Luke 21-24

New American Standard Bible 1995

The Widow’s Gift

21 ^(A)And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. ² And He saw a poor widow putting ^[a]in ^(B)two ^[b]small copper coins. ³ And He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them; ⁴ for they all out of their ^[c]surplus put into the ^[d]offering; but she out of her poverty put in all ^[e]that she had ^(C)to live on.”

^5 (D)And while some were talking about the temple, that it was adorned with beautiful stones and votive gifts, He said, ⁶ “As for these things which you are looking at, the days will come in which ^(E)there will not be left one stone upon another which will not be torn down.”

⁷ They questioned Him, saying, “Teacher, when therefore will these things happen? And what will be the ^[f]sign when these things are about to take place?” ⁸ And He said, “See to it that you are not misled; for many will come in My name, saying, ‘^(F)I am He,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ ^(G)Do not go after them. ⁹ When you hear of wars and disturbances, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end does not follow immediately.”

Things to Come

¹⁰ Then He continued by saying to them, “Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, ¹¹ and there will be great earthquakes, and in various places plagues and famines; and there will be terrors and great ^[g]signs from heaven.

¹² “But before all these things, ^(H)they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, ^[h]bringing you before kings and governors for My name’s sake. ^13 (I)It will lead to ^[i]an opportunity for your testimony. ^14 (J)So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves; ¹⁵ for ^(K)I will give you ^[j]utterance and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute. ¹⁶ But you will be betrayed even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death, ¹⁷ and you will be hated by all because of My name. ¹⁸ Yet ^(L)not a hair of your head will perish. ^19 (M)By your endurance you will gain your ^[k]lives.

²⁰ “But when you see Jerusalem ^(N)surrounded by armies, then ^[l]recognize that her desolation is near. ²¹ Then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those who are in the midst of ^[m]the city must leave, and ^(O)those who are in the country must not enter ^[n]the city; ²² because these are ^(P)days of vengeance, so that all things which are written will be fulfilled. ²³ Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days; for ^(Q)there will be great distress upon the ^[o]land and wrath to this people; ²⁴ and they will fall by ^(R)the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and ^(S)Jerusalem will be ^(T)trampled under foot by the Gentiles until ^(U)the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

The Return of Christ

²⁵ “There will be ^[p]signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, ²⁶ men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the ^[q]world; for the powers of ^[r]the heavens will be shaken. ^27 (V)Then they will see ^(W)the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. ²⁸ But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because ^(X)your redemption is drawing near.”

²⁹ Then He told them a parable: “Behold the fig tree and all the trees; ³⁰ as soon as they put forth leaves, you see it and ^(Y)know for yourselves that summer is now near. ³¹ So you also, when you see these things happening, ^[s]recognize that ^(Z)the kingdom of God is near. ³² Truly I say to you, this ^[t]generation will not pass away until all things take place. ^33 (AA)Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

³⁴ “^(AB)Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap; ³⁵ for it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of all the earth. ³⁶ But ^(AC)keep on the alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to ^(AD)stand before the Son of Man.”

³⁷ Now ^[u]during the day He was ^(AE)teaching in the temple, but ^[v](AF)at evening He would go out and spend the night on ^[w](AG)the mount that is called ^[x]Olivet. ³⁸ And all the people would get up ^(AH)early in the morning to come to Him in the temple to listen to Him.

Preparing the Passover

22 ^(AI)Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is called the ^(AJ)Passover, was approaching. ² The chief priests and the scribes ^(AK)were seeking how they might put Him to death; for they were afraid of the people.

^3 (AL)And ^(AM)Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, ^[y]belonging to the number of the twelve. ⁴ And he went away and discussed with the chief priests and ^(AN)officers how he might betray Him to them. ⁵ They were glad and agreed to give him money. ⁶ So he consented, and began seeking a good opportunity to betray Him to them ^[z]apart from the crowd.

^7 (AO)Then came the first day of Unleavened Bread on which ^(AP)the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. ⁸ And Jesus sent ^(AQ)Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, so that we may eat it.” ⁹ They said to Him, “Where do You want us to prepare it?” ¹⁰ And He said to them, “When you have entered the city, a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him into the house that he enters. ¹¹ And you shall say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, “Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?”’ ¹² And he will show you a large, furnished upper room; prepare it there.” ¹³ And they left and found everything just as He had told them; and they prepared the Passover.

