Matthew 26
New Matthew Bible
The Magdalene anoints Christ. They eat the Passover lamb and the supper of the Lord. Christ prays in the garden. Judas betrays him. Peter strikes off Malcus’ ear. Christ is accused by false witnesses. Peter denies him.
26 And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, 2 You know that after two days will be the Passover. And the Son of man will be delivered to be crucified.
3 Then the chief priests, scribes, and elders of the people assembled together at the palace of the high priest called Caiaphas 4 and held a council, how they might take Jesus by subtlety and kill him. 5 But, they said, not on the holy day, lest any uproar arise among the people.
6 When Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, 7 there came to him a woman who had an alabaster jar of precious anointing oil, and poured it on his head as he sat at the board. 8 When his disciples saw that, they were indignant, saying, Why this waste? 9 This oyntment might well have been sold, and the money given to the poor. 10 When Jesus understood this he said to them, Why do you trouble the woman? She has wrought a good work upon me. 11 For you will have poor folk always with you, but me you will not have always. 12 And in that she poured this oyntment on my body, she did it to bury me with. 13 Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout all the world, there also will this that she has done be told, for a memorial of her.
14 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, What will you give me, and I will deliver him to you? And they agreed with him for thirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that time, he sought an opportunity to betray him.
17 On the first day of sweet bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying to him, Where would you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover lamb? 18 And he said, Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, The Master says, My time is at hand; I will keep my Passover at your place with my disciples.
19 And the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and made ready the Passover lamb.
20 When the evening was come, he sat down with the twelve. 21 And as they were eating he said, Truly I say to you that one of you will betray me. 22 And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say to him, Is it I, Master? 23 He answered and said, He who dips his hand with me in the dish, the same will betray me. 24 The Son of man goes as it is written of him. But woe is to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed. It would have been good for that man if he had never been born.
25 Then Judas who betrayed him answered and said, Is it I, Master? Jesus said to him, You have said it.
26 As they were eating, Jesus took bread and gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, Take, eat; this is my body. 27 And he took the cup, and thanked, and gave it to them, saying, Drink of it, everyone. 28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. 29 I say to you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine until that day when I shall drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.
30 And when they had sung praises, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 31 Then Jesus said to them, You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written: I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered abroad. 32 But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee.
33 Peter answered and said to him, Even if everyone were to fall away because of you, yet I would never fall away. 34 Jesus said to him, Truly I say to you that this same night, before the cock crows, you will deny me three times. 35 Peter said to him, If I had to die with you, yet I would not deny you. Likewise also said all the disciples.
36 Then Jesus went with them to a place which is called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, Sit here while I go and pray yonder. 37 And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful, and to be in an agony. 38 Then said Jesus to them, My soul is heavy, even unto death. You stay here, and watch with me.
39 And he went a little apart and fell flat on his face and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.
40 And he came back to the disciples and found them asleep, and said to Peter, What, could you not watch with me for one hour? 41 Watch, and pray that you do not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.
42 He went away once more and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup cannot pass away from me but that I drink of it, thy will be fulfilled. 43 And he came and found his disciples asleep again. For their eyes were heavy. 44 And he left them and went again and prayed the third time, saying the same words. 45 Then he came to his disciples and said to them, Sleep on now, and take your rest! Take heed: the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Arise, let us be going. Behold, he who betrays me is at hand.
47 While he was yet speaking, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a large band of men bearing swords and clubs, sent by the chief priests and elders of the people. 48 And he who betrayed him had arranged a sign, saying, Whomever I kiss, he is the one; lay hands on him. 49 And at once he went up to Jesus and said, Hail, Master! and kissed him. 50 And Jesus said to him, Friend, why have you come? Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and took him.
51 And at that, one of the men who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. 52 Then said Jesus to him, Put your sword back in its sheath. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword. 53 Or do you think I cannot now pray to my Father, and he would send me more than twelve legions of angels? 54 But how then would the scriptures be fulfilled? For this is how it must be.
55 At the same time Jesus said to the throng, You have come out as if against a thief, with swords and clubs to take me. I sat daily teaching in the temple among you, and you did not take me. 56 All this was done so that the scriptures of the prophets may be fulfilled.
57 Then all the disciples forsook him and fled.
And they took Jesus and led him to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled. 58 And Peter followed him from afar off to the high priest’s palace, and went in and sat with the servants, to see the end of it.
59 The chief priests and the elders and all the council sought false witness against Jesus in order to put him to death, 60 but found none. Though many false witnesses came forward, yet they found none. At the last came two false witnesses, 61 and said, This fellow said, I can destroy the temple of God and build it again in three days.
