Mark 14
14
Anointing His Head
1-2In only two days the eight-day Festival of Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread would begin. The high priests and religion scholars were looking for a way they could seize Jesus by stealth and kill him. They agreed that it should not be done during Passover Week. “We don’t want the crowds up in arms,” they said.
3-5Jesus was at Bethany, a guest of Simon the Leper. While he was eating dinner, a woman came up carrying a bottle of very expensive perfume. Opening the bottle, she poured it on his head. Some of the guests became furious among themselves. “That’s criminal! A sheer waste! This perfume could have been sold for well over a year’s wages and handed out to the poor.” They swelled up in anger, nearly bursting with indignation over her.
6-9But Jesus said, “Let her alone. Why are you giving her a hard time? She has just done something wonderfully significant for me. You will have the poor with you every day for the rest of your lives. Whenever you feel like it, you can do something for them. Not so with me. She did what she could when she could—she pre-anointed my body for burial. And you can be sure that wherever in the whole world the Message is preached, what she just did is going to be talked about admiringly.”
10-11Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the cabal of high priests, determined to betray him. They couldn’t believe their ears, and promised to pay him well. He started looking for just the right moment to hand him over.
Traitor to the Son of Man
12On the first of the Days of Unleavened Bread, the day they prepare the Passover sacrifice, his disciples asked him, “Where do you want us to go and make preparations so you can eat the Passover meal?”
13-15He directed two of his disciples, “Go into the city. A man carrying a water jug will meet you. Follow him. Ask the owner of whichever house he enters, ‘The Teacher wants to know, Where is my guest room where I can eat the Passover meal with my disciples?’ He will show you a spacious second-story room, swept and ready. Prepare for us there.”
16The disciples left, came to the city, found everything just as he had told them, and prepared the Passover meal.
17-18After sunset he came with the Twelve. As they were at the supper table eating, Jesus said, “I have something hard but important to say to you: One of you is going to hand me over to the conspirators, one who at this moment is eating with me.”
19Stunned, they started asking, one after another, “It isn’t me, is it?”
20-21He said, “It’s one of the Twelve, one who eats with me out of the same bowl. In one sense, it turns out that the Son of Man is entering into a way of treachery well-marked by the Scriptures—no surprises here. In another sense, the man who turns him in, turns traitor to the Son of Man—better never to have been born than do this!”
“This Is My Body”
22In the course of their meal, having taken and blessed the bread, he broke it and gave it to them. Then he said,
Take, this is my body.
23-24Taking the chalice, he gave it to them, thanking God, and they all drank from it. He said,
This is my blood,
God’s new covenant,
Poured out for many people.
25“I’ll not be drinking wine again until the new day when I drink it in the kingdom of God.”
26They sang a hymn and then went directly to Mount Olives.
* * *
27-28Jesus told them, “You’re all going to feel that your world is falling apart and that it’s my fault. There’s a Scripture that says,
I will strike the shepherd;
The sheep will scatter.
“But after I am raised up, I will go ahead of you, leading the way to Galilee.”
29Peter blurted out, “Even if everyone else is ashamed of you when things fall to pieces, I won’t be.”
30Jesus said, “Don’t be so sure. Today, this very night in fact, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.”
31He blustered in protest, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never deny you.” All the others said the same thing.
Gethsemane
32-34They came to an area called Gethsemane. Jesus told his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took Peter, James, and John with him. He sank into a pit of suffocating darkness. He told them, “I feel bad enough right now to die. Stay here and keep vigil with me.”
35-36Going a little ahead, he fell to the ground and prayed for a way out: “Papa, Father, you can—can’t you?—get me out of this. Take this cup away from me. But please, not what I want—what do you want?”
37-38He came back and found them sound asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, you went to sleep on me? Can’t you stick it out with me a single hour? Stay alert, be in prayer, so you don’t enter the danger zone without even knowing it. Don’t be naive. Part of you is eager, ready for anything in God; but another part is as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire.”
39-40He then went back and prayed the same prayer. Returning, he again found them sound asleep. They simply couldn’t keep their eyes open, and they didn’t have a plausible excuse.
41-42He came back a third time and said, “Are you going to sleep all night? No—you’ve slept long enough. Time’s up. The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of sinners. Get up. Let’s get going. My betrayer has arrived.”
A Bunch of Thugs
43-47No sooner were the words out of his mouth when Judas, the one out of the Twelve, showed up, and with him a bunch of thugs, sent by the high priests, religion scholars, and leaders, brandishing swords and clubs. The betrayer had worked out a signal with them: “The one I kiss, that’s the one—seize him. Make sure he doesn’t get away.” He went straight to Jesus and said, “Rabbi!” and kissed him. The others then grabbed him and roughed him up. One of the men standing there unsheathed his sword, swung, and came down on the Chief Priest’s servant, lopping off the man’s ear.
