The Book of Matthew Jesus's Last Days

Lesson #12 for June 18, 2016

Scriptures: [Matthew 26:1-27:10; Luke 12:48; 1 Corinthians 5:7][i].

1.    The events of that final week in the life of Jesus’s earthly ministry are so packed with valuable lessons that we will, no doubt, be studying them forever. He arrived in the area of Jerusalem one week before His crucifixion. Our lesson for this week focuses on freedom, free will, and the choices made by four people: Jesus, Mary, Judas, and Peter.

2.    What are the most important lessons that we should learn from the experiences of those individuals during that final week of Jesus’s life?

3.    By our use of our free will and our making bad choices starting in the Garden of Eden, we have allowed sin to multiply. At the end of His earthly ministry, Jesus had to exercise His free will, even His determined choice, to answer the major questions in the great controversy and choose to die on behalf of the entire universe so that we can know the truth about Him, His Father, and the Holy Spirit and know the falsehoods perpetrated by Satan.

4.    After spending so much time with Jesus, why were the disciples still so blind and ignorant? Did God-Jesus-intentionally hide the truth from them? Or, were they so set in their thinking that Jesus was to become an earthly king that they could not comprehend what Jesus was saying about His death and resurrection? Or, did the Devil work on them?

5.    Jesus had explained repeatedly to His disciples that He would be going to Jerusalem where He would be handed over to the Roman authorities and would be killed, and then, three days later He would rise to life again. Why was it so hard for them to understand it?

First recorded occurrence: [Matthew 16:21; Mark 8:31-32; Luke 9:22]ii.

Second recorded occurrence: [Matthew 17:22-23; Mark 9:31-32; Luke 9:43-45]iii.

Third recorded occurrence: [Matthew 20:17-19; Mark 10:32-34; Luke 18:31-34]iv.

6.    And surely, there were other occasions which are not recorded in the Gospels. Why do you think that none of those occurrences were mentioned by John in his Gospel?

7.    Read [Matthew 26:1-16. Compare Luke 7:36-50][v]. What do we know about Mary and what led up to this story? Are these two accounts talking about the same experience?

Christ might have extinguished every spark of hope in Mary’s soul, but He did not. The Heart-searcher read the motives that led to her actions, and He also saw the spirit that prompted Simon’s words. “Seest thou this woman?” He said to him; she is a sinner; “I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much; but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little. And He said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.”

Those present, thinking of Lazarus, who had been raised from the dead by Christ, and who was at this time a guest in his uncle’s house, began to question, saying, “Who is this that forgiveth sins also?” But Christ continued, “Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.”—Ellen G. White, Signs of the Times, May 9, 1900 par. 14-15; Compare Daughters of God 239.3-4.

As did Nathan with David, Christ concealed His home thrust under the veil of a parable. He threw upon His host the burden of pronouncing sentence upon himself. Simon had led into sin the woman he now despised. She had been deeply wronged by him. By the two debtors of the parable, Simon and the woman were represented. Jesus did not design to teach that different degrees of obligation should be felt by the [567] two persons, for each owed a debt of gratitude that never could be repaid. But Simon felt himself more righteous than Mary, and Jesus desired him to see how great his guilt really was. He would show him that his sin was greater than hers, as much greater as a debt of five hundred pence exceeds a debt of fifty pence.—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages 566.5.

The one who had fallen, and whose mind had been a habitation of demons, was brought very near to the Saviour in fellowship and ministry. It was Mary who sat at His feet and learned of Him. It was Mary who poured upon His head the precious anointing oil, and bathed His feet with her tears. Mary stood beside the cross, and followed Him to the sepulcher. Mary was first at the tomb after His resurrection. It was Mary who first proclaimed a risen Saviour.—Ibid. 568.1-2. [Bold type is added.]

8.    So, why did Mary wash Jesus’s feet with her tears and pour expensive perfume onto Him?

She had heard Jesus speak of His approaching death, and in her deep love and sorrow she had longed to show Him honor. At great personal sacrifice she had purchased an alabaster box of “ointment of spikenard, very costly,” with which to anoint His body. But now many were declaring that He was about to be crowned king. Her grief was turned to joy, and she was eager to be first in honoring her Lord. Breaking her box of ointment, she poured its contents upon the head and feet of Jesus; then, as she knelt weeping, moistening them with her tears, she wiped His feet with her long, flowing hair.—Ibid. 558.4-559.0.

9.    Modern moviemakers have tried to make something very scandalous out of the relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene. The Bible pictures her almost like a sister to Jesus.

10.    Judas, one of Jesus’s own disciples, was already plotting how to betray his Master. At the same time, Mary, her heart overflowing with love for Jesus, broke the alabaster box and poured the perfume on His body. That perfume had cost her the equivalent of salary for a common workingman for one whole year.

11.    What was the most important thing that Jesus did for Mary: 1) Forgiving her sins and loving her? 2) Casting seven demons out of her? Or, 3) Giving her eternal life? What has Jesus done for you and me?

