Mark 14:66-15:32

New International Version - UK

Peter disowns Jesus

⁶⁶ While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant-girls of the high priest came by. ⁶⁷ When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him.

‘You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus,’ she said.

⁶⁸ But he denied it. ‘I don’t know or understand what you’re talking about,’ he said, and went out into the entrance.^[a]

⁶⁹ When the servant-girl saw him there, she said again to those standing round them, ‘This fellow is one of them.’ ⁷⁰ Again he denied it.

After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, ‘Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.’

⁷¹ He began to call down curses, and he swore to them, ‘I don’t know this man you’re talking about.’

⁷² Immediately the cock crowed the second time.^[b] Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: ‘Before the cock crows twice^[c] you will disown me three times.’ And he broke down and wept.

Jesus before Pilate

15 Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, made their plans. So they bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate.

² ‘Are you the king of the Jews?’ asked Pilate.

‘You have said so,’ Jesus replied.

³ The chief priests accused him of many things. ⁴ So again Pilate asked him, ‘Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.’

⁵ But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.

⁶ Now it was the custom at the festival to release a prisoner whom the people requested. ⁷ A man called Barabbas was in prison with the rebels who had committed murder in the uprising. ⁸ The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.

⁹ ‘Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?’ asked Pilate, ¹⁰ knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. ¹¹ But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to get Pilate to release Barabbas instead.

¹² ‘What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?’ Pilate asked them.

¹³ ‘Crucify him!’ they shouted.

¹⁴ ‘Why? What crime has he committed?’ asked Pilate.

But they shouted all the louder, ‘Crucify him!’

¹⁵ Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.

The soldiers mock Jesus

¹⁶ The soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called together the whole company of soldiers. ¹⁷ They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. ¹⁸ And they began to call out to him, ‘Hail, king of the Jews!’ ¹⁹ Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spat on him. Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him. ²⁰ And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.

The crucifixion of Jesus

²¹ A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. ²² They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means ‘the place of the skull’). ²³ Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. ²⁴ And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.

²⁵ It was nine in the morning when they crucified him. ²⁶ The written notice of the charge against him read: the king of the jews.

²⁷ They crucified two rebels with him, one on his right and one on his left. ^{[d] 29} Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, ‘So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, ³⁰ come down from the cross and save yourself!’ ³¹ In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. ‘He saved others,’ they said, ‘but he can’t save himself! ³² Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.’ Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him.