The Lord’s Supper

^14 (AR)When the hour had come, He reclined at the table, and ^(AS)the apostles with Him. ¹⁵ And He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; ¹⁶ for I say to you, I shall never again eat it ^(AT)until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” ^17 (AU)And when He had taken a cup and ^(AV)given thanks, He said, “Take this and share it among yourselves; ¹⁸ for ^(AW)I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.” ¹⁹ And when He had taken some bread and ^(AX)given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” ²⁰ And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which is ^(AY)poured out for you is the ^(AZ)new covenant in My blood. ^21 (BA)But behold, the hand of the one betraying Me is with ^[aa]Mine on the table. ²² For indeed, the Son of Man is going ^(BB)as it has been determined; but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!” ²³ And they began to discuss among themselves which one of them it might be who was going to do this thing.

Who Is Greatest

²⁴ And there arose also ^(BC)a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded to be greatest. ^25 (BD)And He said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who have authority over them are called ‘Benefactors.’ ²⁶ But it is not this way with you, ^(BE)but the one who is the greatest among you must become like ^(BF)the youngest, and the leader like the servant. ²⁷ For ^(BG)who is greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at the table? But ^(BH)I am among you as the one who serves.

²⁸ “You are those who have stood by Me in My ^(BI)trials; ²⁹ and just as My Father has granted Me a ^(BJ)kingdom, I grant you ³⁰ that you may ^(BK)eat and drink at My table in My ^(BL)kingdom, and ^(BM)you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

³¹ “Simon, Simon, behold, ^(BN)Satan has ^[ab]demanded permission to ^(BO)sift you like wheat; ³² but I ^(BP)have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, ^(BQ)strengthen your brothers.” ^33 (BR)But he said to Him, “Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison and to death!” ³⁴ And He said, “I say to you, Peter, the rooster will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me.”

³⁵ And He said to them, “^(BS)When I sent you out without money belt and bag and sandals, you did not lack anything, did you?” They said, “No, nothing.” ³⁶ And He said to them, “But now, ^[ac]whoever has a money belt is to take it along, likewise also a bag, and ^[ad]whoever has no sword is to sell his ^[ae]coat and buy one. ³⁷ For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘^(BT)And He was numbered with transgressors’; for ^(BU)that which refers to Me has its ^[af]fulfillment.” ³⁸ They said, “Lord, look, here are two ^(BV)swords.” And He said to them, “It is enough.”

The Garden of Gethsemane

^39 (BW)And He came out and proceeded ^(BX)as was His custom to ^(BY)the Mount of Olives; and the disciples also followed Him. ^40 (BZ)When He arrived at the place, He said to them, “^(CA)Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” ⁴¹ And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and He ^(CB)knelt down and began to pray, ⁴² saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this ^(CC)cup from Me; ^(CD)yet not My will, but Yours be done.” ^43 [ag]Now an ^(CE)angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him. ⁴⁴ And ^(CF)being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground. ⁴⁵ When He rose from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them sleeping from sorrow, ⁴⁶ and said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and ^(CG)pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

Jesus Betrayed by Judas

^47 (CH)While He was still speaking, behold, a crowd came, and the one called Judas, one of the twelve, was preceding them; and he approached Jesus to kiss Him. ⁴⁸ But Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” ⁴⁹ When those who were around Him saw what was going to happen, they said, “Lord, shall we strike with the ^(CI)sword?” ⁵⁰ And one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. ⁵¹ But Jesus answered and said, “^[ah]Stop! No more of this.” And He touched his ear and healed him. ⁵² Then Jesus said to the chief priests and ^(CJ)officers of the temple and elders who had come against Him, “Have you come out with swords and clubs ^(CK)as you would against a robber? ⁵³ While I was with you daily in the temple, you did not lay hands on Me; but ^[ai]this hour and the power of darkness are yours.”