12.    Read [Matthew 26:17-19 and compare Exodus 12:1-17; 1 Corinthians 5:7]vi. The Passover was a celebration of the deliverance of the children of Israel from Egypt. Jesus, the real Passover Lamb, was to die on the very day on which the Passover lambs were to be eaten. The Passover was a time of great rejoicing because it commemorated their deliverance from slavery in Egypt. The death of Jesus results in our deliverance from sin if we are believers. Shouldn’t it be a time of great rejoicing for us?

13.    On that Thursday evening as they were partaking of the Passover meal of roasted lamb and bitter herbs, Jesus introduced a new ceremony, taking the bread and the wine and telling us that they were symbols of His broken body and His spilled blood. The Passover lambs that had been offered for so many years pointed forward to the death of Jesus. We now celebrate with the bread and the wine, pointing back to the victory which came at the cross. But, the cross is certainly not the end of the story. If Jesus had not risen from the grave and gone back to heaven, what would the cross mean? There is a resurrection and a future life promised to us because of what Jesus did.

14.    Why do you think Jesus told His disciples that He would not drink of the grape juice again until He will take it with us in heaven? Does that say anything to us about the eternal humanity of Jesus?

15.    After Jesus had sent Judas out of the upper room to do his terrible deed and had finished giving His messages to His disciples, they proceeded to the Garden of Gethsemane.

16.    Read Matthew 26:36-46vii. What actually was happening in the Garden of Gethsemane? Jesus was experiencing for the first time in His life the separation from His Father which is the effect of sin-not that He was a sinner. Before the creation of this world, They had agreed among the Godhead that by this demonstration of the truth about sin, humanity would be able to learn how serious and deadly sin is. It is in the very nature of sin that sin kills us by separating us from God, the Source of Life. (Isaiah 59:2; Romans 6:23; 14:23)viii At the present time, God is keeping sinners including Satan alive on temporary life support!

With the issues of the conflict before Him, Christ’s soul was filled with dread of separation from God. Satan told Him that if He became the surety for a sinful world, the separation would be eternal. He would be identified with Satan’s kingdom, and would nevermore be one with God....The awful moment had come-that moment which was to decide the destiny of the world. The fate of humanity trembled in the balance. Christ might even now refuse to drink the cup apportioned to guilty man. It was not yet too late. He might wipe the bloody sweat from His brow, and leave man to perish in his iniquity. He might say, Let the transgressor receive the penalty of his sin, and I will go back to My Father.

Will the Son of God drink the bitter cup of humiliation and agony? Will the innocent suffer the consequences of the curse of sin, to save the guilty?—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages 687.0-690.2. [Could the plan of salvation have failed?]

All His life Christ had been publishing to a fallen world the good news of the Father’s mercy and pardoning love. Salvation for the chief of sinners was His theme. But now with the terrible weight of guilt He bears, He cannot see the Father’s reconciling face. The withdrawal of the divine countenance from the Saviour in this hour of supreme anguish pierced His heart with a sorrow that can never be fully understood by man. So great was this agony that His physical pain was hardly felt.—Ibid. 753.1. [Bold type and content in brackets are added.]

17.    In Gethsemane Jesus pleaded with His Father to let the cup pass from Him, “If possible.” (Matthew 26:39) What were the issues involved there? Was Jesus struggling primarily about whether or not we humans were worth it? Why was the death of Jesus necessary? Is it really true that there was no other possible solution to the sin problem? If there had been any other way to resolve the issues in the great controversy, do you think God would have gone through what They went through?

18.    In light of Christ’s incredible experience there in the garden, shouldn’t we ask ourselves, “Do I feel pain when I sin and separate myself from God?” Why do we choose to sin?

19.    [Read John 6:70 and Luke 22:3]ix. Why was it that Satan was able to control Judas? Satan, of course, tried to control Peter as well. (Luke 22:31)[x] So, what was the difference between Satan’s experience with Judas and that of Peter?

Judas had naturally a strong love for money; but he had not always been corrupt enough to do such a deed as this. He had fostered the evil spirit of avarice until it had become the ruling motive of his life. The love of mammon overbalanced his love for Christ. Through becoming the slave of one vice he gave himself to Satan, to be driven to any lengths in sin.—Ibid. 716.3.

Christ’s discourse in the synagogue concerning the bread of life was the turning point in the history of Judas. He heard the words, “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you.” John 6:53. He saw that Christ was offering spiritual rather than worldly good. He regarded himself as farsighted, and thought he could see that Jesus would have no honor, and that He could bestow no high position upon His followers. He determined not to unite himself so closely to Christ but that he could draw away. He would watch. And he did watch.—ibid. 719.1.

20.    Judas made the mistake of thinking that he actually knew better what was right for Jesus to do than Jesus-God-Himself knew!

21.    He was sure that Jesus was to become an earthly king, and he based his choices on that assumption. Thus, his choices made during that final week were based on a false assumption which was, in turn, based on wrong choices he had made earlier in his life.

Judas reasoned that if Jesus was to be crucified, the event must come to pass. His own act in betraying the Saviour would not change the result. If Jesus was not to die, it would only force Him to deliver Himself. At all events, Judas would gain something by his treachery. He counted that he had made a sharp bargain in betraying his Lord. Judas did not, however, believe that Christ would permit Himself to be arrested.

