Jesus Delivered to Pilate

27 ^(A)When morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people ^(B)took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. ² And they bound him and ^(C)led him away and ^(D)delivered him over to ^(E)Pilate the governor.

Judas Hangs Himself

³ Then when ^(F)Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus^[a] was condemned, ^(G)he changed his mind and brought back ^(H)the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, ⁴ saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? ^(I)See to it yourself.” ⁵ And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, ^(J)he departed, and he went and hanged himself. ⁶ But the chief priests, taking the pieces of silver, said, “It is not lawful to put them into ^(K)the treasury, since it is blood money.” ⁷ So they took counsel and bought with them the potter's field as a burial place for strangers. ⁸ Therefore ^(L)that field has been called the Field of Blood ^(M)to this day. ^9 (N)Then was fulfilled what had been spoken by the prophet Jeremiah, saying, ^(O)“And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him on whom a price had been set by some of the sons of Israel, ¹⁰ and they gave them for the potter's field, as the Lord directed me.”

Jesus Before Pilate

^11 (P)Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you ^(Q)the King of the Jews?” Jesus said, ^(R)“You have said so.” ^12 (S)But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he gave no answer. ¹³ Then Pilate said to him, ^(T)“Do you not hear how many things they testify against you?” ¹⁴ But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed.

The Crowd Chooses Barabbas

^15 (U)Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any one prisoner whom they wanted. ¹⁶ And they had then a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. ¹⁷ So when they had gathered, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or ^(V)Jesus who is called Christ?” ¹⁸ For he knew that it was out ^(W)of envy that they had delivered him up. ¹⁹ Besides, while he was sitting on ^(X)the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with ^(Y)that righteous man, for I have suffered much because of him today ^(Z)in a dream.” ²⁰ Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ^(AA)ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. ²¹ The governor again said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” ²² Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” ^(AB)They all said, “Let him be crucified!” ²³ And he said, “Why? ^(AC)What evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Let him be crucified!”

Pilate Delivers Jesus to Be Crucified

²⁴ So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that ^(AD)a riot was beginning, he took water and ^(AE)washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of ^(AF)this man's blood;^{[b] (AG)}see to it yourselves.” ²⁵ And all the people answered, ^(AH)“His blood be on us and ^(AI)on our children!” ²⁶ Then he released for them Barabbas, and having ^(AJ)scourged^[c] Jesus, delivered him to be crucified.

Jesus Is Mocked

^27 (AK)Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the ^(AL)governor's headquarters,^[d] and they gathered the whole ^(AM)battalion^[e] before him. ²⁸ And they stripped him and put ^(AN)a scarlet robe on him, ²⁹ and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they ^(AO)mocked him, saying, “Hail, ^(AP)King of the Jews!” ³⁰ And ^(AQ)they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. ³¹ And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him and ^(AR)led him away to crucify him.

The Crucifixion

^32 (AS)(AT)As they went out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name. They compelled this man to ^(AU)carry his cross. ^33 (AV)And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), ^34 (AW)they offered him wine to drink, mixed with ^(AX)gall, but when he tasted it, he would not drink it. ³⁵ And when they had crucified him, ^(AY)they divided his garments among them by casting lots. ³⁶ Then they sat down and ^(AZ)kept watch over him there. ³⁷ And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, ^(BA)the King of the Jews.” ³⁸ Then two ^(BB)robbers were crucified with him, ^(BC)one on the right and one on the left. ³⁹ And ^(BD)those who passed by ^(BE)derided him, ^(BF)wagging their heads ⁴⁰ and saying, ^(BG)“You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! ^(BH)If you are ^(BI)the Son of God, come down from the cross.” ⁴¹ So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, ^42 (BJ)“He saved others; ^(BK)he cannot save himself. ^(BL)He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. ^43 (BM)He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” ^44 (BN)And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.

The Death of Jesus

⁴⁵ Now from the sixth hour^[f] there was darkness over all the land^[g] until the ninth hour.^{[h] 46} And about the ninth hour Jesus ^(BO)cried out with a loud voice, saying, ^(BP)“Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” ⁴⁷ And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, “This man is calling Elijah.” ⁴⁸ And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with ^(BQ)sour wine, and put it on a reed and ^(BR)gave it to him to drink. ⁴⁹ But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” ⁵⁰ And Jesus ^(BS)cried out again with a loud voice and ^(BT)yielded up his spirit.

⁵¹ And behold, ^(BU)the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And ^(BV)the earth shook, and the rocks were split. ⁵² The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of ^(BW)the saints ^(BX)who had fallen asleep were raised, ⁵³ and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into ^(BY)the holy city and appeared to many. ^54 (BZ)When the centurion and those who were with him, ^(CA)keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, ^(CB)“Truly this was the Son^[i] of God!”

⁵⁵ There were also ^(CC)many women there, looking on ^(CD)from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee, ^(CE)ministering to him, ⁵⁶ among whom were ^(CF)Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph and ^(CG)the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

Jesus Is Buried

^57 (CH)When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who also was a disciple of Jesus. ⁵⁸ He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. ⁵⁹ And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud ⁶⁰ and ^(CI)laid it in his own new tomb, ^(CJ)which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled ^(CK)a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away. ⁶¹ Mary Magdalene and ^(CL)the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.

