The Word Made Fresh
1The Passover festival of Unleavened Bread was approaching. 2The chief priests and scribes were searching for a way to have Jesus put to death, but they were afraid of the people. 3Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, influenced by Satan, 4went to confer with the chief priests and temple police officers about how he might betray him to them. 5They were quite pleased and agreed to pay him. 6Then he agreed to look for an opportunity to turn him over to them when there was no crowd around.
7The day of Unleavened Bread came, the day on which the Passover lamb was to be sacrificed. 8Jesus sent Peter and John to prepare the Passover meal for them. 9“Where do you want us to prepare it,” they asked.
10He said, “When you enter the city you will be met by a man carrying a jar of water. Follow him into the house he enters 11and tell the owner of the house, ‘The teacher asks where the guest room is for him to share the Passover with his disciples.’ 12He will show you a large upstairs room, already furnished. Make the preparations for us there.”
13They went and found everything as Jesus had told them, and prepared the Passover meal. 14At the proper time Jesus came and sat at the table with the apostles. 15He said, “I have deeply desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16I will not eat it again until all is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”
17Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and said, “Take this and share it among yourselves. 18I will not drink the fruit of the vine again until the kingdom of God arrives.”
19Then he took a loaf of bread, gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to them. He said, “This is my body, given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 10And after supper he took the cup and said, “This cup is poured out for you. It represents the new covenant that is in my blood. 21But now look; the one who has betrayed me is with me. His hand is on the table. 22The Son of Man will be taken as it has been decreed, but too bad for the one who betrays him!”
23Then they began to ask each other which of them could do such a thing. 24They also began to argue about which one of them was the most important. 25But Jesus told them, “The rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them and those above them are called their benefactors. 26But that is not the case with you; the greatest among you must be like the youngest of you, and the leader must be a servant. 27Who is the most important – the one who sits at the table or the one who serves? It’s the one at the table, isn’t it? Yet, I am with you as one who serves. 28You are the ones who have been with me through all my trials, 29and I give you, just as my Father has given me, a kingdom, 30and you will dine at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel.
31“Simon, Simon, listen to me. Satan has sought permission to sift all of you like wheat, 32but I have prayed that your faith won’t fail, Simon, and once you have turned back, encourage your brothers.”
33Then Simon told him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison, and even to die with you!” 34Jesus then said to him, “I tell you, Peter, that before the rooster crows in the morning, you will have denied that you know me three times.”
35Then he said to them, “When I sent you out without a purse or sandals or any belongings, did you lack anything?”
“No,” they said. “We lacked nothing.”
36Then Jesus told them, “But now, if you have a purse you must take it, and a sack as well. And if you have no sword, sell you cloak and buy one. 37I’m telling you this scripture is about me: ‘And he was counted among the criminals.’ And what is written about me is happening now.”
38They said, “Lord, there are two swords here.”
“That is enough,” he replied.
39He left then, and as was his custom he went to the Mount of Olives. The disciples followed him. 40When he got there he told them, “Pray that you won’t give in to temptation.” 41Then he went alone about a stone’s throw, where he knelt and prayed, 42“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; but let your will be done, not mine.”
43Then a heavenly angel appeared to him and strengthened him. 44In anguish he prayed even more fervently, his sweat like drops of blood falling to the ground. 45After he prayed, he got up and returned to his disciples. They were asleep, exhausted with grief. 46He said, “Why are you sleeping? Wake up and pray that you won’t fall into temptation.”
47While he was telling them this, a crowd suddenly arrived, led by Judas, one of the twelve. He approached Jesus to kiss him, 48but Jesus said, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”
49When those who were with him saw what was happening, they asked, “Lord, should we strike with the swords?” 50One of them struck the high priest’s servant, and cut off his right ear. 51But Jesus said, “No more of this!” and touched the man’s ear and healed him.
52Then he said to the chief priests and temple officers and elders, “Have you come with swords and clubs as if I were a criminal? 53I was with you day after day in the temple, and you never tried to arrest me. But this is your hour, and you have the advantage of darkness.”
54Then they arrested him and led him away. They brought him to the high priest’s house. Peter was following at a distance. 55They started a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat around it. Peter sat with them. 56Then a servant girl saw him in the firelight. She looked at him and said, “This man was with him.” 57Peter denied it. “Woman,” he said, “I don’t even know him.”
58A little later someone else looked at him and said, “You’re one of them, too!” Peter said, “I am not, mister!” 59About an hour later another one insisted, “This man was certainly with him; he’s a Galilean.” 60But Peter said, “Mister, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” At that moment, before he had finished speaking, the rooster crowed. 61Then the Lord turned and looked at Peter, and Peter remembered what the Lord had told him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.” 62Then Peter left, and went out weeping bitterly.
63The men who were holding Jesus began to make fun of him. 64They blindfolded him and asked him, “Prophesy! Who struck you that time?” 65And they kept on piling many other insults on him.
66When morning dawned the elders of the people gathered with the chief priests and scribes and brought Jesus before their council. 67They said, “If you are the Christ, tell us.”