Jesus’ Arrest

^54 (CL)Having arrested Him, they led Him away and brought Him to the house of the high priest; but ^(CM)Peter was following at a distance. ^55 (CN)After they had kindled a fire in the middle of ^(CO)the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter was sitting among them. ⁵⁶ And a servant-girl, seeing him as he sat in the firelight and looking intently at him, said, “This man was with Him too.” ⁵⁷ But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.” ⁵⁸ A little later, ^(CP)another saw him and said, “You are one of them too!” But Peter said, “Man, I am not!” ⁵⁹ After about an hour had passed, another man began to insist, saying, “Certainly this man also was with Him, ^(CQ)for he is a Galilean too.” ⁶⁰ But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” Immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed. ^61 (CR)The Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had told him, “^(CS)Before a rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.” ⁶² And he went out and wept bitterly.

^63 (CT)Now the men who were holding ^[aj]Jesus in custody were mocking Him and beating Him, ⁶⁴ and they blindfolded Him and were asking Him, saying, “^(CU)Prophesy, who is the one who hit You?” ⁶⁵ And they were saying many other things against Him, ^(CV)blaspheming.

Jesus before the Sanhedrin

^66 (CW)When it was day, ^(CX)the ^[ak]Council of elders of the people assembled, both chief priests and scribes, and they led Him away to their ^(CY)council chamber, saying, ⁶⁷ “^(CZ)If You are the ^[al]Christ, tell us.” But He said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe; ⁶⁸ and if I ask a question, you will not answer. ^69 (DA)But from now on ^(DB)the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.” ⁷⁰ And they all said, “Are You ^(DC)the Son of God, then?” And He said to them, “^[am](DD)Yes, I am.” ⁷¹ Then they said, “What further need do we have of testimony? For we have heard it ourselves from His own mouth.”

Jesus before Pilate

23 Then the whole body of them got up and ^(DE)brought Him before Pilate. ^2 (DF)And they began to accuse Him, saying, “We found this man ^(DG)misleading our nation and ^(DH)forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, and saying that He Himself is ^[an]Christ, a King.” ³ So Pilate asked Him, saying, “Are You the King of the Jews?” And He answered him and said, “^(DI)It is as you say.” ⁴ Then Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, “^(DJ)I find no guilt in this man.” ⁵ But they kept on insisting, saying, “He stirs up the people, teaching all over Judea, ^(DK)starting from Galilee even as far as this place.”

⁶ When Pilate heard it, he asked whether the man was a Galilean. ⁷ And when he learned that He belonged to Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent Him to ^(DL)Herod, who himself also was in Jerusalem ^[ao]at that time.

Jesus before Herod

⁸ Now Herod was very glad when he saw Jesus; for ^(DM)he had wanted to see Him for a long time, because he had been hearing about Him and was hoping to see some ^[ap]sign performed by Him. ⁹ And he questioned Him ^[aq]at some length; but ^(DN)He answered him nothing. ¹⁰ And the chief priests and the scribes were standing there, accusing Him vehemently. ¹¹ And Herod with his soldiers, after treating Him with contempt and mocking Him, ^(DO)dressed Him in a gorgeous robe and sent Him back to Pilate. ¹² Now ^(DP)Herod and Pilate became friends with one another that very day; for before they had been enemies with each other.

Pilate Seeks Jesus’ Release

¹³ Pilate summoned the chief priests and the ^(DQ)rulers and the people, ¹⁴ and said to them, “You brought this man to me as one who ^(DR)incites the people to rebellion, and behold, having examined Him before you, I ^(DS)have found no guilt in this man regarding the charges which you make against Him. ¹⁵ No, nor has ^(DT)Herod, for he sent Him back to us; and behold, nothing deserving death has been done by Him. ¹⁶ Therefore I will ^(DU)punish Him and release Him.” ¹⁷ [^[ar]Now he was obliged to release to them at the feast one prisoner.]

