1 In the beginning was the message,[fn] and the message was with God, and the message was and is God. 2 He, the message, was with God even at the creation of the universe. 3 Everything came into existence through the messenger[fn]—≈there’s not even one thing that came into existence that wasn’t made by him. 4 He holds life, and that life is the light of humankind. 5 And that light is shining in the darkness, and darkness cannot overcome him.

6 [ref]A man arrived who had been sent by God. His name was Yohan. 7 He came as a testimony to tell about the light so that everyone would believe the light. 8 Yohan himself wasn’t the light—he was merely the announcer of the light. 9 The true light which enlightens every person was coming into the world.

10 He was in the world and he’s the creator of the world, and yet the world didn’t even know him. 11 He came to his own chosen people, but they wouldn’t accept him, 12 however anyone who would accept him and trusted in his authority, he gave them the right to become children of God—13 not physical children and not coming from human actions, but children of God.

14 And the message became a human and lived here among us and we saw his greatness—the greatness of an only child of the father—full of grace and truth.

15 Yohan explained about him and loudly told everyone, “This is the one I meant when I said, ‘There’s someone coming after me, yet who came before me, because he existed before I did!’ ”

16 Because he has so much, we all received grace and then even more grace. 17 The commands came to us through Mosheh, but grace and truth came to us through Yeshua the messiah. 18 No one has ever actually seen God, but the human son born from God the father and in close touch with him, he was the one to explain God to us.

(Matthew 3.1-12; Mark 1.1-8; Luke 3.1-18)

19 Yohan explained some of this when the Jewish leaders sent out priests and temple workers from Yerushalem to ask him, “Who are you?”

20 He didn’t flinch from the truth and so he told them, “I am not the chosen messiah.”

21 [ref]So they asked him again, “Are you Eliyyah come back to life?”

And he answered, “No, I’m not.”

They asked, “Are you the prophet?”

Again he answered, “No, I’m not.”

22 So they asked him, “Who are you then? We need to give an answer to the ones who sent us. How do you describe yourself?”

23 [ref]So he said, “I am a voice shouting[fn] in the wilderness smooth the path of Yahweh, as the prophet Isayah said.”

24 Some of the ones sent out were members of the Pharisee party. 25 These ones asked Yohan, “So why are you immersing people then if you aren’t the messiah or Eliyyah or the prophet?”

26 He answered, “I’m immersing people in water, but somewhere here among us all there’s someone you don’t know—27 the one coming after me, and I’m not even good enough to untie his sandal straps!”

28 All this happened in Bethany on the east side of the Yordan River where Yohan was immersing people.

29 The next day Yohan saw Yeshua coming towards him, and said, “Hey! Here’s the sacrificial lamb of God who’s come to take away the sin of the world. 30 This is the man I was talking about when I said, ‘There’s someone coming after me, yet who came before me, because he existed before I did.’ 31 I didn’t know who he was but nevertheless I came and immersed people in water so that this man could be revealed to all Yisrael.”

32 And Yohan further explained, “I saw God’s spirit come down and settle on him. 33 I didn’t know which one was him, but the one who sent me to immerse people in water said, ‘When you see the spirit coming down and settling on someone, he is the one who will immerse people with God’s holy spirit.’ 34 And I have seen that, and so I can assure you that he is God’s son.”

35 The next day, Yohan was back there with two of his apprentices 36 and noticing Yeshua walking nearby he said, “Look! There’s the sacrificial lamb of God.”

37 When his two apprentices heard him say that, they left him and followed Yeshua. 38 But Yeshua turned and saw them following him, and asked them, “What do you two want?”

And they said to him, “Teacher, where do you live?”

39 “Come and see,” Yeshua replied. So they went with him and saw where he lived, and then they stayed there that night, because it was already late afternoon.

40 Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter was one of those two who heard Yohan and then followed Yeshua. 41 As soon as he found his brother, he said to Simon, “We have found the messiah—God’s chosen one,” 42 and led him to Yeshua. When Yeshua saw him, he said, “Ah, you are Simon, Yohan’s son, but from now on you’ll be called Peter which means stone.”

43 The following day, Yeshua wanted to go to Galilee. He found Philip and told him, “Follow me!” 44 Philip was from the town of Bethsaida where Andrew and Peter lived. 45 Philip then found Nathanael and told him, “We’ve found the one that Mosheh and the prophets wrote about in the Scriptures. He’s Yeshua from Nazareth.”

46 And Nathanael said, “Does anything good come from Nazareth?”

So Philip answered, “Well, come and see for yourself.”

47 Yeshua saw Nathanael approaching and said, “Ah, this is an honest Israeli.”

48 But Nathanael queried him, “Where do you know me from?”

And Yeshua replied, “Actually I saw you under that fig tree before Philip had even called you.”

49 Nathanael exclaimed, “Great teacher! You are God’s son! You’re the king of Yisrael!”

50 Yeshua responded, “So you believe this because I said that I had seen you under the fig tree. You’ll get to see much greater things than that!” 51 [ref]And he continued, “Honestly, I’m telling all of you: you’ll be seeing the sky opened up and God’s messengers going up and coming down on me—humanity’s child.”

2 On the Tuesday[fn], there was a wedding in Cana in Galilee, and Yeshua’s mother was there 2 and Yeshua and his apprentices were also invited. 3 When the wine ran out at the wedding, his mother said to him, “They haven’t got any more wine.”

4 Yeshua answered, “What does that have to do with us, mother? It’s not the time for my ministry yet.”

5 But his mother told the servants, “Just do whatever he tells you.”

6 Now there were six empty stone water jars there that are used for Jewish purification ceremonies. (Each one could hold over 70 litres.) 7 So Yeshua told them to fill the jars with water, and they filled them up. 8 Then he said, “Okay, now take a sample out and give it to the MC.” So they took some 9 and when the MC tasted the water that had now turned to wine, not knowing where it had come from he called the groom 10 and exclaimed, “Most people supply the best wine at the beginning of the reception, and the cheaper stuff when people are a bit tipsy. But you’ve kept the best wine until last!”

11 This event in Cana, Galilee, was the first of the miracles that Yeshua did, and it revealed his greatness and his followers believed that he was from God.

Jesus Clears the Temple

12 [ref]After that, Yeshua and his mother and brothers and his followers travelled east to Capernaum, but they only stayed there a few days.

(Matthew 21.12,13; Mark 11.15-17; Luke 19.45,46)

13 [ref]By then it was getting close to the time of the Jewish Festival of the Passover, and Yeshua went down to Yerushalem. 14 There in the temple, he discovered merchants selling cows and sheep and doves, and moneychangers sitting at their tables. 15 Yeshua formed some cords into a whip and drove the sheep and cows out of the temple grounds, and he overturned the tables—spilling the coins of the moneychangers onto the ground. 16 He scolded the ones selling doves, saying, “Get them out of here! Don’t be making my father’s house into a market.” 17 [ref]That reminded his followers of the scripture: “I’ll be filled with zeal for your temple.”

18 Then the Jewish leaders responded, “Do a miracle to show that you have the authority to do these things.”

19 [ref]But Yeshua answered, “Well, destroy this temple and I’ll raise[fn] it again in three days.”

20 The leaders smirked, “This temple took forty-six years to build, and you reckon that you can raise it again in three days?”

21 But Yeshua had been meaning his own body when he was talking about the temple. 22 In the future when he was actually raised from the dead, his followers remembered this statement, and they believed both the Hebrew scriptures and Yeshua’s message.

23 When Yeshua was at the Passover Feast in Yerushalem, many believed in his authority because they saw the miracles that he was able to do. 24 But Yeshua never fully entrusted himself to them, because he knew what people are like. 25 (He didn’t need anyone to tell him what people are like because he could see what any person was like on the inside.)

3 After dark one evening, a Jewish leader named Nicodemus who was a member of the Pharisee party 2 went to Yeshua and said, “Teacher, we know that God has sent you as a teacher, because no one could do these kinds of miracles if God wasn’t with him.”

3 Yeshua responded, “I’ll tell you frankly that no one can enter God’s kingdom unless he is reborn.”

4 Nicodemus questioned, “How can an adult be reborn? A person can’t just return to their mother’s womb and then get born a second time!”

5 But Yeshua continued, “Honestly, I’m telling you: unless a person is born from both water and the spirit, they can’t enter God’s kingdom. 6 Someone that’s born from a body is flesh and bone, but someone that’s born from God’s spirit is spiritual. 7 So you shouldn’t be surprised that I told you that everyone needs to be reborn. 8 The wind blows wherever it wants, and you can hear its sound but you can’t actually see where it’s coming from and where it’s going to. So too with everyone who’s born from God’s spirit.”

9 Nicodemus replied, “How can all this even happen?”

10 “You’re a Jewish teacher,” Yeshua answered, “and yet you don’t know all this? 11 It’s true that we just teach what we know, and explain what we’ve seen ourselves, but you people aren’t accepting our testimony. 12 If I tell all of you earthly things and you don’t believe them, how will you ever believe if I explain heavenly things? 13 None of you have gone up into heaven, but I, humanity’s child, have come down from heaven.

14 [ref]“Just like Mosheh lifted up that bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, it’s also necessary for humanity’s child to be lifted up,[fn] 15 so that everyone who believes in him won’t die, but will live forever.[fn] 16 Because[fn] in that same way, God loves the people of the world enough to cause &his only son to be born and to give him to the world, so that everyone who believes this won’t die, but will go on to live forever.

17 “God didn’t send his son here to condemn people, but rather to save them. 18 Anyone who trusts in me will not be condemned. However, anyone who doesn’t believe this has already been condemned because he rejected the authority of the only son that God fathered. 19 And this is the verdict: that light has come into the world, but some people love the darkness more than the light because they do evil things, 20 because everyone who does evil things hates the light and doesn’t come to the light so that their actions won’t be exposed. 21 But anyone who does what is right, comes toward the light so that their actions can be revealed as being done with God’s help.”

22 After this, Yeshua and his followers went down to Yudea, and stayed there and immersed some believers. 23 Yohan was also immersing people at Aenon near Salim because there was plenty of water there and people would come to him to get immersed. 24 [ref](At this point in time, Yohan had not yet been put in prison.) 25 Then a debate about purification started between Yohan’s followers and a religious leader.[fn] 26 So some people went to Yohan and said, “Teacher, that man that came to you across the river and that you testified about, now he’s immersing people and so they’re all going to him.”

27 “None of us get anything if it’s not being given from heaven,” Yohan answered. 28 [ref]“You yourselves know that I said that I’m not the messiah, but rather the one coming before him. 29 It’s the groom that has the bride—the best man is happy because he sees that the groom is happy. So I’m actually completely happy with all this. 30 It’s right and proper that he should increase and I should fade out.”

He Who Comes from Heaven; The One Who Comes from Heaven

31 “The one who came down from heaven is greater than any of us. We came from this world and speak in our earthly ways. The one who came down from heaven is greater than any of us. 32 He explains about what he’s seen and heard, but people don’t believe him. 33 Anyone who does believe him, confirms that God is true. 34 The one that God sent tells us God’s words, because God doesn’t ration his spirit. 35 [ref]The father loves the son and has put him in charge of everything. 36 Anyone who believes God’s son will live forever, but anyone who disobeys the son won’t be seeing life, but will feel God’s severe anger instead.”

4 When Yeshua found out that the Pharisee party knew that he was gaining and immersing more followers than Yohan had, 2 (although actually it wasn’t Yeshua himself that was immersing them, but his apprentices that were doing it), 3 he left Yudea and went back up to Galilee. 4 On the way up, he decided to go through Samaria (Heb. Shomron).

5 [ref]By choosing that route, they came to a town in Samaria called Sukar, which was near the place that the patriarch Yosef had inherited from his father Yacob, 6 and Yacob’s well was there. Yeshua was tired from all the walking and was sitting by the well around midday.

7 A woman came from the town to get water from the well, and Yeshua asked her for a drink 8 since his followers had gone into the town to buy some lunch.

9 [ref]The woman said to him, “You’re a Jew. How come you’re asking me for a drink when I’m from Samaria?” (Jews don’t normally associate with anyone from Samaria.)

10 Yeshua answered, “If you had recognised God’s gift and who it is who’s asking you for a drink, you would have asked me and I would have given you living water to drink.”

11 But the woman countered, “Mister, you don’t even have rope and a bucket to reach the water in the deep well. How then could you get ‘living water’? 12 I doubt that you’re greater than our ancestor Yacob who made this well for us and drank this water along with his children and his animals.”

13 Yeshua responded, “Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water that I give them will find a well springing up inside them—springing into eternal life.”

15 So the woman said, “Okay, then. Give me some of that water so that I won’t get thirsty and won’t have to keep coming out here to the well.”

16 Yeshua said, “First, go and get your husband and return here.”

17 “I don’t have a husband!” she retorted.

“True enough—indeed you don’t,” Yeshua said. 18 “You’ve had five husbands and you’re not married to the man you’re living with, so that was true.”

19 “Mister, I can see that you’re a prophet,” the woman reacted. 20 “Our ancestors worshipped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that people should only worship there in Yerushalem.”

21 Then Yeshua told her, “You need to believe that I was sent from God, woman, because a day is coming when everyone will be worshipping him neither on this mountain, nor in Yerushalem. 22 You people in Samaria don’t even know who you worship, but we do, because people will be saved by means of us Jews. 23 But a time is coming, starting even now, when the true worshippers will be worshipping the father in spirit and truth, because those are the ones that he is wanting to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and the ones worshipping him must worship in spirit and total honesty.”

25 The woman said, “I’m aware that the messiah is coming—the chosen one of God. Whenever he appears, he’ll teach us everything.”

26 “I am the messiah,” Yeshua responded. “Yes, he’s speaking to you!”

The Disciples Rejoin Jesus

27 After this, his followers arrived back, and they were astounded that he was speaking with a woman. However no one dared ask her, “What are you after?” Or to ask him, “Why are you talking with her?”

28 So the woman left her water jar there, and went back into the town where she told the people, 29 “Come and see a man who knew as much about me as I know myself! He must be the messiah!” 30 So they went out from the town to go and see Yeshua.

31 Meanwhile, Yeshua’s followers encouraged him, “Teacher, here, eat.”

32 But he said, “I’ve had food to eat that you don’t know about.”

33 This made his followers ask each other, “Did you see anyone bring him something to eat?”

34 “Obeying God who sent me is like food to me, and I plan to finish his work,” Yeshua explained. 35 “Don’t you all have a saying about needing to wait four months for a harvest? But I’m telling you that you all should open your eyes and look at the fields, because they’re already lightening up as harvest time approaches. 36 The harvester gets paid with a harvest that will last forever so that the ones who plant and the ones who harvest can all celebrate. 37 There’s truth in the statement that one person plants and a different person harvests. 38 I’ve sent you all out to harvest where you haven’t worked before—others did the groundwork and you benefit from their work.”

Many Samaritans Believe

39 And many people of Samaria came out of that town and believed that Yeshua is God because the woman had told them that he knew everything about her. 40 So when they all came, they asked him to stay in their town and they stayed on there for a couple of days.

41 As a result of his teaching, many more believed 42 so then they told the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said, but now that we’ve heard him for ourselves, we can see that he really is the saviour of the world.”

43 After his two days in Samaria, Yeshua continued on up to Galilee. 44 [ref]He himself had told them that no prophet gets honoured in his own home town. 45 [ref]When he got to Galilee, the people accepted him, having seen everything that he’d done at the feast in Yerushalem because they had also been down there.

Jesus Heals an Official’s Son

46 [ref]So he went again to Cana there in Galilee where he had made the water into wine. Now there was a royal official there, whose son in Capernaum was ill. 47 When the official heard that Yeshua was coming up from Yudea to Galilee, he went and asked him if he would come and heal his son who was dying. 48 Yeshua said to him, “You people won’t believe unless you see miracles and other marvels.”

49 But the official begged him, “Sir, please come before my child dies.”

50 “Go back there and see,” Yeshua responded. “Your son will recover.”

The man believed what Yeshua had told him, and so he started off. 51 On his way, his slaves met him and reported that the boy was alive and well.

52 So the official asked them what time it was that he got better, and they replied that the fever had subsided around 1pm. 53 The father knew that that was the time when Yeshua had told him that his son would recover, and as a result his whole household believed that Yeshua came from God.

54 This was the second miracle that Yeshua did after leaving Yudea and going to Galilee.

5 After all this, there was another Jewish feast, so Yeshua went down to Yerushalem. 2 In Yerushalem at the Sheep Gate, there’s the Bethsaida pool that has five alcoves 3 and a large number of sick, blind, lame, and paralysed people lie there in them. 4 ◘ 5 One man had been there for thirty-eight years, 6 and when Yeshua noticed him and knew that he’d been there for so long, he asked, “Do you want to get better?”

7 “Yes mister,” the sick man answered, “but when the water starts moving, I don’t have a companion to lift me into the pool, so someone else always get there before me.”

8 Then Yeshua said, “Stand up and pick up your bedroll and start walking.” 9 The man immediately stood up, picked up his gear, and started to walk.

However, this was the weekly rest day. 10 [ref]So the religious leaders said to the man, “Hey! It’s against the law for you to carry your bedding on the rest day!”

11 But the man answered, “The man who made me better told me to pick up my bedroll and start walking.”

12 “Oh. Who was it that told you to take that stuff and start walking?”

13 But the man who had been healed didn’t even know who it was, because Yeshua had quickly left when a crowd had formed.

14 Later on, Yeshua found the man in the temple and told him, “Look, you’re better now so don’t go on sinning, because you don’t want anything worse to happen to you.”

15 The man then went and told the leaders that it was Yeshua who had made him better.

Life Through the Son

Jesus Claims to Be the Son of God

16 As a result, the leaders started harassing Yeshua because he had done this on a rest day. 17 But Yeshua just replied, “My father is working today, and so I’m also working.”

18 Because of this, the leaders became determined that he must be put to death—not just because he broke the rules for the rest day, but most of all because he was calling God his own father, thus making himself equal to God!

19 So Yeshua responded to them, “I want to tell you all something: The son can’t initiate anything by himself. He can only do what he sees his father doing, because whatever his father is doing, he also does things like that. 20 You see, the father loves his son and shows him everything that he’s doing. In fact, he’ll be showing him even greater things than what he’s done already, so that you all will be amazed. 21 Because the father brings the dead back to life, giving them new life, so too the son can give life to anyone who he wants. 22 The father won’t be judging anyone, but has already given that task to the son, 23 so that the people might honour the son like they honour the father. But anyone who is not honouring the son, is also dishonouring the father who sent him.

24 “I assure you that anyone who hears my message and believes that I was sent by God, will live forever and will not be condemned, but has moved from death into life. 25 I can also assure you that a time is coming, and in fact is here already, when the dead will be hearing the voice of God’s son and that voice will bring them back to life. 26 As the father is the source of life, he gave the power of giving life to the son 27 and gave him the authority to be the final judge, because he is humanity’s child. 28 Don’t be surprised at this, because a time is coming when everyone in their graves will be hearing his voice, 29 [ref]and the ones having done what is good will be given new life, and the ones having done what is evil will be condemned.”

30 Yeshua continued explaining to the religious leaders, “I don’t do anything in isolation. Whenever I hear from him, only then do I judge and my judgement is correct and impartial because I’m not imposing my desires, but the desire of the one who sent me.

Testimonies About Jesus

Witnesses to Jesus

31 “If I just testified about myself, my testimony would not be correct or even valid. 32 However it’s another one that’s testifying about me, and I know that his testimony about me is true. 33 [ref]You sent people out to question Yohan and his testimony was true. 34 but I don’t even need any testimony that comes from people, because I am teaching you how to be saved. 35 Yohan was a bright and shining light and you appreciated it for a short time. 36 But I have a stronger testimony than Yohan’s because the father has entrusted works to me to complete, and which I’m already doing and which clearly show that the father sent me here. 37 [ref]And since he sent me, he himself has testified about me. You people have never listened to his voice, nor have you ever seen him! 38 And his way of thinking is obviously not in your minds, because you don’t believe the one that he sent. 39 You look in the Jewish scriptures because you suppose that they’ll lead you to eternal life. Those very scriptures testify about me coming, 40 yet you refuse to come to me in order to receive life.

