Mark 13-16

New American Standard Bible 1995

Things to Come

13 ^(A)As He was going out of the temple, one of His disciples *said to Him, “Teacher, behold ^[a]what wonderful stones and ^[b]what wonderful buildings!” ² And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? ^(B)Not one stone will be left upon another which will not be torn down.”

³ As He was sitting on ^(C)the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, ^(D)Peter and ^[c]James and John and Andrew were questioning Him privately, ⁴ “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the ^[d]sign when all these things are going to be fulfilled?” ⁵ And Jesus began to say to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. ⁶ Many will come in My name, saying, ‘^(E)I am He!’ and will mislead many. ⁷ When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened; those things must take place; but that is not yet the end. ⁸ For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will also be famines. These things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.

⁹ “But ^[e]be on your guard; for they will ^(F)deliver you to the ^[f]courts, and you will be flogged ^(G)in the synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them. ^10 (H)The gospel must first be preached to all the nations. ^11 (I)When they ^[g]arrest you and hand you over, do not worry beforehand about what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but it is the Holy Spirit. ¹² Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and ^[h]have them put to death. ^13 (J)You will be hated by all because of My name, but the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.

¹⁴ “But ^(K)when you see the ^(L)abomination of desolation standing where it should not be (let the reader understand), then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. ^15 (M)The one who is on the housetop must not go down, or go in to get anything out of his house; ¹⁶ and the one who is in the field must not turn back to get his coat. ¹⁷ But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! ¹⁸ But pray that it may not happen in the winter. ¹⁹ For those days will be a time of tribulation such as has not occurred ^(N)since the beginning of the creation which God created until now, and never will. ²⁰ Unless the Lord had shortened those days, no ^[i]life would have been saved; but for the sake of the ^[j]elect, whom He chose, He shortened the days. ²¹ And then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is ^[k]the Christ’; or, ‘Behold, He is there’; do not believe him; ²² for false Christs and ^(O)false prophets will arise, and will show ^[l](P)signs and ^(Q)wonders, in order to lead astray, if possible, the elect. ²³ But take heed; behold, I have told you everything in advance.

The Return of Christ

²⁴ “But in those days, after that tribulation, ^(R)the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light, ^25 (S)and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers that are in ^[m]the heavens will be shaken. ²⁶ Then they will see ^(T)the Son of Man ^(U)coming in clouds with great power and glory. ²⁷ And then He will send forth the angels, and ^(V)will gather together His ^[n]elect from the four winds, ^(W)from the farthest end of the earth to the farthest end of heaven.

²⁸ “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. ²⁹ Even so, you too, when you see these things happening, ^[o]recognize that ^[p]He is near, right at the ^[q]door. ³⁰ Truly I say to you, this ^[r]generation will not pass away until all these things take place. ³¹ Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away. ^32 (X)But of that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.

³³ “Take heed, ^(Y)keep on the alert; for you do not know when the appointed time ^[s]will come. ^34 (Z)It is like a man away on a journey, who upon leaving his house and ^[t]putting his slaves in charge, assigning to each one his task, also commanded the doorkeeper to stay on the alert. ³⁵ Therefore, ^(AA)be on the alert—for you do not know when the ^[u]master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, at midnight, or ^(AB)when the rooster crows, or ^(AC)in the morning— ³⁶ in case he should come suddenly and find you ^(AD)asleep. ³⁷ What I say to you I say to all, ‘^(AE)Be on the alert!’”

Death Plot and Anointing

14 ^(AF)Now ^(AG)the Passover and Unleavened Bread were two days away; and the chief priests and the scribes ^(AH)were seeking how to seize Him by stealth and kill Him; ² for they were saying, “Not during the festival, otherwise there might be a riot of the people.”

^3 (AI)While He was in ^(AJ)Bethany at the home of Simon the leper, and reclining at the table, there came a woman with an alabaster vial of very ^(AK)costly perfume of pure ^[v]nard; and she broke the vial and poured it over His head. ⁴ But some were indignantly remarking to one another, “Why has this perfume been wasted? ⁵ For this perfume might have been sold for over three hundred ^[w]denarii, and the money given to the poor.” And they were scolding her. ⁶ But Jesus said, “Let her alone; why do you bother her? She has done a good deed to Me. ⁷ For you always have ^(AL)the poor with you, and whenever you wish you can do good to them; but you do not always have Me. ⁸ She has done what she could; ^(AM)she has anointed My body beforehand for the burial. ⁹ Truly I say to you, ^(AN)wherever the gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of in memory of her.”

