Bible in 90 Days

Jesus Heals a Sick Boy

¹⁴ Then Jesus, Peter, James, and John went to the other followers. They saw a great crowd around them. The teachers of the law were arguing with them. ¹⁵ But when the crowd saw Jesus, they were surprised and ran to welcome him.

¹⁶ Jesus asked, “What are you arguing about with the teachers of the law?”

¹⁷ A man answered, “Teacher, I brought my son to you. He has a spirit from the devil in him. This spirit stops him from talking. ¹⁸ The spirit attacks him and throws him on the ground. My son foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth, and becomes very stiff. I asked your followers to force the evil spirit out, but they couldn’t.”

¹⁹ Jesus answered, “You people don’t believe! How long must I stay with you? How long must I go on being patient with you? Bring the boy to me!”

²⁰ So the followers brought him to Jesus. As soon as the evil spirit saw Jesus, it attacked the boy. He fell down and rolled on the ground, foaming from his mouth.

²¹ Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has this been happening?”

The father answered, “Since he was very young. ²² The spirit often throws him into a fire or into water to kill him. If you can do anything for him, please have pity on us and help us.”

²³ Jesus said to the father, “You said, ‘If you can!’ All things are possible for him who believes.”

²⁴ Immediately the father cried out, “I do believe! Help me to believe more!”

²⁵ Jesus saw that a crowd was running there to see what was happening. So he spoke to the evil spirit, saying, “You deaf and dumb spirit—I command you to come out of this boy and never enter him again!”

²⁶ The evil spirit screamed and caused the boy to fall on the ground again. Then the spirit came out. The boy looked as if he were dead. And many people said, “He is dead!” ²⁷ But Jesus took hold of the boy’s hand and helped him to stand up.

²⁸ Jesus went into the house. His followers were alone with him there. They said, “Why couldn’t we force that evil spirit out?”

²⁹ Jesus answered, “That kind of spirit can only be forced out by prayer.”

Jesus Talks About His Death

³⁰ Then Jesus and his followers left that place and went through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know where he was ³¹ because he wanted to teach his followers alone. He said to them, “The Son of Man will be given to men who will kill him. After three days, he will rise from death.” ³² But the followers did not understand what Jesus meant. And they were afraid to ask.

Who Is the Greatest?

³³ Jesus and his followers went to Capernaum and went into a house there. Then Jesus said to them, “What were you arguing about on the road?” ³⁴ But the followers did not answer, because their argument on the road was about which one of them was the greatest.

³⁵ Jesus sat down and called the 12 apostles to him. He said, “If anyone wants to be the most important, then he must be last of all and servant of all.”

³⁶ Then Jesus took a small child and had him stand among them. He took the child in his arms and said, ³⁷ “If anyone accepts children like these in my name, then he is also accepting me. And if he accepts me, then he is also accepting the One who sent me.”

Anyone Not Against Us Is for Us

³⁸ Then John said, “Teacher, we saw a man using your name to force demons out of a person. We told him to stop, because he does not belong to our group.”

³⁹ Jesus said, “Don’t stop him. Anyone who uses my name to do powerful things will not say evil things about me. ⁴⁰ He who is not against us is with us. ⁴¹ I tell you the truth. If anyone helps you by giving you a drink of water because you belong to the Christ, then he will truly get his reward.

⁴² “If one of these little children believes in me, and someone causes that child to sin, then it will be very bad for him. It would be better for him to have a large stone tied around his neck and be drowned in the sea. ⁴³ If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to lose part of your body but have life forever. That is much better than to have two hands and go to hell. In that place the fire never goes out. ⁴⁴ [In hell the worm does not die; the fire is never stopped.]^{[a] 45} If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to lose part of your body but have life forever. That is much better than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. ⁴⁶ [In hell the worm does not die; the fire is never stopped.]^{[b] 47} If your eye causes you to sin, take it out. It is better for you to have only one eye but have life forever. That is much better than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell. ⁴⁸ In hell the worm does not die; the fire is never stopped. ⁴⁹ Every person will be salted with fire.

⁵⁰ “Salt is good. But if the salt loses its salty taste, then you cannot make it salty again. So, be full of goodness. And have peace with each other.”

Jesus Teaches About Divorce

10 Then Jesus left that place. He went into the area of Judea and across the Jordan River. Again, crowds came to him. And Jesus taught them as he always did.

² Some Pharisees came to Jesus and tried to trick him. They asked, “Is it right for a man to divorce his wife?”

³ Jesus answered, “What did Moses command you to do?”

⁴ They said, “Moses allowed a man to write out divorce papers and send her away.”^[c]

⁵ Jesus said, “Moses wrote that command for you because you refused to accept God’s teaching. ⁶ But when God made the world, ‘he made them male and female.’^{[d] 7} ‘So a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife.^{[e] 8} And the two people will become one body.’^[f] So the people are not two, but one. ⁹ God has joined the two people together. So no one should separate them.”

¹⁰ Later, the followers and Jesus were in the house. They asked Jesus again about the question of divorce. ¹¹ He answered, “Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman is guilty of adultery against her. ¹² And the woman who divorces her husband and marries another man is also guilty of adultery.”

Jesus Accepts Children

¹³ Some people brought their small children to Jesus so he could touch them. But his followers told the people to stop bringing their children to him. ¹⁴ When Jesus saw this, he was displeased. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them. The kingdom of God belongs to people who are like these little children. ¹⁵ I tell you the truth. You must accept the kingdom of God as a little child accepts things, or you will never enter it.” ¹⁶ Then Jesus took the children in his arms. He put his hands on them and blessed them.