62 And the chief priest arose and said to Jesus, Do you answer nothing? How is it that these men bear witness against you? 63 But Jesus held his peace. And the chief priest spoke and said to him, I charge you in the name of the living God to tell us if you are Christ, the Son of God.
64 Jesus said to him, It is as you have said. But I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and come in the clouds of the sky.
65 Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, He has blasphemed! Why do we need any more witnesses? Here, now you have heard his blasphemy. 66 What do you think? They answered and said, He is worthy to die. 67 Then they spat in his face and buffeted him with fists. And others struck him with the palm of their hands on the face, 68 saying, Tell us, Christ, who is it that hit you?
69 Peter was sitting out in the centre courtyard. And a maidservant came to him, saying, You also were with Jesus of Galilee. 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, I don’t know what you are saying. 71 When he had gone out into the porch, another servant girl saw him and said to the people who were there, This fellow was also with Jesus of Nazareth. 72 And again Peter denied with an oath that he knew the man. 73 And after a while, some people standing nearby came up and said to Peter, Surely you are also one of them, for your speech gives you away.
74 Then he began to curse, and to swear that he did not know the man. And immediately the cock crew. 75 And Peter remembered the words of Jesus, who had said to him, Before the cock crows, you will deny me three times. And he went out at the doors and wept bitterly.
Matthew 26
Complete Jewish Bible
26 When Yeshua had finished speaking, he said to his talmidim, 2 “As you know, Pesach is two days away, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be nailed to the execution-stake.”
3 Then the head cohanim and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of Kayafa the cohen hagadol. 4 They made plans to arrest Yeshua surreptitiously and have him put to death; 5 but they said, “Not during the festival, or the people will riot.”
6 Yeshua was in Beit-Anyah, at the home of Shim‘on, the man who had had tzara’at. 7 A woman who had an alabaster jar filled with very expensive perfume approached Yeshua while he was eating and began pouring it on his head. 8 When the talmidim saw it, they became very angry. “Why this waste?” they asked. 9 “This could have been sold for a lot of money and given to the poor.” 10 But Yeshua, aware of what was going on, said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing for me. 11 The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. 12 She poured this perfume on me to prepare my body for burial. 13 Yes! I tell you that throughout the whole world, wherever this Good News is proclaimed, what she has done will be told in her memory.”
14 Then one of the Twelve, the one called Y’hudah from K’riot, went to the head cohanim 15 and said, “What are you willing to give me if I turn Yeshua over to you?” They counted out thirty silver coins and gave them to Y’hudah.[a] 16 From then on he looked for a good opportunity to betray him.
17 On the first day for matzah, the talmidim came to Yeshua and asked, “Where do you want us to prepare your Seder?” 18 “Go into the city, to so-and-so,” he replied, “and tell him that the Rabbi says, ‘My time is near, my talmidim and I are celebrating Pesach at your house.’” 19 The talmidim did as Yeshua directed and prepared the Seder.
20 When evening came, Yeshua reclined with the twelve talmidim; 21 and as they were eating, he said, “Yes, I tell you that one of you is going to betray me.” 22 They became terribly upset and began asking him, one after the other, “Lord, you don’t mean me, do you?” 23 He answered, “The one who dips his matzah in the dish with me is the one who will betray me. 24 The Son of Man will die just as the Tanakh says he will; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for him had he never been born!” 25 Y’hudah, the one who was betraying him, then asked, “Surely, Rabbi, you don’t mean me?” He answered, “The words are yours.”
26 While they were eating, Yeshua took a piece of matzah, made the b’rakhah, broke it, gave it to the talmidim and said, “Take! Eat! This is my body!” 27 Also he took a cup of wine, made the b’rakhah, and gave it to them, saying, “All of you, drink from it! 28 For this is my blood, which ratifies the New Covenant, my blood shed on behalf of many, so that they may have their sins forgiven. 29 I tell you, I will not drink this ‘fruit of the vine’ again until the day I drink new wine with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”
30 After singing the Hallel, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 31 Yeshua then said to them, “Tonight you will all lose faith in me, as the Tanakh says, ‘I will strike the shepherd dead, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’[b] 32 But after I have been raised, I will go ahead of you into the Galil.” 33 “I will never lose faith in you,” Kefa answered, “even if everyone else does.” 34 Yeshua said to him, “Yes! I tell you that tonight before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!” 35 “Even if I must die with you,” Kefa replied, “I will never disown you!” And all the talmidim said the same thing.