^10 (AO)Then Judas Iscariot, ^(AP)who was one of the twelve, went off to the chief priests in order to ^[x]betray Him to them. ¹¹ They were glad when they heard this, and promised to give him money. And he began seeking how to betray Him at an opportune time.

The Last Passover

^12 (AQ)On the first day of ^(AR)Unleavened Bread, when ^[y]the Passover lamb was being ^(AS)sacrificed, His disciples *said to Him, “Where do You want us to go and prepare for You to eat the Passover?” ¹³ And He *sent two of His disciples and *said to them, “Go into the city, and a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him; ¹⁴ and wherever he enters, say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is My ^(AT)guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?”’ ¹⁵ And he himself will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; prepare for us there.” ¹⁶ The disciples went out and came to the city, and found it just as He had told them; and they prepared the Passover.

^17 (AU)When it was evening He *came with the twelve. ¹⁸ As they were reclining at the table and eating, Jesus said, “Truly I say to you that one of you will ^[z]betray Me—^[aa]one who is eating with Me.” ¹⁹ They began to be grieved and to say to Him one by one, “Surely not I?” ²⁰ And He said to them, “It is one of the twelve, ^[ab]one who dips with Me in the bowl. ²¹ For the Son of Man is to go just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man ^[ac]by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good ^[ad]for that man if he had not been born.”

The Lord’s Supper

^22 (AV)While they were eating, He took some bread, and ^[ae]after a ^(AW)blessing He broke it, and gave it to them, and said, “Take it; this is My body.” ²³ And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. ²⁴ And He said to them, “This is My ^(AX)blood of the ^(AY)covenant, which is poured out for many. ²⁵ Truly I say to you, I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

^26 (AZ)After singing a hymn, they went out to ^(BA)the Mount of Olives.

^27 (BB)And Jesus *said to them, “You will all ^[af]fall away, because it is written, ‘^(BC)I will strike down the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.’ ²⁸ But after I have been raised, ^(BD)I will go ahead of you to Galilee.” ²⁹ But Peter said to Him, “Even though all may ^[ag]fall away, yet I will not.” ³⁰ And Jesus *said to him, “Truly I say to you, that ^[ah](BE)this very night, before ^(BF)a rooster crows twice, you yourself will deny Me three times.” ³¹ But Peter kept saying insistently, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” And they all were saying the same thing also.

Jesus in Gethsemane

^32 (BG)They *came to a place named Gethsemane; and He *said to His disciples, “Sit here until I have prayed.” ³³ And He *took with Him Peter and ^[ai]James and John, and began to be very ^(BH)distressed and troubled. ³⁴ And He *said to them, “^(BI)My soul is deeply grieved to the point of death; remain here and keep watch.” ³⁵ And He went a little beyond them, and fell to the ground and began to pray that if it were possible, ^(BJ)the hour might ^[aj]pass Him by. ³⁶ And He was saying, “^(BK)Abba! Father! All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; ^(BL)yet not what I will, but what You will.” ³⁷ And He *came and *found them sleeping, and *said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? ^38 (BM)Keep watching and praying that you may not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” ³⁹ Again He went away and prayed, saying the same ^[ak]words. ⁴⁰ And again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him. ⁴¹ And He *came the third time, and *said to them, “^[al]Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough; ^(BN)the hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being ^[am]betrayed into the hands of sinners. ⁴² Get up, let us be going; behold, the one who betrays Me is at hand!”

Betrayal and Arrest

^43 (BO)Immediately while He was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, *came up ^[an]accompanied by a crowd with swords and clubs, who were from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. ⁴⁴ Now he who was betraying Him had given them a signal, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him and lead Him away ^[ao]under guard.” ⁴⁵ After coming, Judas immediately went to Him, saying, “^(BP)Rabbi!” and kissed Him. ⁴⁶ They laid hands on Him and seized Him. ⁴⁷ But one of those who stood by drew his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest and ^[ap]cut off his ear. ⁴⁸ And Jesus said to them, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me, as you would against a robber? ⁴⁹ Every day I was with you ^(BQ)in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me; but this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures.” ⁵⁰ And they all left Him and fled.

⁵¹ A young man was following Him, wearing nothing but a linen sheet over his naked body; and they *seized him. ⁵² But he ^[aq]pulled free of the linen sheet and escaped naked.