In betraying Him, it was his purpose to teach Him a lesson. He intended to play a part that would make the Saviour careful thenceforth to treat him with due respect. But Judas knew not that he was giving Christ up to death. How often, as the Saviour taught in parables, the scribes and Pharisees had been carried away with His striking illustrations! How often they had pronounced judgment against themselves! Often when the truth was brought home to their hearts, they had been filled with rage, and had taken up stones to cast at Him; [721] but again and again He had made His escape. Since He had escaped so many snares, thought Judas, He certainly would not now allow Himself to be taken.

Judas decided to put the matter to the test. If Jesus really was the Messiah, the people, for whom He had done so much, would rally about Him, and would proclaim Him king. This would forever settle many minds that were now in uncertainty. Judas would have the credit of having placed the king on David’s throne. And this act would secure to him the first position, next to Christ, in the new kingdom.—Ibid. 720.4-721.1.

22.    Someone in recent times came up with expression: “With friends like these, who needs enemies?” Is it possible that person was thinking about the story of Judas?

23.    Read [Matthew 26:47-50 and Matthew 27:1-10]xi. Judas’s love of power, position, and money led to his destruction. Are we led astray by any of those attractions?

24.    In a previous lesson, we noted that Matthew mixed up the two Zechariahs mentioned in the Old Testament. Read now [Matthew 27:5-10 and Zechariah 11:12-13]xii. Notice, once again, that a quotation from Zechariah was attributed by Matthew to Jeremiah. What does this say about inspiration?

25.    Try to imagine yourself as Judas, leading that contingent which may have included up to 600 soldiers through the city and down to the Garden of Gethsemane. Did it give him a feeling of power? Did he feel like he was going to finally force Jesus to respect him and his decisions? As we know, Judas lost everything-not only the 30 pieces of silver but also his eternal salvation!

26.    One of the challenging questions that many theologians and thoughtful Bible students have raised in recent years is the question of whether we can truly be free if, in fact, God can predict the future. From our limited human perspective, it might seem that if God knows the future, then it has already been determined. But, look at our stories for this week. Did Jesus’s foreknowledge of Judas’s decisions force Judas to make those decisions? Did Jesus’s foreknowledge of Peter and his denial force Peter to make those choices?

27.    Read Matthew 26:51 -75xiii. Why did Peter deny Jesus? Was it that Peter could not in that instant when the finger was pointed at him think of any good excuse for being there in the courtyard of Caiaphas?

After deserting their Master in the garden, two of the disciples had ventured to follow, at a distance, the mob that had Jesus in charge. These disciples were Peter and John. The priests recognized John as a well-known disciple of Jesus, and admitted him to the hall, hoping that as he witnessed the humiliation of his Leader, he would scorn the idea of such a one being the Son of God. John spoke in favor of Peter, and gained an entrance for him also.—Ibid. 710.3.

Peter had not designed that his real character should be known. In assuming an air of indifference he had placed himself on the enemy’s ground, and he became an easy prey to temptation. If he had been called to fight for his Master, he would have been a courageous soldier; but when the finger of scorn was pointed at him, he proved himself a coward. Many who do not shrink from active warfare for their Lord are driven by ridicule to deny their faith. By associating with those whom they should avoid, they place themselves in the way of temptation. They invite the enemy to tempt them, and are led to say and do that of which under other circumstances they would never have been guilty. The disciple of Christ who in our day disguises his faith through dread of suffering or reproach denies his Lord as really as did Peter in the judgment hall.—Ibid. 712.1.

28.    Was Peter just afraid? Or, was he just startled by the accusation against him? Was he beginning to understand Jesus’s situation?

Peter had just declared that he knew not Jesus, but he now realized with bitter grief how well his Lord knew him, and how accurately He had read his heart, the falseness of which was unknown even to himself.

Unable longer to endure the scene, he rushed, heartbroken, from the hall. ...He pressed on in solitude and darkness, he knew not and cared not whither. At last he found himself in Gethsemane. The scene of a few hours before came vividly to his mind. The suffering face of his Lord, stained with bloody sweat and convulsed with anguish, rose before him. He remembered with bitter remorse that Jesus had wept and agonized in prayer alone, while those who should have united with Him in that trying hour were sleeping. He remembered His solemn charge, “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation.” Matthew 26:41. He witnessed again the scene in the judgment hall. It was torture to his bleeding heart to know that he had added the heaviest burden to the Saviour’s humiliation and grief. On the very spot where Jesus had poured out His soul in agony to His Father, Peter fell upon his face, and wished that he might die. —Ibid. 713.1-3. [Bold type is added.]

29.    The truth about sin and its consequences (Genesis 2:17; Romans 6:23)xiv and about God and the fact that He always tells the truth as opposed to the lying of Satan (Genesis 3:1-4)xv had to be demonstrated for the benefit of the entire universe. As we study the life and death of Jesus, we are given a choice: We can choose to live lives like that of Jesus; or, we will die the death-caused by sin-which He died.