¹⁸ But they cried out all together, saying, “^(DV)Away with this man, and release for us Barabbas!” ¹⁹ (He was one who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection made in the city, and for murder.) ²⁰ Pilate, wanting to release Jesus, addressed them again, ²¹ but they kept on calling out, saying, “Crucify, crucify Him!” ²² And he said to them the third time, “Why, what evil has this man done? I have found in Him no guilt demanding death; therefore I will ^(DW)punish Him and release Him.” ²³ But they were insistent, with loud voices asking that He be crucified. And their voices began to prevail. ²⁴ And Pilate pronounced sentence that their demand be granted. ²⁵ And he released the man they were asking for who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, but he delivered Jesus to their will.

Simon Bears the Cross

^26 (DX)When they led Him away, they seized a man, Simon of ^(DY)Cyrene, coming in from the country, and placed on him the cross to carry behind Jesus.

²⁷ And following Him was a large crowd of the people, and of women who were ^[as](DZ)mourning and lamenting Him. ²⁸ But Jesus turning to them said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. ²⁹ For behold, the days are coming when they will say, ‘^(EA)Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bore, and the breasts that never nursed.’ ³⁰ Then they will begin to ^(EB)say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us,’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’ ³¹ For if they do these things ^[at]when the tree is green, what will happen ^[au]when it is dry?”

^32 (EC)Two others also, who were criminals, were being led away to be put to death with Him.

The Crucifixion

^33 (ED)When they came to the place called ^[av]The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left. ^34 [aw]But Jesus was saying, “^(EE)Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” ^(EF)And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves. ³⁵ And the people stood by, looking on. And even the ^(EG)rulers were sneering at Him, saying, “He saved others; ^(EH)let Him save Himself if this is the ^[ax]Christ of God, His Chosen One.” ³⁶ The soldiers also mocked Him, coming up to Him, ^(EI)offering Him sour wine, ³⁷ and saying, “^(EJ)If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!” ³⁸ Now there was also an inscription above Him, “^(EK)THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”

^39 (EL)One of the criminals who were hanged there was ^[ay]hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the ^[az]Christ? ^(EM)Save Yourself and us!” ⁴⁰ But the other answered, and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? ⁴¹ And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving ^[ba]what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” ⁴² And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come ^[bb]in Your kingdom!” ⁴³ And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in ^(EN)Paradise.”

^44 (EO)It was now about ^[bc](EP)the sixth hour, and darkness ^[bd]fell over the whole land until ^[be]the ninth hour, ^45 [bf]because the sun was obscured; and ^(EQ)the veil of the temple was torn ^[bg]in two. ⁴⁶ And Jesus, ^(ER)crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, ^(ES)into Your hands I commit My spirit.” Having said this, He breathed His last. ^47 (ET)Now when the centurion saw what had happened, he began ^(EU)praising God, saying, “Certainly this man was ^[bh]innocent.” ⁴⁸ And all the crowds who came together for this spectacle, when they observed what had happened, began to return, ^[bi](EV)beating their breasts. ^49 (EW)And all His acquaintances and ^(EX)the women who accompanied Him from Galilee were standing at a distance, seeing these things.

Jesus Is Buried

^50 (EY)And a man named Joseph, who was a ^(EZ)member of the Council, a good and righteous man ⁵¹ (he had not consented to their plan and action), a man from Arimathea, a city of the Jews, who was ^(FA)waiting for the kingdom of God; ⁵² this man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. ⁵³ And he took it down and wrapped it in a linen cloth, and laid Him in a tomb cut into the rock, where no one had ever lain. ⁵⁴ It was ^(FB)the ^[bj]preparation day, and the Sabbath was about to ^[bk]begin. ⁵⁵ Now ^(FC)the women who had come with Him out of Galilee followed, and saw the tomb and how His body was laid. ⁵⁶ Then they returned and ^(FD)prepared spices and perfumes.

And ^(FE)on the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.

