The Plot to Kill Jesus(A)

22 Now (B)the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called Passover. And (C)the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might kill Him, for they feared the people.

(D)Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the (E)twelve. So he went his way and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him to them. And they were glad, and (F)agreed to give him money. So he promised and sought opportunity to (G)betray Him to them in the absence of the multitude.

Jesus and His Disciples Prepare the Passover

(H)Then came the Day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover must be [a]killed. And He sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat.”

So they said to Him, “Where do You want us to prepare?”

10 And He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him into the house which he enters. 11 Then you shall say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, “Where is the guest room where I may eat the Passover with My disciples?” ’ 12 Then he will show you a large, furnished upper room; there make ready.”

13 So they went and (I)found it just as He had said to them, and they prepared the Passover.

Jesus Institutes the Lord’s Supper

14 (J)When the hour had come, He sat down, and the [b]twelve apostles with Him. 15 Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; 16 for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it (K)until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”

17 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves; 18 for (L)I say to you, [c]I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

19 (M)And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My (N)body which is given for you; (O)do this in remembrance of Me.”

20 Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, (P)“This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you. 21 (Q)But behold, the hand of My betrayer is with Me on the table. 22 (R)And truly the Son of Man goes (S)as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!”

23 (T)Then they began to question among themselves, which of them it was who would do this thing.

The Disciples Argue About Greatness

24 (U)Now there was also a dispute among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest. 25 (V)And He said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called ‘benefactors.’ 26 (W)But not so among you; on the contrary, (X)he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves. 27 (Y)For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet (Z)I am among you as the One who serves.

28 “But you are those who have continued with Me in (AA)My trials. 29 And (AB)I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, 30 that (AC)you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, (AD)and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial(AE)

31 [d]And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, (AF)Satan has asked for you, that he may (AG)sift you as wheat. 32 But (AH)I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, (AI)strengthen your brethren.”

33 But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.”

34 (AJ)Then He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.”

Supplies for the Road

35 (AK)And He said to them, “When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?”

So they said, “Nothing.”

36 Then He said to them, “But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one. 37 For I say to you that this which is written must still be [e]accomplished in Me: (AL)‘And He was numbered with the transgressors.’ For the things concerning Me have an end.”

38 So they said, “Lord, look, here are two swords.”

And He said to them, “It is enough.”

The Prayer in the Garden(AM)

39 (AN)Coming out, (AO)He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him. 40 (AP)When He came to the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

41 (AQ)And He was withdrawn from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and prayed, 42 saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless (AR)not My will, but Yours, be done.” 43 [f]Then (AS)an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. 44 (AT)And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

45 When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. 46 Then He said to them, “Why (AU)do you sleep? Rise and (AV)pray, lest you enter into temptation.”

Betrayal and Arrest in Gethsemane(AW)

47 And while He was still speaking, (AX)behold, a multitude; and he who was called (AY)Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him. 48 But Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a (AZ)kiss?”

49 When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” 50 And (BA)one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.

51 But Jesus answered and said, “Permit even this.” And He touched his ear and healed him.

52 (BB)Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, “Have you come out, as against a (BC)robber, with swords and clubs? 53 When I was with you daily in the (BD)temple, you did not try to seize Me. But this is your (BE)hour, and the power of darkness.”

Peter Denies Jesus, and Weeps Bitterly(BF)

54 (BG)Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest’s house. (BH)But Peter followed at a distance. 55 (BI)Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them. 56 And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, “This man was also with Him.”

57 But he denied [g]Him, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.”

58 (BJ)And after a little while another saw him and said, “You also are of them.”

But Peter said, “Man, I am not!”

59 (BK)Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, “Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a (BL)Galilean.”

60 But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are saying!”

Immediately, while he was still speaking, [h]the rooster crowed. 61 And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then (BM)Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, (BN)“Before the rooster [i]crows, you will deny Me three times.” 62 So Peter went out and wept bitterly.