48-50Jesus said to them, “What is this, coming after me with swords and clubs as if I were a dangerous criminal? Day after day I’ve been sitting in the Temple teaching, and you never so much as lifted a hand against me. What you in fact have done is confirm the prophetic writings.” All the disciples bailed on him.
51-52A young man was following along. All he had on was a bedsheet. Some of the men grabbed him but he got away, running off naked, leaving them holding the sheet.
Condemned to Death
53-54They led Jesus to the Chief Priest, where the high priests, religious leaders, and scholars had gathered together. Peter followed at a safe distance until they got to the Chief Priest’s courtyard, where he mingled with the servants and warmed himself at the fire.
55-59The high priests conspiring with the Jewish Council looked high and low for evidence against Jesus by which they could sentence him to death. They found nothing. Plenty of people were willing to bring in false charges, but nothing added up, and they ended up canceling each other out. Then a few of them stood up and lied: “We heard him say, ‘I am going to tear down this Temple, built by hard labor, and in three days build another without lifting a hand.’” But even they couldn’t agree exactly.
60-61In the middle of this, the Chief Priest stood up and asked Jesus, “What do you have to say to the accusation?” Jesus was silent. He said nothing.
The Chief Priest tried again, this time asking, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed?”
62Jesus said, “Yes, I am, and you’ll see it yourself:
The Son of Man seated
At the right hand of the Mighty One,
Arriving on the clouds of heaven.”
63-64The Chief Priest lost his temper. Ripping his clothes, he yelled, “Did you hear that? After that do we need witnesses? You heard the blasphemy. Are you going to stand for it?”
They condemned him, one and all. The sentence: death.
65Some of them started spitting at him. They blindfolded his eyes, then hit him, saying, “Who hit you? Prophesy!” The guards, punching and slapping, took him away.
The Rooster Crowed
66-67While all this was going on, Peter was down in the courtyard. One of the Chief Priest’s servant girls came in and, seeing Peter warming himself there, looked hard at him and said, “You were with the Nazarene, Jesus.”
68He denied it: “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He went out on the porch. A rooster crowed.
69-70The girl spotted him and began telling the people standing around, “He’s one of them.” He denied it again.
After a little while, the bystanders brought it up again. “You’ve got to be one of them. You’ve got ‘Galilean’ written all over you.”
71-72Now Peter got really nervous and swore, “I never laid eyes on this man you’re talking about.” Just then the rooster crowed a second time. Peter remembered how Jesus had said, “Before a rooster crows twice, you’ll deny me three times.” He collapsed in tears.
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.
Mark 14
14
1 Now the feast of Passover and of Unleavened Bread was two days away. And the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, were seeking a means by which they might deceitfully seize him and kill him.
2 But they said, "Not on the feast day, lest perhaps there may be a tumult among the people."
3 And when he was in Bethania, in the house of Simon the leper, and was reclining to eat, a woman arrived having an alabaster container of ointment, of precious spikenard. And breaking open the alabaster container, she poured it over his head.
4 But there were some who became indignant within themselves and who were saying: "What is the reason for this waste of the ointment?
5 For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and been given to the poor." And they murmured against her.
6 But Jesus said: "Permit her. What is the reason that you trouble her? She has done a good deed for me.
7 For the poor, you have with you always. And whenever you wish, you are able to do good to them. But you do not have me always.
8 But she has done what she could. She has arrived in advance to anoint my body for burial.
9 Amen I say to you, wherever this Gospel shall be preached throughout the entire world, the things she has done also shall be told, in memory of her."
10 And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went away, to the leaders of the priests, in order to betray him to them.
11 And they, upon hearing it, were gladdened. And they promised him that they would give him money. And he sought an opportune means by which he might betray him.
12 And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they immolate the Passover, the disciples said to him, "Where do you want us to go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?"
13 And he sent two of his disciples, and he said to them: "Go into the city. And you will meet a man carrying a pitcher of water; follow him.
14 And wherever he will have entered, say to the owner of the house, 'The Teacher says: Where is my dining room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?'
15 And he will show you a large cenacle, fully furnished. And there, you shall prepare it for us."
16 And his disciples departed and went into the city. And they found it just as he had told them. And they prepared the Passover.
17 Then, when evening came, he arrived with the twelve.
18 And while reclining and eating with them at table, Jesus said, "Amen I say to you, that one of you, who eats with me, will betray me."
19 But they began to be sorrowful and to say to him, one at a time: "Is it I?"
20 And he said to them: "It is one of the twelve, who dips his hand with me in the dish.
21 And indeed, the Son of man goes, just as it has been written of him. But woe to that man by whom the Son of man will be betrayed. It would be better for that man if he had never been born."
