Matthew 26:1–16

The Plot to Kill Jesus

26 When Jesus had finished saying all this, e He told His disciples, 2 “You know f that the * Passover takes place after two days, and the * Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.” g

3 Then the * chief priests h and the elders of the people assembled in the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, i 4 and they conspired to arrest Jesus in a treacherous way and kill Him. j 5 “Not during the festival,” they said, “so there won’t be rioting among the people.”

The Anointing at Bethany

6 While Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon, k a man who had a serious skin disease, 7 a woman approached Him with an alabaster jar of very expensive fragrant oil. She poured it on His head as He was reclining at the table. 8 When the disciples l 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.”

10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a noble thing for Me. 11 You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me. m 12 By pouring this fragrant oil on My body, she has prepared Me for burial. 13 * I assure you: Wherever this gospel n is proclaimed in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told in memory of her.”

14 Then o one of the Twelve—the man called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests p 15 and said, “What are you willing to give me if I hand Him over to you?” So they weighed out 30 pieces of silver for him. q 16 And from that time he started looking for a good opportunity to betray Him.