The Guard at the Tomb

⁶² The next day, that is, after the day of ^(CM)Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate ⁶³ and said, “Sir, we remember how ^(CN)that impostor said, while he was still alive, ^(CO)‘After three days I will rise.’ ⁶⁴ Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, ^(CP)lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” ⁶⁵ Pilate said to them, “You have ^(CQ)a guard^[j] of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” ⁶⁶ So they went and made the tomb secure by ^(CR)sealing the stone and setting a guard.

The Resurrection

28 ^(CS)Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and ^(CT)the other Mary went to see the tomb. ² And behold, there was a great earthquake, for ^(CU)an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. ^3 (CV)His appearance was like lightning, and ^(CW)his clothing white as snow. ⁴ And for fear of him the guards trembled and ^(CX)became like dead men. ⁵ But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here, for he has risen, ^(CY)as he said. Come, see the place where he^[k] lay. ⁷ Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, ^(CZ)he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” ⁸ So they departed quickly from the tomb ^(DA)with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. ⁹ And behold, Jesus ^(DB)met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and ^(DC)took hold of his feet and ^(DD)worshiped him. ¹⁰ Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; ^(DE)go and tell ^(DF)my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”

The Report of the Guard

¹¹ While they were going, behold, some of ^(DG)the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. ¹² And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers ¹³ and said, “Tell people, ^(DH)‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ ¹⁴ And if this comes to ^(DI)the governor's ears, we will ^(DJ)satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” ¹⁵ So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews ^(DK)to this day.

The Great Commission

¹⁶ Now the eleven disciples ^(DL)went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. ¹⁷ And when they saw him they ^(DM)worshiped him, but some doubted. ¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, ^(DN)“All authority ^(DO)in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ^19 (DP)Go therefore and ^(DQ)make disciples of ^(DR)all nations, ^(DS)baptizing them ^(DT)in^{[l] (DU)}the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them ^(DV)to observe all that ^(DW)I have commanded you. And behold, ^(DX)I am with you always, to ^(DY)the end of the age.”

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, ^(DZ)the Son of God.^[m]

^2 (EA)As it is written in Isaiah the prophet,^[n]

^4 (EE)John appeared, baptizing in ^(EF)the wilderness and proclaiming ^(EG)a baptism of ^(EH)repentance ^(EI)for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵ And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, ^(EJ)confessing their sins. ⁶ Now John was ^(EK)clothed with camel's hair and ^(EL)wore a leather belt around his waist and ate ^(EM)locusts and ^(EN)wild honey. ⁷ And he preached, saying, ^(EO)“After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. ^8 (EP)I have baptized you with water, but ^(EQ)he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

The Baptism of Jesus

^9 (ER)In those days Jesus ^(ES)came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. ¹⁰ And when he came up out of the water, immediately he ^(ET)saw ^(EU)the heavens being torn open ^(EV)and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. ¹¹ And ^(EW)a voice came from heaven, ^(EX)“You are my beloved Son;^[p] with you I am well pleased.”

The Temptation of Jesus

^12 (EY)The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. ^13 (EZ)And he was in the wilderness forty days, being ^(FA)tempted by ^(FB)Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and ^(FC)the angels were ministering to him.

Jesus Begins His Ministry

^14 (FD)Now after John was arrested, Jesus ^(FE)came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, ¹⁵ and saying, ^(FF)“The time is fulfilled, and ^(FG)the kingdom of God is at hand;^{[q] (FH)}repent and believe in the gospel.”

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

^16 (FI)Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. ¹⁷ And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become ^(FJ)fishers of men.”^{[r] 18} And immediately they left their nets and followed him. ¹⁹ And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. ²⁰ And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him.

Jesus Heals a Man with an Unclean Spirit

^21 (FK)And they went into Capernaum, and immediately ^(FL)on the Sabbath ^(FM)he entered the synagogue and was teaching. ²² And ^(FN)they were astonished at his teaching, ^(FO)for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. ²³ And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, ^24 (FP)“What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? ^(FQ)I know who you are—^(FR)the Holy One of God.” ²⁵ But Jesus ^(FS)rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” ²⁶ And the unclean spirit, ^(FT)convulsing him and ^(FU)crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. ²⁷ And they were all ^(FV)amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? ^(FW)A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” ²⁸ And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.

Jesus Heals Many

^29 (FX)And immediately he^{[s] (FY)}left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. ³⁰ Now ^(FZ)Simon's mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. ³¹ And he came and ^(GA)took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.

³² That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or ^(GB)oppressed by demons. ³³ And the whole city was gathered together at the door. ^34 (GC)And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And ^(GD)he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

Jesus Preaches in Galilee

^35 (GE)And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and ^(GF)there he prayed. ³⁶ And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, ³⁷ and they found him and said to him, ^(GG)“Everyone is looking for you.” ³⁸ And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for ^(GH)that is why I came out.” ^39 (GI)And ^(GJ)he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.

