Matthew 26:1-46

WHEN JESUS had ended this discourse, He said to His disciples, You know that the Passover is in two days–and the Son of Man will be delivered up treacherously to be crucified. Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the [open] court of the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, And consulted together in order to arrest Jesus by stratagem secretly and put Him to death. But they said, It must not be during the Feast, for fear that there will be a riot among the people. Now when Jesus came back to Bethany and was in the house of Simon the leper, A woman came up to Him with an alabaster flask of very precious perfume, and she poured it on His head as He reclined at table. And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, For what purpose is all this waste? For this perfume might have been sold for a large sum and the money given to the poor. But Jesus, fully aware of this, said to them, Why do you bother the woman? She has done a noble (praiseworthy and beautiful) thing to Me. For you always have the poor among you, but you will not always have Me. [Deut. 15:11.] In pouring this perfume on My body she has done something to prepare Me for My burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this good news (the Gospel) is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will be told also, in memory of her. Then one of the Twelve [apostles], who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests And said, What are you willing to give me if I hand Him over to you? And they weighed out for and paid to him thirty pieces of silver [about twenty-one dollars and sixty cents]. [Exod. 21:32; Zech. 11:12.] And from that moment he sought a fitting opportunity to betray Him. Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread [Passover week], the disciples came to Jesus and said to Him, Where do You wish us to prepare for You to eat the Passover supper? He said, Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, The Master says: My time is near; I will keep the Passover at your house with My disciples. And accordingly the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they made ready the Passover supper. [Deut. 16:5-8.] When it was evening, He was reclining at table with the twelve disciples. And as they were eating, He said, Solemnly I say to you, one of you will betray Me! They were exceedingly pained and distressed and deeply hurt and sorrowful and began to say to Him one after another, Surely it cannot be I, Lord, can it? He replied, He who has [just] dipped his hand in the same dish with Me will betray Me! The Son of Man is going just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better (more profitable and wholesome) for that man if he had never been born! [Ps. 41:9.] Judas, the betrayer, said, Surely it is not I, is it, Master? He said to him, You have stated [the fact]. Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread and, praising God, gave thanks and asked Him to bless it to their use, and when He had broken it, He gave it to the disciples and said, Take, eat; this is My body. And He took a cup, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, Drink of it, all of you; For this is My blood of the new covenant, which [ratifies the agreement and] is being poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. [Exod. 24:6-8.] I say to you, I shall not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it with you new and of superior quality in My Father's kingdom. And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. Then Jesus said to them, You will all be offended and stumble and fall away because of Me this night [distrusting and deserting Me], for it is written, I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered. [Zech. 13:7.] But after I am raised up [to life again], I will go ahead of you to Galilee. Peter declared to Him, Though they all are offended and stumble and fall away because of You [and distrust and desert You], I will never do so. Jesus said to him, Solemnly I declare to you, this very night, before a single rooster crows, you will deny and disown Me three times. Peter said to Him, Even if I must die with You, I will not deny or disown You! And all the disciples said the same thing. Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and He told His disciples, Sit down here while I go over yonder and pray. And taking with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, He began to show grief and distress of mind and was deeply depressed. Then He said to them, My soul is very sad and deeply grieved, so that I am almost dying of sorrow. Stay here and keep awake and keep watch with Me. And going a little farther, He threw Himself upon the ground on His face and prayed saying, My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will [not what I desire], but as You will and desire. And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and He said to Peter, What! Are you so utterly unable to stay awake and keep watch with Me for one hour? All of you must keep awake (give strict attention, be cautious and active) and watch and pray, that you may not come into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Again a second time He went away and prayed, My Father, if this cannot pass by unless I drink it, Your will be done. And again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were weighed down with sleep. So, leaving them again, He went away and prayed for the third time, using the same words. Then He returned to the disciples and said to them, Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of especially wicked sinners [whose way or nature it is to act in opposition to God]. Get up, let us be going! See, My betrayer is at hand!