41 “I’m not getting any praise from people 42 but I do know that you people don’t actually love God in your hearts. 43 I have come with my father’s authority and you don’t accept me, but if someone came claiming their own authority, you’d happily accept them. 44 How could you possibly believe when you just accept acclamations from each other, but don’t even seek praise from the only God. 45 But don’t be assuming that I’ll be accusing you all in front of the father. No, the one who’ll accuse you is Mosheh because he’s the one that you’re hoping to please. 46 The trouble is that if you actually believed what Mosheh wrote, you would believe me, because Mosheh was writing about me. 47 But since you don’t really believe his writings, you’re not at all likely to believe me.”

(Matthew 14.13-21; Mark 6.30-44; Luke 9.10-17)

6 After all this, Yeshua crossed the lake in a boat.[fn] 2 A large crowd followed him because they’d seen his miraculous healings of sick people. 3 Yeshua climbed a hill and sat there with his apprentices. 4 At that time, it was getting close to the Jewish Festival of Passover. 5 When Yeshua looked out and saw the large crowd coming, he asked Philip, “Where can we get enough food from to feed all this crowd?” 6 But he was only saying this to test Philip because he already knew what he was going to do.

7 Philip answered, “To buy even just a snack for this many people would take several months’ wages!”

8 Now one of Yeshua’s apprentices, Simon Peter’s brother, Andrew, said to Yeshua, 9 “There’s a young boy here with five buns and two small cooked fish, but that wouldn’t even start to feed this crowd.”

10 But Yeshua told them to get all the people to sit down as there was a large grassy area. So they all sat down—some five thousand men were counted. 11 Then he took the buns and gave thanks to God, and started passing around both the buns and the fish, and everyone ate as much as they wanted. 12 Once everyone was full, Yeshua got his apprentices to collect the leftover fragments so as not to waste anything. 13 So they gathered the leftovers and filled twelve baskets with leftover bread.

14 The people who had witnessed this and other miracles said, “This really is the prophet that God promised to send!” 15 But Yeshua knew that they intended to come and grab him to proclaim him as their king, so he moved out of the crowd and on up the hill.

16 As it moved into evening, Yeshua’s apprentices went back down to the lake 17 and having boarded the boat, they set out across the lake toward Capernaum. By then it was dark, and there was still no sign of Yeshua. 18 Then a strong wind hit the lake and the water got rough. 19 When they had rowed about five kilometres, they saw Yeshua walking on top of the lake and approaching the boat, and they were very scared. 20 But he told them, “Don’t worry—it’s me.” 21 After that they were willing to let him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at their arrival place.

The Bread from Heaven

Jesus, the Bread of Life

The People Seek Jesus

22 The next day, the crowd looked across the lake and saw that only one small boat had crossed, and they knew that only Yeshua’s apprentices had boarded that boat and left, and not Yeshua himself. 23 Other boats came across from Tiberias near the place where they had eaten the bread after the master had given thanks. 24 So when all the people saw that Yeshua wasn’t around and his apprentices had left, they went off looking for Yeshua in Capernaum.

25 When they found him there across the lake, they queried, “Teacher, how did you get here?”

26 “Honestly, I know that you’re not looking for me because you saw God working miracles,” Yeshua answered, “but because you all had plenty of food to fill you up. 27 Don’t just work for the food which goes off, but for the food which lasts forever—the food which humanity’s child will give to you because God the father has put his mark of approval on him.”

28 Puzzled, they asked him, “What should we be doing if we want to work for God?”

29 He answered, “Doing God’s work is putting your trust in the one that he sent here.”

30 “If so,” they said, “what miracle will you do for us to see so that we can believe that you came from God? What can you do? 31 [ref]Our ancestors ate the manna[fn] out in the wilderness, just like Mosheh wrote, ‘He gave them bread from the sky to eat.’ ”

32 Yeshua said to them, “Actually I can tell you that it wasn’t Mosheh who gave them bread from heaven, but my father gives you the real bread from heaven, 33 because God’s bread is the one who came down from heaven and who gives life to the world.”

34 So they requested, “Mister, keep giving us that bread.”

35 “I am the bread that gives life,” Yeshua answered, “anyone who comes to me will never hunger, and the one believing in me, will never be thirsty again. 36 But as I said already, although you have seen me you refuse to believe me. 37 Everyone that the father gives to me will come to me, and I certainly won’t turn away anyone who comes to me, 38 because I came down from heaven, not to do what I want, but to do what the one who sent me wants. 39 And what he wants is for me to not lose anyone that he’s given to me, but to bring them back to life on the last day. 40 My father wants everyone who watches me and believes in me to live forever, because I will bring them back to life on that final day.”

41 This little speech made the religious leaders grumble about him because he had said that he was the food that came down from heaven, 42 as they figured out, “This is Yeshua the son of Yosef and so we know his parents. So how can he say that he came down from heaven?”

43 Yeshua scolded them, “Don’t be grumbling to each other. 44 No one can join me unless the father who sent me attracts them, and then I’ll be bringing them back to life on that final day. 45 [ref]The prophets wrote that the people will be taught by God. And everyone who’s heard and learnt from the father comes to me. 46 Not that any person has seen the father—only the one who came from God has seen him. 47 I tell you sincerely: anyone who believes in me will live forever. 48 I am the bread that gives true life. 49 Your ancestors ate manna in the wilderness, but they all went on to die. 50 But I am the bread that came down from heaven and anyone who eats this will not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven and if anyone eats this bread, he will live through to the next age.”

52 At this point, the religious leaders began to argue with each other, “How could this man give us his flesh to eat?”

53 So Yeshua explained, “Indeed if you don’t eat my flesh and drink my blood, you aren’t truly alive! 54 Anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood will gain eternal life—I will bring them back to life on that final day. 55 For my flesh is the true food, and my blood is the true drink. 56 Anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me, and I will live in him. 57 The father is alive and sent me here, and I am alive because of Him, so also the person who eats me will be alive because of me. 58 Unlike your ancestors who ate that bread from the sky and then died, anyone who eats this bread that came down from heaven will live through to the next age.”

59 Yeshua taught all of this in the meeting hall there in Capernaum.

Many Disciples Desert Jesus

The Words of Eternal Life

60 But even many of his followers who heard it said, “This is difficult teaching—it’s too hard to take.”

61 But Yeshua already knew inside that his followers were grumbling about this and asked them, “Do you find this offensive? 62 What if you were to see humanity’s child ascending to where he came from? 63 It’s the spirit that is the source of life, not the body. The concepts that I’ve taught you are all spiritual and life-giving. 64 But there are some here who don’t believe me.” Actually, Yeshua had already known from the beginning just who would believe and which person would betray him 65 so he said, “That’s why I told you that no one can come to me unless the father has given them to me.”

66 After this, many of his followers went back and no longer accompanied him around.

67 So Yeshua said to his twelve apprentices, “Don’t you want to leave as well?”

68 [ref]“Master,” Simon answered, “if we went, who would we follow then? You’re the only one who teaches about living forever. 69 We believe and know that you are the holy son of God.”

70 Yeshua responded, “Didn’t I choose all twelve of you myself? And yet one of you is a devil.” 71 (He was talking about Yudas, Simon Iscariot’s son, because he was the one who would go on to betray him.)

7 After all this, Yeshua travelled around Galilee. (He didn’t want to travel around Yudea because the leaders there wanted to execute him.) 2 [ref]As it was now getting close to the Jewish Feast With Tents, 3 his brothers said to him, “You should leave this place and go down to Yudea so that all your followers can see the miracles that you’re doing. 4 If you want to become well-known, you don’t do things out of the main stream. If you want to do miracles, go and show yourself to the wider world. 5 (You see, not even Yeshua’s own half-brothers believed that he came from God.)

6 So Yeshua responded, “Well, you guys can do that any time, but it’s not the right time for me yet. 7 All the people won’t hate you guys, but they do hate me because I teach about the evil things they are doing. 8 You all go on down to Yerushalem ahead of me. I’m not going to the feast yet because it’s not yet the right time for me.” 9 After saying this, Yeshua stayed up in Galilee.

10 But after his half-brothers had left to go down to Yerushalem, Yeshua also went—not in the public limelight but just incognito so to speak. 11 However at the celebrations, the Jewish religious leaders were searching for him, and were asking around where he was.

12 Even among the crowds there was a lot of quiet banter with some saying that Yeshua is a good man and others complaining that he was misleading the people. 13 Either way, no one was speaking out in public about him, because they were afraid of the reaction of the religious leaders.

Jesus Teaches at the Feast

14 Finally sometime in the middle of the celebrations, Yeshua went into the temple and started teaching in there. 15 Even the Jewish leaders were surprised, asking, “How can this man know so much when he hasn’t been trained as a teacher?”

16 Yeshua himself responded, “My teaching doesn’t come from me, but from the one who sent me. 17 If anyone wants to do God’s will, they’ll soon figure out whether my teaching comes from God or if I’m just making it up myself. 18 Any person who just teaches their own thoughts is just seeking their own advancement, but anyone who wants to promote the one who sent them, this is authentic and there’s no hidden self-interest. 19 Didn’t Mosheh write down God’s commands for you, yet not a single one of you obeys them. Why are you wanting to execute me?”

20 “You must be demon-possessed,” said some in the crowd, “Who would be wanting to execute you.”

21 Yeshua responded, “I did one miracle and you were all amazed. 22 [ref]Mosheh gave you the command about circumcision (even though it actually came from before his time), but to obey this, you’ll even circumcise a baby boy on the Rest Day. 23 [ref]So if a baby boy can be circumcised on the Rest Day so that Mosheh’s commands aren’t broken, they why did you get angry with me because I made a man healthy on the Rest Day? 24 Don’t just ‘judge’ things so that you yourselves look good, but judge impartially, seeking the best for others.”

25 After this, some of the locals from Yerushalem started asking, “Isn’t this the man they were wanting to execute? 26 Well, here he is teaching in public, yet they’re not even confronting him. Perhaps the leaders know that he really is the messiah? 27 But we even know where this man is from. Surely when the messiah comes, no one would know his family background.”

28 So as Yeshua continued teaching, he called out, “Indeed you all know me and my home and my family. But I didn’t come here of my own accord, but the one who sent me here is truthful, even though you don’t even know him. 29 I know him, because I came from him, indeed, he was the one who sent me here.”

30 So now they really want to arrest him, but no one touched him because it was not yet the proper time. 31 Many in the crowd did believe that he was from God and they were saying, “When the messiah comes, would he be doing greater miracles than what we’ve seen this man do?”

32 The Pharisee party heard the crowd muttering about these things and sent out some of their servants along with the chief priests to go and arrest Yeshua. 33 So Yeshua said, “I’ll only be with you all for a short while longer and then I’ll be going to the one who sent me. 34 You’ll look for me but won’t be able to find me, and you can’t go where I’ll be going.”

35 The leaders wondered, “Where could he be going that we wouldn’t be able to find him? Will he go and live with the Jews living out there among the Greeks and start teaching the Greeks? 36 And what does he mean about looking for him and not being able to find him, and not being able to go where he goes?”

37 [ref]On the final climax day of the celebrations, Yeshua stood there and shouted, “Anyone who’s thirsty, come here to me and drink. 38 [ref]Whoever trusts me will have rivers of living water flowing out from him just like the scriptures say.” 39 He was talking about God’s spirit that the ones who trust him would receive in the future—not yet because Yeshua hadn’t been lifted up to heaven yet.

40 When some in the crowd heard his teaching, they said, “He really is the coming prophet.” 41 Others said, “He must be the messiah.”

But some pointed out, “The messiah won’t come from Galilee. 42 [ref]Don’t the scriptures say that he’ll be a descendant of King David and that he’ll come from David’s town of Bethlehem?” 43 And so the crowd was divided about Yeshua. 44 Some of the Pharisees’ servants wanted to arrest him, but decided to leave him alone for now.

45 So when the servants returned back to the chief priests and the Pharisees, they were asked, “Why haven’t you brought him?”

46 They answered, “We’ve never heard anyone speak like he does.”

47 “Don’t tell us that you’ve also been taken in by him?” the Pharisees asked them. 48 “None of our leaders or any of us Pharisees believe that he’s from God. 49 But all these people ignorant of the scriptures are bewitched.”

50 [ref]Now Nicodemus (the one who had previously visited Yeshua) spoke up, 51 “Since when did our rules allow us to judge a person before we’ve even heard them out and investigated what they’re doing?”

52 “So do you come from Galilee as well?” they sneered, “Look in the scriptures and you’ll soon see that no prophet emerges out of Galilee.”

The story of the woman caught in adultery does not appear in the majority of the oldest manuscripts that we have. Hence, it is not included in this translation.

(That doesn’t necessarily mean that the event never happened—just that it almost certainly wasn’t part of Yohan’s original account.)

53 ◘

A Woman Caught in Adultery

The Woman Caught in Adultery

8 ◘ 2 ◘ 3 ◘ 4 ◘ 5 [ref]◘ 6 ◘ 7 ◘ 8 ◘ 9 ◘ 10 ◘ 11 ◘

12 [ref]Because of this, Yeshua told them, “I am the light for the world—whoever follows me won’t walk in the darkness but will have the light that gives life.”

13 [ref]Some from the Pharisee party argued, “You are testifying about yourself, so that testimony is invalid.”

14 Yeshua responded, “Even when I am testifying about myself, my testimony is valid, because I know where I came from and where I’m going. 15 You all are judging according to your earthly values. I’m not judging anyone. 16 But even if I was judging, my judgement would be correct, because it wouldn’t just be me judging, but also the father who sent me. 17 [ref]It’s even written in your own laws that the testimony of two men is valid. 18 So that’s me testifying about myself, plus the father who sent me also testifies about me.”

19 “And where is your father?” they asked.

Yeshua answered them, “You don’t know either me or my father. If you did know me, then you’d also know my father.”

20 He explained all this while he was teaching in the treasury part of the temple, but no one arrested him because the time for his suffering had not yet arrived.

21 So he continued, “I will be going away and all of you will be looking for me, but you’ll all just die in your sins and won’t be able to go where I’ll be going.”

22 This puzzled the Jewish teachers, “Surely he’s not going to commit suicide! What else could he mean about ‘you can’t go where I’m going to be going’?”

23 Yeshua explained, “All of you are from the world below, but I’m from the world above. You all are part of this world, but I’m not part of it. 24 That’s why I said that you’ll be dying in your sins, because if you refuse to believe that I am God, you will indeed all be dying in your sins.”

25 “So who are you?” they asked.

And he answered, “Still just the same as I’ve been telling you from the beginning. 26 I have a lot that I need to tell you all and to judge many of your actions, because the one who sent me is true, and it’s what I hear from him that I speak to all people.”

27 (They didn’t realise that he was talking to them about the father in heaven.) 28 So Yeshua told them, “When you all lift up[fn] humanity’s child on a pole, then you will know that I am God, and that I don’t do anything by myself, but I say all this just as the father told me to. 29 And the one who sent me is with me—he didn’t just leave me alone—because I am continually doing what pleases him.”

30 After he’d said all this, many people believed in him.

31 Because of this, Yeshua told all the Jews who believed in him, “If you all continue to believe my message, then you’re my true followers. 32 You will have known the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

33 [ref]But some queried, “We are Abraham’s descendants and we’ve never been slaves to anyone, so how can you say that we’ll be set free?”

34 “I can assure you all that anyone who sins is a slave to sin,” Yeshua answered. 35 “And the slaves don’t necessarily remain in the family home forever—only the children have that right. 36 So if the son sets you free, then you’ll be truly free.

37 “Yes, I know that you’re all descendants of Abraham, but you’re trying to kill me because my message doesn’t lodge in you. 38 Indeed I talk about what I’ve actually seen with the father, but you all are doing what you’ve heard from your father.”

Jesus and Abraham

39 But they retorted, “Abraham is our father.”[fn]

And Yeshua responded, “Well, if you really were descendants of Abraham, you’d behave more like him. 40 But instead you’re trying to find a way to have me killed—to kill the man who has spoken the truth to you—truth that I heard from God. Abraham never did that. 41 You’re doing what your father wants you all do to.”

The Children of the Devil

But they shot back, “It’s not us who was conceived by a couple that weren’t even married! Anyway, we only have one father and that’s God.”

42 “If God was your father you all would be loving me,” Yeshua responded, “because I came from God and for God. I didn’t just come by myself, but God sent me here. 43 Why can’t you comprehend what I’m saying? The reason that you can’t stand listening to my message 44 is because you come from your father, the devil, and you want to do what your father wants. But he was a murderer from the beginning, and doesn’t stick to the truth because there’s no truth in him. Whenever he tells lies, he’s speaking from his own nature, because he’s a liar and the source of lying. 45 But because I’m speaking the truth, you don’t believe in me. 46 Which of you can scold me for my sins? If I am speaking the truth, why don’t you believe I’m from God? 47 Anyone who belongs to God, listens to what God says. But you all can’t even hear the message, because you don’t belong to God.”

48 The Jewish leaders asked, “Aren’t we right in saying that you’re from Samaria and that you have a demon?”

49 “No, I don’t have a demon,” Yeshua answered, “but I honour my father and you’re dishonouring me. 50 But I’m not searching greatness for myself—my father is the one searching and the one judging. 51 I can assure you, that anyone who puts my teaching into practice can be certain to avoid death in this age.”

52 “Now we know that you have a demon!” the Jews said. “Abraham and the prophets all died, but you’re saying that those who follow your teaching can be certain to avoid death in this age. 53 How could you be greater than our ancestor Abraham who died? Even the prophets died. Who do you think you are?”

54 Again Yeshua answered, “If I praise myself, my praise is worthless, but it’s my father who praises me—the one who you say is your God 55 although in fact you don’t even know him. But I have known him, and so I can’t say that I haven’t known him or I’d be a liar like all of you. But I have known him and I am putting his desires into practice. 56 Your ancestor Abraham would have been excited to see me here—in fact he did see ahead and was very happy about it.”

57 Because of that, the Jewish leaders asked, “You aren’t even fifty years old yet. How could you have seen Abraham?”[fn]

58 Yeshua answered, “I can assure you that I am[fn] before Abraham ever existed.”

59 When they heard that, they picked up rocks to throw at Yeshua to kill him. But Yeshua became hidden from their sight, and went on out of the temple.

9 As Yeshua was walking along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth 2 and his followers asked him, “Honoured teacher, why was this man born blind? Was it because he himself sinned, or his parents?”

3 Yeshua answered, “It wasn’t either this man or his parents that sinned.[fn] But so that God can work in him for others to see, 4 as long as it’s daytime, we need to do what the one who sent us wants, but when nighttime comes, no one will be able to work. 5 [ref]As long as I’m here in this world, I am the light of the world.”

6 After he’d said this, Yeshua spat on the ground and after mixing some clay into a slurry, he spread it on the eyes of the man 7 and told him to go and wash in the Siloam Pool.[fn]

8 Then the neighbours of the man and others who had seen him earlier, knowing that he was a beggar asked, “Isn’t he the one who always sat and begged here?”

9 And indeed, some were saying, “Yes, this is him.” But others were saying, “No, but he looks quite similar.”

And the man said, “I am him.”

10 So they asked him, “Well, how come that now you can see?”

11 “A man named Yeshua made a slurry,” he said, “and spread it on my eyes and told me to go and wash at Siloam Pool. So I went and did it, and when I washed my eyes, I could see.”

12 “Where is he now?” they asked.

The Pharisees Investigate the Healing

“I don’t know,” said the man.

13 Then they brought the man who had been blind to the Pharisees. 14 Now, it had been the Rest Day when Yeshua had made the slurry and enabled him to see, 15 and because of this, some in the Pharisee party asked him how it was that now he could see. And he answered, “Well, he put a slurry on my eyes and when I washed them, I could see.”

16 “Well clearly that man is not from God,” some of them said, “because he doesn’t respect the Rest Day.”

