can happen to an innocent person, what do you think will happen to one who is guilty?”
  4. 23.33 “The Skull”: The place was probably given this name because it was near a large rock in the shape of a human skull.
  5. 23.34,35 Jesus said, “Father, forgive these people! They don't know what they're doing”: These words are not in some manuscripts.
  6. 23.43 paradise: In the Greek translation of the Old Testament, this word is used for the Garden of Eden. In New Testament times it was sometimes used for the place where God's people are happy and at rest, as they wait for the final judgment.
  7. 23.45 curtain in the temple: There were two curtains in the temple. One was at the entrance, and the other separated the holy place from the most holy place that the Jewish people thought of as God's home on earth. The second curtain is probably the one which is meant.
  8. 23.54 the Sabbath was about to begin: The Sabbath begins at sunset on Friday.

23 Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate.(A) And they began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man subverting our nation.(B) He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar(C) and claims to be Messiah, a king.”(D)

So Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“You have said so,” Jesus replied.

Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”(E)

But they insisted, “He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee(F) and has come all the way here.”

On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean.(G) When he learned that Jesus was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod,(H) who was also in Jerusalem at that time.

When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him.(I) From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer.(J) 10 The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. 11 Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe,(K) they sent him back to Pilate. 12 That day Herod and Pilate became friends(L)—before this they had been enemies.

13 Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, 14 and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him.(M) 15 Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death. 16 Therefore, I will punish him(N) and then release him.” [17] [a]

18 But the whole crowd shouted, “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!”(O) 19 (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.)

20 Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again. 21 But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”

22 For the third time he spoke to them: “Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have him punished and then release him.”(P)

23 But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. 24 So Pilate decided to grant their demand. 25 He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.

The Crucifixion of Jesus(Q)

26 As the soldiers led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene,(R) who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus.(S) 27 A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed(T) for him. 28 Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children.(U) 29 For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the childless women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’(V) 30 Then

“‘they will say to the mountains, “Fall on us!”
    and to the hills, “Cover us!”’[b](W)

31 For if people do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”(X)

32 Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed.(Y) 33 When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. 34 Jesus said, “Father,(Z) forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”[c](AA) And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.(AB)

35 The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him.(AC) They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is God’s Messiah, the Chosen One.”(AD)

36 The soldiers also came up and mocked him.(AE) They offered him wine vinegar(AF) 37 and said, “If you are the king of the Jews,(AG) save yourself.”

38 There was a written notice above him, which read: this is the king of the jews.(AH)

39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”(AI)

40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”(AJ)

42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.[d](AK)

43 Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”(AL)

The Death of Jesus(AM)

44 It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon,(AN) 45 for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple(AO) was torn in two.(AP) 46 Jesus called out with a loud voice,(AQ) “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”[e](AR) When he had said this, he breathed his last.(AS)

47 The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God(AT) and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.” 48 When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts(AU) and went away. 49 But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee,(AV) stood at a distance,(AW) watching these things.

The Burial of Jesus(AX)

50 Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, 51 who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea, and he himself was waiting for the kingdom of God.(AY) 52 Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body. 53 Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid. 54 It was Preparation Day,(AZ) and the Sabbath was about to begin.

55 The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee(BA) followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. 56 Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes.(BB) But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.(BC)

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 23:17 Some manuscripts include here words similar to Matt. 27:15 and Mark 15:6.
  2. Luke 23:30 Hosea 10:8
  3. Luke 23:34 Some early manuscripts do not have this sentence.
  4. Luke 23:42 Some manuscripts come with your kingly power
  5. Luke 23:46 Psalm 31:5