The Resurrection

24 ^(FF)But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. ² And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, ³ but when they entered, they did not find the body of ^(FG)the Lord Jesus. ⁴ While they were perplexed about this, behold, ^(FH)two men suddenly ^(FI)stood near them in dazzling clothing; ⁵ and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? ⁶ He is not here, but He ^(FJ)has ^[bl]risen. Remember how He spoke to you ^(FK)while He was still in Galilee, ⁷ saying that ^(FL)the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.” ⁸ And ^(FM)they remembered His words, ⁹ and returned from the tomb and reported all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. ¹⁰ Now they were ^(FN)Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them were telling these things to ^(FO)the apostles. ¹¹ But these words appeared ^[bm]to them as nonsense, and they ^(FP)would not believe them. ¹² But Peter got up and ^(FQ)ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he *saw the linen wrappings ^[bn]only; and he went away ^(FR)to his home, marveling at what had happened.

The Road to Emmaus

¹³ And behold, ^(FS)two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was ^[bo]about seven miles from Jerusalem. ¹⁴ And they were talking with each other about all these things which had taken place. ¹⁵ While they were talking and discussing, Jesus Himself approached and began traveling with them. ¹⁶ But ^(FT)their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him. ¹⁷ And He said to them, “What are these words that you are exchanging with one another as you are walking?” And they stood still, looking sad. ¹⁸ One of them, named Cleopas, answered and said to Him, “Are You ^[bp]the only one visiting Jerusalem and unaware of the things which have happened here in these days?” ¹⁹ And He said to them, “What things?” And they said to Him, “The things about ^(FU)Jesus the Nazarene, who was a ^(FV)prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all the people, ²⁰ and how the chief priests and our ^(FW)rulers delivered Him to the sentence of death, and crucified Him. ²¹ But we were hoping that it was He who was going to ^(FX)redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened. ²² But also some women among us amazed us. ^(FY)When they were at the tomb early in the morning, ²³ and did not find His body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive. ²⁴ Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just exactly as the women also had said; but Him they did not see.” ²⁵ And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that ^(FZ)the prophets have spoken! ^26 (GA)Was it not necessary for the ^[bq]Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” ²⁷ Then beginning ^[br]with ^(GB)Moses and ^[bs]with all the ^(GC)prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.

²⁸ And they approached the village where they were going, and ^(GD)He acted as though He were going farther. ²⁹ But they urged Him, saying, “Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day ^[bt]is now nearly over.” So He went in to stay with them. ³⁰ When He had reclined at the table with them, He took the bread and ^(GE)blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them. ³¹ Then their ^(GF)eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished from ^[bu]their sight. ³² They said to one another, “^[bv]Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He ^(GG)was ^[bw]explaining the Scriptures to us?” ³³ And they got up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and ^(GH)found gathered together the eleven and ^(GI)those who were with them, ³⁴ saying, “^(GJ)The Lord has really risen and ^(GK)has appeared to Simon.” ³⁵ They began to relate ^[bx]their experiences on the road and how ^(GL)He was recognized by them in the breaking of the bread.

Other Appearances

³⁶ While they were telling these things, ^(GM)He Himself stood in their midst and *said to them, “Peace be to you.” ³⁷ But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing ^(GN)a spirit. ³⁸ And He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your ^[by]hearts? ^39 (GO)See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; ^(GP)touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” ⁴⁰ And when He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. ⁴¹ While they still ^[bz](GQ)could not believe it because of their joy and amazement, He said to them, “^(GR)Have you anything here to eat?” ⁴² They gave Him a piece of a broiled fish; ⁴³ and He took it and ^(GS)ate it before them.

⁴⁴ Now He said to them, “^(GT)These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the ^(GU)Law of Moses and the Prophets and ^(GV)the Psalms must be fulfilled.” ⁴⁵ Then He ^(GW)opened their ^[ca]minds to understand the Scriptures, ⁴⁶ and He said to them, “^(GX)Thus it is written, that the ^[cb]Christ would suffer and ^(GY)rise again from the dead the third day, ⁴⁷ and that ^(GZ)repentance ^[cc]for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed ^[cd]in His name to ^(HA)all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. ⁴⁸ You are ^(HB)witnesses of these things. ⁴⁹ And behold, ^(HC)I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but ^(HD)you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

The Ascension

⁵⁰ And He led them out as far as ^(HE)Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. ⁵¹ While He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven. ⁵² And they, after worshiping Him, returned to Jerusalem with great joy, ⁵³ and were continually in the temple ^[ce]praising God.