A Rich Young Man’s Question

¹⁷ Jesus started to leave, but a man ran to him and fell on his knees before Jesus. The man asked, “Good teacher, what must I do to get the life that never ends?”

¹⁸ Jesus answered, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. ¹⁹ You know the commands: ‘You must not murder anyone. You must not be guilty of adultery. You must not steal. You must not tell lies about your neighbor in court. You must not cheat. Honor your father and mother.’”^[g]

²⁰ The man said, “Teacher, I have obeyed all these commands since I was a boy.”

²¹ Jesus looked straight at the man and loved him. Jesus said, “There is still one more thing you need to do. Go and sell everything you have, and give the money to the poor. You will have a reward in heaven. Then come and follow me.”

²² He was very sad to hear Jesus say this, and he left. The man was sad because he was very rich.

²³ Then Jesus looked at his followers and said, “How hard it will be for those who are rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

²⁴ The followers were amazed at what Jesus said. But he said again, “My children, it is very hard^[h] to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵ And it will be very hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God. It would be easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle!”

²⁶ The followers were even more amazed and said to each other, “Then who can be saved?”

²⁷ Jesus looked straight at them and said, “For people this is impossible. But for God all things are possible.”

²⁸ Peter said to Jesus, “We left everything to follow you!”

²⁹ Jesus said, “I tell you the truth. Everyone who has left his home, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, or fields for me and for the Good News ³⁰ will get a hundred times more than he left. Here in this world he will have more homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and fields. And with those things, he will also suffer for his belief. But in the age that is coming he will have life forever. ³¹ Many who are first now will be last in the future. And those who are last now will be first in the future.”

Jesus Talks About His Own Death

³² Jesus and the people with him were on the road to Jerusalem. Jesus was leading the way. The followers were amazed, but those who followed behind them were afraid. Jesus took the 12 apostles aside and talked with them alone. He told them what would happen in Jerusalem. ³³ He said, “We are going to Jerusalem. The Son of Man will be given to the leading priests and teachers of the law. They will say that he must die. They will give him to the non-Jewish people, ³⁴ who will laugh at him and spit on him. They will beat him with whips and kill him. But on the third day after his death, he will rise to life again.”

Two Followers Ask Jesus a Favor

³⁵ Then James and John, sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus. They said, “Teacher, we want to ask you to do something for us.”

³⁶ Jesus asked, “What do you want me to do for you?”

³⁷ They answered, “You will have glory in your kingdom. Let one of us sit at your right, and let one of us sit at your left.”

³⁸ Jesus said, “You don’t understand what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I must drink? And can you be baptized with the same kind of baptism that I must have?”^[i]

³⁹ They answered, “Yes, we can!”

Jesus said to them, “You will drink the same cup that I will drink. And you will be baptized with the same baptism that I must have. ⁴⁰ But I cannot choose who will sit at my right or my left. These places are for those for whom they are prepared.”

⁴¹ The ten followers heard this. They began to be angry with James and John.

⁴² Jesus called all the followers together. He said, “The non-Jewish people have men they call rulers. You know that those rulers love to show their power over the people. And their important leaders love to use all their authority. ⁴³ But it should not be that way among you. If one of you wants to become great, then he must serve you like a servant. ⁴⁴ If one of you wants to become the most important, then he must serve all of you like a slave. ⁴⁵ In the same way, the Son of Man did not come to be served. He came to serve. The Son of Man came to give his life to save many people.”

Jesus Heals a Blind Man

⁴⁶ Then they came to the town of Jericho. As Jesus was leaving there with his followers and a large crowd, a blind beggar named Bartimaeus (son of Timaeus) was sitting by the road. ⁴⁷ He heard that Jesus from Nazareth was walking by. The blind man cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, please help me!”

⁴⁸ Many people scolded the blind man and told him to be quiet. But he shouted more and more, “Son of David, please help me!”

⁴⁹ Jesus stopped and said, “Tell the man to come here.”

So they called the blind man. They said, “Cheer up! Get to your feet. Jesus is calling you.” ⁵⁰ The blind man stood up quickly. He left his coat there and went to Jesus.

⁵¹ Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?”

The blind man answered, “Teacher, I want to see again.”

⁵² Jesus said, “Go. You are healed because you believed.” At once the man was able to see again, and he followed Jesus on the road.

Jesus Enters Jerusalem as a King

11 Jesus and his followers were coming closer to Jerusalem. They came to the towns of Bethphage and Bethany near the Mount of Olives. There Jesus sent two of his followers. ² He said to them, “Go to the town you see there. When you enter it, you will find a colt tied which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here to me. ³ If anyone asks you why you are doing this, tell him, ‘The Master needs the colt. He will send it back soon.’”

⁴ The followers went into the town. They found a colt tied in the street near the door of a house, and they untied it. ⁵ Some people were standing there and asked, “What are you doing? Why are you untying that colt?” ⁶ The followers answered the way Jesus told them to answer. And the people let them take the colt.

⁷ The followers brought the colt to Jesus. They put their coats on the colt, and Jesus sat on it. ⁸ Many people spread their coats on the road. Others cut branches in the fields and spread the branches on the road. ⁹ Some of the people were walking ahead of Jesus. Others were following him. All of them were shouting,

¹¹ Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the Temple. When he had looked at everything, and since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the 12 apostles.

¹² The next day as Jesus was leaving Bethany, he was hungry. ¹³ He saw a fig tree in leaf. So he went to the tree to see if it had any figs on it. But he found no figs, only leaves. It was not the right season for figs to grow. ¹⁴ So Jesus said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” Jesus’ followers heard him say this.