However others said, “But if he’s just a sinner, how could he do miracles like that?”

17 So they asked the man who had been blind, “Well, what do you have to say because it was your eyes that he opened?”

“He must be a prophet,” the man said.

18 But some of the Jews weren’t even sure that he really had been blind before and could now see, so they called for his parents 19 and asked them, “You two say that this is your son and that he was born blind. If so, how come that now he can see?”

20 His parents answered, “We know that he’s our son, and we know that he was born blind. 21 But as for how come he can now see, we don’t know that. Nor do we know who healed his eyes. But ask him—he’s old enough to speak for himself.” 22 (His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jewish religious leaders, because the leaders had already announced that anyone who said that Yeshua was the messiah would get banned from all religious ceremonies, 23 so that’s why they had said, “He’s old enough—just ask him.”)

24 So the leaders summoned the man born blind a second time and commanded him, “Only praise God himself for this, because we know that that man is a sinner.”

25 “Well, I don’t know whether or not he’s a sinner,” replied the man. “All I know is that I used to be blind but now I can see.”

26 “What did he do to you?” they asked again. “How did he open your eyes?”

27 And he answered, “I already told you that, and you didn’t even listen. Why do you want to hear it all over again? Do you guys all want to become his followers as well?”

28 Then they insulted him and said, “You might be a follower of that man, but we are followers of Mosheh. 29 We know that God spoke to Mosheh, but we don’t even know where this other fellow is from.”

30 “Wow, that’s pretty amazing,” the man responded. “That man opened up my eyes, and you teachers don’t even know where he’s from! 31 We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but he listens to those who worship him and do what he wants. 32 In all the centuries past we never heard that a person could give sight to someone who was born blind. 33 If this man isn’t from God, surely he wouldn’t be able to do that!”

34 They reacted, “You’re just an ignorant sinner, and you think you can teach us!” Then they had him thrown out of the room.

35 Yeshua heard that they had thrown out the man who could now see, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe that humanity’s child came from God?”

36 And the man answered, “Mister, who is he so that I can believe in him?”

37 “You’ve seen him and heard him and he’s speaking to you right now,” said Yeshua.

38 “I do believe, master,” the man responded. Then he knelt down in front of Yeshua.

39 Yeshua said, “I came into this world to dispense judgement, so that the people who can’t see will be able to see, and so that the ones who can see will become blind.”

40 The Pharisees with him heard that and asked, “Are you saying that we’re blind?”

41 “If you were blind,” Yeshua replied, “you wouldn’t be sinning, but since you all declare that you can see, then your sin remains.

10 “Honestly I can tell you: It’s not the person that enters the sheep enclosure by the gate that is a thief and robber, but rather the one who climbs in a different way. 2 The one that comes in the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens up for him, and when he calls the sheep by name they listen to his voice and he leads them out. 4 Whenever he moves the sheep, he goes in front and the sheep follow him because they recognise his voice. 5 They would never follow a stranger because they wouldn’t know his voice, in fact they’d run away from him.”

6 Yeshua told them this illustration, but none of those who heard it knew what it meant.

7 So Yeshua continued, “Honestly I will tell you that I am the entrance for the sheep. 8 The ones who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. 9 I am the entrance. Anyone who comes in via me will be saved, and will be able to go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief only comes to steal and kill and destroy, but I came so that they could live, and live a full life.

11 “I am the good shepherd—the good shepherd gives his own life for the sheep.[fn] 12 The paid worker is not even the shepherd, because the sheep aren’t his own and if he sees a wolf coming he just abandons the sheep and takes off and the wolf scatters the sheep and snatches some— 13 that’s because he’s just a worker and doesn’t really care about the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd and I know my sheep and they know me, 15 [ref]just like the father knows me and I know the father—in fact I will give my life for the sheep. 16 I also have other sheep which are not in this field and it’s appropriate for me to bring those other sheep also, then they’ll be hearing my voice because there’ll be just one flock with one shepherd.

17 The father loves me because I am laying down my life so that I can take it back again. 18 No one is taking it from me, but I’m laying it down myself. I have authority to lay it down, and also authority to take it back again because I received this command from my father.”

19 The Jewish religious leaders were again divided about Yeshua’s teaching 20 with many of them saying, “He’s got a demon,” and, “He’s stark raving mad—why are you all even listening to him!”

21 But others were saying, “He doesn’t sound like he’s demon-possessed. And how could a demon make a blind man see?”

22 By then it was winter and the time for the Jewish Festival of Dedication in Yerushalem. 23 Yeshua was walking in the temple in an area known as Solomon’s Porch 24 when he was surrounded by the Jewish religious leaders and interrogated, “How long do you plan to keep us in suspense for? If you are the messiah, just tell us clearly.”

25 “I already told you all,” Yeshua answered, “but you didn’t believe me. The miracles that I do with the authority of my father testify about me, 26 but you don’t accept what the miracles point to because you aren’t part of my flock. 27 My sheep listen to my voice, and I know them and they follow after me. 28 I give them life which will never end so they won’t ever be destroyed, and no one will be able to snatch them away from me. 29 My father is the one who gave them to me, and he’s more powerful than any other, so no one can snatch them away from him. 30 The father and I are one.”

31 Again the Jewish leaders picked up rocks to throw at him to kill him 32 but Yeshua asked them, “I showed you all many miracles from my father. Which miracle do you want to kill me for?”

33 [ref]They answered, “It’s not for any good deed that we think you deserve to die, but because you, a human, dishonour God by claiming to be him.”

34 [ref]Yeshua answered, “Isn’t it written in your scriptures that God said, ‘You all are gods’? 35 Now the scriptures can’t be wrong, and if the ones who heard teaching from God were called gods, 36 why are you telling the one that the father blessed and sent out into the world that I am insulting God because I said that I’m God’s son? 37 If I’m not doing my father’s work, then you don’t need to believe that he sent me, 38 but if I am doing his work, even if you don’t believe that he sent me, at least believe in what I do so that you all can know that the father is in me and I’m in the father.”

39 That was enough that they tried yet again to arrest him, but he was able to get out and away from their influence.

40 [ref]Then Yeshua crossed the Yordan river to the place where Yohan had immersed the people, and he stayed there. 41 Many people visited him there, and they were saying that even though Yohan had never done even one miracle, on the other hand everything that he had said about Yeshua was true, 42 and many people there believed that Yeshua was from God.

11 [ref]Now there was a man called Lazarus who lived in the village of Bethany along with his sisters Martha and Maria. 2 [ref](Maria was the one who later poured fragrant oil over Yeshua and wiped his feet with her hair.) But now their brother was seriously ill 3 and so the two sisters sent a message to Yeshua saying, “Master, this man that you love is seriously ill.”

4 However, when Yeshua got the message he said to those around him, “This sickness won’t end in death but in honour for God, so that his son will also be honoured because of it.”

5 Now it was true that Yeshua loved the three of them. 6 Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed in the place where he was for two more days 7 before he said to his followers, “It’s time to head down to Yudea again.”

8 But they double-checked, “Honoured teacher, the Yudeans wanted to execute you, so do you really want to go back there again?”

9 And Yeshua answered, “There are twelve hours of light in the day. Anyone who walks during the daytime doesn’t stumble because he is seeing the light that shines in this world. 10 But anyone who walks at night will stumble, because the light is not in them.” 11 And he continued, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I’m going so that I can wake him up.”

12 But his followers objected, “Master, it’s good if he’s sleeping because it helps with healing.”

13 But Yeshua had spoken about Lazarus’ death—not just normal sleep as they had thought. 14 So Yeshua told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead 15 and I’m glad that I wasn’t there, because you all will benefit as your faith grows. Anyway, let’s get moving.”

16 Thomas (nicknamed ‘Twin’) grumbled to the others, “Yeah, we might as well go so that we can get killed as well.”

17 So when they eventually arrived, Lazarus body had already been in the burial chamber for four days. 18 The village of Bethany was less than three kilometres from Yerushalem, 19 so many of the Yudeans from there had come out to console Martha and Maria after the death of their brother.

20 As soon as Martha heard that Yeshua had arrived, she went out to meet him, but Maria stayed behind where she was sitting in the house. 21 Martha cried, “Yeshua, master. If you’d been here, my brother wouldn’t have died, 22 because I already know that anything that you ask from God, he will give it to you.”

23 Yeshua responded, “Your brother will come back to life.”

24 “Yes, I know that he’ll come back to life at the resurrection on the last day,” said Martha.

25 But Yeshua continued, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes that I’m from God, even if they die they’ll still be living, 26 and everyone who’s alive and believes that I was sent from God, will not die in the next age.”

27 Martha replied, “Yes, master, I do believe that you’re the messiah, God’s son, the one sent into this world.”

28 After saying this, Martha went and quietly called her sister Maria, “The teacher is on his way and he wants to see you.” 29 So Maria quickly got up and went to find him. 30 At that stage, Yeshua hadn’t yet come into the village proper, but was still at the edge where Martha had met him. 31 The Yudean people who’d been sitting with Maria in sympathy there in the house, when they saw her get up quickly and go out, they assumed that she was going to the cemetery to weep there.

32 But when Maria found Yeshua, she knelt at his feet and said, “Master, if you’d been here my brother wouldn’t have died.”

33 Now when Yeshua saw her weeping there, along with the others that had followed also weeping, he himself was quite affected and groaned inside, 34 but he just asked, “Where has he been laid?”

“Master, come and see,” they replied.

35 Then Yeshua broke down and burst into tears, 36 which made the others comment, “See how much he cared about him.”

37 But some of them mocked, “This is the man who could make a blind man see again, yet how come he wasn’t able to stop this man from dying!”

38 So Yeshua who was still holding back sobs, went to the cemetery. Lazarus’ body had been placed in a cave with a stone blocking it, 39 and Yeshua instructed them to take away the stone.

Martha (the sister of the dead man) spoke up, “Master, the stink will be bad because it’s already been four days.”

40 But Yeshua responded, “Didn’t I tell you that if you would believe, then you would see God’s power?” 41 So they took the stone away and Yeshua looked upwards and said, “Father, I thank you that you listen to me. 42 Actually I know that you always hear me, but I said that for the sake of these people so that they will believe that it was you who sent me here.” 43 After saying that, he shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” 44 Then the man who had died slowly shuffled out—still with linen strips wrapped around his hands and his feet, and a cloth wrapped around his face.

(Matthew 26.1-5; Mark 14.1,2; Luke 22.1,2)

45 Because of that, many of the Yudeans believed that Yeshua was from God after having followed Maria and seeing what Yeshua did. 46 But others went and told the Pharisee party what Yeshua had done. 47 So the chief priests and the Pharisee party called a formal meeting and asked, “What should we do because this man is doing many miracles. 48 If we allow him to continue like this, all the crowds will be believing he’s the messiah, and then the Romans will come and destroy both our temple and our governance.”

49 But one of them, Caiaphas who was chief priest that year, spoke up, “You don’t know anything. 50 Don’t you all realise that its better for all of us if one man dies so that the people and the nation won’t be destroyed?” 51 (He didn’t say this from his own thinking, but being chief priest that year, he was announcing God’s message that Yeshua was going to die for the nation, 52 and not only for this nation, but for all of God’s children scattered around the world to become united.)

53 As a result, from that day on they decided that Yeshua needed to be executed. 54 Because of that, Yeshua no longer walked around Yudea in public, but went out to the town of Ephraim out in the wilderness and stayed there with his followers.

The Passover in Jerusalem

55 At that time, the Jewish Passover celebrations were approaching, and many people from the regions went to Yerushalem ahead of the celebrations to purify themselves. 56 They were looking out for Yeshua and as they stood around in the temple, they asked each other, “What do you think? Surely he won’t come to the celebrations.” 57 The chief priests and the Pharisee party had already announced that if anyone knew where Yeshua was, they must inform them so that they could arrest him.

(Matthew 26.6-13; Mark 14.3-9)

12 Because of this, Yeshua went to Bethany six days before the Passover. This was where Lazarus lived, the one he had brought back to life. 2 So they prepared dinner for him there and Martha was serving and Lazarus was among those sitting with Yeshua. 3 [ref]Then Maria took about 300g of very expensive nard oil and smeared it on Yeshua’s feet, and then wiped off his feet with her own hair, and the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. 4 But Yudas, one of Yeshua’s apprentices (the one who would eventually turn him in) complained, 5 “How come this lotion wasn’t sold for almost a year’s wages and then the money given to the poor?” 6 But he didn’t say this because he cared for poor people, but because he carried the purse for the group and used to steal from it.

7 But Yeshua responded, “Let her continue. She has kept this for the time of my burial. 8 [ref]You’ll always have poor people with you, but you won’t always have me here.”

9 When it was discovered that Yeshua was there in Bethany, many Yudeans started arriving, not only because of Yeshua, but also to see Lazarus who’d been dead and Yeshua had brought him back to life. 10 But the chief priests decided in a meeting that they should also have Lazarus killed, 11 because many people were ignoring them and instead were believing that Yeshua came from God.

(Matthew 21.1-11; Mark 11.1-11; Luke 19.28-40)

12 The next day a large crowd of people who had come for the celebrations and had heard that Yeshua was coming to Yerushalem 13 [ref]took long branches from palm trees and brought them out as they went to meet him. They called out, “Honoured saviour! The one coming in Yahweh’s authority has been blessed by God. This is Yisrael’s king.”

14 Now Yeshua had found a young donkey and rode it into the city just like it was written in the scriptures,

15 [ref]“Don’t be worried you children of Tsiyyon/Zion. Your king is coming mounted on a donkey’s foal.”

16 (Yeshua’s apprentices didn’t realise all these things at the time, but it was later after Yeshua was lifted up to heaven that they were reminded that these things had been written about him, and that they had indeed happened to him.)

17 People in the crowd were telling each other about how they’d been with Yeshua when he’d called Lazarus out from the burial chamber and brought him back to life, 18 So because of this, others also wanted to met Yeshua because they’d heard that he’d done that miracle. 19 So the Pharisees discussed this together, “We’re getting nowhere with this. Look, it seems like the whole world wants to follow him.”

20 And some Greek people were also going to Yerushalem to worship God at the celebrations 21 and they approached Philip from Bethsaida (up in Galilee) and asked him, “Mister, we’d like to meet this Yeshua.” 22 So Philip went and told Andrew, and the two of them went and told Yeshua.

23 Now Yeshua told them, “The time has come for humanity’s child to be honoured. 24 I can assure you that unless a wheat seed drops into the ground and dies, it will stay just as it is, but if it dies, it’s able to produce a harvest. 25 [ref]Anyone who loves their life will lose it, but the person hating their life in this world will stay alive forever. 26 Anyone who wants to serve me needs to follow after me, so that wherever I am, my servant will also be there. Anyone who serves me will be honoured by the father.

Jesus Speaks about His Death

27 Now, I’m very troubled. What else could I say other than, ‘Father, let me avoid what’s coming’? But it was exactly this that I came for. 28 Father, may your authority be honoured.”

And a voice from the sky answered, “I’ve already brought honour to it and will do so again.”

29 This caused some in the crowd standing there to say that they’d heard thunder while others said that a messenger must have spoken to Yeshua.

30 “That voice wasn’t for my sake,” Yeshua responded, “but for all of you. 31 This world is about to be judged and its ruler will be thrown out, 32 and when I’m lifted up[fn] from the earth, I will attract everyone towards me.” 33 By saying this, he was indicating how he was going to die.

34 [ref]So the crowd queried him, “We heard from the scriptures that the messiah will stay until the end of the age so why do you say that humanity’s child will be lifted up? And who is this ‘humanity’s child’?”

35 Yeshua answered them, “The light will be among you all for just a little bit longer, so get walking while you have the light so that you won’t have to deal with darkness. Anyone walking in the dark doesn’t know where they’re going. 36 While you still have the light, believe in the light so that you will become children of light.”

The Jews Continue in Their Unbelief

The Unbelief of the People

Yeshua said these things and then after leaving them, he was hidden from them.

37 Even though Yeshua had done so many miracles in front of the people, they didn’t believe that he was the messiah. 38 [ref]This fulfilled what the prophet Isayah wrote,

“Yahweh, who believed our report?

And who was Yahweh’s power revealed to?”

39 Because of this, they weren’t able to believe, and again as Isayah wrote,

40 [ref]“He has blinded their eyes and maimed their emotions,

so that they can’t see with their eyes and understand with their minds,

or they might be turned and then I would heal them.”

41 Isayah wrote this because he saw the messiah’s greatness and spoke concerning him. 42 Likewise, many of the Jewish leaders believed that Yeshua was the messiah, but they didn’t tell others because they didn’t want the Pharisee party to banish them from their services 43 as they valued the praise of people more than praise from God.

44 Then Yeshua called out, “Anyone who believes that I came from God is not just believing in me, but also believing in the one who sent me, 45 and anyone who watches me working, is watching the one who sent me. 46 I came into this world as light so that anyone who believes in me won’t have darkness residing in them. 47 I won’t be judging anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it, because I didn’t come to judge the world but rather to save it. 48 Anyone who rejects me and doesn’t accept my teaching does have a judge though—it’s the message that I spoke that will judge them at the end of time 49 because I wasn’t speaking from my own thoughts, but it was the father himself who sent me that told me what to say and what to teach. 50 And I’m fully aware that obeying his commands leads to living forever. Therefore whenever I speak, I just say whatever the father said to me.”

13 Even before the actual feast part of the Passover celebrations, Yeshua knew that his time had come—the time when he would leave this world and return to the father. He loved his followers who were in the world right through to the end.

2 And now it was getting near time for the dinner and the devil had already put into Yudas Iscariot’s mind the idea of handing Yeshua over to the authorities. 3 Yeshua knew that the father had given everything to him, putting it under his control, and he knew that he had come from God and would return to God. 4 So he got up from the dinner table, changed out of his clothes, and wrapped a linen towel around himself. 5 Then he put water into the wash bowl and started washing the feet of his apprentices, wiping them dry with the linen towel that he was wearing wrapped around him. 6 After he’d washed a few, he got to Simon Peter who asked him, “Master, are you going to wash my feet?”

7 “What I’m doing now,” Yeshua answered, “you won’t really understand, but in the future you will.”

8 Peter responded, “Well I’m never ever going to let you wash my feet!”

“If I don’t wash them,” Yeshua answered, “then you won’t be included in my group.”

9 “Well, if that’s so,” Peter said, “don’t just wash my feet but my hands and my head as well.”

10 Yeshua responded, “Any person who’s already washed themselves only needs to wash their feet now to be clean. And so you’re clean, but not every one of you.” 11 He said this last bit because he already knew who was going to hand him over.

12 [ref]So when he’d finished washing their feet, he got dressed again and sat down and asked, “Do you know what I just did to you all? 13 You call me teacher and master, and so you should, because I am. 14 So if the master and teacher of you all washed your feet, then you also ought to wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given this to you all as an example that you can also do to others. 16 [ref]I can assure you that a slave isn’t greater than his master, and a missionary isn’t greater than the king who sends him. 17 If you can figure all this out and then do it, you will be blessed by God.

Jesus Predicts His Betrayal

18 [ref]“But I’m not talking about all of you. I know each one that I chose, but this that was written in the scriptures must be fulfilled,

‘The one sharing food with me, lifted up his boot against me.’

19 So I’m telling you now before it happens so that when it does happen, then you’ll all believe that I am the messiah. 20 [ref]I can assure you all that anyone who accepts any person that I might send, they’re accepting me, and anyone who accepts me, is accepting the one who sent me.”

(Matthew 26.20-25; Mark 14.17-21; Luke 22.21-23)

21 After saying these things, Yeshua’s thoughts were troubled and he said, “I can assure you that one of you will be turning me in.”

22 This made his apprentices glance around at each other, puzzled about which one he was talking about. 23 One of them that Yeshua especially liked,[fn] was leaning against him at the table. 24 So Simon Peter nodded to him to find out who Yeshua had been talking about, 25 and he leaned back on Yeshua and asked quietly, “Master, who is it?”

