1. It was now only two days before the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread. The leading priests and teachers of the law were trying to find a way to arrest Jesus without the people seeing it. Then they could kill him.
2. They said, “But we cannot arrest Jesus during the festival. We don’t want the people to be angry and cause a riot.”
3. Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper. While he was eating there, a woman came to him. She had an alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume made of pure nard. She opened the jar and poured the perfume on Jesus’ head.
4. Some of the followers there saw this. They were upset and complained to each other. They said, “Why waste that perfume?
5. It was worth a full year’s pay. It could have been sold and the money given to those who are poor.” And they told the woman what a bad thing she had done.
6. Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why are you giving her such trouble? She did a very good thing for me.
7. You will always have the poor with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me.
8. This woman did the only thing she could do for me. She poured perfume on my body before I die to prepare it for burial.
9. The Good News will be told to people all over the world. And I can assure you that everywhere the Good News is told, the story of what this woman did will also be told, and people will remember her.”
10. Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve apostles, went to talk to the leading priests about handing Jesus over to them.
11. They were very happy about this, and they promised to pay him. So he waited for the best time to hand Jesus over to them.
12. It was now the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread—the day the lambs were killed for the Passover. Jesus’ followers came to him and said, “We will go and prepare everything for you to eat the Passover meal. Where do you want us to have the meal?”
13. Jesus sent two of his followers into the city. He said to them, “Go into the city. You will see a man carrying a jar of water. He will come to you. Follow him.
14. He will go into a house. Tell the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks that you show us the room where he and his followers can eat the Passover meal.’
15. The owner will show you a large room upstairs that is ready for us. Prepare the meal for us there.”
16. So the followers left and went into the city. Everything happened the way Jesus said. So the followers prepared the Passover meal.
17. In the evening Jesus went to that house with the twelve apostles.
18. While they were all at the table eating, he said, “Believe me when I say that one of you will hand me over to my enemies—one of you eating with me now.”
19. The followers were very sad to hear this. Each one said to Jesus, “Surely I am not the one!”
20. Jesus answered, “It is one of you twelve—the one who is dipping his bread in the same bowl with me.
21. The Son of Man will suffer what the Scriptures say will happen to him. But it will be very bad for the one who hands over the Son of Man to be killed. It would be better for him if he had never been born.”
22. While they were eating, Jesus took some bread and thanked God for it. He broke off some pieces, gave them to his followers and said, “Take and eat this bread. It is my body.”
23. Then he took a cup of wine, thanked God for it, and gave it to them. They all drank from the cup.
24. Then he said, “This wine is my blood, which will be poured out for many to begin the new agreement from God to his people.
25. I want you to know, I will not drink this wine again until that day when I drink it in God’s kingdom and the wine is new.”
26. They all sang a song and then went out to the Mount of Olives.
27. Then Jesus told the followers, “You will all lose your faith. The Scriptures say, ‘I will kill the shepherd, and the sheep will run away.’ Zechariah 13:7
28. But after I am killed, I will rise from death. Then I will go to Galilee. I will be there before you come.”
29. Peter said, “All the other followers may lose their faith. But my faith will never be shaken.”
30. Jesus answered, “The truth is, tonight you will say you don’t know me. You will say it three times before the rooster crows twice.”
31. But Peter strongly protested, “I will never say I don’t know you! I will even die with you!” And all the other followers said the same thing.
32. Jesus and his followers went to a place named Gethsemane. He said to them, “Sit here while I pray.”
33. But he told Peter, James, and John to come with him. He began to be very distressed and troubled,
34. and he said to them, “My heart is so heavy with grief, I feel as if I am dying. Wait here and stay awake.”
35. Jesus went on a little farther away from them, fell to the ground, and prayed. He asked that, if possible, he would not have this time of suffering.
36. He said, “Abba, Father! You can do all things. Don’t make me drink from this cup. But do what you want, not what I want.”
37. Then he went back to his followers and found them sleeping. He said to Peter, “Simon, why are you sleeping? Could you not stay awake with me for one hour?
38. Stay awake and pray for strength against temptation. Your spirit wants to do what is right, but your body is weak.”
39. Again Jesus went away and prayed the same thing.
40. Then he went back to the followers and again found them sleeping. They could not stay awake. They did not know what they should say to him.
41. After Jesus prayed a third time, he went back to his followers. He said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? That’s enough! The time has come for the Son of Man to be handed over to the control of sinful men.
42. Stand up! We must go. Here comes the man who is handing me over to them.”
43. While Jesus was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve apostles, came there. He had a big crowd of people with him, all carrying swords and clubs. They had been sent from the leading priests, the teachers of the law, and the older Jewish leaders.
44. Judas planned to do something to show them which one was Jesus. He said, “The one I kiss will be Jesus. Arrest him and guard him while you lead him away.”
45. So Judas went over to Jesus and said, “Teacher!” Then he kissed him.
46. The men grabbed Jesus and arrested him.
47. One of the followers standing near Jesus grabbed his sword and pulled it out. He swung it at the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear.
48. Then Jesus said, “Why do you come to get me with swords and clubs as if I were a criminal?
49. Every day I was with you teaching in the Temple area. You did not arrest me there. But all these things have happened to show the full meaning of what the Scriptures said.”
50. Then all of Jesus’ followers left him and ran away.
51. One of those following Jesus was a young man wearing only a linen cloth. When the people tried to grab him,
52. he left the cloth in their hands and ran away naked.
53. Those who arrested Jesus led him to the house of the high priest. All the leading priests, the older Jewish leaders, and the teachers of the law were gathered there.
54. Peter followed Jesus but stayed back at a distance. He followed him to the yard of the high priest’s house. He went into the yard and sat there with the guards, warming himself by their fire.
55. The leading priests and the whole high council tried to find something that Jesus had done wrong so they could kill him. But the council could find no proof that would allow them to kill Jesus.
56. Many people came and told lies against Jesus, but they all said different things. None of them agreed.
57. Then some others stood up and told more lies against Jesus. They said,
58. “We heard this man say, ‘I will destroy this Temple built by human hands. And three days later, I will build another Temple not made by human hands.’”
59. But also what these people said did not agree.
60. Then the high priest stood up before everyone and said to Jesus, “These people said things against you. Do you have something to say about their charges? Are they telling the truth?”
61. But Jesus said nothing to answer him. The high priest asked Jesus another question: “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the blessed God?”
62. Jesus answered, “Yes, I am the Son of God. And in the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right side of God All-Powerful. And you will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven.”
63. When the high priest heard this, he tore his clothes in anger. He said, “We don’t need any more witnesses!
64. You all heard these insults to God. What do you think?” Everyone agreed that Jesus was guilty and must be killed.
65. Some of the people there spit at him. They covered his eyes and hit him with their fists. They said, “Be a prophet and tell us who hit you!” Then the guards led Jesus away and beat him.
66. While Peter was still in the yard, a servant girl of the high priest came there.
67. She saw him warming himself by the fire. She looked closely at him and said, “You were with Jesus, that man from Nazareth.”
68. But Peter said this was not true. “That makes no sense,” he said. “I don’t know what you are talking about!” Then he left and went to the entrance of the yard, and a rooster crowed.
69. When the servant girl saw him there, she began saying again to the people standing around, “This man is one of them.”
70. Again Peter said it was not true. A short time later, the people standing there said, “We know you are one of them, because you are from Galilee.”
71. Then Peter began to curse. He said, “I swear to God, I don’t know this man you are talking about!”
72. As soon as Peter said this, the rooster crowed the second time. Then he remembered what Jesus had told him: “Before the rooster crows twice, you will say three times that you don’t know me.” Then Peter began to cry.