Markus 14 | King James Version

1 After two days was the feast of the passover, and of unleavened bread: and the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might take him by craft, and put him to death. 2 But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar of the people. 3 And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious; and she brake the box, and poured it on his head. 4 And there were some that had indignation within themselves, and said, Why was this waste of the ointment made? 5 For it might have been sold for more than three hundred pence, and have been given to the poor. And they murmured against her. 6 And Jesus said, Let her alone; why trouble ye her? she hath wrought a good work on me. 7 For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always. 8 She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying. 9 Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her. 10 And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went unto the chief priests, to betray him unto them. 11 And when they heard it, they were glad, and promised to give him money. And he sought how he might conveniently betray him. 12 And the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the passover, his disciples said unto him, Where wilt thou that we go and prepare that thou mayest eat the passover? 13 And he sendeth forth two of his disciples, and saith unto them, Go ye into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water: follow him. 14 And wheresoever he shall go in, say ye to the goodman of the house, The Master saith, Where is the guestchamber, where I shall eat the passover with my disciples? 15 And he will shew you a large upper room furnished and prepared: there make ready for us. 16 And his disciples went forth, and came into the city, and found as he had said unto them: and they made ready the passover. 17 And in the evening he cometh with the twelve. 18 And as they sat and did eat, Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, One of you which eateth with me shall betray me. 19 And they began to be sorrowful, and to say unto him one by one, Is it I? and another said, Is it I? 20 And he answered and said unto them, It is one of the twelve, that dippeth with me in the dish. 21 The Son of man indeed goeth, as it is written of him: but woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! good were it for that man if he had never been born. 22 And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body. 23 And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it. 24 And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many. 25 Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God. 26 And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives. 27 And Jesus saith unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered. 28 But after that I am risen, I will go before you into Galilee. 29 But Peter said unto him, Although all shall be offended, yet will not I. 30 And Jesus saith unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this day, even in this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. 31 But he spake the more vehemently, If I should die with thee, I will not deny thee in any wise. Likewise also said they all. 32 And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray. 33 And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy; 34 And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch. 35 And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt. 37 And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour? 38 Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. 39 And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words. 40 And when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,) neither wist they what to answer him. 41 And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand. 43 And immediately, while he yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the twelve, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priest and the scribes and the elders. 44 And he that betrayed him had given them a token, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he; take him, and lead him away safely. 45 And as soon as he was come, he goeth straightway to him, and saith, Master, master; and kissed him. 46 And they laid their hands on him, and took him. 47 And one of them that stood by drew a sword, and smote a servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. 48 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Are ye come out, as against a thief, with swords and with staves to take me? 49 I was daily with you in the temple teaching, and ye took me not: but the scriptures must be fulfilled. 50 And they all forsook him, and fled. 51 And there followed him a certain young man, having a linen cloth cast about his naked body; and the young men laid hold on him: 52 And he left the linen cloth, and fled from them naked. 53 And they led Jesus away to the high priest: and with him were assembled all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes. 54 And Peter followed him afar off, even into the palace of the high priest: and he sat with the servants, and warmed himself at the fire. 55 And the chief priests and all the council sought for witness against Jesus to put him to death; and found none. 56 For many bare false witness against him, but their witness agreed not together. 57 And there arose certain, and bare false witness against him, saying, 58 We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands. 59 But neither so did their witness agree together. 60 And the high priest stood up in the midst, and asked Jesus, saying, Answerest thou nothing? what is it which these witness against thee? 61 But he held his peace, and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? 62 And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. 63 Then the high priest rent his clothes, and saith, What need we any further witnesses? 64 Ye have heard the blasphemy: what think ye? And they all condemned him to be guilty of death. 65 And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands. 66 And as Peter was beneath in the palace, there cometh one of the maids of the high priest: 67 And when she saw Peter warming himself, she looked upon him, and said, And thou also wast with Jesus of Nazareth. 68 But he denied, saying, I know not, neither understand I what thou sayest. And he went out into the porch; and the cock crew. 69 And a maid saw him again, and began to say to them that stood by, This is one of them. 70 And he denied it again. And a little after, they that stood by said again to Peter, Surely thou art one of them: for thou art a Galilaean, and thy speech agreeth thereto. 71 But he began to curse and to swear, saying, I know not this man of whom ye speak. 72 And the second time the cock crew. And Peter called to mind the word that Jesus said unto him, Before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. And when he thought thereon, he wept.