26 “It’s the one I hand this piece of bread to after I’ve dipped it in the sauce,” Yeshua answered. Then after dipping his piece of bread in, he gave it to Yudas Iscariot. 27 After Yudas accepted the piece of bread, Satan entered into him, and then Yeshua told him, “What you’re about to do, do it soon.” 28 But none of the others sitting around the table knew what Yeshua meant. 29 Some of them thought that since Yudas held their purse, perhaps Yeshua was getting him to buy something they needed for the feast or to give something to the poor.

30 Anyway, having eaten the piece of bread, Yudas went straight outside where it was already dark.

31 After Yudas had gone, Yeshua told the others, “Now humanity’s child will be honoured and God will be honoured through him. 32 Also God himself will be honouring him and will do that immediately. 33 My friends, I’ll only be with you a little bit longer. Then you’ll all look for me and as I told[ref] the religious leaders, you won’t be able to go where I’m going. So now I’ve also told all of you. 34 [ref]I’m giving you a new command—you need to love each other. The way that I loved all of you is how you should love each other. 35 This is actually how you’ll know if you’re my followers: if you’re loving each other.”

(Matthew 26.31-35; Mark 14.27-31; Luke 22.31-34)

36 Now Peter followed-up, “Master, where are you going?”

“Where I’m going,” Yeshua answered, “you won’t be able to follow me at this stage, but you will follow me eventually.”

37 Peter asked again, “Why can’t I follow after you now? I’m prepared to give my life for you.”

38 “You think you’ll be giving your life for me?” Yeshua responded. “I can assure you that the rooster won’t crow until you’ve already disowned knowing me three times.”

14 Yeshua continued telling them, “Don’t be living in fear. You believe that God is real, and you also believe that I was sent by him. 2 There are many places to live in my father’s residence—I would have told you if there wasn’t because I’m going there to prepare a place for all of you. 3 And after I’ve gone to prepare that place, then I’ll be coming back again and will bring you to myself, so that where I am, you can all be there also. 4 You know how to get where I’m going.”

Jesus the Way to the Father

5 “Master,” Thomas asked, “we don’t even know where you’re going, let alone how to get there.”

6 And Yeshua answered, “I am the path and the truth and the life. No one can get to the father except via me. 7 If you had all known me, you would also have known my father, and from now on you do know him and have seen him.”

8 So Philip said, “Master, show us the father and that’ll be enough for us.”

9 “I’ve been with you all for quite some time,” Yeshua replied, “and yet you still don’t even know me, Philip. 10 You don’t believe that I am in the father and the father is in me. These things that I’ve been telling you all, I don’t just make them up myself, but the father who lives in me is doing what he wants. 11 You all need to believe that I am in the father and the father is in me. If that’s hard, at least believe it because of what he’s doing. 12 I can assure you all that anyone who believes that God sent me and is the source of the miracles that I do, that person will be able to do the same and even greater miracles because I am going to the father. 13 Whatever you request from me with my name and authority, I will do it so that the father might be honoured because of the son. 14 Anything that you all request using my name and authority will be done.

15 “If you all love me, you will obey my commands. 16 And I will ask the father and he will give you another assistant to be with you all for this age— 17 the spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it doesn’t see or know him.

18 “And I won’t leave you all here as orphans, but I will come back to you. 19 It won’t be long now and the world won’t see me any more, but you will see me because I’ll be alive and you all will be alive also. 20 At that time you will know that I am in my father, and you all are in me, and I am in you all.

21 “Anyone who takes my commands and obeys them, that’s the person who loves me, and anyone who loves me will be loved by my father, and I too will be loving them and will be revealing myself to them.”

22 Yudas (not Yudas Iscariot) asked, “Master, what’s going on? Why would you reveal yourself to us and not to the whole world?”

23 Yeshua answered, “If anyone loves me, they’ll obey my teaching, and my father will love them and we will go to that person and live with them. 24 But anyone who doesn’t love me, won’t obey my teaching. The words that you hear from me are not my own, but come from the father who sent me.

25 “I told you all this while I have been here with you all. 26 But the holy spirit, the assistant who the father will be sending with my authority, he will be teaching you everything, and will be reminding you of everything that I told you all.

27 I will leave peace with you all. I’m giving my peace to you all, but what I’m giving isn’t like what the world gives. Don’t be upset or afraid. 28 You all heard me say that I’m going away and then will be coming back. If you really loved me, you’d be very happy that I’m going to the father, because the father is greater than me.

29 But I’ve told you now before it happens, so that when it does come to pass, you’ll be able to believe that it was preplanned. 30 I won’t have much more time to talk to you, because the ruler of the world is coming and he has nothing in common with me, 31 but he’s coming so that the world can know that I love the father and whatever the father told me to do, I’m doing it.

“Come on, stand up. We need to be leaving this place.”

15 “I am the true vine and my father is the farmer. 2 He removes every one of my branches that doesn’t bear fruit, but those that do bear fruit, he prunes them so they’ll produce even more. 3 You are all clean already because of the teaching that I’ve given you. 4 Stay in me, and I will stay in you all, because just as a branch can’t bear fruit in isolation when it’s not connected to the vine, neither can you if you don’t stay in me.

5 “I am the vine and you all are the branches. Anyone who stays in me will produce a lot of fruit—apart from me you can’t do anything. 6 Anyone who doesn’t stay in me will be thrown away like a branch, and will wither and be gathered together with others, and thrown into the fire to be burnt. 7 If you stay in me and my teaching stays in you, then you can request whatever you all want and it will be done for you. 8 My father will be honoured and praised when you produce a lot of fruit, and you all become my followers. 9 I loved you all just as the father loved me, so stay in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you all will be staying in my love, just like I’ve obeyed my father’s commands and I am staying in his love.

11 “I’ve told you these things so that I’ll be happy with you all, and so that your happiness will be genuine and long-lasting. 12 [ref]So here’s my request: keep loving each other just like I loved you all. 13 No one has greater love than the one who gives up their own life for their friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I am telling you. 15 I’m not calling you slaves, because a slave doesn’t know his master’s plans, but I’m calling you friends because I’ve told you everything that I heard from my father. 16 You didn’t choose me, but I chose you all, and I assigned you to go and produce fruit and for your fruit to be permanent so that whatever you request from the father in my name and authority, he will give it to you. 17 I am telling you all this so that you can all love each other.

18 “If the world hates you, you all know that it hated me before it hated you. 19 If you belonged to this world, then the world would love you as it loves its own people, but you don’t belong to this world because I chose you out of it. That’s why they hate all of you. 20 [ref]Remember that I told you that slaves are not greater than their master. So if they persecuted me, they’ll also be persecuting you all. (If they’d obeyed my teaching, they would also obey your teaching.) 21 But they will do all these things against you because of my name, because they don’t know the father who sent me. 22 They wouldn’t be considered sinners except that I came and spoke to them, so now they don’t have any excuse for their sin. 23 Anyone who hates me, also hates my father. 24 If I hadn’t done miracles among them of the sort that no one else has done, they wouldn’t be considered to be sinners, but now they’ve observed me and hated both me and my father. 25 [ref]The writings of the prophets will certainly come to pass, that ‘they hated me undeservedly’.

26 “When the assistant arrives that I will send to you all from the father, the spirit of truth coming from the father, he will tell the truth about me. 27 You also will be able to tell the truth about me because you all were with me from the beginning.

16 “I’ve told you this so that you won’t stumble. 2 First they will ban you all from their religious services, then there’s a time coming when people will kill you thinking they’re actually doing a sacred service to God, 3 but they’ll be doing these things because they don’t know either the father or me. 4 I’ve told you these things so that when they happen in the future, you’ll remember that I’ve already told you about them.

“I didn’t tell you all of this right at the beginning because I was with you all, 5 but soon I’ll be returning to the one who sent me. Yet none of you are asking me where I’ll be going, 6 rather you are all just weighed down because I’ve told you these things. 7 But honestly it’s for your benefit that I will leave here, because if I don’t, then the assistant won’t be coming to you. But after I’ve gone, I’ll send him to you all. 8 When he comes, he’ll scold the world about sin and teach them about righteousness and judgement— 9 about sin because they don’t believe that I was sent by God, 10 about righteousness because I am going to the father and you won’t be able to see me any longer, 11 and about judgement because the ruler of this world has been judged.

12 “I still have a lot to tell you all, but you’re not able to handle it all right now. 13 But when the assistant comes, the spirit of truth, he will guide you in all truth because he won’t be speaking from his own thoughts, but will tell you what he’s been told, and he will explain to you what’s still going to happen. 14 He’ll be honouring me because he’ll take what is mine and will explain it to you all. 15 Everything that the father has is mine, that’s why I said he will take what is mine and explain it to you.

16 “It won’t be much longer and you won’t be able to see me any more, and then a little while after that, and you’ll see me again.”

The Disciples’ Grief Will Turn to Joy

17 This got his followers asking each other, “What’s all this about seeing him for not much longer, and then seeing him again after a while? And why does he say he’s going to the father?” 18 So they were saying, “What’s this about ‘not much longer’? We don’t know what he means.”

19 However Yeshua knew what they wanted to ask him, and so he said to them, “You are trying to find out from each other what I meant when I said that you won’t be able to see me after a little while, and then a little while after that you’ll see me again. 20 I can assure you that you’ll be weeping and mourning but the world will be elated. You’ll be upset but then your upset will turn into happiness. 21 A woman giving birth has pains when the delivery begins, but when she hears that the baby is born, she doesn’t remember those pains any more because she’s so happy that her child was born. 22 So too with all of you: you’ll be upset for a while but then I’ll be with you again and you’ll be so happy and no one will be able to take that happiness away from you.

23 “When that happens, you won’t be asking me for anything. I can assure you that whatever you request from the father in my name and my authority will be given to you. 24 Up until now you haven’t asked him for anything using my authority, but after that time, you’ll be able to make requests and they’ll be answered so that your happiness will be complete.

25 “So far I’ve told you these things in parables, however a time is coming when I’ll no longer be speaking in parables but will tell you things about the father quite plainly. 26 At that time you’ll have my authority to request from the father. I’m not saying that I’ll be asking him on your behalf, 27 no, because he himself loves you all because you have loved me and have believed that I was sent by God. 28 I was sent out by the father and I have come into the world, but I’ll be leaving the world again and returning to the father.”

29 Yeshua’s followers responded, “Ah, now you’re speaking plainly and not using parables. 30 Finally we realise that you know everything already and don’t need to ask anyone else, and so we now believe that you came from God.”

31 “So now you all believe?” Yeshua answered. 32 “The time is coming and is here already when you will all be scattered in various directions and will leave me by myself, but I won’t be alone because the father is always with me. 33 I’ve told you these things so that you can all have peace in me. You will have troubles in this world, but be courageous because I have overcome the world.”

17 After Yeshua had finished speaking, he looked up to the sky and said, “Father, it’s now the time for you to honour your son so that the son can honour you. 2 You already gave me authority over all people so that I could grant eternal life to everyone that you’ve given me. 3 And eternal life means knowing you, the only true God, and knowing me—Yeshua the messiah that you sent. 4 I honoured you here on the earth by completing everything that you gave me to do. 5 So father, now you yourself can honour me with the greatness that I had when I was together with you before the creation of the world.

Jesus Prays for His Disciples

6 “I revealed your power to the ones that you gave me from this world. They were yours and you gave them to me, and they have obeyed your teaching. 7 Now they understand that everything that you gave to me came from you, 8 because I passed on to them the messages that you gave to me, and they accepted them. Now they believe that I came from you and that it was you who sent me here.

9 “I’m asking about them. It’s not the people of this world that I’m asking about, but about the ones that you gave me because they belong to you. 10 Everything that’s mine is yours, and everything that’s your is mine, and I’ve been honoured by their actions. 11 I’m about to leave this world and come to you, but they will stay here in it. Holy father, use your power to keep protect the ones that you gave me, so that they might be united just like you and I are one. 12 [ref]When I was with them, I protected them with the authority that you gave, and I guarded them so that not one of them perished, except the one who chose destruction so that it will indeed happen as the scriptures foretold. 13 But soon I’ll be coming to you, and I’m speaking these things in the world so that they will have the same happiness as me and be fulfilled in their lives. 14 I’ve passed on your teaching to them, and the world hated them because they don’t belong to this world, just as I don’t. 15 I’m not asking you to remove them out of this world, but rather to stop evil from overcoming them. 16 They don’t belong to this world just as I don’t. 17 Purify them with the truth—your message is that truth. 18 In the same way that you sent me out into this world, so I also send them out into the world. 19 I’m purifying myself for their sakes so that they also may be made pure by the truth.

Jesus Prays for All Believers

20 “But it’s not just on behalf of the ones right here that I’m asking, but also for all the others who will believe that I came from you when they hear the message of these ones, 21 so that they will all become united, just as you, father, are in me and I am in you. I ask that they will also be in us so that the world will be able to believe that it was you who sent me here. 22 And the honour that you’ve given me, I’ve passed on to them so that they can be united just as we are one— 23 me in them and you in me so that they can be perfected as one. Then the world will know that you sent me here and that you love them just like you love me.

24 Father, I want those that you’ve given me to be with me wherever I am so that they’ll be able to see my greatness—the greatness that you gave me because you loved me even before the creation of the world. 25 Righteous father, this world didn’t know you, but I know you and these ones know that you sent me here. 26 I revealed your power and authority to them and will continue to do so, so that the love that you love me with might be in them, and I too might be in them.”

(Matthew 26.47-56; Mark 14.43-50; Luke 22.47-53)

18 After he’d said all this, Yeshua and his followers went out of Yerushalem proper and over the Kidron stream towards a garden that he and his followers entered. 2 And Yudas (the one who would hand him over) also knew the place because Yeshua and his followers often met there. 3 Meanwhile Yudas had met with the soldiers and servants of the chief priests and the Pharisee party, and they all started coming into the garden with lanterns and flaming torches and weapons. 4 Yeshua who already knew what was going to happen to him, came forward and asked them, “Who are you all looking for?”

5 And they answered, “Yeshua—the one from Nazareth.”

Yeshua responded, “I am the one.”

Yudas, the one handing him over, was standing there among them. 6 But when Yeshua had said that he is the one, they backed away and fell to the ground.[fn] 7 So he asked them again, “Who are you all looking for?”

And they answered, “Yeshua—the one from Nazareth.”

8 Yeshua responded, “I already told you all that I am the one. So if it’s me that you’re looking for, let these others leave.” 9 (In this way, the statement was fulfilled that Yeshua had said previously: ‘I didn’t lose any of the ones that you gave me.’)[fn]

10 Then Simon Peter drew the sword that he was carrying and swiped at the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus. 11 [ref]But Yeshua said to Peter, “Put your sword back in its sheath. I need to proceed with the plan that the father has prepared for me—I can’t just avoid the suffering.”

12 So the soldiers and their commander, and the servants of the Jewish leaders arrested Yeshua and tied him up. 13 First they took him to Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphas who was the chief priest that year. 14 [ref](Caiaphas was the one who had suggested that it was better for the people and the nation if one man should die for all of them.)

(Matthew 26.69,70; Mark 14.66-68; Luke 22.55-57)

15 Now Simon Peter and another apprentice were following Yeshua, and since that other apprentice was known to the chief priest, he was allowed to enter following Yeshua into the courtyard of the chief priest 16 while Peter waited outside at the door. Then the other apprentice who was known to the chief priest went back and spoke to the woman at the door and brought Peter in too. 17 But the servant girl who was watching the door challenged Peter, “Aren’t you also one of the followers of that man?”

“No, I’m not,” he responded.

18 Meanwhile the servants and attendants had made a fire and were standing around it warming themselves, and Peter also went and stood there to warm himself.

(Matthew 26.59-66; Mark 14.55-64; Luke 22.66-71)

19 Now the chief priest interrogated Yeshua about his followers and about his teaching. 20 Yeshua answered him, “I’ve spoken openly to the people. I always taught in the meeting halls and in the temple where Jewish people meet. I didn’t speak in secret 21 so why are you asking me? Ask the people who heard what I told them—they’re the ones who know what I said.”

22 When he said that, one of the attendants standing there slapped Yeshua on the face and said, “You think you can answer the chief priest like that?”

23 But Yeshua responded, “If I said anything wrong, tell me my error. But if it was true, why are you hitting me?”

24 So Annas sent him away, still tied up, to Caiaphas the chief priest.

(Matthew 26.71-75; Mark 14.69-72; Luke 22.58-62)

25 Simon Peter was still standing by the fire warming himself when he was asked, “Aren’t you also one of his followers?”

But he denied it, saying, “No, I’m not.”

26 One of the servants of the chief priest who was a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off said, “Didn’t I see you in the garden with that Yeshua?”

27 But Peter again denied it, and just then a rooster crowed.

(Matthew 27.1,2,11-14; Mark 15.1-5; Luke 23.1-5)

28 Then they led Yeshua out from Caiaphas’ place and towards the residence of the governor. It was now the early hours of the morning and as Jews, they didn’t enter the residence of the Roman governor so they wouldn’t become defiled and thus unable to eat the Passover meal. 29 So Governor Pilate came outside to them and asked, “What charge are you all bringing against this man?”

30 “We wouldn’t have brought him to you if he hadn’t committed a serious crime,” they answered.

31 So Pilate said, “You just take him and judge him yourselves according to your own laws.”

But the Jewish leaders responded, “We don’t have permission to execute anyone.” 32 (This happened to fulfil what Yeshua had said[ref] about the way that he was going to die.)

33 So Pilate went back into his governor’s residence and called for Yeshua and asked him, “So you’re the king of the Jews?”

34 “Are you saying this yourself,” Yeshua asked, “or did others say it about me?”

35 Pilate retorted, “Hoy! I’m not a Jew. It was your own people and the chief priests that handed you over to me. What have you done?”

36 “My kingdom isn’t in this world,” Yeshua answered, “because if it was, my supporters would have fought so that I wouldn’t have been handed over to the Jewish leaders. But no, my kingdom isn’t from here.”

37 “So you are a king then?” Pilate responded.

“You’re saying that I’m a king,” said Yeshua, “and indeed I was born to be a king. I came into the world so that I could testify to the truth.”

38 “Yeah. What is truth?” said Pilate.

(Matthew 27.15-31; Mark 15.6-20; Luke 23.13-25)

After he’d said this, Pilate went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I can’t find anything that he’s guilty of. 39 But you all have a custom here that the governor can release one prisoner during the Passover. So would you like me to release the king of the Jews?”

40 But they all yelled back, “No, not this one. Release Barabbas.” (Barabbas was a robber.)

Jesus Sentenced to Death

Jesus Sentenced to be Crucified

19 So Pilate took Yeshua and had him flogged. 2 Then the soldiers twisted some thorn branches together into a crown and put it on Yeshua’s head, and they dressed him in a royal purple robe. 3 They came up to him and said, “Greetings, you king of the Jews,” and then slapped him.

4 Then Pilate went back outside and said to the Jews, “Look here. I’m bringing him out to you so that you all can know that I didn’t find him guilty of anything.” 5 So they led Yeshua out wearing the thorny crown and the kingly robe, and Pilate said, “Look. Here’s the man.”

6 Now when the chief priests and their supporters saw him, they yelled out, “Execute him on a stake! Execute him on a stake!”

“Well you take him and execute him on a stake,” Pilate answered, “because I haven’t found anything that he’s guilty of.”

7 The Jews responded, “We have a law and he should be executed according to that law because he said he was the son of God.”

8 Now when Pilate heard that, he became more afraid. 9 So he went back inside the residence and asked Yeshua, “Where do you come from?”

But Yeshua didn’t answer him. 10 So Pilate said, “Why don’t you answer me? Don’t you realise that I have the authority to release you and I also have the authority to have you executed on a stake?”

11 “You have no authority over me,” Yeshua answered, “none at all, except what has been granted to you from above. Because of this, the sin of the person who handed me over to you is greater.”

12 After hearing this, Pilate wanted to release him but the Jews yelled out, “If you release that man, you’re no friend of Caesar. Everyone who claims to be a king is no friend of Caesar’s.”

