John 12–21

THE ANOINTING AT BETHANY

12Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany^o where Lazarus^A was, the one Jesus had raised from the dead.^{p 2}So^q they gave a dinner for him there; Martha^r was serving them, and Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with him. ³Then Mary took a pound of perfume, pure and expensive nard, anointed Jesus’s feet, and wiped his feet with her hair.^s So the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

⁴Then one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot^t (who was about to betray him), said, ⁵“Why wasn’t this perfume sold for three hundred denarii^Bu and given to the poor?” ⁶He didn’t say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief.^v He was in charge of the money-bag and would steal part of what was put in it.

⁷Jesus answered, “Leave her alone; she has kept it for the day of my burial.^{w 8}For you always have the poor with you,^x but you do not always have me.”

THE DECISION TO KILL LAZARUS

⁹Then a large crowd of the Jews learned he was there. They came not only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, the one he had raised from the dead.^{y 10}But the chief priests had decided to kill Lazarus also, ¹¹because he was the reason many of the Jews were deserting them^C and believing in Jesus.

THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY

¹²The^z next day, when the large crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, ¹³they took palm branches^aa and went out to meet him. They kept shouting:

“Hosanna!^ab

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord^Dac —the King of Israel!”^ad

¹⁴Jesus found a young donkey^ae and sat on it, just as it is written:

¹⁵Do not be afraid,^af

Daughter Zion. Look, your King is coming,

sitting on a donkey’s colt.^Eag

¹⁶His disciples did not understand these things at first. However, when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him^ah and that they had done these things to him.

¹⁷Meanwhile, the crowd, which had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb^ai and raised him from the dead, continued to testify.^{F 18}This is also why the crowd met him, because they heard he had done this sign. ¹⁹Then the Pharisees said to one another, “You see? You’ve accomplished nothing. Look, the world has gone after him!”^aj

JESUS PREDICTS HIS CRUCIFIXION

²⁰Now some Greeks were among those who went up to worship at the festival. ²¹So they came to Philip,^ak who was from Bethsaida^al in Galilee,^am and requested of him, “Sir,^an we want to see Jesus.” ²²Philip went and told Andrew;^ao then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.

²³Jesus replied to them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man^ap to be glorified. ²⁴Truly I tell you, unless a grain of wheat^aq falls to the ground and dies, it remains by itself. But if it dies, it produces much fruit.^{a 25}The one who loves his life will lose it,^b and the one who hates^c his life^d in this world will keep it for eternal life. ²⁶If anyone serves me, he must follow me. Where I am, there my servant^e also will be.^f If anyone serves me, the Father will honor^g him.

²⁷“Now my soul is troubled. What should I say—Father, save me^h from this hour? But that is why I came to this hour. ²⁸Father, glorify your name.”^Ai

Then a voice^j came from heaven:^k “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”^l

²⁹The crowd standing there heard it and said it was thunder. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.”

³⁰Jesus responded, “This voice came, not for me, but for you.^{m 31}Now is the judgment of this world.ⁿ Now the ruler of this world^o will be cast out.^{p 32}As for me, if I am lifted up from the earth I will draw all people to myself.”^{q 33}He said this to indicate what kind of death he was about to die.^r

³⁴Then the crowd replied to him, “We have heard from the law that the Messiah will remain forever.^s So how can you say, ‘The Son of Man^t must be lifted up’? Who is this Son of Man?”

³⁵Jesus answered, “The light will be with you only a little longer.^u Walk while you have the light^v so that darkness doesn’t overtake you.^w The one who walks in darkness doesn’t know where he’s going.^{x 36}While you have the light,^y believe in the light so that you may become children of light.” Jesus said this, then went away and hid from them.^z

ISAIAH’S PROPHECIES FULFILLED

³⁷Even though he had performed so many signs in their presence, they did not believe in him. ³⁸This was to fulfill^aa the word of Isaiah^ab the prophet, who said:^C

Lord, who has believed our message?

And to whom has the arm^ac of the Lord been revealed?^Dad

³⁹This is why they were unable to believe, because Isaiah also said:

⁴⁰He has blinded^ae their eyes

and hardened their hearts,^af

so that they would not see with their eyes

or understand with their hearts,

and turn,^ag

and I would heal them.^Eah

⁴¹Isaiah said these things because^F he saw his glory^ai and spoke about him.

