Matthew 26-28

New International Reader's Version

The Plan to Kill Jesus

26 Jesus finished saying all these things. Then he said to his disciples, ² “As you know, the Passover Feast is two days away. The Son of Man will be handed over to be nailed to a cross.”

³ Then the chief priests met with the elders of the people. They met in the palace of Caiaphas, the high priest. ⁴ They made plans to arrest Jesus secretly. They wanted to kill him. ⁵ “But not during the feast,” they said. “The people may stir up trouble.”

A Woman Pours Perfume on Jesus

⁶ Jesus was in Bethany. He was in the home of Simon, who had a skin disease. ⁷ A woman came to Jesus with a special sealed jar of very expensive perfume. She poured the perfume on his head while he was at the table.

⁸ When the disciples saw this, they became angry. “Why this waste?” they asked. ⁹ “The perfume could have been sold at a high price. The money could have been given to poor people.”

¹⁰ Jesus was aware of this. So he said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. ¹¹ You will always have poor people with you. But you will not always have me. ¹² She poured the perfume on my body to prepare me to be buried. ¹³ What I’m about to tell you is true. What she has done will be told anywhere this good news is preached all over the world. It will be told in memory of her.”

Judas Agrees to Hand Jesus Over

¹⁴ One of the 12 disciples went to the chief priests. His name was Judas Iscariot. ¹⁵ He asked, “What will you give me if I hand Jesus over to you?” So they counted out 30 silver coins for him. ¹⁶ From then on, Judas watched for the right time to hand Jesus over to them.

The Lord’s Supper

¹⁷ It was the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The disciples came to Jesus. They asked, “Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover meal?”

¹⁸ He replied, “Go into the city to a certain man. Tell him, ‘The Teacher says, “My time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover at your house with my disciples.” ’ ” ¹⁹ So the disciples did what Jesus had told them to do. They prepared the Passover meal.

²⁰ When evening came, Jesus was at the table with his 12 disciples. ²¹ While they were eating, he said, “What I’m about to tell you is true. One of you will hand me over to my enemies.”

²² The disciples became very sad. One after the other, they began to say to him, “Surely you don’t mean me, Lord, do you?”

²³ Jesus replied, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will hand me over. ²⁴ The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But how terrible it will be for the one who hands over the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.”

²⁵ Judas was the one who was going to hand him over. He said, “Surely you don’t mean me, Teacher, do you?”

Jesus answered, “You have said so.”

²⁶ While they were eating, Jesus took bread. He gave thanks and broke it. He handed it to his disciples and said, “Take this and eat it. This is my body.”

²⁷ Then he took a cup. He gave thanks and handed it to them. He said, “All of you drink from it. ²⁸ This is my blood of the covenant. It is poured out to forgive the sins of many people. ²⁹ Here is what I tell you. From now on, I won’t drink wine with you again until the day I drink it with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

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

Jesus Says That the Disciples Will Turn Away

³¹ Jesus told them, “This very night you will all turn away because of me. It is written that the Lord said,

³² But after I rise from the dead, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”

³³ Peter replied, “All the others may turn away because of you. But I never will.”

³⁴ “What I’m about to tell you is true,” Jesus answered. “It will happen tonight. Before the rooster crows, you will say three times that you don’t know me.”

³⁵ But Peter said, “I may have to die with you. But I will never say I don’t know 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. He said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” ³⁷ He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him. He began to be sad and troubled. ³⁸ Then he said to them, “My soul is very sad. I feel close to death. Stay here. Keep watch with me.”

³⁹ He went a little farther. Then he fell with his face to the ground. He prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, take this cup of suffering away from me. But let what you want be done, not what I want.”

⁴⁰ Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. ⁴¹ “Watch and pray. Then you won’t fall into sin when you are tempted. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”

⁴² Jesus went away a second time. He prayed, “My Father, is it possible for this cup to be taken away? But if I must drink it, may what you want be done.”