13 So now Pilate, having heard all this, brought Yeshua outside again. Pilate sat down on the judge’s seat at a place called The Stone Pavement (and called Gabbatha in Hebrew). 14 It was now about noon on the day when the Passover meal is prepared, and Pilate said to the Jews, “Look. Here’s your king.”

15 They yelled back, “Take him away. Take him away. Execute him on a stake.”

Pilate asked them, “You want me to have your king executed on a stake?”

“We don’t have any king other than Caesar,” the chief priests answered.

16 So Pilate gave them his permission and handed Yeshua over to them, and they took him away to be executed on a stake.

(Matthew 27.32-44; Mark 15.21-32; Luke 23.26-43)

17 Carrying the pole[fn] himself, Yeshua arrived at the Place of the Skull (called Golgotha in Hebrew) just out of the city 18 where they secured him to a stake along with two others—one stake on each side and with Yeshua on the middle one. 19 Pilate wrote out a title and put it on the stake: Yeshua from Nazareth, the king of the Jews. 20 Many Jews read this title because the place where Yeshua was executed was near the city, and it had been written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. 21 But the Jewish chief priests complained to Pilate, “Don’t write ‘The king of the Jews’, but rather ‘The one who said he was king of the Jews’.”

22 However Pilate answered, “What I’ve written, I’ve written.”

23 After the soldiers had fastened Yeshua to the stake, they took his clothes and placed them in four piles, one for each of them. This left his robe, which had been woven from top to bottom in one piece. 24 So they said to each other, “Rather than tearing this, let’s throw a dice to see who will get it.” (This fulfilled what was written in the scriptures[ref] that said: they divided my garments among themselves and threw a dice for my clothes.) So they went ahead and did that.

25 Meanwhile a group of women had stayed standing near Yeshua on the stake: his mother and his aunt, Maria the wife of Clopas, and Maria from Magdala. 26 When Yeshua saw his mother and also the apprentice that he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Look, he’ll be your son.” 27 And to the apprentice he said, “Look, she’ll be your mother.” And that apprentice took her into his own home from then on.

(Matthew 27.45-56; Mark 15.33-41; Luke 23.44-49)

28 Having done this, Yeshua knew that everything had been accomplished, and (in order for the scriptures[ref] to be fulfilled) said, “I’m thirsty.”

29 There was a container lying there full of vinegary wine, so they placed a sponge on a hyssop stalk, soaked it in the wine, and held it up to his mouth. 30 After Yeshua had sucked some wine out, he said, “It is finished.” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

31 Now because it was the preparation day[ref] for the coming Rest Day, the Jews didn’t want the bodies to remain on the stakes after dusk (because it was even a special Rest Day.) So they asked Pilate to command for their legs to be broken to hasten their deaths and then they could be taken down sooner. 32 So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the men on each side of Yeshua, 33 but when they got to him, they saw that he was already dead so they didn’t break his legs. 34 Instead one of the soldiers stabbed his side with a spear and immediately blood and water came out. 35 The one who actually saw this happen[fn] has testified this and his account is accurate so that you readers can also believe it, 36 because these things also happened to fulfil what was written in the scriptures,[ref] that ‘none of his bones will be broken,’ 37 and in another place,[ref] ‘they will look at the one that they pierced.’

(Matthew 27.57-61; Mark 15.42-47; Luke 23.50-56)

38 After all of this, Yosef from Arimathea went to Pilate. (Yosef was a follower of Yeshua, but secretly because he was afraid of what the Jewish leaders might do.) He asked Pilate for permission to remove Yeshua’s body, and it was granted to him so they went and got his body. 39 [ref]Nicodemus (the one who had first visited Yeshua at night) also came, bringing around 30kg of burial spices. 40 So they took Yeshua’s body and wrapped it around with linen strips with the spices as per the Jewish burial customs. 41 There was a garden out at the place where Yeshua had been executed, and in the garden there was a new tomb that hadn’t been used yet. 42 So because it was the preparation day and because the tomb was nearby, they laid his body in there.

(Matthew 28.1-8; Mark 16.1-8; Luke 24.1-12)

20 The following Sunday, Maria from Magdala went out to the tomb very early when it was still dark, and she saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she ran quickly and went to Simon Peter and the other apprentice that Yeshua loved, and told them, “They’ve taken the master’s body out of the tomb and we don’t know where they’ve put it.”

3 So Peter and the other apprentice went out to the tomb. 4 They were running together, but the other apprentice was a bit faster than Peter and so he got to the tomb first. 5 Without going in, he stooped down at the entrance and looked in and saw the linen strips lying there. 6 But Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb and also saw the linen strips lying there. 7 But the piece of cloth that had been on the head wasn’t lying there with the linen strips, but had been folded and placed separately. 8 So now the other apprentice who had arrived first also went inside and he saw it all and believed that Yeshua had risen. 9 (At that time they weren’t yet aware of the scripture about him coming back to life.)

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene

10 So they went back again to their homes.

(Matthew 28.9,10; Mark 16.9-11)

11 But Maria had stayed there outside the tomb weeping. But when she stooped down and looked into the tomb, 12 she saw two messengers dressed in white sitting there—one at the head end and one at the feet end of the slab where Yeshua’s body had been lying. 13 They spoke to her, “Woman, why are you crying?”

“Because they’ve taken away my master,” she replied, “and I don’t know where they’ve put him.”

14 Then she turned back around and saw Yeshua standing there, but she didn’t realise who it was. 15 Yeshua asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who are you looking for?”

Maria assumed he might be the gardener, so she answered, “Mister, if you took the body, tell me where you put it and I’ll get it taken away for you.”

16 Yeshua just answered, “Maria.”

She spun around and said, “My teacher!” (‘Rabboni’ in Hebrew.)

17 “Don’t touch me,” Yeshua said to her, “because I haven’t gone back up to the father yet, but go and tell my brothers that I’m going up to my father and the father of you all, and my god and the god of you all.”

18 So Maria went and told the apprentices, “I’ve seen the master,” and she told them what he’d said.

(Matthew 28.16-20; Mark 16.14-18; Luke 24.36-49)

19 On Sunday evening Yeshua’s apprentices had met together and had the doors locked because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders, but Yeshua arrived and stood in the middle of the room and said, “Peace to you all.” 20 Then he showed them his hands and his side and they were so happy now that they had seen the master. 21 Yeshua continued, “Peace to you all. Now I’m sending you all out just like the father sent me out.” 22 Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the holy spirit. 23 [ref]If you forgive anyone’s sins, then they’ll be forgiven but if you withhold forgiveness, then it will be withheld.”

24 But Thomas, one of the twelve (nicknamed ‘Twin’), wasn’t with them when Yeshua had come 25 so the other apprentices told him, “We have seen the master.”

But he replied, “I won’t believe that unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and I can put my finger into the marks and can put my hand into the gash on his side.”

26 Eight days later, Yeshua’s apprentices were again together inside, and this time Thomas was with them. 27 Yeshua came and stood in the middle of the room even though the doors were shut, and said, “Peace to you all.”

28 Thomas spoke up, “My master and my god!”

29 “So you believe now because you’ve seen me,” said Yeshua. “The ones who haven’t seen me, but who believe anyway, will certainly be rewarded.”

30 Yeshua went on to do many other miracles in front of his apprentices which aren’t recorded in this account. 31 But what has been written here has been recorded so that you might all believe that Yeshua is the messiah, God’s son, and then by believing, so that you might have true life through his power.

21 After all this, Yeshua revealed himself again to his apprentices at Lake Galilee. It happened like this: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas nicknamed ‘Twin’, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other apprentices had gathered together 3 [ref]when Simon Peter said that he was going fishing and the others said that they’d join him.

So they went off and got in the boat, but they didn’t catch anything that night.

4 When the dawn was approaching, Yeshua was standing there on the shore, but they didn’t know that it was him. 5 He called out, “Hey, young fellas. Don’t you have any fish?”

“None.” they answered.

6 [ref]Then he said, “Throw the net out over the right side of the boat and you’ll find some.” So they did it and they caught so many fish that the net was too heavy to pull back in.

7 Now the apprentice that Yeshua loved said to Peter, “It’s the master!” When Simon Peter heard that, he put on his robe (because he didn’t have it on), and jumped overboard into the lake. 8 The other apprentices followed in the little boat dragging the net behind them because they were only about 100m out from the shore. 9 When they went up the beach, they saw some bread there and a charcoal fire with fish cooking on it 10 and Yeshua told them, “Bring some of the fish that you just caught.”

11 So Simon Peter went and dragged the net up onto the beach. Amazingly it hadn’t torn even though it contained 153 large fish. 12 Then Yeshua said, “Now, come and have breakfast.” But none of the apprentices dared to ask who he was, because they figured it must be the master. 13 Yeshua brought the bread to them and shared it around, and then likewise for the fish.

14 This was now the third time that Yeshua had appeared to his apprentices since he’d come back to life.

15 While they were eating, Yeshua asked Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Yohan, do you love me more than these?”

Peter answered, “Yes, master, you know that I love you.”

Yeshua responded, “Feed my lambs.” 16 Then he asked again, “Simon, son of Yohan, do you love me?”

Peter replied, “Yes, master, you know that I love you.”

Yeshua responded, “Shepherd my sheep.” 17 Then he asked a third time, “Simon, son of Yohan, do you love me?”

Peter was now upset that he’d been asked a third time if he loved him, and he answered, “Master, you know everything.”

“Feed my sheep,” Yeshua responded. 18 “I can assure you that while you are young, you dress yourself and go wherever you want to go, but as you age, you’ll be stretching out your hands and others will dress you and will take you where you don’t want to go.” 19 When he said this, Yeshua was indicating how Peter would die honouring God, and he told Peter, “Keep following me.”

Jesus and the Beloved Disciple

Jesus and the Other Disciple

20 [ref]When Peter turned around he saw that the apprentice that Yeshua loved was following them—the one who’d leaned on Yeshua’s chest during the supper and asked who the one was who would turn Yeshua over. 21 Noticing him, Peter asked Yeshua, “Master, what about that one?”

22 But Yeshua replied, “If I want him to stay alive until I come back, what business would it be of yours? You just stay following me.”

23 As a result of that, a rumour went around the others that that one wouldn’t die, but Yeshua never said that. (He only said, “If I want him to stay alive until I come back, what business would it be of yours?”)

24 This author is the apprentice that testifies about these things—the one who wrote this down and whose account is true.

Conclusion

25 (There were also many other things that Yeshua did, which if they were all written down then even the world itself wouldn’t have room for all the books that would need to be written.)

The Proclamation of John the Baptist; John the Baptist and Jesus; The Preaching of John the Baptist; John the Baptist Prepares the Way

(Matthew 3.1-12; Luke 3.1-18; John 1.19-28)

1 Here begins the good message about Yeshua the messiah—the son of God:

2 The prophet Isayah wrote:[ref]

“See, I am sending my messenger to you,

the one who will be preparing your path.

3 [ref]The voice out in the wilderness shouting,

‘Get the path ready for Yahweh;

Make it smooth for him to travel on.’ ”

4 Yohan turned up in the wilderness announcing that people should get immersed in water in order to show that their sins have been forgiven. 5 And many from the Yudean region and from the city of Yerushalem went out to hear him, and they confessed their sins and asked Yohan to immerse them in the Yordan river.

6 [ref]Yohan was dressed in simple clothes made from camel hair with a leather belt around his waist, and he lived on locusts and wild honey. 7 And he also announced, “There’s a greater man coming soon—in fact I’m not even good enough to bend down and untie his sandals. 8 I immersed you in water, but he will immerse you all in God’s holy spirit.”

9 Then one day Yeshua came from Nazareth in the Galilee region, and he got immersed in the Yordan river by Yohan. 10 As Yeshua came up out of the water, he saw the sky being opened up, and God’s spirit coming down on him like a dove. 11 [ref]And a voice came from the sky saying, “You are my son who I love and am pleased with.”

The Temptation of Jesus

12 And then the spirit sent him into the wilderness 13 where he was tested by Satan for forty days. He was out there with the wild animals, but messengers waited on him there.

14 After Yohan had been arrested, Yeshua went back up to Galilee announcing the good news from God 15 [ref]saying, “The promised time is here, and God’s kingdom is now near. Turn from your sins and believe this good news.”

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

16 As he went around the lake of Galilee, Yeshua saw two fishermen, Simon and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the lake. 17 And he said to them, “Come with me and I will make you into fishermen of people.” 18 And so they left their fishing work and went off with Yeshua.

19 Then a bit further on he saw two of Zebedee’s sons, Yacob and his brother Yohan, in a boat getting their nets ready. 20 Yeshua called them and they too went off with him, leaving their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired workers.

21 They went on into Capernaum where he went into the meeting hall and began teaching as soon as the rest day started. 22 [ref]The congregation was amazed at his teaching, because he taught with authority, not like the regular teachers there.

23 Then a demon-possessed man in the meeting hall suddenly yelled out, 24 “What are we to you, Yeshua of Nazareth? You’ve come to destroy us. I know that you’re God’s holy one.”

25 But Yeshua scolded it, saying, “Keep quiet!”, and, “Come out of him!”

26 Then the demon threw the man into a convulsion, cried out loudly, and left him. 27 Everyone was astounded and asked each other, “What just happened? We haven’t heard anything like this before—he has authority to command demons, and they obey him!”

28 And the news about Yeshua spread all over the entire region of Galilee.

29 After leaving the meeting hall, Yeshua went into the home of Simon and Andrew, along with Yacob and Yohan. 30 Inside, Simon’s mother-in-law was lying down with a fever, and the others spoke to Yeshua about her. 31 When he went up to her, and took hold of her hand and helped her up, the fever left her and she prepared something for them to eat.

32 That evening when the sun set, the people brought all those who were sick or demon-possessed to Yeshua. 33 It seemed like the entire town had gathered there outside the front door. 34 Yeshua healed many who were sick from a range of diseases, and he commanded many demons to leave—not allowing them to speak because they knew that he was the messiah.

35 In the small hours of the morning, Yeshua got up and went out to a quiet place and prayed there. 36 But Simon and the others came looking for him, 37 and when they found him they said, “Everyone’s looking for you!”

38 And Yeshua answered, “Well, we’ll be going into the other villages around here, so that I can also tell them. That’s what I came here for.” 39 [ref]Then he went preaching in all their meeting halls in Galilee and driving out demons.

40 A man with leprosy came to Yeshua asking him, “I know that you could heal me if you wanted to.”

41 Yeshua felt compassion for him, reached out his hand and touched him, and said, “Yes, I will. Get well.” 42 Then immediately the leprosy disappeared and he was well again. 43 So Yeshua sent him away, but warned him: 44 [ref]“Don’t talk to anyone—just go to the priest and show him that you’re well, and as a testimony of that, make the offering that Mosheh commanded.”

45 But after the man left, he started telling lots of people and spreading the news—so much so that Yeshua could no longer come into the town but had to stay out in quieter places, and people kept coming to him.

2 When Yeshua came back to Capernaum after a few days, people soon heard that he was back in the house. 2 And so many people turned up there that there wasn’t any room left—not even in the doorway. Inside, Yeshua was explaining the Scriptures to them. 3 Four men arrived, carrying a paralysed man to Yeshua, 4 but because of the crowd, they were unable to get close. So they climbed up onto the flat roof, made a hole through it, and lowered the paralysed man lying on a pallet. 5 Yeshua, observing their faith, said to the man, “Son, your sins are forgiven!”[fn]

6 But some of the religious teachers were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why’s he talking like that? He’s seriously insulting God. There’s only one who can forgive sins, and that’s God himself.”

8 Then Yeshua, knowing in his spirit that they are thinking like that, said to them, “Why are you thinking that to yourselves? 9 Which is easier: to tell the paralysed man that his sins have been forgiven, or to tell him to pick up his bedding and walk? 10 But so you all can see that humanity’s child does have authority here on the earth to forgive sins,” he turned and said to the paralysed man, 11 “Listen. Get up, take your bedding, and go home!”

12 So the man stood up, and picked up his bedding, and went out of the house where everyone saw him and marvelled and praised God saying, “We’ve never seen anything like that happen before!”

13 Yeshua went out beside the lake where crowds of people kept coming to him and he taught them. 14 And as he was passing by the tax office, he saw Levi Alfaeus sitting there and said to him, “Come along with me.” So Levi stood up and followed Yeshua.

15 Yeshua ended up having a meal at Levi’s place, and many other tax collectors and undesirables were sitting there also, along with Yeshua’s followers, because by then, many people were following him around. 16 ≈When the teachers from the Pharisee party noticed that Yeshua was eating beside undesirables and tax-collectors, they asked his followers, “How come he eats with tax-collectors and other low-life?”

17 Yeshua overheard them and said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—it’s the sick ones that do. I didn’t come here to help those who think they have no needs, but ≡I came to call sinners.”

18 Now the followers of Yohan-the-immerser and members of the Pharisees regularly fasted. So a small group came to Yeshua and asked, “How come Yohan’s followers and the Pharisee party fast regularly, yet your followers don’t?”

19 And Yeshua answered, “Can the friends of the groom fast when they’re celebrating along with him? No, as long as he’s still there, they won’t be fasting. 20 But in the future, the groom will be taken away from them, and then they’ll be fasting.

21 “No one sews a patch of new, unshrunken cloth onto an old garment, because the new patch will tear away from that old fabric and it will end up as a worse tear. 22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins, because the wine will burst the already stretched wineskins, and then both the wine and the wineskins will be destroyed. New wine must be put into new wineskins.”

23 [ref]And it so happened that Yeshua and his followers passed through some fields of grain on some days of rest. As they went through, they plucked off some heads of grain. 24 And some members of the Pharisee party said, “It’s breaking the law to harvest grain on a rest day!”

25 And Yeshua replied, “You’ve read yourselves what David did when him and his men were hungry. 26 [ref]They went into God’s tent and ate the holy bread representing the presence of God. Only the priests were allowed to eat that, and yet David even gave some to his men!” 27 And he told the Pharisees, “The days of rest were created for people, not people for the rest days. 28 So I, humanity’s child, have authority also over the day of rest.”

3 And again another time, Yeshua went to the meeting hall and there was a man there with a curled-up hand. 2 The religious leaders there were watching him closely to see if he would heal the man on the rest day, and then if he did, they would have a case against him. 3 Then Yeshua said to the man with the flawed hand, “Stand up there in the middle.” 4 And he asked the leaders, “Is it allowable to do good on the rest day, or only to do evil? To save life, or to kill?” But they didn’t reply.

5 After angrily looking around at them, grieving at their complete lack of compassion, he said to the man, “Open up your hand!” 6 The man stretched out his fingers, and his hand became totally normal. But the Pharisees quickly left, and meeting with King Herod’s supporters, they conspired to kill Yeshua.

7 After that, Yeshua withdrew towards the lake with his followers, and a huge crowd of people from the regions of both Galilee and down in Yudea, 8 along with others from Yerushalem, Idumea, from across the Yordan River, and from up near Tyre and Tsidon. They came because they had heard about the amazing things he had done. 9 [ref]So Yeshua asked his apprentices to organise a small boat to be there for him so he wouldn’t be cramped by the press of the crowd. 10 Virtually anyone who had any physical issues was pressing towards him to touch him, because he had already healed so many. 11 And the demons, whenever they saw Yeshua, they fell down to the ground in front of him and yelled out, “You are God’s son!” 12 But he regularly warned them not to reveal who he was.

13 As Yeshua started climbing up a hill, he called the followers that he had selected, and they went off with him. 14 He appointed twelve of them as his representatives so that they could stick with him and be sent off to be proclaiming his message 15 and to also have authority to exorcise demons.

16 These are the twelve that he appointed: Simon (but he appended the name “Peter”), 17 Yacob and his brother Yohan who were Zebedee’s sons (and he nicknamed them the “sons of thunder”), 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, Yacob Alfaeus, Thaddeus, Simon from Canaan, 19 and Yudas Iscariot who later betrayed him.

