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The Lord’s Supper

26 While[a] they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after giving thanks he broke it, gave it to his disciples, and said, “Take, eat, this is my body.”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 26:26 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

27 And after taking the cup and giving thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you,

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28 for this is my blood, the blood[a] of the covenant,[b] that is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 26:28 tn Grk “for this is my blood of the covenant that is poured out for many.” In order to avoid confusion about which is poured out, the translation supplies “blood” twice so that the following phrase clearly modifies “blood,” not “covenant.”
  2. Matthew 26:28 tc Most witnesses, including several significant ones, read καινῆς (kainēs, “new”) here. Homoioteleuton is a possible reason for the omission, since the article, adjective, and noun are all first declension genitive singulars (τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης, tēs kainēs diathēkēs, “the new covenant”), but the likelihood of excellent, early, and sufficiently diverse witnesses all making the same mistake is remote. A much more probable scenario is that the addition of καινῆς was motivated by the parallel in Luke 22:20. It is a natural expansion on the text. Coupled with the fact that the shorter reading is found in such good and diverse witnesses (e.g., P37,45vid א B L Z Θ 0298vid 33 mae), it most likely is the initial text.sn Jesus’ death established the forgiveness promised in the new covenant of Jer 31:31. Jesus is reinterpreting the symbolism of the Passover meal, indicating the presence of a new era.