Jesus Goes to the Temple

¹⁵ Jesus returned to Jerusalem and went into the Temple. He began to throw out those who were buying and selling things there. He overturned the tables that belonged to the men who were exchanging different kinds of money. And he turned over the benches of the men who were selling doves. ¹⁶ Jesus refused to allow anyone to carry goods through the Temple courts. ¹⁷ Then Jesus taught the people. He said, “It is written in the Scriptures, ‘My Temple will be a house where people from all nations will pray.’^[k] But you are changing God’s house into a ‘hideout for robbers.’”^[l]

¹⁸ The leading priests and the teachers of the law heard all this. They began trying to find a way to kill Jesus. They were afraid of him because all the people were amazed at his teaching. ¹⁹ That night, Jesus and his followers^[m] left the city.

The Power of Faith

²⁰ The next morning, Jesus was passing by with his followers. They saw the fig tree, and it was dry and dead, even to the roots. ²¹ Peter remembered the tree and said to Jesus, “Teacher, look! Yesterday, you cursed the fig tree. Now it is dry and dead!”

²² Jesus answered, “Have faith in God. ²³ I tell you the truth. You can say to this mountain, ‘Go, mountain, fall into the sea.’ And if you have no doubts in your mind and believe that the thing you say will happen, then God will do it for you. ²⁴ So I tell you to ask for things in prayer. And if you believe that you have received those things, then they will be yours. ²⁵ When you are praying, and you remember that you are angry with another person about something, then forgive him. If you do this, then your Father in heaven will also forgive your sins.” ²⁶ [But if you don’t forgive other people, then your Father in heaven will not forgive your sins.]^[n]

Leaders Doubt Jesus’ Authority

²⁷ Jesus and his followers went again to Jerusalem. Jesus was walking in the Temple. The leading priests, the teachers of the law, and the Jewish elders came to him. ²⁸ They said to him, “Tell us! What authority do you have to do these things? Who gave you this authority?”

²⁹ Jesus answered, “I will ask you one question. You answer it. Then I will tell you whose authority I use to do these things. ³⁰ Tell me: When John baptized people, was that from God or from man? Answer me!”

³¹ They argued about Jesus’ question. They said to each other, “If we answer, ‘John’s baptism was from God,’ then Jesus will say, ‘Then why didn’t you believe John?’ ³² But if we say, ‘From man,’ then the people will be against us.” (These leaders were afraid of the people. All the people believed that John was a prophet.)

³³ So the leaders answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”

Jesus said, “Then I will not tell you what authority I use to do these things.”

God Sends His Son

12 Jesus used stories to teach the people. He said, “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it and dug a hole for a winepress. Then he built a tower. He leased the vineyard to some farmers and left for a trip. ² Later, it was time for the grapes to be picked. So the man sent a servant to the farmers to get his share of the grapes. ³ But the farmers grabbed the servant and beat him. They sent him away with nothing. ⁴ Then the man sent another servant. They hit him on the head and showed no respect for him. ⁵ So the man sent another servant. They killed this servant. The man sent many other servants. The farmers beat some of them and killed others.

⁶ “The man had one person left to send, his son whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, ‘The farmers will respect my son.’

⁷ “But they said to each other, ‘This is the owner’s son. This vineyard will be his. If we kill him, then it will be ours.’ ⁸ So they took the son, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.

⁹ “So what will the man who owns the vineyard do? He will go to the vineyard and kill those farmers. Then he will give the vineyard to other farmers. ¹⁰ Surely you have read this Scripture:

¹² The Jewish leaders knew that the story was about them. So they wanted to find a way to arrest Jesus, but they were afraid of the people. So the leaders left him and went away.

The Leaders Try to Trap Jesus

¹³ Later, the Jewish leaders sent some Pharisees and some men from the group called Herodians^[o] to Jesus. They wanted to catch Jesus saying something wrong. ¹⁴ They came to him and said, “Teacher, we know that you are an honest man. You are not afraid of what other people think about you. All men are the same to you. And you teach the truth about God’s way. Tell us: Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar? Should we pay them, or not?”

¹⁵ But Jesus knew what these men were really trying to do. He said, “Why are you trying to trap me? Bring me a silver coin. Let me see it.” ¹⁶ They gave Jesus a coin, and he asked, “Whose picture is on the coin? And whose name is written on it?”

They answered, “Caesar’s.”

¹⁷ Then Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s. And give to God the things that are God’s.” The men were amazed at what Jesus said.

Sadducees Try to Trick Jesus

¹⁸ Then some Sadducees came to Jesus. (Sadducees believe that no person will rise from death.) The Sadducees asked Jesus a question. ¹⁹ They said, “Teacher, Moses wrote that a man’s brother might die. He leaves a wife but no children. Then that man must marry the widow and have children for the dead brother. ²⁰ There were seven brothers. The first brother married but died. He had no children. ²¹ So the second brother married the widow. But he also died and had no children. The same thing happened with the third brother. ²² All seven brothers married her and died. None of the brothers had any children. The woman was last to die. ²³ But all seven brothers had married her. So at the time people rise from death, whose wife will the woman be?”

²⁴ Jesus answered, “Why did you make this mistake? Is it because you don’t know what the Scriptures say? Or is it because you don’t know about the power of God? ²⁵ When people rise from death, there will be no marriage. People will not be married to each other but will be like angels in heaven. ²⁶ Surely you have read what God said about people rising from death. In the book in which Moses wrote about the burning bush,^[p] it says that God told Moses this: ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’^{[q] 27} God is the God of living people, not dead people. You Sadducees are wrong!”

