Matthew 26:1–29

THE PLOT TO KILL JESUS

26When Jesus had finished saying all these things,^c he told his disciples, ²“You know^A that the Passover takes place after two days, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.”^d

³Then the chief priests^B and the elders of the people assembled in the courtyard of the high priest, who was named Caiaphas,^{e 4}and they conspired to arrest Jesus in a treacherous way and kill him.^{f 5}“Not during the festival,” they said, “so there won’t be rioting among the people.”

THE ANOINTING AT BETHANY

⁶While Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon^g the leper, ⁷a woman approached him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume. She poured it on his head as he was reclining at the table. ⁸When the disciples^h saw it, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. ⁹“This might have been sold for a great deal and given to the poor.”

¹⁰Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a noble thing for me. ¹¹You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.^{i 12}By pouring this perfume on my body, she has prepared me for burial. ¹³Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel^j is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”

¹⁴Then^k one of the Twelve, the man called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests^{l 15}and said, “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?” So they weighed out thirty pieces of silver for him.^{m 16}And from that time he started looking for a good opportunity to betray him.

BETRAYAL AT THE PASSOVER

¹⁷On the first day of Unleavened Breadⁿ the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?”

¹⁸“Go into the city to a certain man,” he said, “and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My time is near; I am celebrating the Passover at your place^A with my disciples.’ ”^{o 19}So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover. ²⁰When evening came, he was reclining at the table with the Twelve. ²¹While they were eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.”^p

²²Deeply distressed, each one began to say to him, “Surely not I, Lord?”

²³He replied, “The one who dipped his hand with me in the bowl—he will betray me. ²⁴The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him,^q but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for him if he had not been born.”

²⁵Judas, his betrayer, replied, “Surely not I, Rabbi?”^r

“You have said it,” he told him.

THE FIRST LORD’S SUPPER

²⁶As they were eating,^s Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, gave it to the disciples,^t and said, “Take and eat it; this is my body.”^{u 27}Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks, he gave it to them and said, “Drink from it, all of you. ²⁸For this is my blood of the covenant,^B which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.^{v 29}But I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”^w