Jesus Mocked and Beaten(BO)

63 (BP)Now the men who held Jesus mocked Him and (BQ)beat Him. 64 [j]And having blindfolded Him, they (BR)struck Him on the face and asked Him, saying, “Prophesy! Who is the one who struck You?” 65 And many other things they blasphemously spoke against Him.

Jesus Faces the Sanhedrin(BS)

66 (BT)As soon as it was day, (BU)the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, came together and led Him into their council, saying, 67 (BV)“If You are the Christ, tell us.”

But He said to them, “If I tell you, you will (BW)by no means believe. 68 And if I [k]also ask you, you will by no means answer [l]Me or let Me go. 69 (BX)Hereafter the Son of Man will sit on the right hand of the power of God.”

70 Then they all said, “Are You then the Son of God?”

So He said to them, (BY)“You rightly say that I am.”

71 (BZ)And they said, “What further testimony do we need? For we have heard it ourselves from His own mouth.”

Footnotes

  1. Luke 22:7 Sacrificed
  2. Luke 22:14 NU omits twelve
  3. Luke 22:18 NU adds from now on
  4. Luke 22:31 NU omits And the Lord said
  5. Luke 22:37 fulfilled
  6. Luke 22:43 NU brackets vv. 43 and 44 as not in the original text.
  7. Luke 22:57 NU it
  8. Luke 22:60 NU, M a rooster
  9. Luke 22:61 NU adds today
  10. Luke 22:64 NU And having blindfolded Him, they asked Him
  11. Luke 22:68 NU omits also
  12. Luke 22:68 NU omits the rest of v. 68.

The Passover Meal

22 1-2 The Feast of Unleavened Bread, also called Passover, drew near. The high priests and religion scholars were looking for a way to do away with Jesus but, fearful of the people, they were also looking for a way to cover their tracks.

3-6 That’s when Satan entered Judas, the one called Iscariot. He was one of the Twelve. Leaving the others, he conferred with the high priests and the Temple guards about how he might betray Jesus to them. They couldn’t believe their good luck and agreed to pay him well. He gave them his word and started looking for a way to betray Jesus, but out of sight of the crowd.

7-8 The Day of Unleavened Bread came, the day the Passover lamb was butchered. Jesus sent Peter and John off, saying, “Go prepare the Passover for us so we can eat it together.”

They said, “Where do you want us to do this?”

10-12 He said, “Keep your eyes open as you enter the city. A man carrying a water jug will meet you. Follow him home. Then speak with the owner of the house: The Teacher wants to know, ‘Where is the guest room where I can eat the Passover meal with my disciples?’ He will show you a spacious second-story room, swept and ready. Prepare the meal there.”

13 They left, found everything just as he told them, and prepared the Passover meal.

14-16 When it was time, he sat down, all the apostles with him, and said, “You’ve no idea how much I have looked forward to eating this Passover meal with you before I enter my time of suffering. It’s the last one I’ll eat until we all eat it together in the kingdom of God.”

17-18 Taking the cup, he blessed it, then said, “Take this and pass it among you. As for me, I’ll not drink wine again until the kingdom of God arrives.”

19 Taking bread, he blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, given for you. Eat it in my memory.”

20 He did the same with the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant written in my blood, blood poured out for you.

21-22 “Do you realize that the hand of the one who is betraying me is at this moment on this table? It’s true that the Son of Man is going down a path already marked out—no surprises there. But for the one who turns him in, turns traitor to the Son of Man, this is doomsday.”

23 They immediately became suspicious of each other and began quizzing one another, wondering who might be about to do this.

Get Ready for Trouble

24-26 Within minutes they were bickering over who of them would end up the greatest. But Jesus intervened: “Kings like to throw their weight around and people in authority like to give themselves fancy titles. It’s not going to be that way with you. Let the senior among you become like the junior; let the leader act the part of the servant.

27-30 “Who would you rather be: the one who eats the dinner or the one who serves the dinner? You’d rather eat and be served, right? But I’ve taken my place among you as the one who serves. And you’ve stuck with me through thick and thin. Now I confer on you the royal authority my Father conferred on me so you can eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and be strengthened as you take up responsibilities among the congregations of God’s people.