Jesus before His Accusers

^53 (BR)They led Jesus away to the high priest; and all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes *gathered together. ⁵⁴ Peter had followed Him at a distance, ^(BS)right into ^(BT)the courtyard of the high priest; and he was sitting with the ^[ar]officers and ^(BU)warming himself at the ^[as]fire. ⁵⁵ Now the chief priests and the whole ^[at](BV)Council kept trying to obtain testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, and they were not finding any. ⁵⁶ For many were giving false testimony against Him, but their testimony was not consistent. ⁵⁷ Some stood up and began to give false testimony against Him, saying, ⁵⁸ “We heard Him say, ‘^(BW)I will destroy this ^[au]temple made with hands, and in three days I will build another made without hands.’” ⁵⁹ Not even in this respect was their testimony consistent. ⁶⁰ The high priest stood up and came forward and questioned Jesus, saying, “Do You not answer? ^[av]What is it that these men are testifying against You?” ^61 (BX)But He kept silent and did not answer. ^(BY)Again the high priest was questioning Him, and ^[aw]saying to Him, “Are You ^[ax]the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?” ⁶² And Jesus said, “I am; and you shall see ^(BZ)the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and ^(CA)coming with the clouds of heaven.” ^63 (CB)Tearing his clothes, the high priest *said, “What further need do we have of witnesses? ⁶⁴ You have heard the ^(CC)blasphemy; how does it seem to you?” And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death. ⁶⁵ Some began to ^(CD)spit at Him, and ^[ay](CE)to blindfold Him, and to beat Him with their fists, and to say to Him, “^(CF)Prophesy!” And the officers ^[az]received Him with ^[ba]slaps in the face.

Peter’s Denials

^66 (CG)As Peter was below in ^(CH)the courtyard, one of the servant-girls of the high priest *came, ⁶⁷ and seeing Peter ^(CI)warming himself, she looked at him and *said, “You also were with Jesus the ^(CJ)Nazarene.” ⁶⁸ But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are talking about.” And he ^(CK)went out onto the ^[bb]porch.^{[bc] 69} The servant-girl saw him, and began once more to say to the bystanders, “This is one of them!” ⁷⁰ But again ^(CL)he denied it. And after a little while the bystanders were again saying to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, ^(CM)for you are a Galilean too.” ⁷¹ But he began to ^[bd]curse and swear, “I do not know this man you are talking about!” ⁷² Immediately a rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had made the remark to him, “Before ^(CN)a rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” ^[be]And he began to weep.

Jesus before Pilate

15 ^(CO)Early in the morning the chief priests with the elders and scribes and the whole ^[bf](CP)Council, immediately held a consultation; and binding Jesus, they led Him away and delivered Him to Pilate. ^2 (CQ)Pilate questioned Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” And He *answered him, “It is as you say.” ³ The chief priests began to accuse Him ^[bg]harshly. ⁴ Then Pilate questioned Him again, saying, “Do You not answer? See how many charges they bring against You!” ⁵ But Jesus ^(CR)made no further answer; so Pilate was amazed.

^6 (CS)Now at the feast he used to release for them any one prisoner whom they requested. ⁷ The man named Barabbas had been imprisoned with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the insurrection. ⁸ The crowd went up and began asking him to do as he had been accustomed to do for them. ⁹ Pilate answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?” ¹⁰ For he was aware that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy. ¹¹ But the chief priests stirred up the crowd ^(CT)to ask him to release Barabbas for them instead. ¹² Answering again, Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?” ¹³ They shouted ^[bh]back, “Crucify Him!” ¹⁴ But Pilate said to them, “Why, what evil has He done?” But they shouted all the more, “Crucify Him!” ¹⁵ Wishing to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas for them, and after having Jesus ^(CU)scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified.

Jesus Is Mocked

^16 (CV)The soldiers took Him away into ^(CW)the ^[bi]palace (that is, the Praetorium), and they *called together the whole Roman ^[bj](CX)cohort. ¹⁷ They *dressed Him up in purple, and after twisting a crown of thorns, they put it on Him; ¹⁸ and they began to acclaim Him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” ¹⁹ They kept beating His head with a ^[bk]reed, and spitting on Him, and kneeling and bowing before Him. ²⁰ After they had mocked Him, they took the purple robe off Him and put His own garments on Him. And they *led Him out to crucify Him.

^21 (CY)They *pressed into service a passer-by coming from the country, Simon of Cyrene (the father of Alexander and ^(CZ)Rufus), to bear His cross.