New International Reader’s Version

A woman pours perfume on Jesus at Bethany

1 The Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were only two days away. The chief priests and the teachers of the law were plotting to arrest Jesus secretly. They wanted to kill him. 2 ‘But not during the feast,’ they said. ‘The people may stir up trouble.’ 3 Jesus was in Bethany. He was at the table in the home of Simon, who had a skin disease. A woman came with a special sealed jar. It contained very expensive perfume made out of pure nard. She broke the jar open and poured the perfume on Jesus’ head. 4 Some of the people there became angry. They said to one another, ‘Why waste this perfume? 5 It could have been sold for more than a year’s pay. The money could have been given to poor people.’ So they found fault with the woman. 6 ‘Leave her alone,’ Jesus said. ‘Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 7 You will always have poor people with you. You can help them any time you want to. But you will not always have me. 8 She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body to prepare me to be buried. 9 What I’m about to tell you is true. What she has done will be told anywhere the good news is preached all over the world. It will be told in memory of her.’ 10 Judas Iscariot was one of the 12 disciples. He went to the chief priests to hand Jesus over to them. 11 They were delighted to hear that he would do this. They promised to give Judas money. So he watched for the right time to hand Jesus over to them.

The Last Supper

12 It was the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. That was the time to sacrifice the Passover lamb. Jesus’ disciples asked him, ‘Where do you want us to go and prepare for you to eat the Passover meal?’ 13 So he sent out two of his disciples. He told them, ‘Go into the city. A man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him. 14 He will enter a house. Say to its owner, “The Teacher asks, ‘Where is my guest room? Where can I eat the Passover meal with my disciples?’ ” 15 He will show you a large upstairs room. It will have furniture and will be ready. Prepare for us to eat there.’ 16 The disciples left and went into the city. They found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover meal. 17 When evening came, Jesus arrived with the 12 disciples. 18 While they were at the table eating, Jesus said, ‘What I’m about to tell you is true. One of you who is eating with me will hand me over to my enemies.’ 19 The disciples became sad. One by one they said to him, ‘Surely you don’t mean me?’ 20 ‘It is one of you,’ Jesus replied. ‘It is the one who dips bread into the bowl with me. 21 The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But how terrible it will be for the one who hands over the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.’ 22 While they were eating, Jesus took bread. He gave thanks and broke it. He handed it to his disciples and said, ‘Take it. This is my body.’ 23 Then he took a cup. He gave thanks and handed it to them. All of them drank from it. 24 ‘This is my blood of the covenant,’ he said to them. ‘It is poured out for many. 25 What I’m about to tell you is true. I won’t drink wine with you again until the day I drink it in God’s kingdom.’ 26 Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.

Jesus says that the disciples will turn away

27 ‘You will all turn away,’ Jesus told the disciples. ‘It is written, ‘ “I will strike the shepherd down. Then the sheep will be scattered.” 28 But after I rise from the dead, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.’ 29 Peter said, ‘All the others may turn away. But I will not.’ 30 ‘What I’m about to tell you is true,’ Jesus answered. ‘It will happen today, in fact tonight. Before the cockerel crows twice, you yourself will say three times that you don’t know me.’ 31 But Peter would not give in. He said, ‘I may have to die with you. But I will never say I don’t know you.’ And all the others said the same thing.