The Most Important Command

²⁸ One of the teachers of the law came to Jesus. He heard Jesus arguing with the Sadducees and the Pharisees. He saw that Jesus gave good answers to their questions. So he asked Jesus, “Which of the commands is most important?”

²⁹ Jesus answered, “The most important command is this: ‘Listen, people of Israel! The Lord our God, he is the only Lord. ³⁰ Love the Lord your God. Love him with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’^{[r] 31} The second most important command is this: ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’^[s] These two commands are the most important commands.”

³² The man answered, “That was a good answer, Teacher. You were right when you said these things. God is the only Lord, and there is no other God besides him. ³³ One must love God with all his heart, all his mind, and all his strength. And one must love his neighbor as he loves himself. These commands are more important than all the animals and sacrifices we offer to God.”

³⁴ Jesus saw that the man answered him wisely. So Jesus said to him, “You are close to the kingdom of God.” And after that, no one was brave enough to ask Jesus any more questions.

³⁵ Jesus was teaching in the Temple. He asked, “Why do the teachers of the law say that the Christ is the son of David? ³⁶ David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, said:

³⁷ David himself calls the Christ ‘Lord.’ So how can the Christ be David’s son?” The large crowd listened to Jesus with pleasure.

³⁸ Jesus continued teaching. He said, “Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around wearing clothes that look important. And they love for people to show respect to them in the marketplaces. ³⁹ They love to have the most important seats in the synagogues. And they love to have the most important seats at the feasts. ⁴⁰ They cheat widows and steal their homes. Then they try to make themselves look good by saying long prayers. God will punish these people terribly.”

True Giving

⁴¹ Jesus sat near the Temple money box where people put their gifts. He watched the people put in their money. Many rich people gave large sums of money. ⁴² Then a poor widow came and gave two very small copper coins. These coins were not worth even a penny.

⁴³ Jesus called his followers to him. He said, “I tell you the truth. This poor widow gave only two small coins. But she really gave more than all those rich people. ⁴⁴ The rich have plenty; they gave only what they did not need. This woman is very poor. But she gave all she had. And she needed that money to help her live.”

The Temple Will Be Destroyed

13 Jesus was leaving the Temple. One of his followers said to him, “Look, Teacher! This Temple has beautiful buildings with very big stones.”

² Jesus said, “Do you see all these great buildings? Every stone will be thrown to the ground. Not one stone will be left on another.”

³ Later, Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives. He was alone with Peter, James, John, and Andrew. They could all see the Temple. They asked Jesus, ⁴ “Tell us, when will all these things happen? And what will show us that the time has come for them to happen?”

⁵ Jesus said to them: “Be careful that no one fools you. ⁶ Many people will come and use my name. They will say, ‘I am the One.’ And they will fool many. ⁷ You will hear about wars and stories of wars that are coming. But don’t be afraid. These things must happen before the end comes. ⁸ Nations will fight against other nations. Kingdoms will fight against other kingdoms. There will be times when there is no food for people to eat. And there will be earthquakes in different places. These things are like the first pains when something new is about to be born.

⁹ “You must be careful. People will arrest you and take you to court. They will beat you in their synagogues. You will be forced to stand before kings and governors, to tell them about me. This will happen to you because you follow me. ¹⁰ But before these things happen, the Good News must be told to all people. ¹¹ When you are arrested and judged, don’t worry about what you should say. Say the things God gives you to say at that time. It will not really be you speaking. It will be the Holy Spirit.

¹² “Brothers will turn against their own brothers and give them over to be killed. Fathers will turn against their own children and give them over to be killed. Children will fight against their own parents and cause their parents to be killed. ¹³ All people will hate you because you follow me. But the person who continues to be strong until the end will be saved.

¹⁴ “You will see ‘the horrible thing that destroys.’^[t] You will see this thing standing in the place where it should not be.” (You who read this should understand what it means.) “At that time, the people in Judea should run away to the mountains. ¹⁵ If a person is on the roof^[u] of his house, he must not go down to take anything out of his house. ¹⁶ If a person is in the field, he must not go back to get his coat. ¹⁷ At that time, it will be hard for women who are pregnant or have nursing babies. ¹⁸ Pray that these things will not happen in winter. ¹⁹ This is because those days will be full of trouble. There will be more trouble than there has ever been since the beginning, when God made the world. And nothing as bad will ever happen again. ²⁰ God has decided to make that terrible time short. If that time were not made short, then no one would go on living. But God will make that time short to help his special people whom he has chosen. ²¹ At that time, someone might say to you, ‘Look, there is the Christ!’ Or another person might say, ‘There he is!’ But don’t believe them. ²² False Christs and false prophets will come and perform great wonders and miracles. They will do these things to the people God has chosen. They will do these things to try to fool them, if that is possible. ²³ So be careful. For I have warned you about all this before it happens.

²⁴ “During the days after this trouble comes,

²⁶ “Then people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. ²⁷ The Son of Man will send his angels all around the earth. They will gather his chosen people from every part of the earth.

²⁸ “The fig tree teaches us a lesson: When its branches become green and soft, and new leaves begin to grow, then you know that summer is near. ²⁹ So also when you see all these things happening, then you will know that the time is near, ready to come. ³⁰ I tell you the truth. All these things will happen while the people of this time are still living. ³¹ The whole world, earth and sky, will be destroyed, but the words I have said will never be destroyed.

