October 14
Matthew 27 - 28 (New International Version)
Matthew 27
Judas Hangs Himself
1 Early in the morning, all the chief priests and the
elders of the people came to the decision to put Jesus to death. 2
They bound him, led him away and handed him over to Pilate, the governor.
3 When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was
condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins
to the chief priests and the elders. 4 "I have sinned," he
said, "for I have betrayed innocent blood."
"What is that to us?" they replied. "That's your responsibility."
5 So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then
he went away and hanged himself.
6 The chief priests picked up the coins and said, "It is
against the law to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money."
7 So they decided to use the money to buy the potter's field
as a burial place for foreigners. 8 That is why it has
been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9 Then what
was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: "They took the thirty
silver coins, the price set on him by the people of Israel, 10
and they used them to buy the potter's field, as the Lord commanded me."
Jesus Before Pilate
11 Meanwhile Jesus stood before the governor, and the
governor asked him, "Are you the king of the Jews?"
"Yes, it is as you say," Jesus replied.
12 When he was accused by the chief priests and the
elders, he gave no answer. 13 Then Pilate asked him,
"Don't you hear the testimony they are bringing against you?" 14
But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge—to the great amazement
of the governor.
15 Now it was the governor's custom at the Feast to
release a prisoner chosen by the crowd. 16 At that time
they had a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. 17 So when
the crowd had gathered, Pilate asked them, "Which one do you want me to
release to you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?" 18
For he knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over to him.
19 While Pilate was sitting on the judge's seat, his wife
sent him this message: "Don't have anything to do with that innocent man,
for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him."
20 But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the
crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus executed.
21 "Which of the two do you want me to release to you?"
asked the governor.
"Barabbas," they answered.
22 "What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called
Christ?" Pilate asked.
They all answered, "Crucify him!"
23 "Why? What crime has he committed?" asked Pilate.
But they shouted all the louder, "Crucify him!"
24 When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that
instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front
of the crowd. "I am innocent of this man's blood," he said. "It is your
responsibility!"
25 All the people answered, "Let his blood be on us and on
our children!"
26 Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus
flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.
The Soldiers Mock Jesus
27 Then the governor's soldiers took Jesus into the
Praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. 28
They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29 and
then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a
staff in his right hand and knelt in front of him and mocked him. "Hail,
king of the Jews!" they said. 30 They spit on him, and
took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. 31
After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on
him. Then they led him away to crucify him.
The Crucifixion
32 As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene,
named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. 33
They came to a place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull).
34 There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with
gall; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. 35
When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
36 And sitting down, they kept watch over him there.
37 Above his head they placed the written charge against him:
THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS. 38 Two robbers were
crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39
Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads 40
and saying, "You who are going to destroy the temple and build it
in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son
of God!"
41 In the same way the chief priests,
the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. 42 "He
saved others," they said, "but he can't save himself! He's the King of
Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him.
43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him,
for he said, 'I am the Son of God.' " 44 In the same way
the robbers who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.
The Death of Jesus
45 From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came
over all the land. 46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out
in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"—which means, "My God,
my God, why have you forsaken me?"
47 When some of those standing there
heard this, they said, "He's calling Elijah."
48 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled
it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink.
49 The rest said, "Now leave him alone. Let's see if
Elijah comes to save him."
50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he
gave up his spirit.
51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in
two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. 52
The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were
raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs, and after
Jesus' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many
people.
54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding
Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and
exclaimed, "Surely he was the Son of God!"
55 Many women were there, watching from a distance. They
had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. 56
Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the
mother of Zebedee's sons.
The Burial of Jesus
57 As evening approached, there came a rich man from
Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus.
58 Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body, and Pilate
ordered that it be given to him. 59 Joseph took the body,
wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and placed it in his
own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front
of the entrance to the tomb and went away. 61 Mary
Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.
The Guard at the Tomb
62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief
priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 "Sir," they
said, "we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, 'After
three days I will rise again.' 64 So give the order for
the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may
come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the
dead. This last deception will be worse than the first."
65 "Take a guard," Pilate answered.
"Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how." 66 So they
went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the
guard.
Matthew 28
The Resurrection
1 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week,
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.
2 There was a violent earthquake, for
an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled
back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like
lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The
guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
5 The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I
know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6
He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where
he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has
risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will
see him.' Now I have told you."
8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet
filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly
Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and
worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be
afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."
The Guards' Report
11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards
went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had
happened. 12 When the chief priests had met with the
elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money,
13 telling them, "You are to say, 'His disciples came during
the night and stole him away while we were asleep.' 14 If
this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of
trouble." 15 So the soldiers took the money and did as
they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the
Jews to this very day.
The Great Commission
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the
mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw
him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus
came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given
to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I
have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the
age."