John 12–21

The Anointing at Bethany

12Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany ^awhere Lazarus ^bwas, the one Jesus had raised from the dead. ^c2So ^dthey gave a dinner for Him there; Martha ^ewas serving them, and Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with Him. ³Then Mary took a pound of fragrant oil—pure and expensive nard—anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped His feet with her hair. ^fSo the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.

⁴Then one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot ^g(who was about to betray Him), said, ⁵“Why wasn’t this fragrant oil sold for 300 denarii ^hiand given to the poor?” ⁶He didn’t say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief. ^jHe 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. ^k8For you always have the poor with you, ^lbut 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. ^m10Therefore the chief priests decided to kill Lazarus also ¹¹because he was the reason many of the Jews were deserting them ⁿand believing in Jesus.

The Triumphal Entry

¹²The ^onext day, when the large crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, ¹³they took palm branches ^pand went out to meet Him. They kept shouting: “Hosanna! ^q He who comes in the name of the Lord is the blessed One ^rs—the King of Israel!” ^t

¹⁴Jesus found a young donkey ^uand sat on it, just as it is written: ¹⁵Fear no more, ^vDaughter Zion. Look, your King is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt. ^wx

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 ^yand that they had done these things to Him. ¹⁷Meanwhile, the crowd, which had been with Him when He called Lazarus out of the tomb ^zand raised him from the dead, continued to testify. ^a18This 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!” ^b

Jesus Predicts His Crucifixion

²⁰Now some Greeks were among those who went up to worship at the festival. ²¹So they came to Philip, ^cwho was from Bethsaida ^din Galilee, ^eand requested of him, “Sir, ^fwe want to see Jesus.”

²²Philip went and told Andrew; ^gthen Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. ²³Jesus replied to them, “The hour has come for the ^•Son of Man ^hto be glorified.

²⁴“^•I assure you: Unless a grain of wheat ⁱfalls to the ground and dies, it remains by itself. But if it dies, it produces a large crop. ^jk25The one who loves his life will lose it, ^land the one who hates ^mhis life ⁿin this world will keep it for eternal life. ²⁶If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me. Where I am, there My servant ^oalso will be. ^pIf anyone serves Me, the Father will honor ^qhim.

²⁷“Now My soul is troubled. What should I say—Father, save Me ^rfrom this hour? But that is why I came to this hour. ²⁸Father, glorify Your name!” ^st

Then a voice ^ucame from heaven: ^v“I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again!” ^w

²⁹The crowd standing there heard it and said it was thunder. Others said that an angel had spoken to Him.

³⁰Jesus responded, “This voice came, not for Me, but for you. ^x31Now is the judgment of this world. ^yNow the ruler of this ^•world ^zwill be cast out. ^a32As for Me, if I am lifted up ^bfrom the earth I will draw all people to Myself.” ^c33He said this to signify what kind of death He was about to die. ^d

³⁴Then the crowd replied to Him, “We have heard from the scripture that the Messiah will remain forever. ^eSo how can You say, ‘The Son of Man ^fmust be lifted up’? ^gWho is this Son of Man?”

³⁵Jesus answered, “The light will be with you only a little longer. ^hWalk while you have the light ⁱso that darkness doesn’t overtake you. ^jThe one who walks in darkness doesn’t know where he’s going. ^k36While you have the light, ^lbelieve in the light so that you may become sons of light.” Jesus said this, then went away and hid from them. ^m

Isaiah’s Prophecies Fulfilled

³⁷Even though He had performed so many signs in their presence, they did not believe in Him. ³⁸But this was to fulfill ⁿthe word of Isaiah ^othe prophet, who said: ^p

Lord, who has believed our message?

And who has the arm ^qof the Lord

been revealed to? ^rs

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

⁴⁰He has blinded ^ttheir eyes

and hardened their hearts, ^u

so that they would not see with their eyes

or understand with their hearts,

and be converted, ^v

and I would heal them. ^wx

⁴¹Isaiah said these things because ^yhe saw His glory ^zand spoke about Him.