³² “No one knows when that day or time will be. The Son and the angels in heaven don’t know. Only the Father knows. ³³ Be careful! Always be ready!^[v] You don’t know when that time will be. ³⁴ It is like a man who goes on a trip. He leaves his house and lets his servants take care of it. He gives each servant a special job to do. One servant has the work of guarding the door. The man tells this servant always to be watchful. This is what I am now telling you. ³⁵ You must always be ready. You don’t know when the owner of the house will come back. He might come in the evening, or at midnight, or in the early morning, or when the sun rises. ³⁶ He might come back quickly. If you are always ready, then he will not find you sleeping. ³⁷ I tell you this, and I say this to everyone: ‘Be ready!’”

The Plan to Kill Jesus

14 It was now only two days before the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The leading priests and teachers of the law were trying to find a way to use some trick to arrest Jesus and kill him. ² But they said, “We must not do it during the feast. The people might cause a riot.”

A Woman with Perfume for Jesus

³ Jesus was in Bethany. He was at dinner in the house of Simon, who had a harmful skin disease. While Jesus was there, a woman came to him. She had an alabaster jar filled with very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. The woman opened the jar and poured the perfume on Jesus’ head.

⁴ Some of those who were there saw this and became angry. They complained to each other, saying, “Why waste that perfume? ⁵ It was worth a full year’s work. It could be sold, and the money could be given to the poor.” They spoke to the woman sharply.

⁶ Jesus said, “Don’t bother the woman. Why are you troubling her? She did a beautiful thing for me. ⁷ You will always have the poor with you. You can help them anytime you want. But you will not always have me. ⁸ This woman did the only thing she could do for me. She poured perfume on my body. She did this before I die to prepare me for burial. ⁹ I tell you the truth. The Good News will be told to people in all the world. And in every place it is preached, what this woman has done will be told. And people will remember her.”

Judas Becomes an Enemy of Jesus

¹⁰ One of the 12 followers, Judas Iscariot, went to talk to the leading priests. Judas offered to give Jesus to them. ¹¹ The leading priests were pleased about this. They promised to pay Judas money. So he waited for the best time to give Jesus to them.

Jesus Eats the Passover Feast

¹² It was now the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. This was a time when the Jews always sacrificed the Passover lambs. Jesus’ followers came to him. They said, “We will go and prepare everything for the Passover Feast. Where do you want to eat the feast?”

¹³ Jesus sent two of his followers and said to them, “Go into the city. A man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him. ¹⁴ He will go into a house. Tell the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks that you show us the room where he and his followers can eat the Passover Feast.’ ¹⁵ The owner will show you a large room upstairs. This room is ready. Prepare the food for us there.”

¹⁶ So the followers left and went into the city. Everything happened as Jesus had said. So they prepared the Passover Feast.

¹⁷ In the evening, Jesus went to that house with the 12. ¹⁸ While they were all eating, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth. One of you will give me to my enemies—one of you eating with me now.”

¹⁹ The followers were very sad to hear this. Each one said to Jesus, “I am not the one, am I?”

²⁰ Jesus answered, “The man who is against me is 1 of the 12. He is the 1 who dips his bread into the bowl with me. ²¹ The Son of Man must go and die. The Scriptures say this will happen. But how terrible it will be for the person who gives the Son of Man to be killed. It would be better for that person if he had never been born.”

The Lord’s Supper

²² While they were eating, Jesus took some bread. He thanked God for it and broke it. Then he gave it to his followers and said, “Take it. This bread is my body.”

²³ Then Jesus took a cup. He thanked God for it and gave it to the followers. All the followers drank from the cup.

²⁴ Then Jesus said, “This is my blood which begins the new^[w] agreement that God makes with his people. This blood is poured out for many. ²⁵ I tell you the truth. I will not drink of this fruit of the vine^[x] again until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

²⁶ They sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.

Jesus’ Followers Will All Leave Him

²⁷ Then Jesus told the followers, “You will all lose your faith in me. It is written in the Scriptures:

²⁸ But after I rise from death, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”

²⁹ Peter said, “All the other followers may lose their faith. But I will not.”

³⁰ Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth. Tonight you will say you don’t know me. You will say this three times before the rooster crows twice.”

³¹ But Peter answered strongly, “I will never say that I don’t know you! I will even die with you!” And all the other followers said the same thing.

Jesus Prays Alone

³² Jesus and his followers went to a place called Gethsemane. He said to his followers, “Sit here while I pray.” ³³ Jesus told Peter, James, and John to come with him. Then Jesus began to be very sad and troubled. ³⁴ He said to them, “I am full of sorrow. My heart is breaking with sadness. Stay here and watch.”

³⁵ Jesus walked a little farther away from them. Then he fell on the ground and prayed. He prayed that, if possible, he would not have this time of suffering. ³⁶ He prayed, “Abba,^[y] Father! You can do all things. Let me not have this cup^[z] of suffering. But do what you want, not what I want.”

³⁷ Then Jesus went back to his followers. He found them asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, why are you sleeping? You could not stay awake with me for one hour? ³⁸ Stay awake and pray that you will not be tempted. Your spirit wants to do what is right, but your body is weak.”

³⁹ Again Jesus went away and prayed the same thing. ⁴⁰ Then he went back to the followers. Again he found them asleep because their eyes were very heavy. And they did not know what to say to Jesus.

⁴¹ After Jesus prayed a third time, he went back to his followers. He said to them, “You are still sleeping and resting? That’s enough! The time has come for the Son of Man to be given to sinful people. ⁴² Get up! We must go. Here comes the man who has turned against me.”

Jesus Is Arrested

⁴³ While Jesus was still speaking, Judas came up. Judas was 1 of the 12 followers. He had many people with him. They were sent from the leading priests, the teachers of the law, and the Jewish elders. Those with Judas had swords and clubs.