Jesus Cleanses a Leper

^40 (GK)And a leper^[t] came to him, imploring him, and ^(GL)kneeling said to him, ^(GM)“If you will, you can make me clean.” ⁴¹ Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” ⁴² And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. ⁴³ And ^(GN)Jesus^[u] sternly charged him and sent him away at once, ⁴⁴ and said to him, ^(GO)“See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, ^(GP)show yourself to the priest and ^(GQ)offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, ^(GR)for a proof to them.” ^45 (GS)But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter ^(GT)a town, but was out in ^(GU)desolate places, and ^(GV)people were coming to him from every quarter.

Jesus Heals a Paralytic

2 And when he returned to ^(GW)Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. ² And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. ^3 (GX)And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. ⁴ And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, ^(GY)they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. ⁵ And when Jesus ^(GZ)saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, ^(HA)your sins are forgiven.” ⁶ Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, ⁷ “Why does this man speak like that? ^(HB)He is blaspheming! ^(HC)Who can forgive sins but God alone?” ⁸ And immediately Jesus, ^(HD)perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? ⁹ Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? ¹⁰ But that you may know that ^(HE)the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— ¹¹ “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” ¹² And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and ^(HF)glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

Jesus Calls Levi

¹³ He went out again beside the sea, and ^(HG)all the crowd was coming to him, and he was teaching them. ^14 (HH)And as he passed by, he saw ^(HI)Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.

¹⁵ And as he reclined at table in his house, many ^(HJ)tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. ¹⁶ And ^(HK)the scribes of^[v] the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, ^(HL)“Why does he eat^[w] with tax collectors and sinners?” ¹⁷ And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. ^(HM)I came not to call the righteous, ^(HN)but sinners.”

A Question About Fasting

¹⁸ Now ^(HO)John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, ^(HP)“Why do John's disciples and ^(HQ)the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” ¹⁹ And Jesus said to them, ^(HR)“Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. ^20 (HS)The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and ^(HT)then they will fast in that day. ²¹ No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. ²² And no one puts new wine into old ^(HU)wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.”^[x]

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

^23 (HV)One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples ^(HW)began to pluck heads of grain. ²⁴ And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, ^(HX)why are they doing ^(HY)what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” ²⁵ And he said to them, ^(HZ)“Have you never read ^(IA)what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: ²⁶ how he entered the house of God, in the time of^{[y] (IB)}Abiathar the high priest, and ate ^(IC)the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” ²⁷ And he said to them, ^(ID)“The Sabbath was made for man, ^(IE)not man for the Sabbath. ²⁸ So ^(IF)the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”

A Man with a Withered Hand

3 ^(IG)Again ^(IH)he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. ² And ^(II)they watched Jesus,^[z] to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. ³ And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” ⁴ And he said to them, ^(IJ)“Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. ⁵ And he ^(IK)looked around at them with anger, grieved at ^(IL)their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” ^(IM)He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. ^6 (IN)The Pharisees went out and immediately ^(IO)held counsel with ^(IP)the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.

A Great Crowd Follows Jesus

^7 (IQ)Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and ^(IR)a great crowd followed, from Galilee and Judea ⁸ and Jerusalem and ^(IS)Idumea and from beyond the Jordan and from around ^(IT)Tyre and Sidon. When the great crowd heard all that he was doing, they came to him. ⁹ And he told his disciples to ^(IU)have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they ^(IV)crush him, ¹⁰ for ^(IW)he had healed many, so that all who had ^(IX)diseases pressed around him ^(IY)to touch him. ^11 (IZ)And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they ^(JA)fell down before him and cried out, “You are ^(JB)the Son of God.” ¹² And ^(JC)he strictly ordered them not to make him known.

The Twelve Apostles

^13 (JD)And he went up on the mountain and called to him those ^(JE)whom he desired, and they came to him. ^14 (JF)And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach ^15 (JG)and have authority to cast out demons. ¹⁶ He appointed the twelve: ^(JH)Simon (to whom ^(JI)he gave the name Peter); ^17 (JJ)James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); ¹⁸ Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and ^(JK)Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot,^{[aa] 19} and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

²⁰ Then he went ^(JL)home, and the crowd gathered again, ^(JM)so that they could not even eat. ^21 (JN)And when ^(JO)his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He ^(JP)is out of his mind.”

Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit

²² And ^(JQ)the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, ^(JR)“He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.” ^23 (JS)And he called them to him and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? ²⁴ If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. ²⁵ And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. ²⁶ And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. ²⁷ But ^(JT)no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. ^(JU)Then indeed he may plunder his house.

^28 (JV)“Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, ²⁹ but whoever ^(JW)blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”— ³⁰ for they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

Jesus' Mother and Brothers

^31 (JX)And his mother and his ^(JY)brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. ³² And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers^[ab] are outside, seeking you.” ³³ And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” ³⁴ And ^(JZ)looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! ^35 (KA)For whoever ^(KB)does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”