30.    Peter was brave enough to attack the high priest’s servant using a sword despite the fact that there was a huge crowd to arrest Jesus. But, he collapsed before the scorn of a single servant woman in the court of Caiaphas. Could something like that happen to us?

It would be well for us to spend a thoughtful hour each day in contemplation of the life of Christ. We should take it point by point, and let the imagination grasp each scene, especially the closing ones. As we thus dwell upon His great sacrifice for us, our confidence in Him will be more constant, our love will be quickened, and we shall be more deeply imbued with His spirit. If we would be saved at last, we must learn the lesson of penitence and humiliation at the foot of the cross. Ibid. 83.4. [Bold type is added.]

31.    Have you ever tried to make a timeline of the events of that final week? From Simon’s place on Saturday night to the triumphal entry on Sunday morning; the two days spent in the temple courtyard-Monday and T uesday; and then to those shocking final events from the Last Supper, to Gethsemane, to the arrest, then the phony trials, and finally the crucifixion and death on Friday. He rested over the Sabbath; and then, He arose triumphantly on Sunday morning. He had told His followers earlier as recorded in John 10:18xvi that He had the power to lay down His life and to take it up again.

Crucifixion constituted an intensely cruel form of execution. Bodily weight was suspended by arms and legs, securely fastened to crosses with spikes and/or ropes. Before death occurred, the skeletal system frequently suffered dislocated joints. Breathing became nearly impossible, because the collapsed body cavity compressed lung function.

Romans employed other torturous methods, including burning victims alive; feeding victims to carnivorous animals, as the Medo-Persians once did with Daniel; beating; dragging bodies behind wild horses; and branding criminals with plates of red-hot iron. None of these tortures, however, exceeded crucifixion in agony suffered. Victims typically lived several days, whereas other execution methods usually caused death more quickly. (Ironically, this cruelest of human tortures has been memorialized with gold-plated, diamond-studded jewelry. This would be tantamount to producing gold-plated electric chairs or silver-plated lethal injection chambers.) How remarkable that God’s sacrifice transformed something unthinkably painful into an incredibly beautiful symbol of divine benevolence.—Adult Teacher’s Sabbath School Bible Study Guide, pp. 159-160.

32.    Surely, no one could suggest that the experiences that he has gone through were more troubling, lonelier, or more unfair than those that Jesus faced. Surely, His physical suffering and the disloyalty of Judas and even Peter were a terrible trial to Jesus. How does Jesus feel about our lives and our experiences as He observes us from day to day?

© 2016, Kenneth Hart, MD, MA, MPH. Permission is hereby granted for any noncommercial use of these materials. Free distribution of all or of a portion of this material such as to a Bible study class is encouraged.    Info@theox. org

i-Matthew 26:1 26 When Jesus had finished teaching all these things, he said to his disciples, 2 “In two days, as you know, it will be the Passover Festival, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.”

3 Then the chief priests and the elders met together in the palace of Caiaphas, the High Priest, 4 and made plans to arrest Jesus secretly and put him to death. 5 “We must not do it during the festival,” they said, “or the people will riot.”

Jesus Is Anointed at Bethany

6 Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon, a man who had suffered from a dreaded skin disease. 7 While Jesus was eating, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar filled with an expensive perfume, which she poured on his head. 8 The disciples saw this and became angry. “Why all this waste?” they asked. 9 “This perfume could have been sold for a large amount and the money given to the poor!”

10 Jesus knew what they were saying, and so he said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? It is a fine and beautiful thing that she has done for me. 11 You will always have poor people with you, but you will not always have me. 12 What she did was to pour this perfume on my body to get me ready for burial. 13 Now, I assure you that wherever this gospel is preached all over the world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.”

Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus

14 Then one of the twelve disciples—the one named Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests 15 and asked, “What will you give me if I betray Jesus to you?” They counted out thirty silver coins and gave them to him. 16 From then on Judas was looking for a good chance to hand Jesus over to them.

Jesus Eats the Passover Meal with His Disciples

17 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus and asked him, “Where do you want us to get the Passover meal ready for you?”

18 “Go to a certain man in the city,” he said to them, “and tell him: ‘The Teacher says, My hour has come; my disciples and I will celebrate the Passover at your house.’”

19 The disciples did as Jesus had told them and prepared the Passover meal.

20 When it was evening, Jesus and the twelve disciples sat down to eat. 21 During the meal Jesus said, “I tell you, one of you will betray me.”

22 The disciples were very upset and began to ask him, one after the other, “Surely, Lord, you don't mean me?”

23 Jesus answered, “One who dips his bread in the dish with me will betray me. 24 The Son of Man will die as the Scriptures say he will, but how terrible for that man who will betray the Son of Man! It would have been better for that man if he had never been born!”

25 Judas, the traitor, spoke up. “Surely, Teacher, you don't mean me?” he asked.

Jesus answered, “So you say.”

The Lord's Supper

26 While they were eating, Jesus took a piece of bread, gave a prayer of thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples. “Take and eat it,” he said; “this is my body.”