⁴⁴ Judas had planned a signal for them. He had said, “The man I kiss is Jesus. Arrest him and guard him while you lead him away.” ⁴⁵ So Judas went to Jesus and said, “Teacher!” and kissed him. ⁴⁶ Then the men grabbed Jesus and arrested him. ⁴⁷ One of the followers standing near drew his sword. He struck the servant of the high priest with the sword and cut off his ear.

⁴⁸ Then Jesus said, “You came to get me with swords and clubs as if I were a criminal. ⁴⁹ Every day I was with you teaching in the Temple. You did not arrest me there. But all these things have happened to make the Scriptures come true.” ⁵⁰ Then all of Jesus’ followers left him and ran away.

⁵¹ A young man, wearing only a linen cloth, was following Jesus. The people also grabbed him. ⁵² But the cloth he was wearing came off, and he ran away naked.

Jesus Before the Leaders

⁵³ The people who arrested Jesus led him to the house of the high priest. All the leading priests, the Jewish elders, and the teachers of the law were gathered there. ⁵⁴ Peter followed far behind and entered the courtyard of the high priest’s house. There he sat with the guards, warming himself by the fire.

⁵⁵ The leading priests and all the Jewish council tried to find something that Jesus had done wrong so they could kill him. But the council could find no proof against him. ⁵⁶ Many people came and told false things about him. But all said different things—none of them agreed.

⁵⁷ Then some men stood up and lied about Jesus. They said, ⁵⁸ “We heard this man say, ‘I will destroy this Temple that men made. And three days later, I will build another Temple—a Temple not made by men.’” ⁵⁹ But even the things these men said did not agree.

⁶⁰ Then the high priest stood before them and said to Jesus, “Aren’t you going to answer the charges these men bring against you?” ⁶¹ But Jesus said nothing. He did not answer.

The high priest asked Jesus another question: “Are you the Christ, the Son of the blessed God?”

⁶² Jesus answered, “I am. And in the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right side of the Powerful One. And you will see the Son of Man coming on clouds in the sky.”

⁶³ When the high priest heard this, he was very angry. He tore his clothes and said, “We don’t need any more witnesses! ⁶⁴ You all heard him say these things against God. What do you think?”

They all said that Jesus was guilty and should be killed. ⁶⁵ Some of the people there spit at Jesus. They covered his eyes and hit him with their fists. They said, “Prove that you are a prophet!” Then the guards led Jesus away and beat him.

Peter Says He Doesn’t Know Jesus

⁶⁶ Peter was still in the courtyard when a servant girl of the high priest came there. ⁶⁷ She saw Peter warming himself at the fire. She looked closely at him.

Then the girl said, “You were with Jesus, that man from Nazareth.”

⁶⁸ But Peter said that he was never with Jesus. He said, “I don’t know or understand what you are talking about.” Then Peter left and went toward the entrance of the courtyard.^[aa]

⁶⁹ The servant girl saw Peter there. Again she said to the people who were standing there, “This man is one of those who followed Jesus.” ⁷⁰ Again Peter said that it was not true.

A short time later, some people were standing near Peter. They said, “We know you are one of those who followed Jesus. You are from Galilee, too.”

⁷¹ Then Peter began to curse. He said, “I swear that I don’t know this man you’re talking about!”

⁷² As soon as Peter said this, the rooster crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered what Jesus had told him: “Before the rooster crows twice, you will say three times that you don’t know me.” Then Peter was very sad and began to cry.

Pilate Questions Jesus

15 Very early in the morning, the leading priests, the Jewish elders, the teachers of the law, and all the Jewish council decided what to do with Jesus. They tied him, led him away, and turned him over to Pilate, the governor.

² Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

Jesus answered, “Yes, I am.”

³ The leading priests accused Jesus of many things. ⁴ So Pilate asked Jesus another question. He said, “You can see that these people are accusing you of many things. Why don’t you answer?”

⁵ But Jesus still said nothing. Pilate was very surprised at this.

Pilate Tries to Free Jesus

⁶ Every year at the Passover time the governor would free one person from prison. He would free any person the people wanted him to free. ⁷ At that time, there was a man named Barabbas in prison. He was a rebel and had committed murder during a riot. ⁸ The crowd came to Pilate and asked him to free a prisoner as he always did.

⁹ Pilate asked them, “Do you want me to free the king of the Jews?” ¹⁰ Pilate knew that the leading priests had given Jesus to him because they were jealous of Jesus. ¹¹ And the leading priests had persuaded the people to ask Pilate to free Barabbas, not Jesus.

¹² Pilate asked the crowd again, “So what should I do with this man you call the king of the Jews?”

¹³ They shouted, “Kill him on a cross!”

¹⁴ Pilate asked, “Why? What wrong has he done?”

But they shouted louder and louder, “Kill him on a cross!”

¹⁵ Pilate wanted to please the crowd. So he freed Barabbas for them. And Pilate told the soldiers to beat Jesus with whips. Then he gave Jesus to the soldiers to be killed on a cross.

¹⁶ Pilate’s soldiers took Jesus into the governor’s palace (called the Praetorium). They called all the other soldiers together. ¹⁷ They put a purple robe on Jesus. Then they used thorny branches to make a crown. They put it on his head. ¹⁸ Then they called out to him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” ¹⁹ The soldiers beat Jesus on the head many times with a stick. They also spit on him. Then they made fun of him by bowing on their knees and worshiping him. ²⁰ After they finished making fun of him, the soldiers took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him again. Then they led Jesus out of the palace to be killed on a cross.