He answered, “If I tell you, you won’t believe it. 68And if I ask you anything, you won’t answer. 69But now the Son of Man will be seated at God’s powerful right hand.”
70They asked him then, “Are you the Son of God?”
He replied, “You say that I am.”
71Then they declared, “What more evidence do we need? We have heard it from his own lips!”
Commentary
1-2: This is the second time Luke tells us that the chief priests and scribes were afraid of the people. On the first occasion they did not put Jesus to death because they were in a public setting and feared the reaction of the people (20:19). Now they plot to find a surreptitious way to kill him because of their fear of the people’s reaction.
3-6: This is only the second mention of Judas Iscariot in Luke; the first time he is named, Luke tells us that he will betray Jesus (6:16). He conspires with the chief priests to do so and promises, for a fee, to do it when no crowd is around.
7-13: Once again we find that Jesus has made some advance preparations. He had arranged for a donkey to carry him into Jerusalem (19:29-31), and now we learn he has made preparations for the Passover meal with his disciples. He sends Peter and John to set things up. When they enter the city they are met by a man carrying a water jar. It is a task usually reserved for women, thus making him conspicuous when they arrive at the gate. He shows them the place and they make the preparations.
14-23: Luke’s version of the Lord’s Supper differs from Matthew’s (26:26-29) and Mark’s (14:22-25) account. For one thing, it is twice as long. Jesus begins by telling them that he has “eagerly desired to eat this Passover.” Luke’s account presents the occasion as a highly symbolic meal. Just as the Passover stands at the center of Jewish faith and remembrance, the Last Supper stands at the center of Christian faith and remembrance. The Passover meal points to an event in history; so does the Last Supper. The Passover event resulted in the freedom of the Hebrew people from slavery in Egypt. The Last Supper reminds us of the event which results in our freedom from slavery to sin and death. On the night of the Passover the first-born children of the Egyptians died. On the day after the Last Supper the first-born (and only) child of God was put to death. On the night of the Passover the people marked their doorways with the blood of the lamb. Whenever we celebrate the Lord’s Supper we drink the wine-now-blood, thus marking ourselves and our bodies with the blood of the Lamb.
24-30: It is incredible that at this dramatic moment the disciples should renew their old quarrel about which of them is the most important. Once again Jesus reminds them, more gently this time, that servanthood is more important than status. Then, knowing his time is short, he begins to get his affairs in order and bequeaths to them seats at his table to judge the twelve tribes of Israel. In the context of Jesus’ teaching, however, we must remember that to judge means to render justice for, not to lord it over, the people.
31-34: It is already evening, and Jesus tells Simon that before the cock crows in the morning he will have denied Jesus three times; but he also tells him that such behavior is expected of him and he is not to wallow in regrets but rather must be a leader behind whom the others can rally.
35-38: Jesus knows that immediately after his death his followers will be in danger, and he tells them to prepare themselves to become hunted as outlaws, even to arm themselves. This advice is surprising given all we know about Jesus to this point, but when he indicates that two swords will be enough we begin to think that perhaps he is simply exaggerating the need for them to be prepared for the aftermath of his death.
39-46: It is a surprise to many, but the name Gethsemane is only mentioned twice in the Bible (Matthew 26:36 and Mark 14:32). Luke only tells us that Jesus had a custom of leaving the city and going to the Mt. of Olives for prayer. He leaves the disciples to pray alone, and is inspired by the appearance of an angel to pray more fervently until he is sweating profusely (though not all the ancient manuscripts contain verses 43-44). The disciples have trouble staying awake, a fact reported by Matthew and Mark as well, and we are led to believe that sleeping outdoors on the Mt. of Olives was the usual thing for them to do while they were in Jerusalem.
47-53: Judas arrives with the temple police to arrest Jesus. There is a brief skirmish, reported in all four gospels but only John tells us that Peter is the one who whacks off the ear of the high priest’s servant (John 18:10 — John also tells us the servant’s name is Malchus).
54-62: Jesus is taken to the high priest’s house; Peter follows. A crowd has gathered in the courtyard and a fire kindled. Three times an onlooker connects Peter to Jesus, and three times he denies being involved with him. A rooster crows and Peter is convicted. Still, even though he has denied Jesus three times, he is the only one who followed them, and we must give him credit for that much.
63-65: Meanwhile, the violent treatment of Jesus begins in earnest.
66-71: This first “trial” is an unofficial one. They are looking for evidence to present to the Roman authorities. The chief priests and scribes attempt to get Jesus to convict himself, but he deftly dodges their interrogation, never really saying anything that can be used against him. Still, though he is noncommittal at the question about whether he is God’s Son, they twist his words to convict him of claiming to be God’s Son, the Messiah, and as such he is an enemy of Rome. Case closed.
Takeaway
There is ample evidence that Jesus knew what was going to happen to him in Jerusalem. He went despite that knowledge. At some point in our lives, we will be confronted with a situation in which identifying ourselves as a faithful follower of Christ may put us in an awkward position. Courage is the hallmark of faithfulness. “Be not afraid, whate’er betide, God will take care of you.”