27 Then he took a cup, gave thanks to God, and gave it to them. “Drink it, all of you,” he said; 28 “this is my blood, which seals God's covenant, my blood poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you, I will never again drink this wine until the day I drink the new wine with you in my Father's Kingdom.”

30 Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.

Jesus Predicts Peter's Denial

31 Then Jesus said to them, “This very night all of you will run away and leave me, for the scripture says, ‘God will kill the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ 32 But after I am raised to life, I will go to Galilee ahead of you.”

33 Peter spoke up and said to Jesus, “I will never leave you, even though all the rest do!”

34 Jesus said to Peter, “I tell you that before the rooster crows tonight, you will say three times that you do not know me.”

35 Peter answered, “I will never say that, even if I have to die with you!”

And all the other disciples said the same thing.

Jesus Prays in Gethsemane

36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee. Grief and anguish came over him, 38 and he said to them, “The sorrow in my heart is so great that it almost crushes me. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

39 He went a little farther on, threw himself face downward on the ground, and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, take this cup of suffering from me! Yet not what I want, but what you want.”

40 Then he returned to the three disciples and found them asleep; and he said to Peter, “How is it that you three were not able to keep watch with me for even one hour? 41 Keep watch and pray that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

42 Once more Jesus went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cup of suffering cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will be done.” 43 He returned once more and found the disciples asleep; they could not keep their eyes open.

44 Again Jesus left them, went away, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. 45 Then he returned to the disciples and said, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look! The hour has come for the Son of Man to be handed over to the power of sinners. 46 Get up, let us go. Look, here is the man who is betraying me!”

The Arrest of Jesus

47 Jesus was still speaking when Judas, one of the twelve disciples, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs and sent by the chief priests and the elders. 48 The traitor had given the crowd a signal: “The man I kiss is the one you want. Arrest him!”

49 Judas went straight to Jesus and said, “Peace be with you, Teacher,” and kissed him.

50 Jesus answered, “Be quick about it, friend!”[a]

Then they came up, arrested Jesus, and held him tight. 51 One of those who were with Jesus drew his sword and struck at the High Priest's slave, cutting off his ear. 52 “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him. “All who take the sword will die by the sword. 53 Don't you know that I could call on my Father for help, and at once he would send me more than twelve armies of angels? 54 But in that case, how could the Scriptures come true which say that this is what must happen?”

55 Then Jesus spoke to the crowd, “Did you have to come with swords and clubs to capture me, as though I were an outlaw? Every day I sat down and taught in the Temple, and you did not arrest me. 56 But all this has happened in order to make come true what the prophets wrote in the Scriptures.”

Then all the disciples left him and ran away.

Jesus before the Council

57 Those who had arrested Jesus took him to the house of Caiaphas, the High Priest, where the teachers of the Law and the elders had gathered together. 58 Peter followed from a distance, as far as the courtyard of the High Priest's house. He went into the courtyard and sat down with the guards to see how it would all come out. 59 The chief priests and the whole Council tried to find some false evidence against Jesus to put him to death; 60 but they could not find any, even though many people came forward and told lies about him. Finally two men stepped up 61 and said, “This man said, ‘I am able to tear down God's Temple and three days later build it back up.’”

62 The High Priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Have you no answer to give to this accusation against you?” 63 But Jesus kept quiet. Again the High Priest spoke to him, “In the name of the living God I now put you under oath: tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”

64 Jesus answered him, “So you say. But I tell all of you: from this time on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right side of the Almighty and coming on the clouds of heaven!”

65 At this the High Priest tore his clothes and said, “Blasphemy! We don't need any more witnesses! You have just heard his blasphemy! 66 What do you think?”

They answered, “He is guilty and must die.”

67 Then they spat in his face and beat him; and those who slapped him 68 said, “Prophesy for us, Messiah! Guess who hit you!”

Peter Denies Jesus

69 Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard when one of the High Priest's servant women came to him and said, “You, too, were with Jesus of Galilee.”

70 But he denied it in front of them all. “I don't know what you are talking about,” he answered, 71 and went on out to the entrance of the courtyard. Another servant woman saw him and said to the men there, “He was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

72 Again Peter denied it and answered, “I swear that I don't know that man!”

73 After a little while the men standing there came to Peter. “Of course you are one of them,” they said. “After all, the way you speak gives you away!”

74 Then Peter said, “I swear that I am telling the truth! May God punish me if I am not! I do not know that man!”

Just then a rooster crowed, 75 and Peter remembered what Jesus had told him: “Before the rooster crows, you will say three times that you do not know me.” He went out and wept bitterly.

Jesus Is Taken to Pilate

27 Early in the morning all the chief priests and the elders made their plans against Jesus to put him to death. 2 They put him in chains, led him off, and handed him over to Pilate, the Roman governor.

The Death of Judas

3 When Judas, the traitor, learned that Jesus had been condemned, he repented and took back the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. 4 “I have sinned by betraying an innocent man to death!” he said.

“What do we care about that?” they answered. “That is your business!”

5 Judas threw the coins down in the Temple and left; then he went off and hanged himself.

6 The chief priests picked up the coins and said, “This is blood money, and it is against our Law to put it in the Temple treasury.” 7 After reaching an agreement about it, they used the money to buy Potter's Field, as a cemetery for foreigners. 8 That is why that field is called “Field of Blood” to this very day.