Jesus Is Killed on a Cross

²¹ There was a man from Cyrene coming from the fields to the city. The man was Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus. The soldiers forced Simon to carry the cross for Jesus. ²² They led Jesus to the place called Golgotha. (Golgotha means the Place of the Skull.) ²³ At Golgotha the soldiers tried to give Jesus wine to drink. This wine was mixed with myrrh. But he refused to drink it. ²⁴ The soldiers nailed Jesus to a cross. Then they divided his clothes among themselves. They threw lots to decide which clothes each soldier would get.

²⁵ It was nine o’clock in the morning when they nailed Jesus to the cross. ²⁶ There was a sign with the charge against Jesus written on it. The sign read: “THE KING OF THE JEWS.” ²⁷ They also put two robbers on crosses beside Jesus, one on the right, and the other on the left. ²⁸ [And the Scripture came true that says, “They put him with criminals.”]^{[ab] 29} People walked by and insulted Jesus. They shook their heads, saying, “You said you could destroy the Temple and build it again in three days. ³⁰ So save yourself! Come down from that cross!”

³¹ The leading priests and the teachers of the law were also there. They made fun of Jesus just as the other people did. They said among themselves, “He saved other people, but he can’t save himself. ³² If he is really the Christ, the king of Israel, then let him come down from the cross now. We will see this, and then we will believe in him.” The robbers who were being killed on the crosses beside Jesus also insulted him.

Jesus Dies

³³ At noon the whole country became dark. This darkness lasted for three hours. ³⁴ At three o’clock Jesus cried in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani.” This means, “My God, my God, why have you left me alone?”

³⁵ Some of the people standing there heard this. They said, “Listen! He is calling Elijah.”

³⁶ One man there ran and got a sponge. He filled the sponge with vinegar and tied it to a stick. Then he used the stick to give the sponge to Jesus to drink from it. The man said, “We should wait now and see if Elijah will come to take him down from the cross.”

³⁷ Then Jesus cried in a loud voice and died.

³⁸ When Jesus died, the curtain in the Temple^[ac] split into two pieces. The tear started at the top and tore all the way to the bottom. ³⁹ The army officer that was standing there before the cross saw what happened when Jesus died.^[ad] The officer said, “This man really was the Son of God!”

⁴⁰ Some women were standing at a distance from the cross, watching. Some of these women were Mary Magdalene, Salome, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph. (James was her youngest son.) ⁴¹ These were the women who followed Jesus in Galilee and cared for him. Many other women were also there who had come with Jesus to Jerusalem.

Jesus Is Buried

⁴² This was Preparation Day. (That means the day before the Sabbath day.) It was becoming dark. ⁴³ A man named Joseph from Arimathea was brave enough to go to Pilate and ask for Jesus’ body. Joseph was an important member of the Jewish council. He was one of the people who wanted the kingdom of God to come. ⁴⁴ Pilate wondered if Jesus was already dead. Pilate called the army officer who guarded Jesus and asked him if Jesus had already died. ⁴⁵ The officer told Pilate that he was dead. So Pilate told Joseph he could have the body. ⁴⁶ Joseph bought some linen cloth, took the body down from the cross and wrapped it in the linen. He put the body in a tomb that was cut in a wall of rock. Then he closed the tomb by rolling a very large stone to cover the entrance. ⁴⁷ And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph saw the place where Jesus was laid.

Jesus Rises from Death

16 The day after the Sabbath day, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought some sweet-smelling spices to put on Jesus’ body. ² Very early on that day, the first day of the week, the women were on their way to the tomb. It was soon after sunrise. ³ They said to each other, “There is a large stone covering the entrance of the tomb. Who will move the stone for us?”

⁴ Then the women looked and saw that the stone was already moved. The stone was very large, but it was moved away from the entrance. ⁵ The women entered the tomb and saw a young man wearing a white robe. He was sitting on the right side, and the women were afraid.

⁶ But the man said, “Don’t be afraid. You are looking for Jesus from Nazareth, the one who was killed on a cross. He has risen from death. He is not here. Look, here is the place they laid him. ⁷ Now go and tell his followers and Peter, ‘Jesus is going into Galilee. He will be there before you. You will see him there as he told you before.’”

⁸ The women were confused and shaking with fear. They left the tomb and ran away. They did not tell anyone about what happened, because they were afraid.^[ae]

Some Followers See Jesus

⁹ Jesus rose from death early on the first day of the week. He showed himself first to Mary Magdalene. One time in the past, he had forced seven demons to leave Mary. ¹⁰ After Mary saw Jesus, she went and told his followers. They were very sad and were crying. ¹¹ But Mary told them that Jesus was alive. She said that she had seen him, but the followers did not believe her.

¹² Later, Jesus showed himself to two of his followers while they were walking in the country. But Jesus did not look the same as before. ¹³ These followers went back to the others and told them what had happened. Again, the followers did not believe them.

Jesus Talks to the Apostles

¹⁴ Later Jesus showed himself to the 11 followers while they were eating. He criticized them because they had little faith. They were stubborn and refused to believe those who had seen him after he had risen from death.

¹⁵ Jesus said to the followers, “Go everywhere in the world. Tell the Good News to everyone. ¹⁶ Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But he who does not believe will be judged guilty. ¹⁷ And those who believe will be able to do these things as proof: They will use my name to force demons out of people. They will speak in languages they never learned. ¹⁸ They will pick up snakes without being hurt. And they will drink poison without being hurt. They will touch the sick, and the sick will be healed.”

¹⁹ After the Lord Jesus said these things to the followers, he was carried up into heaven. There, Jesus sat at the right side of God. ²⁰ The followers went everywhere in the world and told the Good News to people. And the Lord helped them. The Lord proved that the Good News they told was true by giving them power to work miracles.