Jesus prays in Gethsemane

32 Jesus and his disciples went to a place called Gethsemane. Jesus said to them, ‘Sit here while I pray.’ 33 He took Peter, James and John along with him. He began to be very upset and troubled. 34 ‘My soul is very sad. I feel close to death,’ he said to them. ‘Stay here. Keep watch.’ 35 He went a little further. Then he fell to the ground. He prayed that, if possible, the hour might pass by him. 36 ‘Abba, Father,’ he said, ‘everything is possible for you. Take this cup of suffering away from me. But let what you want be done, not what I want.’ 37 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. ‘Simon’, he said to Peter, ‘are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? 38 Watch and pray. Then you won’t fall into sin when you are tempted. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.’ 39 Once more Jesus went away and prayed the same thing. 40 Then he came back. Again he found them sleeping. They couldn’t keep their eyes open. They did not know what to say to him. 41 Jesus returned the third time. He said to them, ‘Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look! The Son of Man is about to be handed over to sinners. 42 Get up! Let us go! Here comes the one who is handing me over to them!’

Jesus is arrested

43 Just as Jesus was speaking, Judas appeared. He was one of the 12 disciples. A crowd was with him. They were carrying swords and clubs. The chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders had sent them. 44 Judas, who was going to hand Jesus over, had arranged a signal with them. ‘The one I kiss is the man,’ he said. ‘Arrest him and have the guards lead him away.’ 45 So Judas went to Jesus at once. Judas said, ‘Rabbi!’ And he kissed Jesus. 46 The men grabbed Jesus and arrested him. 47 Then one of those standing nearby pulled his sword out. He struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. 48 ‘Am I leading a band of armed men against you?’ asked Jesus. ‘Do you have to come out with swords and clubs to capture me? 49 Every day I was with you. I taught in the temple courtyard, and you didn’t arrest me. But the Scriptures must come true.’ 50 Then everyone left him and ran away. 51 A young man was following Jesus. The man was wearing nothing but a piece of linen cloth. When the crowd grabbed him, 52 he ran away naked. He left his clothing behind.

Jesus is taken to the Sanhedrin

53 The crowd took Jesus to the high priest. All the chief priests, the elders, and the teachers of the law came together. 54 Not too far away, Peter followed Jesus. He went right into the courtyard of the high priest. There he sat with the guards. He warmed himself at the fire. 55 The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for something to use against Jesus. They wanted to put him to death. But they did not find any proof. 56 Many witnesses lied about him. But their stories did not agree. 57 Then some of them stood up. Here is what those false witnesses said about him. 58 ‘We heard him say, “I will destroy this temple made by human hands. In three days I will build another temple, not made by human hands.” ’ 59 But what they said did not agree. 60 Then the high priest stood up in front of them. He asked Jesus, ‘Aren’t you going to answer? What are these charges these men are bringing against you?’ 61 But Jesus remained silent. He gave no answer. Again the high priest asked him, ‘Are you the Messiah? Are you the Son of the Blessed One?’ 62 ‘I am’, said Jesus. ‘And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One. You will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven.’ 63 The high priest tore his clothes. ‘Why do we need any more witnesses?’ he asked. 64 ‘You have heard him say a very evil thing against God. What do you think?’ They all found him guilty and said he must die. 65 Then some began to spit at him. They blindfolded him. They hit him with their fists. They said, ‘Prophesy!’ And the guards took him and beat him.

Peter says he does not know Jesus

66 Peter was below in the courtyard. One of the high priest’s female servants came by. 67 When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him. ‘You also were with Jesus, that Nazarene,’ she said. 68 But Peter said he had not been with him. ‘I don’t know or understand what you’re talking about,’ he said. He went out to the entrance to the courtyard. 69 The servant saw him there. She said again to those standing around, ‘This fellow is one of them.’ 70 Again he said he was not. After a little while, those standing nearby said to Peter, ‘You must be one of them. You are from Galilee.’ 71 Then Peter began to curse. He said to them, ‘I don’t know this man you’re talking about!’ 72 Right away the cockerel crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered what Jesus had spoken to him. ‘The cockerel will crow twice,’ he had said. ‘Before it does, you will say three times that you don’t know me.’ Peter broke down and cried.

Markus 14 | King James Version New International Reader’s Version