⁴²Nevertheless, many did believe in Him even among the rulers, ^abut because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, so they would not be banned from the synagogue. ⁴³For they loved praise from men ^bmore than praise from God. ^cd

A Summary of Jesus’ Mission

⁴⁴Then Jesus cried out, “The one who believes in Me ^ebelieves not in Me, but in Him who sent Me. ⁴⁵And the one who sees Me sees Him ^fwho sent Me. ⁴⁶I have come as a 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 ^gthem, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world ^hbut to save the world. ⁱ⁴⁸The one who rejects Me ^jand doesn’t accept My sayings has this as his judge: ^kThe word I have spoken will judge him on the last day. ^l49For I have not spoken on My own, but the Father ^mHimself who sent Me has given Me a command as to what I should say and what I should speak. ⁵⁰I know that His command is eternal life. ⁿSo the things that I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me.” ^o

Jesus Washes His Disciples’ Feet

13Before the Passover Festival, Jesus knew that His hour had come to depart from this world to the Father. ^pHaving loved His own who were in the world, ^qHe loved them to the end. ^r

²Now by the time of supper, the Devil ^shad already put it into the heart of Judas, ^tSimon Iscariot’s son, to betray ^uHim. ³Jesus knew that the Father had given everything into His hands, ^vthat He had come from God, ^wand that He was going back to God. ^x4So He got up from supper, laid aside His robe, ^ytook a towel, and tied it around Himself. ^z5Next, 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, ^awho asked Him, “Lord, are You going to wash my feet?”

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

⁸“You will never wash my feet—ever!” 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, “You are not all clean.”

The Meaning of Footwashing

¹²When Jesus had washed their feet and put on His robe, He reclined ^cagain and said to them, “Do you know what I have done for you? ¹³You call Me Teacher and Lord. This is well said, for I am. ¹⁴So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. ^d15For I have given you an example ^ethat you also should do just as I have done for you.

¹⁶“^•I assure you: A ^•slave is not greater than his master, ^fgand a messenger is not greater than the one who sent him. ¹⁷If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them. ^h18I’m not speaking about all of you; I know those I have chosen. ⁱBut the Scripture ^jmust be fulfilled: ^kThe one who eats My bread ^lhas raised his heel against Me. ^mn

¹⁹“I am telling you now before it happens, ^oso that when it does happen you will believe ^pthat I am He. ^q20I assure you: Whoever receives anyone I send receives Me, and the one who receives ^rMe receives Him who sent Me.”

Judas’s Betrayal Predicted

²¹When ^sJesus had said this, He was troubled in His spirit ^tand testified, ^u“I assure 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, ^vwas reclining close beside Jesus. ^w24Simon 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.” ^xWhen He had dipped the bread, ^yHe gave it to Judas, Simon Iscariot’s son. ^z27After Judas ate the piece of bread, Satan ^aentered him. Therefore Jesus told him, “What you’re doing, do quickly.”

²⁸None of those reclining at the table knew why He told him this. ²⁹Since Judas ^bkept the money-bag, some thought that Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the festival,” ^cor that he should give something to the poor. ³⁰After receiving the piece of bread, he went out immediately. And it was night. ^d

The New Command

³¹When ^ehe had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the ^•Son of Man ^fis glorified, and God is glorified ^gin Him. ^h32If God is glorified in Him, ⁱGod will also glorify Him in Himself and will glorify Him at once.

³³“Children, I am with you a little while longer. ^jYou will look for Me, and just as I told the ^•Jews, ‘Where I am going you cannot come,’ ^kso now I tell you.

³⁴“I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you must also love one another. ³⁵By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love ^lfor one another.”

Peter’s Denials Predicted

³⁶“Lord,” Simon Peter said to Him, “where are You going?”

Jesus answered, “Where I am going ^myou cannot follow Me now, but you will follow…