36 Then Yeshua went with his talmidim to a place called Gat-Sh’manim and said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 He took with him Kefa and Zavdai’s two sons. Grief and anguish came over him, 38 and he said to them, “My heart is so filled with sadness that I could die! Remain here and stay awake with me.” 39 Going on a little farther, he fell on his face, praying, “My Father, if possible, let this cup pass from me! Yet — not what I want, but what you want!” 40 He returned to the talmidim and found them sleeping. He said to Kefa, “Were you so weak that you couldn’t stay awake with me for even an hour? 41 Stay awake, and pray that you will not be put to the test — the spirit indeed is eager, but human nature is weak.”
42 A second time he went off and prayed. “My Father, if this cup cannot pass away unless I drink it, let what you want be done.” 43 Again he returned and found them sleeping, their eyes were so heavy.
44 Leaving them again, he went off and prayed a third time, saying the same words. 45 Then he came to the talmidim and said, “For now, go on sleeping, take your rest. . . . Look! The time has come for the Son of Man to be betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Get up! Let’s go! Here comes my betrayer!”
47 While Yeshua was still speaking, Y’hudah (one of the Twelve!) came, and with him a large crowd carrying swords and clubs, from the head cohanim and elders of the people. 48 The betrayer had arranged to give them a signal: “The man I kiss is the one you want — grab him!” 49 He went straight up to Yeshua, said, “Shalom, Rabbi!” and kissed him. 50 Yeshua said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they moved forward, laid hold of Yeshua and arrested him.
51 At that, one of the men with Yeshua reached for his sword, drew it out and struck at the servant of the cohen hagadol, cutting off his ear. 52 Yeshua said to him, “Put your sword back where it belongs, for everyone who uses the sword will die by the sword. 53 Don’t you know that I can ask my Father, and he will instantly provide more than a dozen armies of angels to help me? 54 But if I did that, how could the passages in the Tanakh be fulfilled that say it has to happen this way?”
55 Then Yeshua addressed the crowd: “So you came out to take me with swords and clubs, the way you would the leader of a rebellion? Every day I sat in the Temple court, teaching; and you didn’t seize me then. 56 But all this has happened so that what the prophets wrote may be fulfilled.” Then the talmidim all deserted him and ran away.
57 Those who had seized Yeshua led him off to Kayafa the cohen hagadol, where the Torah-teachers and elders were assembled. 58 Kefa followed him at a distance as far as the courtyard of the cohen hagadol; then he went inside and sat down with the guards to see what the outcome would be.
59 The head cohanim and the whole Sanhedrin looked for some false evidence against Yeshua, so that they might put him to death. 60 But they didn’t find any, even though many liars came forward to give testimony. At last, however, two people came forward and said, 61 “This man said, ‘I can tear down God’s Temple and build it again in three days.’” 62 The cohen hagadol stood up and said, “Have you nothing to say to the accusation these men are making?” 63 Yeshua remained silent. The cohen hagadol said to him, “I put you under oath! By the living God, tell us if you are the Mashiach, the Son of God!” 64 Yeshua said to him, “The words are your own. But I tell you that one day you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of HaG’vurah and coming on the clouds of heaven.”[c] 65 At this, the cohen hagadol tore his robes. “Blasphemy!” he said. “Why do we still need witnesses? You heard him blaspheme! 66 What is your verdict?” “Guilty,” they answered. “He deserves death!” 67 Then they spit in his face and pounded him with their fists; and those who were beating him 68 said, “Now, you ‘Messiah,’ ‘prophesy’ to us: who hit you that time?”
69 Kefa was sitting outside in the courtyard when a servant girl came up to him. “You too were with Yeshua from the Galil,” she said. 70 But he denied it in front of everyone — “I don’t know what you’re talking about!” 71 He went out onto the porch, and another girl saw him and said to the people there, “This man was with Yeshua of Natzeret.” 72 Again he denied it, swearing, “I don’t know the man!” 73 After a little while, the bystanders approached Kefa and said, “You must be one of them — your accent gives you away.” 74 This time he began to invoke a curse on himself as he swore, “I do not know the man!” — and immediately a rooster crowed. 75 Kefa remembered what Yeshua had said, “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times”; and he went outside and cried bitterly.
Footnotes
- Matthew 26:15 Zechariah 11:12
- Matthew 26:31 Zechariah 13:7
- Matthew 26:64 Daniel 7:13; Psalm 110:1
Copyright © 2016 by Ruth Magnusson (Davis). Includes emendations to February 2022. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.