31-32 “Simon, stay on your toes. Satan has tried his best to separate all of you from me, like chaff from wheat. Simon, I’ve prayed for you in particular that you not give in or give out. When you have come through the time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start.”

33 Peter said, “Master, I’m ready for anything with you. I’d go to jail for you. I’d die for you!”

34 Jesus said, “I’m sorry to have to tell you this, Peter, but before the rooster crows you will have three times denied that you know me.”

35 Then Jesus said, “When I sent you out and told you to travel light, to take only the bare necessities, did you get along all right?”

“Certainly,” they said, “we got along just fine.”

36-37 He said, “This is different. Get ready for trouble. Look to what you’ll need; there are difficult times ahead. Pawn your coat and get a sword. What was written in Scripture, ‘He was lumped in with the criminals,’ gets its final meaning in me. Everything written about me is now coming to a conclusion.”

38 They said, “Look, Master, two swords!”

But he said, “Enough of that; no more sword talk!”

A Dark Night

39-40 Leaving there, he went, as he so often did, to Mount Olives. The disciples followed him. When they arrived at the place, he said, “Pray that you don’t give in to temptation.”

41-44 He pulled away from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed, “Father, remove this cup from me. But please, not what I want. What do you want?” At once an angel from heaven was at his side, strengthening him. He prayed on all the harder. Sweat, wrung from him like drops of blood, poured off his face.

45-46 He got up from prayer, went back to the disciples and found them asleep, drugged by grief. He said, “What business do you have sleeping? Get up. Pray so you won’t give in to temptation.”

47-48 No sooner were the words out of his mouth than a crowd showed up, Judas, the one from the Twelve, in the lead. He came right up to Jesus to kiss him. Jesus said, “Judas, you would betray the Son of Man with a kiss?”

49-50 When those with him saw what was happening, they said, “Master, shall we fight?” One of them took a swing at the Chief Priest’s servant and cut off his right ear.

51 Jesus said, “Let them be. Even in this.” Then, touching the servant’s ear, he healed him.

52-53 Jesus spoke to those who had come—high priests, Temple police, religion leaders: “What is this, jumping me with swords and clubs as if I were a dangerous criminal? Day after day I’ve been with you in the Temple and you’ve not so much as lifted a hand against me. But do it your way—it’s a dark night, a dark hour.”

A Rooster Crowed

54-56 Arresting Jesus, they marched him off and took him into the house of the Chief Priest. Peter followed, but at a safe distance. In the middle of the courtyard some people had started a fire and were sitting around it, trying to keep warm. One of the serving maids sitting at the fire noticed him, then took a second look and said, “This man was with him!”

57 He denied it, “Woman, I don’t even know him.”

58 A short time later, someone else noticed him and said, “You’re one of them.”

But Peter denied it: “Man, I am not.”

59 About an hour later, someone else spoke up, really adamant: “He’s got to have been with him! He’s got ‘Galilean’ written all over him.”

60-62 Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” At that very moment, the last word hardly off his lips, a rooster crowed. Just then, the Master turned and looked at Peter. Peter remembered what the Master had said to him: “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” He went out and cried and cried and cried.

Slapping Him Around

63-65 The men in charge of Jesus began poking fun at him, slapping him around. They put a blindfold on him and taunted, “Who hit you that time?” They were having a grand time with him.

66-67 When it was morning, the religious leaders of the people and the high priests and scholars all got together and brought him before their High Council. They said, “Are you the Messiah?”

67-69 He answered, “If I said yes, you wouldn’t believe me. If I asked what you meant by your question, you wouldn’t answer me. So here’s what I have to say: From here on the Son of Man takes his place at God’s right hand, the place of power.”

70 They all said, “So you admit your claim to be the Son of God?”

“You’re the ones who keep saying it,” he said.

71 But they had made up their minds, “Why do we need any more evidence? We’ve all heard him as good as say it himself.”