9 Then what the prophet Jeremiah had said came true: “They took the thirty silver coins, the amount the people of Israel had agreed to pay for him, 10 and used the money to buy the potter's field, as the Lord had commanded me.”

Luke 12:48 But the servant who does not know what his master wants, and yet does something for which he deserves a whipping, will be punished with a light whipping. Much is required from the person to whom much is given; much more is required from the person to whom much more is given.

1 Corinthians 5:7 You must remove the old yeast of sin so that you will be entirely pure. Then you will be like a new batch of dough without any yeast, as indeed I know you actually are. For our Passover Festival is ready, now that Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.

ii-Matthew 16:21 From that time on Jesus began to say plainly to his disciples, “I must go to Jerusalem and suffer much from the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law. I will be put to death, but three days later I will be raised to life.”

Mark 8:31 Then Jesus began to teach his disciples: “The Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law. He will be put to death, but three days later he will rise to life.” 32 He made this very clear to them. So Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.

Luke 9:22 He also told them, “The Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law. He will be put to death, but three days later he will be raised to life.”

iii-Matthew 17:22 When the disciples all came together in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is about to be handed over to those 23 who will kill him; but three days later he will be raised to life.”

The disciples became very sad.

Mark 9:31 because he was teaching his disciples: “The Son of Man will be handed over to those who will kill him. Three days later, however, he will rise to life.”

32 But they did not understand what this teaching meant, and they were afraid to ask him.

Luke 9:43 All the people were amazed at the mighty power of God.

Jesus Speaks Again about His Death

The people were still marveling at everything Jesus was doing, when he said to his disciples, 44 “Don't forget what I am about to tell you! The Son of Man is going to be handed over to the power of human beings.” 45 But the disciples did not know what this meant. It had been hidden from them so that they could not understand it, and they were afraid to ask him about the matter.

iv-Matthew 20:17 As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and spoke to them privately, as they walked along. 18 “Listen,” he told them, “we are going up to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law. They will condemn him to death 19 and then hand him over to the Gentiles, who will make fun of him, whip him, and crucify him; but three days later he will be raised to life.”

Mark 10:32 Jesus and his disciples were now on the road going up to Jerusalem. Jesus was going ahead of the disciples, who were filled with alarm; the people who followed behind were afraid. Once again Jesus took the twelve disciples aside and spoke of the things that were going to happen to him. 33 “Listen,” he told them, “we are going up to Jerusalem where the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law. They will condemn him to death and then hand him over to the Gentiles, 34 who will make fun of him, spit on him, whip him, and kill him; but three days later he will rise to life.”

Luke 18:31 Jesus took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, “Listen! We are going to Jerusalem where everything the prophets wrote about the Son of Man will come true. 32 He will be handed over to the Gentiles, who will make fun of him, insult him, and spit on him. 33 They will whip him and kill him, but three days later he will rise to life.”

34 But the disciples did not understand any of these things; the meaning of the words was hidden from them, and they did not know what Jesus was talking about.

v-Matthew 26:1 When Jesus had finished teaching all these things, he said to his disciples, 2 “In two days, as you know, it will be the Passover Festival, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.”

3 Then the chief priests and the elders met together in the palace of Caiaphas, the High Priest, 4 and made plans to arrest Jesus secretly and put him to death. 5 “We must not do it during the festival,” they said, “or the people will riot.”

Jesus Is Anointed at Bethany

6 Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon, a man who had suffered from a dreaded skin disease. 7 While Jesus was eating, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar filled with an expensive perfume, which she poured on his head. 8 The disciples saw this and became angry. “Why all this waste?” they asked. 9 “This perfume could have been sold for a large amount and the money given to the poor!”

10 Jesus knew what they were saying, and so he said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? It is a fine and beautiful thing that she has done for me. 11 You will always have poor people with you, but you will not always have me. 12 What she did was to pour this perfume on my body to get me ready for burial. 13 Now, I assure you that wherever this gospel is preached all over the world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.”

Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus

14 Then one of the twelve disciples—the one named Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests 15 and asked, “What will you give me if I betray Jesus to you?” They counted out thirty silver coins and gave them to him. 16 From then on Judas was looking for a good chance to hand Jesus over to them.

Luke 7:36 A Pharisee invited Jesus to have dinner with him, and Jesus went to his house and sat down to eat. 37 In that town was a woman who lived a sinful life. She heard that Jesus was eating in the Pharisee's house, so she brought an alabaster jar full of perfume 38 and stood behind Jesus, by his feet, crying and wetting his feet with her tears. Then she dried his feet with her hair, kissed them, and poured the perfume on them. 39 When the Pharisee saw this, he said to himself, “If this man really were a prophet, he would know who this woman is who is touching him; he would know what kind of sinful life she lives!”

40 Jesus spoke up and said to him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”

“Yes, Teacher,” he said, “tell me.”

41 “There were two men who owed money to a moneylender,” Jesus began. “One owed him five hundred silver coins, and the other owed him fifty. 42 Neither of them could pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Which one, then, will love him more?”