20 Then Yeshua was approaching a house, but the crowd swarmed them again so they had no opportunity to eat. 21 The ones with him heard all the noise and came to get him, because they were wondering if he was crazy.

22 [ref]The religious teachers had come up from Yerushalem and were complaining, “He’s possessed by the prince of demons. He can command them because he rules them!”

23 But Yeshua addressed them: “How could Satan command himself? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom could never prosper. 25 If a household is divided against itself, that family will never prosper. 26 So if Satan attacked himself and was split, he couldn’t possibly be powerful, but his time would be over.

27 On the contrary, no one can enter a strong man’s house to clean out his possessions unless he first ties up that strong man—after that he can work on the goods.

28 Honestly, I assure you that any sin of a person can be forgiven, no matter how much they curse God. 29 [ref]But anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit can never be forgiven, but is eternally responsible for their sin.” 30 (He said this because they were saying that he was demon-possessed.)

31 Now Yeshua’s mother and brothers came and were standing outside and asked someone to tell him that they were there. 32 Some in the crowd sitting around him told Yeshua that his mother and brothers were waiting outside for him.

33 But Yeshua answered, “Who is my mother and who are my brothers?” 34 And having looked around at the people sitting here, he said, “Actually, you all are my mother and my brothers. 35 Anyone who obeys God, that person is my brother and my sister and my mother.”

4 [ref]Again Yeshua started teaching by the edge of the lake. A huge crowd gathered around him, but he had boarded a boat that was floating in the water, and all the people were there on the land. 2 ≈From there, he taught them many different things in parables, including this one: 3 “Listen. Once there was a farmer who went to spread some seed. 4 As he spread it, some landed on the path, and the birds came and fed on it. 5 Some landed on a rocky part without a lot of soil, and it quickly sprouted in the warm, shallow soil, 6 but when the sun came up, it dried out because the roots weren’t deep, and so it just withered up. 7 Some of the seed landed in a thistle patch, and the thistles grew and choked it out, so the plants never bore a crop. 8 But some seed landed in fertile soil and it bore a harvest—some of it multiplying thirty times, some sixty, and some a hundred times.”

9 Then Yeshua added, “Anyone who wants to understand, let them consider it.”

10 And when the crowd had left, the twelve apprentices asked him about the parables. 11 And he told them, “You’ve been given understanding about God’s kingdom, but for others, they’ll get it in parables

12 [ref]so that when they look they might see but not perceive,

and when they listen, they might hear but not understand,

otherwise they might turn from their sins and be forgiven.”

13 Then Yeshua said to them, “If you didn’t understand this parable, how will you understand any others? 14 The person spreading seed is spreading the good message, 15 and there are some along the path where the good message is being spread, who hear, but Satan turns up immediately and snatches the message from them. 16 Similarly, there’s some seed that falls onto rocky places where the people who hear the good message happily accept it, 17 but don’t make strong roots—just temporary changes. So when they get mocked or attacked about accepting the good message, they quickly stumble. 18 Others are the ones where the seed was spread among the thistles. They heard the good message, 19 but contemporary topics, or the lure of money, or the appetite for other things, choke their good intentions and the message becomes unfruitful in them. 20 But lastly, the seed that landed on the good soil represents the people who hear the good message, accept it, and are fruitful thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times over.”

21 [ref]And Yeshua told them, “Obviously no one goes and gets a lamp, and then puts it under a basket or under the bed, but rather they place it somewhere higher on a stand. 22 [ref]You see, nothing is hidden that won’t eventually be disclosed, and there’s no secret that won’t eventually be revealed. 23 Anyone who wants to understand must listen carefully.”

24 [ref]And he continued, “Take care what you listen to. Because how much you judge others, so too will judgement be handed out to you, and even more. 25 [ref]Anyone who has faith will be given a reward, but if you have none, even the little you have will be taken away.”

26 And then, “God’s kingdom is like a person throwing some seed onto the ground. 27 Whether the person sleeps at night or stays up night and day, the seed will sprout and grow either way, and they don’t know how it does it. 28 The earth is designed to multiply the seed: first a sprout appears, then a bigger plant, and then the full head of grain. 29 [ref]Then when it’s ripe, the harvester is sent in because it’s ready for harvest.”

30 Again he said, “What could we liken God’s kingdom to? Or what parable could we explain it with? 31 It’s like planting a mustard seed in the ground—a very small seed. 32 But when it’s planted and grows up, it forms a large bush with many branches so that birds can rest in its shade.”

The Use of Parables

33 And so as much as they could handle it, Yeshua shared the good message with them via many similar word pictures. 34 He never spoke without these illustrations, but he explained all of them to his close followers.

35 It was already becoming evening on that day, so Yeshua said to his apprentices, “Let’s all go across to the other shore.” 36 So they left the crowd behind and got into the boat with him. 37 Out in the lake a big storm came up with strong winds, and the waves started breaking across the boat and filling it. 38 But Yeshua slept on in the back, sleeping on a cushion. They woke him and cried, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re all about to drown?”

39 Now awake, Yeshua scolded the wind and waves, “Quieten down! Stop that!” Then the wind died down and the water became very calm. 40 And turning back to them he asked, “Why were you all so afraid? Don’t you have any faith yet?”

41 But now they were very afraid again and asked each other, “Who could this man be that both the wind and waves obey him?”

5 So they got safely to the region of Gerasenes on the other side of the lake. 2 As Yeshua climbed out of the boat, a demon-possessed man came out of the tombs to meet him. 3 He lived in those tombs, and no one could tie him up, not even with chains, 4 because he had often been tied up in the past with shackles and chains but had always pulled the chains apart and smashed the shackles, and no one was able to subdue him. 5 All through the day and night, whether in the tombs or up in the hills, he was yelling out and hurting himself with stones.

6 So when he had seen Yeshua in the distance, he ran and as a sign of honour fell to the ground in front of him. 7 Then he called out very loudly, “What will happen between us, Yeshua, the son of the highest God? I beg you in God’s name not to torment me.” 8 Because Yeshua had already started saying, “Come out of the man you ungodly spirit!”

9 Yeshua asked, “What’s your name?”

The man answered, “My name is ‘Thousands’ because there’s many of us,” 10 and he begged Yeshua not to send them out of the country.

11 It just so happened that there was a large herd of pigs being fed on the hill nearby 12 and they begged Yeshua again saying, “Send us to the pigs so that we can enter them.” 13 Yeshua agreed to that, so the ungodly spirits came out of the man, went into the pigs, and the entire herd of some two thousand pigs rushed down the steep bank into the sea and were drowned.

14 The ones who had been feeding them rushed off and spread the news around in the city and the surrounding area. So the people hurried out to see what had happened. 15 When they arrived where Yeshua was, they saw the man who had been demon-possessed fully-clothed and sitting there in full control of his senses. They knew it was the man called ‘Thousands’ and they became frightened. 16 Those who had seen it all happen described it all to the people—what had happened both to the demon-possessed man and to the pigs.

17 So then the people began asking Yeshua to go away from their region.

18 As Yeshua was climbing back into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed wanted to go with him.

19 But Yeshua wouldn’t let him and told him to head back home to his own people, and explain to them what the Master had done for him and how he had been merciful to him.

20 So he went away and shared with the people of the Ten Cities region what Yeshua had done for him, and they were all amazed.

21 When Yeshua had crossed in the boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd of people came out to the lake edge to see him. 22 A religious leader named Jairus came out, and when he found Yeshua he fell down at his feet 23 and pleaded, “My young daughter is critical and just hanging on for you to come and touch her so that she can be healed and live.”

24 So Yeshua went off with Jairus. The large crowd followed also and many were getting pressed against Yeshua.

25 Then a woman came who had been losing blood for twelve years 26 and who had endured much under various doctors despite spending everything she had. After all that, she’d ended up even worse, 27 but when she heard about what Yeshua had been doing, she worked her way through the crowd to the back of Yeshua and touched his clothes, 28 because she had told herself, “If I could even just touch his clothes, I would be healed.”

29 And immediately the bleeding stopped and she knew that she had been healed. 30 Immediately also, Yeshua knew that power had gone out of him, and he turned back towards the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes?”

31 But his followers said, “You can see all the people that were pressing on you so why would you ask who touched you?”

32 But Yeshua was still looking around to see who had done it. 33 And the woman, scared and shaking because of what was happening, came and fell down in front of Yeshua and told him the whole story. 34 Yeshua said, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and full health.”

35 While he was still speaking, messengers came from Jairus’ house to tell him, “Your daughter has died. Why bother the teacher any more?”

36 But Yeshua overheard them telling this to the leader and told him, “Don’t be afraid—keep believing.” 37 And Yeshua didn’t allow anyone to accompany him other than Peter, and Yacob and his brother, Yohan. 38 As they approached Jairus’ house, Yeshua saw a big commotion with lots of crying and yelling going on. 39 As he entered, he said, “Why are you all crying in distress? The child hasn’t died—she’s just sleeping!”

40 But they just ridiculed Yeshua. So he sent them all outside, just taking the father and mother of the child, along with three with him. He went in where the girl was 41 and taking her hand, he said, “Young woman, I tell you: get up!” 42 Immediately she got up and walked around. And everyone marvelled at the amazing thing that had happened. (She was twelve years old.) 43 Yeshua repeatedly told them to keep this to themselves, and added that they should give her something to eat.

6 So Yeshua left Capernaum and went back with his followers to Nazareth, his birthplace. 2 It was now the Rest Day and when he started teaching in the meeting hall, many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did he learn all this? How could he have such wisdom and be able to do these miracles? 3 Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Maria, and the brother of Yacob and Yosef and Yudas and Simon? Don’t his sisters live around here?” And they were offended by his teaching.

4 [ref]Yeshua told them, “A prophet is only dishonoured in his own home town, and among his own relatives, and in his own home.”

5 And he wasn’t able to do even one miracle there, except for placing his hands on a few sick people and healing them. 6 He was amazed at how they wouldn’t believe him as he went around the villages teaching.

7 Then he called his twelve apprentices and started sending them out in pairs and giving them authority over demons. 8 He insisted that they can carry a walking stick but not to take food, a backpack, or money. 9 They could wear one pair of sandals, but not take changes of clothes. 10 And he told them, “Whenever you are invited into a home, stay at that one place until you leave that town. 11 [ref]But if any places don’t want you or don’t want to hear what you have to say, just leave that place. As you go, shake the dust off your sandals so they can see that you pass the responsibility of what happened to them.”

12 So the apprentices went off and started telling people to repent. 13 [ref]And they drove out many demons, and anointed many sick people with olive oil and healed them.

14 [ref]Yeshua was now becoming well known and King Herod Antipas heard about him. He thought that maybe Yohan-the-immerser had come back to life and that’s why he was able to do miracles.

15 But others thought it was the promised return of Eliyyah, and yet others thought he must be another prophet like the ones in the Scriptures.

16 But hearing about Yeshua, Herod was telling people, “That Yohan who I had beheaded, he must have come back to life!” 17 [ref]Because Herod himself had had Yohan arrested and put in prison because he had married Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. 18 Yohan had been telling him that it was wrong for him to marry his brother’s wife, 19 and so Herodias resented him enough to want to kill him, but Herod hadn’t be able to 20 because he respected Yohan as a righteous and holy teacher and so he kept him alive. He often enjoyed hearing from Yohan and thought a lot about what he said.

21 However, an opportunity came at Herod’s birthday celebration, when he threw a feast for his top officials and generals and for the leaders in Galilee. 22 The daughter of Herodias came in and danced for them, and the king and his party guests all enjoyed it. So the king said to the young woman, “Just ask me for anything and I’ll give it to you.” 23 And he made an oath, “Even if you asked for half of my kingdom, I’d give it to you!”

24 So she went out and asked her mother what she should ask for. Her mother told her that she should ask for Yohan’s head.

25 So going back into the party, she said seriously to the king, “I would like the head of Yohan-the-immerser on a plate!”

26 The king was really upset with that, but because he had made loud oaths in front of all his guests, he couldn’t say no. 27 So he ordered an executioner to go out and return with Yohan’s head. He went off and beheaded him in the prison 28 and brought the head into the party on a plate and gave it to the girl, and she gave it to her mother. 29 When Yohan’s followers heard about this, they came and fetched his body and put it into a tomb.

30 Now the apprentices who had been sent out returned back to Yeshua and they reported back everything they had done and what they had been teaching people. 31 Then he told them, “Let’s just all of us head for a quiet place and take a break.” This was because there were so many people always coming and going, and sometimes they didn’t even have a chance to eat. 32 So they went by boat away to a quiet place by themselves.

33 But people from towns all around had seen them going and recognised who they were, so they ran around the lake on foot and got there ahead of them. 34 [ref]So when Yeshua got out of the boat, he saw a big crowd and felt sorry for them because they seemed like sheep without a shepherd, so he started teaching them many things. 35 Then, when it was already getting late, his apprentices came up and said, “This place is pretty isolated and it’s already late. 36 Send these people off now so they can go to the nearby settlements and villages and buy themselves something to eat.”

37 But Yeshua answered them, “You give them something to eat.”

They complained, “If we go, should we buy several months wages worth of bread so we can give all of them something to eat?”

38 But he asked, “Go and find out how much bread you have.”

When they’d found out they said, “Five buns and two fish.”

39 Yeshua told all the people to line up in rows and sit down on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in rows of fifty to a hundred. 41 Then holding the five buns and two fish, he looking up to the sky and blessed God, and then broke up the buns and gave pieces to his apprentices so they could do likewise to the people, and he also divided up the two fish, 42 and all the people ate and were satisfied. 43 Then they collected the leftover pieces of bread, filling twelve baskets, as well as the leftover pieces of fish. 44 And the headcount of men who ate that evening was five thousand.

45 Straight after that, Yeshua sent his apprentices off in the boat to go across to Bethsaida while he sent the crowd home. 46 Then he said goodbye to everyone, and climbed the hill to pray. 47 Later in the night, the boat was out in the middle of the lake, and only Yeshua remained back there on the land. 48 He saw them struggling to row against the wind, and sometime after 3am he came out to them, walking on the lake surface as if to walk past them. 49 But they had seen someone walking on the lake and thought it was a ghost, and they yelled out 50 because they had all seen it and were terrified.

But Yeshua immediately spoke to them and said, “Hey, take heart, it’s me, don’t be afraid!” 51 Then he climbed up into the boat and the wind died down. And they were all totally astounded 52 because they hadn’t understood the implications of him feeding all the people because their minds were closed.

53 After completing their crossing, they anchored at Gennesaret. 54 And when they got out of the boat, again people recognised Yeshua 55 and ran around that region, so next minute people began bringing all of those who were sick, carrying them on pallets to wherever they heard that Yeshua was. 56 And whenever Yeshua entered villages or cities or fields or marketplaces, they laid the sick down there and were imploring him that they might even just touch the edge of his robe, and anyone who did so was healed.

7 Some from the Pharisee party and some of the law teachers had come from Yerushalem to observe Yeshua 2 and noticed that some of his followers were eating their food without following their religious customs, i.e., without washing their hands. 3 (The Pharisees and, in fact, all the Jewish religious leaders do not eat without first ceremonially washing their hands as taught by their elders over the generations. 4 They won’t eat at the market if they can’t do this first, and have many other regulations about ceremonial washing of cups and jugs and copper kettles.)

5 And the Pharisees and religious teachers asked Yeshua, “How come your followers don’t follow our Jewish traditions, but eat without the ceremonial washing of hands?”

6 And he answered, “Isayah got it exactly right when he expressed God’s thoughts about you hypocrites and wrote:[ref]

‘These people honour me with their lips,

but their real desires are far away from mine.

7 Their worship of me is worthless,

teaching man-made rules as if they are from God.’

8 You’ve ignored God’s commands instead accepting human traditions.”

9 And Yeshua continued, “You all simply dismiss God’s commands in favour of your own customs. 10 [ref]Mosheh teaches us,

‘Honour your parents,’

and

‘Anyone dishonestly slandering their parents deserves the death penalty.’

11 But when you all encourage people to say, ‘Whatever I had that may have helped you guys has been given to God’, 12 you are actively discouraging them from helping their parents— 13 overriding God’s voice for your very convenient teaching that you disseminate instead. And that’s not the only example!”

14 Yeshua called out to the crowd, “Everyone listen to me carefully: 15 Nothing that enters your mouth makes you guilty in God’s eyes. It’s what comes out of you that demonstrates your culpability.”

16 ◘ 17 When Yeshua came back inside, his apprentices asked him what he meant. 18 But he scolded them, “Can’t you understand something so simple! Can’t you see that anything from the outside that enters your body doesn’t make you guilty in God’s sight, 19 because it doesn’t enter your mind but merely goes into your stomach and ends up in the toilet.” (By saying this he clearly showed that is was ok for Jews to eat any food.)

20 He continued, “It’s what comes out of you that makes you guilty in God’s eyes. 21-22 That’s because evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, arrogance, lust, slander, pride, and foolishness all come from inside people’s hearts and minds. 23 So it’s the evil that’s inside a person and comes out that makes them guilty in God’s eyes.”

24 Yeshua left that place and went up north into the regions of Tyre and Tsidon. He tried to enter a house without being noticed but didn’t succeed, 25 and straight away a woman who had heard about him turned up. She knelt in front of him because she had a little daughter who was demon-possessed. 26 The woman was Greek from Phoenicia in Syria and she begged Yeshua to command the demon to leave her daughter. 27 But he replied, “Let the Jewish children be treated first, because it’s not good to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.”

28 And she responded, “Yes, master, but the puppies under the table do get to eat the little crumbs that the children drop.”

29 And he answered, “Go home now. As a result of how you just spoke, the demon has already left your daughter.”

30 And when she got home, the demon had indeed gone and her little girl was lying quietly on her bed.

31 Yeshua left the Tyre region, passed through Tsidon, and came down the eastern side of the Lake of Galilee to the Decapolis region. 32 The people there brought a man to him who couldn’t hear or speak, and asked Yeshua to heal him. 33 So Yeshua took the man back away from the crowd, put his fingers in the man’s ears, then he spat and touched the man’s mouth. 34 Looking up to the sky, he sighed and said, “Open up!”

35 Then the man could hear, and his tongue was released and he began to speak properly. 36 The Yeshua advised that they shouldn’t tell anyone, but the more he said that, the more they seemed to spread it around. 37 The crowds were totally amazed, saying, “He can do anything—he makes the deaf able to hear, and enables the ones who couldn’t speak.”

8 Another time there was a large crowd again with nothing to eat. Yeshua called his apprentices and told them, 2 “I feel sorry for all these people because they’ve already been with us for three days and don’t have anything to eat. 3 I can’t send them home because they’re too weak to walk, and some have a long way to go.”

4 His apprentices queried, “Where could anyone find enough food out here in the wilderness?”

5 He asked, “How much bread have you all got?”

“Seven buns,” they answered.

6 So Yeshua instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then he took the seven buns, gave thanks and broke them and gave pieces to his apprentices to then distribute to the crowd. 7 They also had a few small cooked fish, so he blessed them too and got them to distribute them as well. 8 After all the people had eaten and were full, they collected seven basketfuls of leftovers. 9 There were some four thousand people there that day, and Yeshua sent them home after they’d eaten. 10 And he and his apprentices climbed into the boat and headed for the Dalmanutha region.

11 [ref]Some men from the Pharisee party came out to Yeshua and started arguing with him. They were checking him out and wanted to see a miracle. 12 [ref]Yeshua grieved inside and asked, “Why do you people need to see a miracle before you’ll believe me? Actually, no miracle will be done for this generation.”

13 So Yeshua left in the boat again and crossed to the other side of the lake.

14 But Yeshua’s apprentices forgot to take any food other than one bun that someone in the boat had. 15 [ref]He told them, “Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and of King Herod.”

16 They asked each other what it meant—was it because they forgot food?

17 But Yeshua knew what they were saying and asked, “Why are you all discussing about not having food? Can’t you figure it out? Or are your minds completely closed? 18 [ref]You all have eyes but can’t seem to see and have ears but can’t seem to listen. Have you already forgotten what just happened? 19 When I broke up the five buns to feed five thousand people, how many basketfuls of leftovers did you collect?”