⁴³ Then he came back. Again he found them sleeping. They couldn’t keep their eyes open. ⁴⁴ So he left them and went away once more. For the third time he prayed the same thing.

⁴⁵ Then he returned to the disciples. He said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look! The hour has come. The Son of Man is about to be handed over to sinners. ⁴⁶ Get up! Let us go! Here comes the one who is handing me over to them!”

Jesus Is Arrested

⁴⁷ While Jesus was still speaking, Judas arrived. He was one of the 12 disciples. A large crowd was with him. They were carrying swords and clubs. The chief priests and the elders of the people had sent them. ⁴⁸ Judas, who was going to hand Jesus over, had arranged a signal with them. “The one I kiss is the man,” he said. “Arrest him.” ⁴⁹ So Judas went to Jesus at once. He said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him.

⁵⁰ Jesus replied, “Friend, do what you came to do.”

Then the men stepped forward. They grabbed Jesus and arrested him. ⁵¹ At that moment, one of Jesus’ companions reached for his sword. He pulled it out and struck the slave of the high priest with it. He cut off the slave’s ear.

⁵² “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him. “All who use the sword will die by the sword. ⁵³ Do you think I can’t ask my Father for help? He would send an army of more than 70,000 angels right away. ⁵⁴ But then how would the Scriptures come true? They say it must happen in this way.”

⁵⁵ At that time Jesus spoke to the crowd. “Am I leading a band of armed men against you?” he asked. “Do you have to come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I sat in the temple courtyard teaching. And you didn’t arrest me. ⁵⁶ But all this has happened so that the words of the prophets would come true.” Then all the disciples left him and ran away.

Jesus Is Taken to the Sanhedrin

⁵⁷ Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas, the high priest. The teachers of the law and the elders had come together there. ⁵⁸ Not too far away, Peter followed Jesus. He went right up to the courtyard of the high priest. He entered and sat down with the guards to see what would happen.

⁵⁹ The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for something to use against Jesus. They wanted to put him to death. ⁶⁰ But they did not find any proof, even though many false witnesses came forward.

Finally, two other witnesses came forward. ⁶¹ They said, “This fellow claimed, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God. I can build it again in three days.’ ”

⁶² Then the high priest stood up. He asked Jesus, “Aren’t you going to answer? What are these charges that these men are bringing against you?” ⁶³ But Jesus remained silent.

The high priest said to him, “I am commanding you in the name of the living God. May he judge you if you don’t tell the truth. Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”

⁶⁴ “You have said so,” Jesus replied. “But here is what I say to all of you. From now on, you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One. You will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven.”

⁶⁵ Then the high priest tore his clothes. He said, “He has spoken a very evil thing against God! Why do we need any more witnesses? You have heard him say this evil thing. ⁶⁶ What do you think?”

“He must die!” they answered.

⁶⁷ Then they spit in his face. They hit him with their fists. Others slapped him. ⁶⁸ They said, “Prophesy to us, Messiah! Who hit you?”

Peter Says He Does Not Know Jesus

⁶⁹ Peter was sitting out in the courtyard. A female servant came to him. “You also were with Jesus of Galilee,” she said.

⁷⁰ But in front of all of them, Peter said he was not. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said.

⁷¹ Then he went out to the gate leading into the courtyard. There another servant saw him. She said to the people, “This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

⁷² Again he said he was not. With a curse he said, “I don’t know the man!”

⁷³ After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter. “You must be one of them,” they said. “The way you talk gives you away.”

⁷⁴ Then Peter began to curse and said to them, “I don’t know the man!”

Right away a rooster crowed. ⁷⁵ Then Peter remembered what Jesus had said. “The rooster will crow,” Jesus had told him. “Before it does, you will say three times that you don’t know me.” Peter went outside. He broke down and cried.

Judas Hangs Himself

27 It was early in the morning. All the chief priests and the elders of the people planned how to put Jesus to death. ² So they tied him up and led him away. Then they handed him over to Pilate, who was the governor.

