Chapter 14

¹It was now two days before the festival of the Passover and of Unleavened Bread. And the high priests and scribes were casting about for a way to arrest him by stealth and put him to death, ²for they said,

“It must not be during the festival, or there may be a riot.”

³Jesus was in Bethany, at the house of Simon the leper, and as he was at table, a woman came in, with an alabaster flask of pure nard perfume, very expensive; she broke the flask and poured the perfume on his head. ⁴But there were some who said indignantly to themselves,

“What was the use of wasting the perfume like that? ⁵It might have been sold for more than sixty dollars, and the money have been given to the poor.”

⁶And they grumbled at her. But Jesus said,

“Leave her alone. Why do you bother her? It is a fine thing that she has done to me. ⁷For you always have the poor among you, and whenever you please you can do for them, but you will not always have me. ⁸She has done all she could; she has perfumed my body in preparation for my burial. ⁹I tell you, wherever the good news is preached all over the world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”

¹⁰Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the high priests to betray Jesus to them. ¹¹They were delighted to hear it and promised to pay him for it. So he was watching for an opportunity to betray him to them.

¹²On the first day of the festival of Unleavened Bread, on which it was customary to kill the Passover lamb, Jesus’ disciples said to him,

“Where do you wish us to go and make the preparations for you to eat the Passover supper?”

¹³So he sent away two of his disciples, saying to them,

“Go into the city, and you will meet a man carrying a pitcher of water. Follow him, ¹⁴and whatever house he goes into, say to the man of the house, ‘The Master says, “Where is my room where I can eat the Passover supper with my disciples?” ’ ¹⁵And he will show you a large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make your preparations for us there.”

¹⁶So the disciples started and went into the city, and found everything just as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover supper.

¹⁷When it was evening he came with the Twelve. ¹⁸And when they were at the table eating, Jesus said,

“I tell you, one of you is going to betray me—one who is eating with me.”

¹⁹And they were hurt, and said to him one after another,

“Can it be I?”

²⁰He said to them,

“It is one of the Twelve, who is dipping his bread in the same dish with me. ²¹For the Son of Man is indeed to go away as the Scriptures say of him, but alas for the man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had never been born.”

²²As they were eating, he took a loaf and blessed it, and he broke it in pieces and gave it to them saying,

“Take this. It is my body.”

²³And he took the wine cup and gave thanks and gave it to them and they all drank from it. ²⁴And he said to them,

“This is my blood which ratifies the agreement, and is to be poured out for many people. ²⁵I tell you, I will never drink the product of the vine again till the day when I shall drink the new wine in the Kingdom of God.”

²⁶After singing the hymn they went out of the city and up the Mount of Olives. ²⁷And Jesus said to them,

“You will all desert me, for the Scriptures say, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ ²⁸But after I am raised to life again I will go back to Galilee before you.”

²⁹But Peter said to him,

“Even if they all desert you, I will not!”

³⁰Jesus said to him,

“I tell you, this very night before the cock crows twice you yourself will disown me three times!”

³¹But he persisted vehemently,

“If I have to die with you, I will never disown you.”

And they all said the same thing.

³²They came to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples,

“Sit down here while I pray.”

³³And he took Peter, James, and John along with him, and he began to feel distress and dread, ³⁴and he said to them,

“My heart is almost breaking. You must stay here and keep watch.” ³⁵And he went on a little way and threw himself on the ground and prayed that if it were possible he might be spared the hour of trial, ³⁶and he said,

“Abba!” that is, Father, “anything is possible for you! Take this cup away from me! Yet not what I please but what you do!”

³⁷When he went back he found them asleep and he said to Peter,

“Simon, are you asleep? Were you not able to watch for one hour? ³⁸You must all watch, and pray that you may not be subjected to trial. One’s spirit is eager, but human nature is weak.”

³⁹He went away again and prayed in the same words as before. ⁴⁰When he came back he found them asleep again, for they could hardly keep their eyes open; and they did not know what answer to make to him. ⁴¹When he came back for the third time, he said to them,

“Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? Enough of this! The time has come. See! the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of wicked men. ⁴²Get up, let us be going. Look, here comes my betrayer!”

⁴³Just at that moment, while he was still speaking, Judas, who was one of the Twelve, came up, and with him a crowd of men with swords and clubs, from the high priests, scribes, and elders. ⁴⁴Now the man who betrayed him had given them a signal, saying,

“The one I kiss is the man. Seize him and take him safely away.”

⁴⁵So when he came he went straight up to Jesus and said, “Master!” and kissed him affectionately.

⁴⁶And they laid hands on him and seized him. ⁴⁷But one of the bystanders drew his sword and struck at the high priest’s slave and cut his ear off. ⁴⁸And Jesus spoke and said to them,

“Have you come out to arrest me with swords and clubs, as though I were a robber? ⁴⁹I have been among you day after day in the Temple teaching, and you never seized me. But let the Scriptures be fulfilled!”

⁵⁰Then all the disciples left him and made their escape.

⁵¹And a young man followed him with nothing but a linen cloth about his body; and they seized him, ⁵²but he left the cloth behind and ran away naked.

⁵³They took Jesus away to the high priest, and all the high priests, elders, and scribes came together. ⁵⁴And Peter followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest and sat down with the attendants and warmed himself at the fire. ⁵⁵The high priests and the whole council tried to get evidence against Jesus in order to put him to death, and they could find none, ⁵⁶for while many gave false testimony against him their evidence did not agree. ⁵⁷Some got up and gave false testimony against him to this effect:

⁵⁸“We ourselves have heard him say, ‘I will tear down this sanctuary built by men’s hands, and in three days I will build another, made without hands.’ ”

⁵⁹And even then their evidence did not agree. ⁶⁰Then the high priest got up and came forward into the center and asked Jesus,

“Have you no answer to make? What about their evidence against you?”

⁶¹But Jesus was silent and made no answer. The high priest again questioned him and said to him,

“Are you the Christ, the son of the Blessed One?”

⁶²But Jesus said,

“I am! and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Almighty and coming in the clouds of the sky!”

⁶³Then the high priest tore his clothing, and said,

“What do we want of witnesses now? ⁶⁴Did you hear his blasphemy? What is your decision?”

And they all condemned him as deserving to be put to death. ⁶⁵And some started to spit at him and to blindfold him and strike him, and say to him,

“Now show that you are a prophet!”

And the attendants slapped him as they took charge of him.

⁶⁶While Peter was down in the courtyard, one of the high priest’s maids came up, ⁶⁷and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said,

“You were with this Jesus of Nazareth too!”

⁶⁸But he denied it, saying,

“I do not know or understand what you mean.”

He went out into the gateway. ⁶⁹And the maid saw him there and began again to tell the bystanders,

“This fellow is one of them!”

⁷⁰But he denied it again. And again a little while after, the bystanders said to Peter,

“You certainly are one of them, for you are a Galilean!”

⁷¹But he began to swear with the strongest oaths,

“I do not know this man that you are talking about!”

⁷²At that moment for the second time a cock crowed. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, “Before the cock crows twice, you will disown me three times!” And at that, he wept aloud.