“Twelve,” they answered.

20 “And when we fed four thousand with seven buns, how many full baskets of leftovers then?”

“Seven,” they answered.

21 Yeshua asked, “How can you all not understand what’s going on right in front of you!”

22 As they entered Bethsaida, the people brought a blind man to Yeshua and asked him to touch him. 23 So Yeshua took the man’s hand and led him out of the village. Then he spat in his eyes, placed his hands on him, and asked him, “What can you see?”

24 The man looked around and answered, “I can see the people, but they just look like trees.” 25 Yeshua touched the man’s eyes again and then he could see clearly—he was now completely better. 26 Then Yeshua told him not to go back into the village but to go straight home.

27 Then Yeshua and his followers moved around the various villages of Caesaria Philippi. On the way, he asked them, “Who does everyone think I am?”

28 [ref]They said, “Some say Yohan-the-immerser, some say Eliyyah, and some say one of the prophets.”

29 [ref]Then he asked, “And what do you all think?”

Peter said, “You are the promised one sent by God.”

30 Then Yeshua warned them not to tell others about him.

31 Then Yeshua began teaching his followers that humanity’s child would need to suffer a lot, to be rejected by the religious leaders, and so to be put to death but to come back to life after three days. 32 He taught this very clearly, but Peter took him aside and told him off. 33 Yeshua turned back and looked at the others, then reprimanded Peter, “Stand back, Satan! you’re applying human values instead of considering God’s plan.”

34 [ref]Calling out to them and to the crowd, he said, “Anyone who wants to follow me must first put aside their own desires and then follow me—even through very difficult times. 35 [ref]Anyone who worries about saving their own life will lose it, but anyone who gives their life due to following me and my teaching will save their life. 36 Because it doesn’t benefit a person if they gain everything in the world but lose their soul. 37 What can someone offer in order to buy a home for their soul? 38 Yes, anyone who is ashamed of me and my message in front of this adulterous and sinful generation, humanity’s child will likewise be ashamed of them when he comes clearly displaying God’s greatness and bringing the holy messengers.”

9 And he continued, “I can assure you that some of the ones standing here won’t die until they have seen God’s powerful kingdom arrive.”

2 [ref]Six days later Yeshua took Peter and Yacob and Yohan, and just the four of them went up onto a high hill. Then he was changed right in front of their eyes 3 and his clothes turned incredibly shining white—whiter than any bleach could make them. 4 And Eliyyah and Mosheh appeared beside Yeshua and started talking with him. 5 Peter said to Yeshua, “Teacher, it’s good that we’re here. Maybe we could make three shelters up here: one for you and one for Mosheh and one for Eliyyah?” 6 He said that because they were terrified and didn’t know what to say.

7 [ref]Then a cloud came over the sun and a voice came out of the cloud saying, “This is my dear son. Listen to him.” 8 When they looked around, they couldn’t see anyone else there any more, except for Yeshua himself.

The Coming of Elijah

9 As they descended again, Yeshua told them to tell no one what had happened up there until after humanity’s child came back to life.

10 They remembered that, although between all three of them they couldn’t understand the bit about coming back to life. 11 [ref]They asked Yeshua, “Isn’t it written that Eliyyah will be the first to return?”

12 He answered, “Yes, Eliyyah is indeed the one to come first to start the restoration. But isn’t it also written that humanity’s child will suffer a lot and be scorned? 13 You see, Eliyyah has come already, and they treated him just however they liked, just like it was written that it would happen.”

14 When they got back to his other followers, Yeshua saw that they were surrounded by a large crowd and the religious teachers were debating with them. 15 The crowd were very surprised when they noticed Yeshua and came running to greet him. 16 He asked them, “What were you all talking about?”

17 One of the people answered, “Teacher, I brought my son here—he has a demon that prevents him from speaking. 18 Whenever it takes hold of him, it attacks him and he starts foaming at the mouth and grating his teeth and his joints lock up. I tried to get your followers to command it to leave but they couldn’t.”

19 Yeshua replied, “You are a faithless generation. How much longer will I have to be here? How much longer can I tolerate you all? Bring him here.” 20 So they brought the boy to him. When he saw Yeshua, the demon immediately caused him to have convulsions and fall on the ground—rolling over and foaming at the mouth.

21 Yeshua asked his father, “How long has this been happening?”

“Since he was small,” he replied, 22 “and often it throws him into the fire or into water to try to destroy him. But if you feel sorry for us and can do it, please help us.”

23 Yeshua asked him, “If I can? A person who believes can do anything.”

24 The boys father cried out, “I do believe—help me to fight unbelief.”

25 Then Yeshua noticing that a big crowd was quickly forming, scolded the evil spirit, “You spirit who causes muteness and deafness. Leave this boy now and never return to him.”

26 There was yelling and strong convulsions, and then the demon left him and the boy lay still as if dead, and many people thought he was. 27 But Yeshua took his hand and lifted it, and the boy got up.

28 When Yeshua and his apprentices had gone into the house by themselves, they asked him, “How come we couldn’t drive it out?”

29 He replied, “This kind will only leave after prayer and fasting.”

30 Then they left that place and were moving around Galilee, because Yeshua didn’t want people to know where he was 31 while he was teaching his apprentices. He told them, “Humanity’s child will be arrested and executed, but after three days he’ll come back to life.”

32 But they didn’t know what that meant, and they were too scared to ask him.

33 Then they went to Capernaum and when they arrived at the house, Yeshua asked them what they were discussing on the way.

34 [ref]But they didn’t reply because while they were walking, they had been talking about which of them is the best. 35 [ref]So Yeshua sat down and called the twelve of them and explained, “Anyone who wants to be at the top, has to be at the bottom and help all the others.” 36 Then Yeshua called a young boy and stood him in the middle of them, and giving him a hug said, 37 [ref]“Whoever welcomes young children on my behalf, welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me is not actually welcoming me, but welcoming the one who sent me here.”

38 Yohan checked with Yeshua, “Teacher, we saw someone using your authority to command demons to leave, but we told him off because he wasn’t one of us.”

39 Yeshua responded, “No, don’t stop him because anyone who does a miracle using my name won’t just quickly turn around and slander me. 40 [ref]Anyone who’s not against us is for us. 41 [ref]Anyone who gives you water to drink because you are followers of God’s chosen one and who does it because they are working for me, I can assure you that they’ll receive their reward.

42 “But anyone who causes a young person to falter from their trust in me, it would be better if they were thrown into the sea with a heavy weight tied around their neck. 43 [ref]If your hand causes you to disobey God, cut it off—it’s better to enter eternal life being maimed, than to have two hands but to be thrown into the fire that never goes out. 44 ◘ 45 And if your foot causes you to disobey God, cut it off—it’s better to enter eternal life being maimed, than to have two feet but to be thrown into hell. 46 ◘ 47 [ref]And if your eye causes you to disobey God, gouge it out—it’s better to enter God’s kingdom one-eyed, than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell 48 where the worms never die and the fire never goes out.

49 “Everyone will be salted with fire.

50 [ref]“Now salt is good, but if it were to go bad, what would you season your food with then? So keep yourselves like salt, and strive to get on well with each other.”

10 Then Yeshua left Capernaum and went down to the Yudean area and across the Yordan river. Again the crowds followed him, and he taught them just like he usually did.

2 Some from the Pharisee party approached Yeshua to check him out and asked, “Does the law allow a husband to dismiss his wife?”

3 “Well, what law did Mosheh give to you all?” he asked.

4 [ref]They answered, “Mosheh said that a husband is allowed to write a statement of divorce and dismiss his wife with it.”

5 Yeshua responded, “Yes, he wrote that law because he saw your stubborn desires, 6 [ref]but God made both men and women right at the beginning. 7 [ref]As a result, a man leaves his parents and joins together with his wife 8 and the couple become a single unit. So there’s no longer two of them, but only one. 9 So if it’s God who joins them together like that, no person has the authority to separate them.”

10 Back in the house again, his apprentices asked about this. 11 [ref]And Yeshua told them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another person, commits adultery towards his wife.” 12 And likewise if the wife divorces her husband and marries another person, she is committing adultery towards her husband.”

13 The people were bringing small children for Yeshua to touch, but his apprentices scolded them. 14 However, Yeshua noticed it and was upset, “Just let those kids come. Don’t prevent them because God’s kingdom consists of people like them. 15 [ref]Actually, you can’t even enter God’s kingdom unless you accept it just like a small child does.” 16 So he continued hugging the children and commanding a good life for them as he placed his hands on each one.

17 One time when Yeshua was starting out on a trip, a man caught up to him and kneeling down in front of him asked, “Good teacher, what do I have to do to inherit eternal life?”

18 He answered, “Why do you call me good? No person is good—only God is. 19 [ref]You know God’s commands: don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie about others, don’t defraud others, and honour your parents.”

20 The man responded, “I’ve kept all of those since I was young.”

21 Yeshua looked up at him with genuine love and said, “There’s one thing still to be done: sell everything you have and give the money to the poor—then you’ll have wealth in heaven. After that, come and follow me.” 22 But the man grew very sad when he heard this, because he owned many properties.

23 Yeshua looked around at his followers, “It’s so difficult for wealthy people to enter God’s kingdom.”

24 (His followers were a bit stunned at his teaching.) Yeshua continued, “Yes, it’s certainly difficult to enter into God’s kingdom. 25 It’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter God’s kingdom.”

26 Now they were totally stunned, asking, “How can anyone possibly be saved then?”

27 Yeshua looked intently at them, “Yes, humanly it’s quite impossible. But with God it’s different—God can do anything!”

28 Peter said, “We left everything and came and followed you.”

29 He answered, “Yes I can assure you all that anyone who left their home or farm, and left their siblings or parents or children because of me and my teaching, 30 they’ll be rewarded one hundred times over with homes and farms and siblings and parents and children along with persecution, but gaining eternal life in the next era. 31 [ref]But many at the top now will be at the bottom then, and many at the bottom now will be blessed then.”

32 They were heading south on their way to Yerushalem with Yeshua in front, and his followers were a bit surprised and a bit scared. Yeshua took the twelve aside and started telling them what was going to happen to him, 33 “We’re on our way down to Yerushalem and humanity’s child will be turned over to the chief priests and the religious teachers, and they’ll sentence him to die and pass him over to the non-Jews. 34 Then they’ll ridicule him and spit on him before they beat him and execute him, but he’ll come back to life again in three days time.”

35 Then Yacob and Yohan, the two sons of Zebedee approached Yeshua and asked, “Teacher, we’d like to ask a favour from you—please don’t disappoint us.”

36 “What do you want from me?” Yeshua asked.

37 They answered, “Allow us two to sit beside you in heaven—one of us on each side of you.”

38 [ref]But Yeshua replied, “You don’t even understand what you’re asking for. Do you think you could endure the suffering that I have to go through? Or to be enveloped in the darkness that I have to go down into?”

39 And they replied, “Sure we can.”

“And indeed you all will suffer like me and be enveloped in darkness like I will be,” responded Yeshua, 40 “but as for deciding who will sit next to me, that’s not my decision to make because it’s already been decided.”

41 When the ten other apprentices heard what these two had asked for, they were upset at Yacob and Yohan. 42 [ref]But Yeshua called them over, “Listen, in most countries their rulers boss the people around and their leaders exert their authority over them. 43 [ref]But it doesn’t work like that with you—anyone of you who wanted to be honoured must serve the others, 44 and anyone who wants to become the most respected has to work like a slave does. 45 Even humanity’s child didn’t come to be served, but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom to set many people free.”

46 They arrived at Jericho, and then when Yeshua and his followers were leaving again with a large crowd following, they came across blind Bartimeus sitting beside the path begging. 47 When he heard that it was Yeshua from Nazareth going past, he yelled out, “Yeshua, promised descendant of David, help me please.”

48 When several people told him to stop, he just yelled out even louder, “Yeshua, promised descendant of David, please help me.”

49 Then Yeshua stopped and got the people to call the blind man. So they called him, “Hey, be confident! Get up and come because he’s called for you.”

50 So Bartimeus threw off his jacket, jumped up, and was led to Yeshua.

51 “Now, what can I do for you?” Yeshua asked.

“My teacher, I’d like to be able to see,” Bartimeus replied.

52 Then Yeshua responded, “Okay, off you go then—your faith has saved you.”

And immediately Bartimeus was able to see, and followed along the path after Yeshua.

11 As they got close to Yerushalem and were passing Bethphage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives, Yeshua sent two of his apprentices ahead, telling them, 2 “Go on to the next village and as you enter it, you’ll see a young donkey that hasn’t ever been ridden yet. Untie it and bring it back here. 3 If anyone asks what you’re doing, tell them that the master needs it and he’ll return it later.”

4 So they went ahead and found a donkey tied up on the path just outside the door of a house, and so they went to untie it. 5 But some of the people standing around there said, “Hoy! What do you think you’re doing untying that donkey?”

6 So they responded just as Yeshua had told them, and the people allowed them to proceed. 7 They brought the young donkey to Yeshua, placing their coats over it before Yeshua mounted it. 8 As Yeshua rode it into Yerushalem, many people laid their coats on the road, while others lay down leafy branches cut from trees in nearby fields. 9 [ref]Some went ahead and others came along behind, shouting, “This is the saviour who comes with the authority and blessing from Yahweh—10 the promised ancestor of King David who is blessed as he ushers in his kingdom—the blessed saviour from heaven.”

11 And so Yeshua arrived in Yerushalem and went into the temple and looked all around, but because it was now evening, he went back out to Bethania village with his twelve apprentices.

12 The next day after they’d left Bethania, Yeshua was hungry. 13 From a distance he noticed a fig tree that was in leaf so he went over to see if there was any fruit on it, but when he reached it there was only leaves because it wasn’t the right season for figs. 14 So he spoke to the tree, “No one in this age will ever eat fruit from you again.” (His followers heard him say that.)

15 Then they came back into Yerushalem and on into the temple where Yeshua started driving out the sellers and the buyers that were trading in there. Then he tipped over the tables of the money-changers and the chairs of the ones selling doves, 16 and stopped others from carrying goods through the temple. 17 [ref]He said, “Isn’t it written in the Scriptures,

‘My house will be known as a house of prayer for all the nations’?

But all of you have turned it into a sanctuary for swindlers.”

18 When the chief priests and the religious teachers heard this, they started looking for a way that they could destroy him, because they were afraid of him and the way that the crowd marvelled at his teaching.

19 Every evening, Yeshua and his apprentices would go out of the city to stay overnight.

20 As they entered the city again in the morning, Yeshua’s apprentices noticed that the fig tree was totally dead. 21 Peter remembered what he had said to the tree, and commented, “Teacher, that fig tree that you cursed has withered up.”

22 Yeshua responded, “Use your faith in God. 23 [ref]I can assure you that if anyone tells a mountain to go into the sea and doesn’t doubt in their mind but believes that what they’re saying will happen, then it will. 24 So I tell you all that anything you ask God for in your prayers, if you believe that you have received it, then you will. 25 [ref]Whenever you are standing praying, if you have something against someone, be sure to forgive them so that your father in heaven can also forgive your shortcomings.”

26 ◘

Jesus’ Authority Is Questioned

27 They continued on into Yerushalem and on to the temple where they were met by the chief priests and the religious teachers and the elders. 28 They asked Yeshua, “Do you have any authority to do what you did? If so, who gave it to you?”

29 Yeshua answered, “Okay, I’ll also ask you something and when you answer me I’ll tell you about my authority to do that: 30 When Yohan preached and immersed people, did the authority for that come from heaven or from people here?”

31 They discussed this among themselves, reasoning, “If we say it was from heaven, he’ll ask us why we didn’t believe him. 32 But we can’t say that it was just from people.” (They said that because they were scared of the crowds, knowing that they believed that Yohan was a prophet.) 33 So they answered, “We don’t know.”

And Yeshua also responded, “Well then, I won’t tell you about my authority to do those things either.”

12 [ref]Then he started telling them some parables: “A man planted a vineyard and put a fence and a moat around it and built a security tower. Then he rented it out and went off travelling. 2 At harvest time, he sent a slave to go to the tenant farmers and get his percentage of the harvest. 3 But the tenants grabbed the slave and beat him up, then sent him back empty-handed. 4 The owner sent a second slave, but they insulted this one and struck him on the head. 5 So the owner sent a third slave and they murdered him. He sent many other slaves—some they just beat up and others they murdered. 6 But the owner still had his one, dearly loved son, so finally he sent him to go, thinking that they would now be convinced because it was his son. 7 But the tenant farmers said to each others, ‘Ah ha. This is the one who will inherit this land. If we kill him, we’ll be the ones to control the estate.’ 8 So they took him and killed him, and threw the body outside the vineyard fence.

9 “Now, what do you think the owner of the vineyard will do? Yes, he’ll come and eliminate those evil tenants, and give the contract to others. 10 [ref]Haven’t you all read this in the scriptures:

‘the stone that the builders rejected

became the important cornerstone

11 that was given by Yahweh,

and we think it’s incredible.’?”

12 And those leaders tried to arrest him because they knew that it was them that the parable was addressed to, but they couldn’t do it because Yeshua had the favour of the crowd, so they just left the area.

13 Then the religious leaders sent some members of the Pharisee party and some of the political supporters of King Herod to try to catch Yeshua out. 14 So they flattered him, “Teacher, we know that you are honest even if it upsets others, and that you teach the truth about God without caring about people’s opinions. Is it legal for us Jews to pay the poll tax to the Roman emperor or not? How should we handle this?”

15 But knowing their hypocrisy, Yeshua responded to them, “Why are you trying to test me? Bring me a coin so we can determine the proper answer.”

16 When they brought him a coin, he asked, “Whose image and inscription are on this coin?”

And they said, “The emperor’s.”

17 “Well then,” said Yeshua, “give to the emperor whatever is due him, but give God what is owed to God.”

And they had to admit that that was an outstanding answer.

18 [ref]Another time, members of the Sadducee sect came to Yeshua and asked, 19 [ref]“Teacher, Mosheh wrote that if a man’s married brother should die before his wife without having any children, then his brother should marry her to produce descendants in his brother’s name. 20 Now what if there were seven brothers and the first one got married and died childless. 21 So then the second brother took her in, but again died childless, and then the third. 22 Eventually all seven brothers died childless, and finally the woman also died. 23 Now, at the resurrection of the dead, which brother will she be the wife of, because at some point, she was married to each of the seven of them?”

24 So Yeshua answered, “Actually you’re all quite wrong, because you ignore the scriptures and also because you haven’t experienced God’s power. 25 When the dead do come back to life, they won’t be getting engaged or married, but will be like the messengers in heaven. 26 [ref]And as for the state of those who’ve died, didn’t you read in the scriptures about Mosheh when God spoke to him in front of the burning thorn bush and said, ‘I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Yacob’? 27 So God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You Sadducees are very wrong!”

28 Then one of the religious teachers who had heard their question and Yeshua’s excellent answer, came closer and asked, “Which of God’s commands is the most important?”

29 [ref]Yeshua answered, “Well, the most important is this: ‘Listen, Yisrael. Our God Yahweh is &our master. 30 You must love Yahweh God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 [ref]And the second is: ‘Love your neighbour like you look after yourself.’ There’s no other commands more important than these.”

32 [ref]The teacher replied to Yeshua, “Yes, teacher, you’re quite right saying there’s only one God and no other, 33 [ref]and saying that we should love him with all our heart and all our intelligence and all our strength, and to be loving our neighbours like we look after ourselves, and all this is more important than all the required temple offerings and sacrifices.”

34 [ref]When Yeshua saw that he had given such a thoughtful answer, he said, “You are very close to the kingdom of God!”

After that, no one else dared to ask Yeshua any more questions.

35 Later when Yeshua was teaching in the temple, he asked the people, “How is it that the teachers here say that the messiah is a descendant of King David? 36 [ref]Because David himself said under the inspiration of the holy spirit,

‘The master told my master,

“Sit there in the position of honour

until I can conquer your enemies.” ’

37 If David calls @the messiah his master, how can @the messiah possibly be @David’s descendant?”

The large crowd was very interested to hear everything that Yeshua had to say.