³ Judas, who had handed him over, saw that Jesus had been sentenced to die. He felt deep shame and sadness for what he had done. So he returned the 30 silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. ⁴ “I have sinned,” he said. “I handed over a man who is not guilty.”

“What do we care?” they replied. “That’s your problem.”

⁵ So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.

⁶ The chief priests picked up the coins. They said, “It’s against the law to put this money into the temple fund. It is blood money. It has paid for a man’s death.” ⁷ So they decided to use the money to buy a potter’s field. People from other countries would be buried there. ⁸ That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day. ⁹ Then the words spoken by Jeremiah the prophet came true. He had said, “They took the 30 silver coins. That price was set for him by the people of Israel. ¹⁰ They used the coins to buy a potter’s field, just as the Lord commanded me.” (Zechariah 11:12,13; Jeremiah 19:1–13; 32:6–9)

Jesus Is Brought to Pilate

¹¹ Jesus was standing in front of the governor. The governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“Yes. You have said so,” Jesus replied.

¹² But when the chief priests and the elders brought charges against him, he did not answer. ¹³ Then Pilate asked him, “Don’t you hear the charges they are bringing against you?” ¹⁴ But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge. The governor was really amazed.

¹⁵ It was the governor’s practice at the Passover Feast to let one prisoner go free. The people could choose the one they wanted. ¹⁶ At that time they had a well-known prisoner named Jesus Barabbas. ¹⁷ So when the crowd gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to set free? Jesus Barabbas? Or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” ¹⁸ Pilate knew that the leaders wanted to get their own way. He knew this was why they had handed Jesus over to him.

¹⁹ While Pilate was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him a message. It said, “Don’t have anything to do with that man. He is not guilty. I have suffered a great deal in a dream today because of him.”

²⁰ But the chief priests and the elders talked the crowd into asking for Barabbas and having Jesus put to death.

²¹ “Which of the two do you want me to set free?” asked the governor.

“Barabbas,” they answered.

²² “Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” Pilate asked.

They all answered, “Crucify him!”

²³ “Why? What wrong has he done?” asked Pilate.

But they shouted even louder, “Crucify him!”

²⁴ Pilate saw that he wasn’t getting anywhere. Instead, the crowd was starting to get angry. So he took water and washed his hands in front of them. “I am not guilty of this man’s death,” he said. “You are accountable for that!”

²⁵ All the people answered, “Put the blame for his death on us and our children!”

²⁶ Pilate let Barabbas go free. But he had Jesus whipped. Then he handed him over to be nailed to a cross.

The Soldiers Make Fun of Jesus

²⁷ The governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the palace, which was called the Praetorium. All the rest of the soldiers gathered around him. ²⁸ They took off his clothes and put a purple robe on him. ²⁹ Then they twisted thorns together to make a crown. They placed it on his head. They put a stick in his right hand. Then they fell on their knees in front of him and made fun of him. “We honor you, king of the Jews!” they said. ³⁰ They spit on him. They hit him on the head with the stick again and again. ³¹ After they had made fun of him, they took off the robe. They put his own clothes back on him. Then they led him away to nail him to a cross.

Jesus Is Nailed to a Cross

³² On their way out of the city, they met a man from Cyrene. His name was Simon. They forced him to carry the cross. ³³ They came to a place called Golgotha. The word Golgotha means the Place of the Skull. ³⁴ There they mixed wine with bitter spices and gave it to Jesus to drink. After tasting it, he refused to drink it. ³⁵ When they had nailed him to the cross, they divided up his clothes by casting lots. ³⁶ They sat down and kept watch over him there. ³⁷ Above his head they placed the written charge against him. It read,

This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.