The Crucifixion

^22 (DA)Then they *brought Him to the place ^(DB)Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull. ²³ They tried to give Him ^(DC)wine mixed with myrrh; but He did not take it. ²⁴ And they *crucified Him, and *^(DD)divided up His garments among themselves, casting ^[bl]lots for them to decide ^[bm]what each man should take. ²⁵ It was the ^[bn](DE)third hour ^[bo]when they crucified Him. ²⁶ The inscription of the charge against Him ^[bp]read, “^(DF)THE KING OF THE JEWS.”

²⁷ They *crucified two robbers with Him, one on His right and one on His left. ²⁸ [^[bq]And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “And He was numbered with transgressors.”] ²⁹ Those passing by were ^[br]hurling abuse at Him, ^(DG)wagging their heads, and saying, “Ha! You who are going to ^(DH)destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, ³⁰ save Yourself, and come down from the cross!” ³¹ In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes, were mocking Him among themselves and saying, “^(DI)He saved others; ^[bs]He cannot save Himself. ³² Let this Christ, ^(DJ)the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we may see and believe!” ^(DK)Those who were crucified with Him were also insulting Him.

^33 (DL)When the ^[bt](DM)sixth hour came, darkness ^[bu]fell over the whole land until the ^[bv](DN)ninth hour. ³⁴ At the ^(DO)ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “^(DP)Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” ³⁵ When some of the bystanders heard it, they began saying, “Behold, He is calling for Elijah.” ³⁶ Someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink, saying, “^[bw]Let us see whether Elijah will come to take Him down.” ^37 (DQ)And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed His last. ^38 (DR)And the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. ^39 (DS)When the centurion, who was standing ^[bx]right in front of Him, saw ^[by]the way He breathed His last, he said, “Truly this man was ^[bz]the Son of God!”

^40 (DT)There were also some women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of ^[ca]James ^(DU)the ^[cb]Less and Joses, and ^(DV)Salome. ⁴¹ When He was in Galilee, they used to follow Him and ^[cc](DW)minister to Him; and there were many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem.

Jesus Is Buried

^42 (DX)When evening had already come, because it was ^(DY)the preparation day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, ⁴³ Joseph of Arimathea came, a ^(DZ)prominent member of the Council, who himself was ^(EA)waiting for the kingdom of God; and he ^(EB)gathered up courage and went in before Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus. ⁴⁴ Pilate wondered if He was dead by this time, and summoning the centurion, he questioned him as to whether He was already dead. ⁴⁵ And ascertaining this from ^(EC)the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph. ⁴⁶ Joseph bought a linen cloth, took Him down, wrapped Him in the linen cloth and laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out in the rock; and he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. ^47 (ED)Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses were looking on to see where He was laid.

The Resurrection

16 ^(EE)When the Sabbath was over, ^(EF)Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of ^[cd]James, and Salome, ^(EG)bought spices, so that they might come and anoint Him. ² Very early on the first day of the week, they *came to the tomb when the sun had risen. ³ They were saying to one another, “Who will roll away ^(EH)the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” ⁴ Looking up, they *saw that the stone had been rolled away, ^[ce]although it was extremely large. ^5 (EI)Entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe; and they ^(EJ)were amazed. ⁶ And he *said to them, “^(EK)Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the ^(EL)Nazarene, who has been crucified. ^(EM)He has risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him. ⁷ But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘^(EN)He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you.’” ⁸ They went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had gripped them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

⁹ [^[cf]Now after He had risen early on the first day of the week, He first appeared to ^(EO)Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons. ^10 (EP)She went and reported to those who had been with Him, while they were mourning and weeping. ¹¹ When they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, ^(EQ)they refused to believe it.

¹² After that, ^(ER)He appeared in a different form ^(ES)to two of them while they were walking along on their way to the country. ¹³ They went away and reported it to the others, but they ^(ET)did not believe them either.

The Disciples Commissioned

¹⁴ Afterward ^(EU)He appeared ^(EV)to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at the table; and He reproached them for their ^(EW)unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who had seen Him after He had risen. ¹⁵ And He said to them, “^(EX)Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. ^16 (EY)He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned. ¹⁷ These ^[cg]signs will accompany those who have believed: ^(EZ)in My name they will cast out demons, they will ^(FA)speak with new tongues; ¹⁸ they will ^(FB)pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will ^(FC)lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

¹⁹ So then, when the Lord Jesus had ^(FD)spoken to them, He ^(FE)was received up into heaven and ^(FF)sat down at the right hand of God. ²⁰ And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the ^[ch]signs that followed.]

[^[ci]And they promptly reported all these instructions to Peter and his companions. And after that, Jesus Himself sent out through them from east to west the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation.]