Luke Writes About Jesus’ Life

1 To Theophilus:

Many have tried to give a history of the things that happened among us. ² They have written the same things that we learned from others—the people who saw those things from the beginning and served God by telling people his message. ³ I myself studied everything carefully from the beginning, your Excellency.^[af] I thought I should write it out for you. So I put it in order in a book. ⁴ I write these things so that you can know that what you have been taught is true.

Zechariah and Elizabeth

⁵ During the time Herod ruled Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah. He belonged to Abijah’s group.^[ag] Zechariah’s wife came from the family of Aaron. Her name was Elizabeth. ⁶ Zechariah and Elizabeth truly did what God said was good. They did everything the Lord commanded and told people to do. They were without fault in keeping his law. ⁷ But Zechariah and Elizabeth had no children. Elizabeth could not have a baby; and both of them were very old.

⁸ Zechariah was serving as a priest before God for his group. It was his group’s time to serve. ⁹ According to the custom of the priests, he was chosen to go into the Temple of the Lord and burn incense. ¹⁰ There were a great many people outside praying at the time the incense was offered. ¹¹ Then, on the right side of the incense table, an angel of the Lord came and stood before Zechariah. ¹² When he saw the angel, Zechariah was confused and frightened. ¹³ But the angel said to him, “Zechariah, don’t be afraid. Your prayer has been heard by God. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give birth to a son. You will name him John. ¹⁴ You will be very happy. Many people will be happy because of his birth. ¹⁵ John will be a great man for the Lord. He will never drink wine or beer. Even at the time John is born, he will be filled with the Holy Spirit. ¹⁶ He will help many people of Israel return to the Lord their God. ¹⁷ He himself will go first before the Lord. John will be powerful in spirit like Elijah. He will make peace between fathers and their children. He will bring those who are not obeying God back to the right way of thinking. He will make people ready for the coming of the Lord.”

¹⁸ Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I know that what you say is true? I am an old man, and my wife is old, too.”

¹⁹ The angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand before God. God sent me to talk to you and to tell you this good news. ²⁰ Now, listen! You will not be able to talk until the day these things happen. You will lose your speech because you did not believe what I told you. But these things will really happen.”

²¹ Outside, the people were still waiting for Zechariah. They were surprised that he was staying so long in the Temple. ²² Then Zechariah came outside, but he could not speak to them. So they knew that he had seen a vision in the Temple. Zechariah could not speak. He could only make signs to them. ²³ When his time of service as a priest was finished, he went home.

²⁴ Later, Zechariah’s wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant. She did not go out of her house for five months. Elizabeth said, ²⁵ “Look what the Lord has done for me! My people were ashamed^[ah] of me, but now the Lord has taken away that shame.”

The Virgin Mary

^26-27 During Elizabeth’s sixth month of pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to a virgin who lived in Nazareth, a town in Galilee. She was engaged to marry a man named Joseph from the family of David. Her name was Mary. ²⁸ The angel came to her and said, “Greetings! The Lord has blessed you and is with you.”

²⁹ But Mary was very confused by what the angel said. Mary wondered, “What does this mean?”

³⁰ The angel said to her, “Don’t be afraid, Mary, because God is pleased with you. ³¹ Listen! You will become pregnant. You will give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. ³² He will be great, and people will call him the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of King David, his ancestor. ³³ He will rule over the people of Jacob forever. His kingdom will never end.”

³⁴ Mary said to the angel, “How will this happen? I am a virgin!”

³⁵ The angel said to Mary, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will cover you. The baby will be holy. He will be called the Son of God. ³⁶ Now listen! Elizabeth, your relative, is very old. But she is also pregnant with a son. Everyone thought she could not have a baby, but she has been pregnant for six months. ³⁷ God can do everything!”

³⁸ Mary said, “I am the servant girl of the Lord. Let this happen to me as you say!” Then the angel went away.

Mary’s Visit

³⁹ Mary got up and went quickly to a town in the mountains of Judea. ⁴⁰ She went to Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹ When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the unborn baby inside Elizabeth jumped. Then Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. ⁴² She cried out in a loud voice, “God has blessed you more than any other woman. And God has blessed the baby which you will give birth to. ⁴³ You are the mother of my Lord, and you have come to me! Why has something so good happened to me? ⁴⁴ When I heard your voice, the baby inside me jumped with joy. ⁴⁵ You are blessed because you believed what the Lord said to you would really happen.”

Mary Praises God

⁴⁶ Then Mary said,

⁵⁶ Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

The Birth of John

⁵⁷ When it was time for Elizabeth to give birth, she had a boy. ⁵⁸ Her neighbors and relatives heard how good the Lord was to her, and they rejoiced.

⁵⁹ When the baby was eight days old, they came to circumcise him. They wanted to name him Zechariah because this was his father’s name. ⁶⁰ But his mother said, “No! He will be named John.”

⁶¹ The people said to Elizabeth, “But no one in your family has this name!” ⁶² Then they made signs to his father, “What would you like to name him?”

⁶³ Zechariah asked for something to write on. Then he wrote, “His name is John.” Everyone was surprised. ⁶⁴ Then Zechariah could talk again. He began to praise God. ⁶⁵ And all their neighbors became alarmed. In all the mountains of Judea people continued talking about all these things. ⁶⁶ The people who heard about these things wondered about them. They thought, “What will this child be?” They said this because the Lord was with him.

Zechariah Praises God

⁶⁷ Then Zechariah, John’s father, was filled with the Holy Spirit. He told the people what would happen:

⁸⁰ And so the child grew up and became strong in spirit. John lived away from other people until the time when he came out to preach to Israel.