22 And while eating with them, Jesus took bread. And blessing it, he broke it and gave it to them, and he said: "Take. This is my body."
23 And having taken the chalice, giving thanks, he gave it to them. And they all drank from it.
24 And he said to them: "This is my blood of the new covenant, which shall be shed for many.
25 Amen I say to you, that I will no longer drink from this fruit of the vine, until that day when I will drink it new in the kingdom of God."
26 And having sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
27 And Jesus said to them: "You will all fall away from me in this night. For it has been written: 'I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.'
28 But after I have risen again, I will go before you to Galilee."
29 Then Peter said to him, "Even if all will have fallen away from you, yet I will not."
30 And Jesus said to him, "Amen I say to you, that this day, in this night, before the rooster has uttered its voice twice, you will deny me three times."
31 But he spoke further, "Even if I must die along with you, I will not deny you." And they all spoke similarly also.
32 And they went to a country estate, by the name of Gethsemani. And he said to his disciples, "Sit here, while I pray."
33 And he took Peter, and James, and John with him. And he began to be afraid and wearied.
34 And he said to them: "My soul is sorrowful, even unto death. Remain here and be vigilant."
35 And when he had proceeded on a little ways, he fell prostrate on the ground. And he prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass away from him.
36 And he said: "Abba, Father, all things are possible to you. Take this chalice from me. But let it be, not as I will, but as you will."
37 And he went and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter: "Simon, are you sleeping? Were you not able to be vigilant for one hour?
38 Watch and pray, so that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
39 And going away again, he prayed, saying the same words.
40 And upon returning, he found them sleeping yet again, (for their eyes were heavy) and they did not know how to respond to him.
41 And he arrived for the third time, and he said to them: "Sleep now, and take rest. It is enough. The hour has arrived. Behold, the Son of man will be betrayed into the hands of sinners.
42 Rise up, let us go. Behold, he who will betray me is near."
43 And while he was still speaking, Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, arrived, and with him was a large crowd with swords and clubs, sent from the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, and the elders.
44 Now his betrayer had given them a sign, saying: "He whom I shall kiss, it is he. Take hold of him, and lead him away cautiously."
45 And when he had arrived, immediately drawing near to him, he said: "Hail, Master!" And he kissed him.
46 But they laid hands on him and held him.
47 Then a certain one of those standing near, drawing a sword, struck a servant of the high priest and cut off his ear.
48 And in response, Jesus said to them: "Have you set out to apprehend me, just as if to a robber, with swords and clubs?
49 Daily, I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not take hold of me. But in this way, the scriptures are fulfilled."
50 Then his disciples, leaving him behind, all fled away.
51 Now a certain young man followed him, having nothing but a fine linen cloth over himself. And they took hold of him.
52 But he, rejecting the fine linen cloth, escaped from them naked.
53 And they led Jesus to the high priest. And all the priests and the scribes and the elders came together.
54 But Peter followed him from a distance, even into the court of the high priest. And he sat with the servants at the fire and warmed himself.
55 Yet truly, the leaders of the priests and the entire council sought testimony against Jesus, so that they might deliver him to death, and they found none.
56 For many spoke false testimony against him, but their testimony did not agree.
57 And certain ones, rising up, bore false witness against him, saying:
58 "For we heard him say, 'I will destroy this temple, made with hands, and within three days I will build another, not made with hands.' "
59 And their testimony did not agree.
60 And the high priest, rising up in their midst, questioned Jesus, saying, "Do you have nothing to say in answer to the things that are brought against you by these ones?"
61 But he was silent and gave no answer. Again, the high priest questioned him, and he said to him, "Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed God?"
62 Then Jesus said to him: "I am. And you shall see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of the power of God and arriving with the clouds of heaven."
63 Then the high priest, rending his garments, said: "Why do we still require witnesses?
64 You have heard the blasphemy. How does it seem to you?" And they all condemned him, as guilty unto death.
65 And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face and to strike him with fists, and to say to him, "Prophesy." And the servants struck him with the palms their hands.
66 And while Peter was in the court below, one of the maidservants of the high priest arrived.
67 And when she had seen Peter warming himself, she stared at him, and she said: "You also were with Jesus of Nazareth."
68 But he denied it, saying, "I neither know nor understand what you saying." And he went outside, in front of the court; and a rooster crowed.
69 Then again, when a maidservant had seen him, she began to say to the bystanders, "For this is one of them."
70 But he denied it again. And after a little while, again those standing near said to Peter: "In truth, you are one of them. For you, too, are a Galilean."
71 Then he began to curse and to swear, saying, "For I do not know this man, about whom you are speaking."
72 And immediately the rooster crowed again. And Peter remembered the word that Jesus had said to him, "Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times." And he began to weep.
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