³⁸ Two rebels against Rome were crucified with him. One was on his right and one was on his left. ³⁹ Those who passed by shouted at Jesus and made fun of him. They shook their heads ⁴⁰ and said, “So you are going to destroy the temple and build it again in three days? Then save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” ⁴¹ In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders made fun of him. ⁴² “He saved others,” they said. “But he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross! Then we will believe in him. ⁴³ He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him. He’s the one who said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ” ⁴⁴ In the same way the rebels who were being crucified with Jesus also made fun of him.

Jesus Dies

⁴⁵ From noon until three o’clock, the whole land was covered with darkness. ⁴⁶ About three o’clock, Jesus cried out in a loud voice. He said, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” This means “My God, my God, why have you deserted me?” (Psalm 22:1)

⁴⁷ Some of those standing there heard Jesus cry out. They said, “He’s calling for Elijah.”

⁴⁸ Right away one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar and put it on a stick. He offered it to Jesus to drink. ⁴⁹ The rest said, “Leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

⁵⁰ After Jesus cried out again in a loud voice, he died.

⁵¹ At that moment the temple curtain was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook. The rocks split. ⁵² Tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. ⁵³ They came out of the tombs. After Jesus was raised from the dead, they went into the holy city. There they appeared to many people.

⁵⁴ The Roman commander and those guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened. They were terrified. They exclaimed, “He was surely the Son of God!”

⁵⁵ Not very far away, many women were watching. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to take care of his needs. ⁵⁶ Mary Magdalene was among them. Mary, the mother of James and Joseph, was also there. So was the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

Jesus Is Buried

⁵⁷ As evening approached, a rich man came from the town of Arimathea. His name was Joseph. He had become a follower of Jesus. ⁵⁸ He went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. Pilate ordered that it be given to him. ⁵⁹ Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth. ⁶⁰ He placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb. Then he went away. ⁶¹ Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there across from the tomb.

The Guards at the Tomb

⁶² The next day was the day after Preparation Day. The chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. ⁶³ “Sir,” they said, “we remember something that liar said while he was still alive. He claimed, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ ⁶⁴ So give the order to make the tomb secure until the third day. If you don’t, his disciples might come and steal the body. Then they will tell the people that Jesus has been raised from the dead. This last lie will be worse than the first.”

⁶⁵ “Take some guards with you,” Pilate answered. “Go. Make the tomb as secure as you can.” ⁶⁶ So they went and made the tomb secure. They put a royal seal on the stone and placed some guards on duty.

Jesus Rises From the Dead

28 The Sabbath day was now over. It was dawn on the first day of the week. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

² There was a powerful earthquake. An angel of the Lord came down from heaven. The angel went to the tomb. He rolled back the stone and sat on it. ³ His body shone like lightning. His clothes were as white as snow. ⁴ The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

⁵ The angel said to the women, “Don’t be afraid. I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here! He has risen, just as he said he would! Come and see the place where he was lying. ⁷ Go quickly! Tell his disciples, ‘He has risen from the dead. He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

⁸ So the women hurried away from the tomb. They were afraid, but they were filled with joy. They ran to tell the disciples. ⁹ Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings!” he said. They came to him, took hold of his feet and worshiped him. ¹⁰ Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee. There they will see me.”

The Guards Report to the Chief Priests

¹¹ While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city. They reported to the chief priests all that had happened. ¹² When the chief priests met with the elders, they came up with a plan. They gave the soldiers a large amount of money. ¹³ They told the soldiers, “We want you to say, ‘His disciples came during the night. They stole his body while we were sleeping.’ ¹⁴ If the governor hears this report, we will pay him off. That will keep you out of trouble.” ¹⁵ So the soldiers took the money and did as they were told. This story has spread all around among the Jews to this day.

Jesus’ Final Orders to His Disciples

¹⁶ Then the 11 disciples went to Galilee. They went to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. ¹⁷ When they saw him, they worshiped him. But some still had their doubts. ¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them. He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ So you must go and make disciples of all nations. Baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. ²⁰ Teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And you can be sure that I am always with you, to the very end.”