⁴²Nevertheless, many did believe in him even among the rulers,^aj but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, so that they would not be banned from the synagogue. ⁴³For they loved human praise^ak more than praise from God.^al

A SUMMARY OF JESUS’S MISSION

⁴⁴Jesus cried out, “The one who believes in me^am believes not in me, but in him who sent me. ⁴⁵And the one who sees me sees him^an who sent me. ⁴⁶I have come as light into the world, so that everyone who believes in me would not remain in darkness. ⁴⁷If anyone hears my words and doesn’t keep^ao them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world^ap but to save the world.^{aq 48}The one who rejects me^ar and doesn’t receive my sayings has this as his judge:^A The word I have spoken will judge him on the last day.^{as 49}For I have not spoken on my own, but the Father^at himself who sent me has given me a command to say everything I have said. ⁵⁰I know that his command is eternal life.^au So the things that I speak, I speak just as the Father has told me.”^av

JESUS WASHES HIS DISCIPLES’ FEET

13Before the Passover Festival, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world to the Father.^aw Having loved his own who were in the world,^ax he loved them to the end.

²Now when it was time for supper, the devil^ay had already put it into the heart of Judas,^az Simon Iscariot’s son,^B to betray^ba him. ³Jesus knew that the Father had given everything into his hands,^bb that he had come from God,^bc and that he was going back to God.^{bd 4}So he got up from supper, laid aside his outer clothing,^be took a towel, and tied it around himself.^{bf 5}Next, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel tied around him.

⁶He came to Simon Peter,^bg who asked him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”

⁷Jesus answered him, “What I’m doing you don’t realize now, but afterward you will understand.”^a

⁸“You will never wash my feet,” Peter said.

Jesus replied, “If I don’t wash you, you have no part with me.”

⁹Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not only my feet, but also my hands and my head.”

¹⁰“One who has bathed,” Jesus told him, “doesn’t need to wash anything except his feet, but he is completely clean. You are clean, but not all of you.” ¹¹For he knew who would betray him. This is why he said, “Not all of you are clean.”

THE MEANING OF FOOT WASHING

¹²When Jesus had washed their feet and put on his outer clothing, he reclined again and said to them, “Do you know what I have done for you? ¹³You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are speaking rightly, since that is what I am. ¹⁴So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.^{b 15}For I have given you an example,^c that you also should do just as I have done for you.

¹⁶“Truly I tell you, a servant is not greater than his master,^Cd and a messenger is not greater than the one who sent him. ¹⁷If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.^e

¹⁸“I’m not speaking about all of you; I know those I have chosen.^f But the Scripture^g must be fulfilled:^h The one who eats my bread^D has raised his heel against me.^{Ei 19}I am telling you now before it happens,^j so that when it does happen you will believe^k that I am he.^{l 20}Truly I tell you, whoever receives anyone I send receives me, and the one who receives^m me receives him who sent me.”

JUDAS’S BETRAYAL PREDICTED

²¹Whenⁿ Jesus had said this, he was troubled in his spirit^o and testified,^p “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.”

²²The disciples started looking at one another—uncertain which one he was speaking about. ²³One of his disciples, the one Jesus loved,^q was reclining close beside Jesus. ²⁴Simon Peter motioned to him to find out who it was he was talking about. ²⁵So he leaned back against Jesus and asked him, “Lord, who is it?”

²⁶Jesus replied, “He’s the one I give the piece of bread to after I have dipped it.”^r When he had dipped the bread,^s he gave it to Judas, Simon Iscariot’s son.^{B 27}After Judas ate the piece of bread, Satan^t entered him. So Jesus told him, “What you’re doing, do quickly.”

²⁸None of those reclining at the table knew why he said this to him. ²⁹Since Judas^u kept the money-bag, some thought that Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the festival,”^v or that he should give something to the poor. ³⁰After receiving the piece of bread, he immediately left. And it was night.^w

THE NEW COMMAND

³¹When^x he had left, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man^y is glorified, and God is glorified^z in him.^{aa 32}If God is glorified in him,^C God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. ³³Little children, I am with you a little while longer.^ab You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so now I tell you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’^ac

³⁴“I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you are also to love one another. ³⁵By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love^ad one another.”

PETER’S DENIALS PREDICTED

³⁶“Lord,” Simon Peter said to him, “where are you going?”

Jesus answered, “Where I am going^ae you cannot follow me…