43 “I suppose,” answered Simon, “that it would be the one who was forgiven more.”

“You are right,” said Jesus. 44 Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your home, and you gave me no water for my feet, but she has washed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. 45 You did not welcome me with a kiss, but she has not stopped kissing my feet since I came. 46 You provided no olive oil for my head, but she has covered my feet with perfume. 47 I tell you, then, the great love she has shown proves that her many sins have been forgiven. But whoever has been forgiven little shows only a little love.”

48 Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.”

49 The others sitting at the table began to say to themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?”

50 But Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

vi-Matthew 26:17 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus and asked him, “Where do you want us to get the Passover meal ready for you?”

18 “Go to a certain man in the city,” he said to them, “and tell him: ‘The Teacher says, My hour has come; my disciples and I will celebrate the Passover at your house.’”

19 The disciples did as Jesus had told them and prepared the Passover meal.

Exodus 12:1 The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron in Egypt: 2 “This month is to be the first month of the year for you. 3 Give these instructions to the whole community of Israel: On the tenth day of this month each man must choose either a lamb or a young goat for his household. 4 If his family is too small to eat a whole animal, he and his next-door neighbor may share an animal, in proportion to the number of people and the amount that each person can eat. 5 You may choose either a sheep or a goat, but it must be a one-year-old male without any defects. 6 Then, on the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, the whole community of Israel will kill the animals. 7 The people are to take some of the blood and put it on the doorposts and above the doors of the houses in which the animals are to be eaten. 8 That night the meat is to be roasted, and eaten with bitter herbs and with bread made without yeast. 9 Do not eat any of it raw or boiled, but eat it roasted whole, including the head, the legs, and the internal organs. 10 You must not leave any of it until morning; if any is left over, it must be burned. 11 You are to eat it quickly, for you are to be dressed for travel, with your sandals on your feet and your walking stick in your hand. It is the Passover Festival to honor me, the LORD.

12 “On that night I will go through the land of Egypt, killing every first-born male, both human and animal, and punishing all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. 13 The blood on the doorposts will be a sign to mark the houses in which you live. When I see the blood, I will pass over you and will not harm you when I punish the Egyptians. 14 You must celebrate this day as a religious festival to remind you of what I, the LORD, have done. Celebrate it for all time to come.”

The Festival of Unleavened Bread

15 The LORD said, “For seven days you must not eat any bread made with yeast—eat only unleavened bread. On the first day you are to get rid of all the yeast in your houses, for if anyone during those seven days eats bread made with yeast, he shall no longer be considered one of my people. 16 On the first day and again on the seventh day you are to meet for worship. No work is to be done on those days, but you may prepare food. 17 Keep this festival, because it was on this day that I brought your tribes out of Egypt. For all time to come you must celebrate this day as a festival.

1 Corinthians 5:7 You must remove the old yeast of sin so that you will be entirely pure. Then you will be like a new batch of dough without any yeast, as indeed I know you actually are. For our Passover Festival is ready, now that Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.

vii-Matthew 26:36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee. Grief and anguish came over him, 38 and he said to them, “The sorrow in my heart is so great that it almost crushes me. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

39 He went a little farther on, threw himself face downward on the ground, and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, take this cup of suffering from me! Yet not what I want, but what you want.”

40 Then he returned to the three disciples and found them asleep; and he said to Peter, “How is it that you three were not able to keep watch with me for even one hour? 41 Keep watch and pray that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

42 Once more Jesus went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cup of suffering cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will be done.” 43 He returned once more and found the disciples asleep; they could not keep their eyes open.

44 Again Jesus left them, went away, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. 45 Then he returned to the disciples and said, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look! The hour has come for the Son of Man to be handed over to the power of sinners. 46 Get up, let us go. Look, here is the man who is betraying me!”

viii-Isaiah 59:2 It is because of your sins that he doesn't hear you. It is your sins that separate you from God when you try to worship him.

Romans 6:23 For sin pays its wage—death; but God's free gift is eternal life in union with Christ Jesus our Lord.

14:23 But if they have doubts about what they eat, God condemns them when they eat it, because their action is not based on faith. And anything that is not based on faith is sin.

ix-Read John 6:70 Jesus replied, “I chose the twelve of you, didn't I? Yet one of you is a devil!”

Luke 22:3 Then Satan entered into Judas, called Iscariot, who was one of the twelve disciples.

x-Luke 22:31 “Simon, Simon! Listen! Satan has received permission to test all of you, to separate the good from the bad, as a farmer separates the wheat from the chaff.

xi-Matthew 26:47 Jesus was still speaking when Judas, one of the twelve disciples, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs and sent by the chief priests and the elders. 48 The traitor had given the crowd a signal: “The man I kiss is the one you want. Arrest him!”

49 Judas went straight to Jesus and said, “Peace be with you, Teacher,” and kissed him.

50 Jesus answered, “Be quick about it, friend!”[a]

Then they came up, arrested Jesus, and held him tight.

Matthew 27:1 Early in the morning all the chief priests and the elders made their plans against Jesus to put him to death. 2 They put him in chains, led him off, and handed him over to Pilate, the Roman governor.