38 As Yeshua continued teaching, he said, “Watch out for these religious teachers who like to wear fancy robes and be greeted in the square, 39 and have the best seats at meetings and the best places at dinners. 40 These people trick widows out of their properties, but offer long prayers to cover it up. They will be getting a stricter judgement than others.”

41 As he sat down in front of the temple treasury, Yeshua watched the crowd as they threw coins into the dish, and some rich people were donating quite valuable silver coins. 42 Then an impoverished widow came and threw in two small copper coins. 43 Yeshua called his followers and told them, “Honestly, that poor widow gave more than all the others. 44 You see, most people donate from their excess wealth, but this woman even gave some of the small amount that she needed to live on.”

13 As they were leaving the temple area, one of Yeshua’s followers noted, “Teacher, look at those large, chiselled stones and the beautiful buildings that they’ve been made into.”

2 But Yeshua responded, “Yes, incredible buildings, but the time will come when they’re torn down—not a single piece of stone will be left sitting in its place.”

3 Later when they were over on the Mount of Olives overlooking the temple, Peter and Yacob and Yohan and Andrew were with Yeshua and asked 4 when all this destruction would happen, and what indications there would be that it would be about to happen.

5 So Yeshua told them, “Be careful so you aren’t misled by others. 6 Plenty of people will say that they’re coming ≈because they were sent by me, or that they are me, and they’ll mislead many others. 7 And whenever you hear about wars or about battles about to begin, don’t be worried—those things will certainly happen, but there’s more to follow. 8 Countries will take up arms against other countries, and kingdoms against other kingdoms. There’ll be earthquakes in many places and there’ll be famines, but those will be just like the beginning of birth pains.

Persecution Foretold

9 [ref]“So be careful. You’ll be turned over to local councils for questioning, will be whipped in the religious meeting halls, and will be stood in front of governors and kings because of following me. But you’ll be able to present your life stories to them 10 and it’s right that the good news first[fn] be proclaimed to every people group. 11 But whenever they bring you along to hand you over, don’t worry in advance about what you’re going to say to defend yourselves, but wait until the hearing proceeds and speak what you are given then, because then it won’t be you speaking, but God’s spirit. 12 In those times, a brother will report on his brother to have him executed, and a father report on his child, and children will be encouraged to report on their own parents and then they’ll be executed as a result. 13 [ref]And every one will hate you all because they hate my name, but anyone who endures to the end will be saved.

14 [ref]“But whenever you see the most horrible thing that drives people from God, standing where it shouldn’t be (and you readers should understand this), then anyone in Yudea should flee into the hills 15 [ref]and anyone upstairs looking outside shouldn’t come down into the bedrooms to get anything, 16 and anyone working outside shouldn’t go back inside to get a change of clothes. 17 It will be extremely difficult for pregnant women and for mothers who are breast-feeding their children in those days. 18 Just pray that it won’t happen in the winter 19 [ref]because those days will be terrible like nothing that’s ever happened before, all the way back to when God created the world right until the present time, and won’t ever happen again. 20 And if Yahweh hadn’t shortened that time, no humans would even survive, but he shortened that time so that the chosen ones could be saved.

21 So don’t believe it if you hear someone say, ‘Look, the messiah has arrived here.’ or ‘There’s the one that God has sent.’ 22 Plenty of fake messiahs and deceiving prophets will certainly come and even do things that humans can’t normally do, so much so that even the chosen ones would defect if that were possible. 23 So watch out, but I’ve warned you in advance about all of this.

24 [ref]“After those very difficult times, the sun will go dark and the moon won’t shine at night. 25 [ref]The stars will fall down out of the sky and the powers in the heavens will be shaken up. 26 [ref]Then the people will see humanity’s child in the clouds coming with incredible power and brightness. 27 He’ll send the messengers out to collect all the chosen people from the four corners of the world, from everywhere between the earth and the sky.

28 “So learn a lesson from fig trees—whenever the branches green up and start sprouting leaves and then everyone knows that summer is close. 29 So too whenever you see all these things happening, you know that the end of this current world is close. 30 I can assure you that the generation of people who see these things won’t die off before these latter things happen. 31 The sky and the planet might collapse, but my teachings will never become irrelevant.

32 [ref]“But as for the date or time when all this will happen, only the father knows that—even the son and messengers don’t know. 33 So watch out, observe current events, and be praying, because you won’t know exactly when all this will happen. 34 [ref]It can all be compared to a man who was about to leave his house and go on a trip. Before he leaves, he gives certain jobs and responsibilities to his various slaves, and instructs his security guard to stay alert. 35 So you all watch and stay alert, because you don’t know when the master of the house might return—perhaps one evening or at midnight, or at dawn or maybe mid-morning. 36 You certainly don’t want to be caught napping when he comes. 37 And what I’m telling you now, I tell everyone: stay alert and watch.”

14 [ref]Now it was two days before the Passover Feast and the Flat Bread Celebration, and the chief priests and the religious teachers were trying to figure out how they could have Yeshua set up so they could arrest him and have him executed, 2 but they knew that the Feast wouldn’t be a good time because the people would protest in Yeshua’s favour.

3 [ref]Meanwhile, Yeshua was in Bethany at the home of Simon who had previously had leprosy. Yeshua was sitting there when a woman came in with a hand-crafted container of very expensive fragrant oil. Breaking open the sealed flask, she poured the fragrant oil over Yeshua’s head. 4 Immediately some started quietly grumbling about the extravagant waste, 5 then they scolded the woman because a flask of genuine lotion like this could easily fetch almost a year’s wages if it was sold.

6 But Yeshua spoke up, “What do you think you’re doing abusing her—leave her alone! She’s done something very good for me. 7 [ref]You’ll always have poor people around, and you can help them whenever you want to, but I won’t be around forever. 8 She has performed the traditional anointing of my body in advance of my burial. 9 And I can assure you that wherever the good news is proclaimed around the world, what she has done today will be part of the story and she’ll be remembered for it.”

10 Then Yudas Iscariot, one of Yeshua’s twelve apprentices, visited the chief priests to offer to hand Yeshua over to them. 11 When they heard this, they were very pleased and promised to pay him well, and Yudas asked them about the most convenient way for them to get hold of Yeshua.

12 On the first day of the Flat Bread Celebration when the lambs would be slaughtered ready for the special Passover meal, Yeshua’s apprentices asked him, “Where do you want us to get everything ready for our Passover meal?”

13 So Yeshua sent off two of them with these instructions, “Go into town and a man carrying a pitcher of water will meet you there. Just follow him 14 until he goes into a house. Then find the owner of the house and tell him that the teacher wants to know the location of the guestroom where he and his apprentices can celebrate the Passover meal. 15 He’ll show you a large, furnished room upstairs—that’s where you can get everything ready.”

16 So the two of them went off into the town, and everything happened there exactly as Yeshua had told them, and so they prepared the special meal there.

17 As the evening approached, Yeshua went in for dinner with his twelve apprentices. 18 [ref]As they were sitting around eating, he told them, “I’ll tell you frankly that one of you eating with me here will hand me over to be arrested.” 19 That upset them, and several of them individually asked, “Surely it couldn’t be me?”

20 Then he continued, “It’s one of you twelve—the one who dips his bread in the sauce at the same time as me. 21 Indeed it’s written in the scriptures that humanity’s child will be arrested, but on the other hand, what a tragedy it’ll be for the one who hands him over—in fact it would be better for that man if he was never born.”

The Lord’s Supper; The Institution of the Lord’s Supper; Communion

(Matthew 26.26-30; Luke 22.14-20; 1 Corinthians 11.23-25)

22 As they carried on eating, he took some bread, blessed God, broke it apart and gave a piece to them, saying, “Take this bread—it’s my body.”

23 Then he picked up a cup, gave thanks to God, and passed it around so they could each drink from it, 24 [ref]saying, “This is the blood of my contract that will be poured out for many people. 25 I can assure you that I won’t drink anything made from grapes until I drink new juice in God’s kingdom.”

Peter’s Denial Foretold

26 And after they’d sung some songs, they left the town and went across to the Mount of Olives.

27 [ref]Then Yeshua continued his teaching, “All of you will stumble because it’s written in the scriptures: ‘I’ll strike down the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered.’ 28 [ref]But after I come back to life, I’ll go on ahead of you back to Galilee.”

29 But Peter contradicted him, “Even if everyone else stumbles, I won’t!”

30 And Yeshua responded, “I can assure you that you’ll renounce me three times this very night, before the rooster crows early tomorrow morning.”

31 But Peter argued forcibly, “Even if I had to die with you, I would never disown you!”

And all the others said similar things.

32 They walked along until they came to a piece of land called Gethsemane where Yeshua told his apprentices to sit down while he prayed. 33 He took Peter and Yacob and Yohan further in with him where he stared off in a daze but was obviously very distressed. 34 He told the three of them, “My soul is deathly sad! You guys just stay here and keep alert.”

35 He went ahead a little way, where he knelt on the ground with his head down and prayed—asking if it was possible to avoid what was ahead of him. 36 But he said, “Father, I know that you can do anything. Let me avoid this suffering, but yes I do know, it doesn’t matter what I want but rather what you’ve planned.”

37 Then he went back and found the others sleeping. He asked Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Couldn’t you stay awake even for a single hour? 38 You all need to stay alert and be careful not to give into temptation. I know your spirits are enthusiastic on one hand, but it’s still easy to give in to the moment.”

39 Then he went further in again and prayed as before, 40 but when he returned again, he found them all asleep because they were tired, but they couldn’t really find any excuse to give.

41 The third time that Yeshua returned, he said to them, “Ah, you’re all sleeping again and having a good rest. It’s well earned but the time has come for humanity’s child to be handed over to evil men. 42 Come on—get up—we need to go! Look, the one who’ll hand me over is on his way.”

43 Even while Yeshua was still speaking, Yudas reached him, followed by a crowd from the chief priests, the religious teachers, and the elders—many armed with swords and clubs. 44 Yudas had prearranged a signal with them that anyone who he greeted with a kiss, they should grab that person and lead him away under guard.

45 So he walked right up to Yeshua and said, “My honoured teacher,” and greeted him with a kiss. 46 Then the others with him grabbed Yeshua and secured him. 47 But one of the ones with Yeshua that was beside him, drew his sword and struck a slave of the chief priest, cutting off the man’s ear. 48 Yeshua spoke to the crowd, “Did you all bring swords and clubs to try to capture me like you’d chase down a thief? 49 [ref]I was standing there teaching in the temple every day and you could have arrested me, but it’s happened this way to ensure that the what’s written in scriptures will be fulfilled.”

50 Meanwhile, the others who’d been with Yeshua had taken off. 51 One young fellow was wearing a single linen robe, and when the crowd tried to grab him, 52 it came off in the struggle and he ran away stark naked.

53 The guards led Yeshua away to the chief priest’s residence, and all the chief priests and the elders and the religious teachers gathered there also. 54 Peter followed along from a distance and went in as far as the courtyard of the residence where he joined the servants who were sitting around the fire keeping warm. 55 Inside, the chief priests and all the council were trying to establish a case against Yeshua so he could be sentenced to death, but they weren’t coming up with anything. 56 Several people were making up charges against him, but none of the accusers’ stories agreed with each other.

57 Eventually some of them stood up and offered this false charge: 58 [ref]“We heard him say that he would demolish this temple made by many labourers, and within three days he’d build another one without any helpers.” 59 But even then, they couldn’t get their accusations to align with each other.

60 Nevertheless the chief priest in the middle of the council stood up and asked Yeshua, “Aren’t you going to defend yourself? These men are accusing you of these things.”

61 But Yeshua didn’t say anything. So the chief priest asked again, “Is it true that you’re the chosen one that God promised to send—the son of the blessed God?”

62 [ref]Yeshua replied, “I am. And you will all see humanity’s child sitting in the honoured position by the powerful God and coming through the clouds in the sky.”

63 Then the chief priest tore his own robe to show his disgust and shouted, “We certainly don’t need any more witnesses now! 64 [ref]You yourselves all heard him insult God. What sentence does that deserve?”

So the leaders there agreed that Yeshua needed to be sentenced to death.

65 Then various people started spitting on him, and blindfolding him and beating him saying, “Ha, tell us who that was!” Even the servants joined in to slap him.

66 Meanwhile, Peter was down in the courtyard when one of the chief priest’s servant girls came out, 67 and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked more closely and said, “Hey, you were with that Yeshua from Nazareth!”

68 But he denied it, “I don’t know him and I don’t know why you think I would!” And he moved away from the fire.

69 But the girl that had seen him said to some of the others standing around, “That guy’s one of them.”

70 But again Peter denied it.

A little while later, some of those standing there said, “You must be one of them because you’re from Galilee.”

71 Now Peter started swearing and cursing and said, “I’ve never even met that fellow that you’re all talking about!”

72 Right then the rooster crowed for the second time and Peter remembered now what Yeshua had told him—how he would renounce Yeshua three times before the rooster crowed—and he broke down and cried.

15 First thing in the morning, the chief priests called a meeting with the elders and the religious teachers and all the council, and they ordered that Yeshua be tied up and taken over to Governor Pilate. 2 There Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“You said it,” replied Yeshua.

3 Then the chief priests started hurling accusations against Yeshua, 4 so Pilate asked him again, “Don’t you have anything to say? Listen to all these accusations they’re making against you.”

5 But Pilate was astounded that Yeshua didn’t answer any further.

6 Now at time of the Jewish Passover, Pilate would normally pardon one prisoner for them and release him. 7 There was another prisoner at the time named Barabbas who was an activist accused of murder. 8 By now, the crowd had arrived and asked Pilate to release a prisoner as usual at Passover, 9 so he asked them, “Do you want me to release the King of the Jews for you?” 10 (This was because Pilate was well aware that the chief priests had brought Yeshua because they were jealous of his popularity.) 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to start saying that it was Barabbas that they wanted released, 12 so Pilate asked again, “Then what should I do with this man that you call the King of the Jews?”

13 The crowd yelled back, “Execute him on a pole.”

14 “What has he even done wrong?” Pilate demanded.

But they just yelled louder, “Execute him on a pole!”

15 Now Pilate wanted to placate the crowd, so he had Barabbas released while he had Yeshua flogged and then handed over to the execution squad.

16 So the soldiers led Yeshua inside the palace that was the governor’s residence, and called in the rest of the battalion. 17 They mocked Yeshua by dressing him in a kingly robe, and after someone twisted some thorns together into a mock crown, they pressed it onto his head, 18 and began saluting him, “Greetings, king of the Jews.” 19 They took turns whacking his head with a stick and spitting on him, while others knelt down in front of him and pretended to be bowing to him. 20 After they’d finished having fun mocking him, they took the purple robe off him, and put his own robe back on him. Then they led him outside towards the execution spot.

21 [ref]As they walked out of the city, they came across a man coming in from the country. He was Simon from Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus, and the soldiers forced him to carry the execution pole, 22 and so they all arrived at Golgotha (which means ‘Place of the skull’). 23 There the soldiers went to give some spiced wine to Yeshua, but he declined it. 24 [ref]So they carried out the execution, taking Yeshua’s clothes and drawing straws to see who would get what. 25 By now it was around 9am, and they affixed Yeshua to the pole. 26 The charge had been written out and attached at the top: “The king of the Jews.” 27 That morning, two thieves were also executed there—one on each side of Yeshua.

28 ◘ 29 [ref]As people passed by on the path, they insulted Yeshua, shaking their heads and shouting, “Hoy there! You who reckoned you could demolish the temple and rebuild it in three days, 30 come down from that pole and save yourself.”

31 Similarly the chief priests and the religious teachers laughed together and mocked, “He did miracles for others, but he can’t even save himself. 32 The so-called ‘chosen one’ or ‘king of Yisrael’. Now, if he’d just come down from there, then we’d be able to believe him.”

Even the other two being executed with him were deriding him.

33 At noon, it got dark everywhere, until around 3pm, 34 [ref]when Yeshua shouted loudly, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”

35 Some of the people standing nearby thought he was calling the prophet Eliyyah (Elijah). 36 [ref]One of them ran, and soaked a sponge in some sour wine, then put it on a stick and held it up for Yeshua to drink, saying, “Hang on. Let’s see if Eliyyah does come to get him down.”

37 But just then Yeshua uttered a loud cry and exhaled his last breath.

38 [ref](Back in the temple, the curtain tore down the middle from the top to the bottom.) 39 When Yeshua died, the Roman centurion who had been standing back watching everything said, “This man was definitely God’s son.”

40 [ref]Further back, there was also a group of women observing everything. These included Maria from Magdala, Maria the mother of young Yacob and Yoses, and Salome, 41 and others who had followed Yeshua around Galilee and helped look after him, along with many others who had come down with him to Yerushalem.

42 As evening came, it was now the Preparation Day, i.e., the day before the Rest Day. 43 Yosef (who’d come from the city of Arimathea and one who was waiting for the coming of God’s kingdom), a prominent council member, steeled himself up and went in to see the governor to get permission to transfer Yeshua’s body. 44 Governor Pilate didn’t think he’d be dead yet, so he called an army commander to find out if Yeshua had indeed died. 45 As soon as he found out, he gave Yosef permission, 46 so Yosef and his companions went and bought some linen burial cloth and then, removing Yeshua’s body from the pole, wrapped it in the cloth and placed it in a burial chamber that had been chiselled into a rockface. Then they rolled a rock across the opening. 47 Others were watching and noted where the body had been laid, including Maria from Magdala and Maria who was Yoses’ mother.

16 After the Rest Day was over, Maria from Magdala and Maria the mother of Yacob and Salome, went and bought some traditional burial spices that evening to take to the burial chamber and place with the body. 2 Then very early on Sunday morning they went to the chamber, arriving just as the sun was rising. 3 But they realised that they didn’t have anyone with them to roll the rock away that was covering the entrance. 4 However, when they looked they saw that the very large rock had already been rolled away. 5 So they went on into the burial chamber and were totally stunned to find a young man dressed in white, sitting in there on the side.

6 He assured them, “Don’t be surprised. I know you’re looking for Yeshua from Nazareth, the one who was executed on a pole. But see there where his body was—he’s not there because he came back to life. 7 [ref]So you three should go and tell his apprentices, and Peter in particular, that he’s going to go up ahead of them to Galilee and you’ll all see him up there, just as he already told you.”

8 So they left the chamber and took off running, still stunned and shaking and too scared to stop and to talk to anyone.

It’s not certain whether or not the following longer ending of this document was actually penned by the same author (Mark), or whether it was appended slightly later. Expert scholars are divided on this, and hence it’s included here for your consideration:

[The most reliable early manuscripts and other ancient witnesses do not have Mark 16.9-20.]

9 After coming back to life early on Sunday morning, Yeshua appeared first to Maria from Magdala. (She was the one that he had once commanded seven demons to leave.) 10 After leaving him, she went and told his followers who were mourning and weeping at his loss. 11 But when she told them that he is alive again and that she’d seen him, they simply didn’t believe her.

12 Later on, Yeshua appeared in a different form to two of his followers on the path as they left Yerushalem and headed out to the countryside, 13 but when they hurried back and told the others, no one believed them.

14 Later again when the eleven apprentices were sitting around eating, Yeshua appeared in the room and scolded them for not believing and for being so stubborn when they hadn’t believed others who had told them that he’d come back from the dead. 15 Then he instructed them, “Travel around all the world[ref] and tell the good message to everyone. 16 Anyone who believes and gets immersed in water will be saved, however, those who refuse to believe will be condemned to death. 17 Those who believe will be able to do miracles: they’ll be able to use my authority to command demons to leave and to speak new languages, 18 and they’ll be able to pick up snakes. If they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them, and they will place their hands on people and make them better.”

19 When Yeshua had finished speaking, he was lifted up into heaven and seated in the honoured place[ref] next to God. 20 Then his followers went around preaching everywhere, and God worked through them and so they were able to confirm the truth of their preaching by doing miracles.