The Death of Judas

3 When Judas, the traitor, learned that Jesus had been condemned, he repented and took back the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. 4 “I have sinned by betraying an innocent man to death!” he said.

“What do we care about that?” they answered. “That is your business!”

5 Judas threw the coins down in the Temple and left; then he went off and hanged himself.

6 The chief priests picked up the coins and said, “This is blood money, and it is against our Law to put it in the Temple treasury.” 7 After reaching an agreement about it, they used the money to buy Potter's Field, as a cemetery for foreigners. 8 That is why that field is called “Field of Blood” to this very day.

9 Then what the prophet Jeremiah had said came true: “They took the thirty silver coins, the amount the people of Israel had agreed to pay for him, 10 and used the money to buy the potter's field, as the Lord had commanded me.”

xii-Matthew 27:5 Judas threw the coins down in the Temple and left; then he went off and hanged himself.

6 The chief priests picked up the coins and said, “This is blood money, and it is against our Law to put it in the Temple treasury.” 7 After reaching an agreement about it, they used the money to buy Potter's Field, as a cemetery for foreigners. 8 That is why that field is called “Field of Blood” to this very day.

9 Then what the prophet Jeremiah had said came true: “They took the thirty silver coins, the amount the people of Israel had agreed to pay for him, 10 and used the money to buy the potter's field, as the Lord had commanded me.”

Zechariah 11:12 I said to them, “If you are willing, give me my wages. But if not, keep them.” So they paid me thirty pieces of silver as my wages.

13 The LORD said to me, “Put them in the Temple treasury.”[a] So I took the thirty pieces of silver—the magnificent sum they thought I was worth—and put them in the Temple treasury.

xiii-Matthew 26:51 One of those who were with Jesus drew his sword and struck at the High Priest's slave, cutting off his ear. 52 “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him. “All who take the sword will die by the sword. 53 Don't you know that I could call on my Father for help, and at once he would send me more than twelve armies of angels? 54 But in that case, how could the Scriptures come true which say that this is what must happen?”

55 Then Jesus spoke to the crowd, “Did you have to come with swords and clubs to capture me, as though I were an outlaw? Every day I sat down and taught in the Temple, and you did not arrest me. 56 But all this has happened in order to make come true what the prophets wrote in the Scriptures.”

Then all the disciples left him and ran away.

Jesus before the Council

57 Those who had arrested Jesus took him to the house of Caiaphas, the High Priest, where the teachers of the Law and the elders had gathered together. 58 Peter followed from a distance, as far as the courtyard of the High Priest's house. He went into the courtyard and sat down with the guards to see how it would all come out. 59 The chief priests and the whole Council tried to find some false evidence against Jesus to put him to death; 60 but they could not find any, even though many people came forward and told lies about him. Finally two men stepped up 61 and said, “This man said, ‘I am able to tear down God's Temple and three days later build it back up.’”

62 The High Priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Have you no answer to give to this accusation against you?” 63 But Jesus kept quiet. Again the High Priest spoke to him, “In the name of the living God I now put you under oath: tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”

64 Jesus answered him, “So you say. But I tell all of you: from this time on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right side of the Almighty and coming on the clouds of heaven!”

65 At this the High Priest tore his clothes and said, “Blasphemy! We don't need any more witnesses! You have just heard his blasphemy! 66 What do you think?”

They answered, “He is guilty and must die.”

67 Then they spat in his face and beat him; and those who slapped him 68 said, “Prophesy for us, Messiah! Guess who hit you!”

Peter Denies Jesus

69 Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard when one of the High Priest's servant women came to him and said, “You, too, were with Jesus of Galilee.”

70 But he denied it in front of them all. “I don't know what you are talking about,” he answered, 71 and went on out to the entrance of the courtyard. Another servant woman saw him and said to the men there, “He was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

72 Again Peter denied it and answered, “I swear that I don't know that man!”

73 After a little while the men standing there came to Peter. “Of course you are one of them,” they said. “After all, the way you speak gives you away!”

74 Then Peter said, “I swear that I am telling the truth! May God punish me if I am not! I do not know that man!”

Just then a rooster crowed, 75 and Peter remembered what Jesus had told him: “Before the rooster crows, you will say three times that you do not know me.” He went out and wept bitterly.

xiv-Genesis 2:17 except the tree that gives knowledge of what is good and what is bad.[a] You must not eat the fruit of that tree; if you do, you will die the same day.”

Romans 6:23 For sin pays its wage—death; but God's free gift is eternal life in union with Christ Jesus our Lord.

xv-Genesis 3:1 Now the snake was the most cunning animal that the LORD God had made. The snake asked the woman, “Did God really tell you not to eat fruit from any tree in the garden?”

2 “We may eat the fruit of any tree in the garden,” the woman answered, 3 “except the tree in the middle of it. God told us not to eat the fruit of that tree or even touch it; if we do, we will die.”

xvi-John 10:18 No one takes my life away from me. I give it up of my own free will. I have the right to give it up, and I have the right to take it back. This is what my Father has commanded me to do.”

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