New Testament Plan

¹Jesus began to speak to them [the chief priests, scribes and elders who were questioning Him] in parables: "A man planted a vineyard and put awall around it, and dug a pit for the wine press and built a tower; and he rented it out to tenant farmers and left the country.

²When the harvest season came he sent a servant to the tenants, in order to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard.

³They took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed.

⁴Again he sent them another servant, and they [threw stones and] wounded him in the head, and treated him disgracefully.

⁵And he sent another, and that one they killed; then many others—some they beat and some they killed.

⁶He still had one man left to send, a beloved son; he sent him last of all to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.'

⁷But those tenants said to each other, 'This man is the heir! Come on, let us kill him [and destroy the evidence], and his inheritance will be ours!'

⁸So they took him and killed him, and threw his body outside the vineyard.

⁹What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants, and will give the vineyard to others.

¹⁰Have you not even read this Scripture: 'The stone which the builders regarded as unworthy and rejected, This [very stone] has become the chief Cornerstone

¹¹This came about from the Lord, And it is marvelous and wonderful in our eyes'?"

¹²And they were looking for a way to seize Him, but they were afraid of the crowd; for they knew that He spoke this parable in reference to [and as a charge against] them. And so they left Him and went away.

¹³Then they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Jesus in order to trap Him into making a statement [that they could use against Him].

¹⁴They came and said to Him, "Teacher, we know that You are truthful and have no personal bias toward anyone; for You are not influenced by outward appearances or social status, but in truth You teach the way of God. Is it lawful [according to Jewish law and tradition] to pay the poll-tax to [ Tiberius] Caesar, or not?

¹⁵Should we pay [the tax] or should we not pay?" But knowing their hypocrisy, He asked them, "Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a coin (denarius) to look at."

¹⁶So they brought one. Then He asked them, "Whose image and inscription is this?" They said to Him, "Caesar's."

¹⁷Jesus said to them, "Pay to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they were greatly amazed at Him.

¹⁸Some Sadducees (who say that there is no resurrection) came to Him, and began questioning Him, saying,

¹⁹"Teacher, Moses wrote for us [a law] that if a man's brother dies and leaves a wife but leaves no child, his brother is tomarry the widow and raise up children for his brother.

²⁰There were seven brothers; the first [one] took a wife, and died leaving no children.

²¹The second brother married her, and died leaving no children; and the third likewise;

²²and so all seven [married her and died, and] left no children. Last of all the woman died also.

²³In the resurrection, whose wife will she be? For all seven [brothers] were married to her."

²⁴Jesus said to them, "Is this not why you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures [that teach the resurrection] nor the power of God [who is able to raise the dead]?

²⁵For when they rise from the dead, they do not marry nor are they given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.

²⁶But concerning the raising of the dead, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?

²⁷He is not the God of the dead, but of the living; you are greatly mistaken and you are deceiving yourselves!"

²⁸Then one of the scribes [an expert in Mosaic Law] came up and listened to them arguing [with one another], and noticing that Jesus answered them well, asked Him, "Which commandment is first and most important of all?"

²⁹Jesus answered, "The first and most important one is: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord;

³⁰and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul (life), and with all your mind (thought, understanding), and with all your strength.'

³¹This is the second: 'You shall [unselfishly]love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."

³²The scribe said to Him, "Admirably answered, Teacher; You truthfully stated that He is One, and there is no other but Him;

³³and to love Him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to [unselfishly] love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."

³⁴When Jesus saw that he answered thoughtfully and intelligently, He said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And after that, no one would dare to ask Him any more questions.

³⁵Jesus began to say, as He taught in [a portico or court of] the temple, " How can the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David?

³⁶David himself said [when inspired] by the Holy Spirit, 'The Lord (the Father) said to my Lord (the Son, the Messiah), "Sit at My right hand, Until I put Your enemies under Your feet."'

³⁷David himself calls Him (the Son, the Messiah) 'Lord'; so how can it be that He is David's Son?" The large crowd enjoyed hearing Jesus and listened to Him with delight.

³⁸In [the course of] His teaching He was saying, "Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes [displaying their prominence], and like to receive respectful greetings in the market places,

³⁹and [they love] the chief seats in the synagogues and the places of distinction and honor at banquets,

⁴⁰[these scribes] who devour (confiscate) widows' houses, and offer long prayers for appearance's sake [to impress others]. These men will receive greater condemnation."

⁴¹And He sat down opposite the [temple] treasury, and began watching how the people were putting money into the treasury. And many rich people were putting in large sums.

⁴²A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a mite.

⁴³Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, this poor widow put in [proportionally] more than all the contributors to the treasury.

⁴⁴For they all contributed from their surplus, but she, from her poverty, put in all she had, all she had to live on."

¹As He was coming out of the temple [grounds], one of His disciples said to Him, "Teacher, look what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!"

²Jesus replied to him, "You see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left on another which will not be torn down!"

³As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked Him privately,

⁴"Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be fulfilled?"

⁵Jesus began to say to them, "Be careful and see to it that no one misleads you.

⁶Many will come in My name [misusing My name or claiming to be the Messiah], saying, 'I am He!' and will deceive and mislead many.

⁷When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed (frightened, troubled); these things must take place, but the end is not yet.

⁸For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These things are the beginning of the birth pangs [the intolerable anguish and suffering].

⁹"But be on your guard; they will turn you over to courts, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand [as accused] before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them.

¹⁰The gospel [that is, the good news regarding the way of salvation] must first be preached to all the [Gentile] nations.

¹¹When they take you and turn you over [to the court], do not worry beforehand about what to say, but say whatever is given to you [by God] in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but it is the Holy Spirit [who will speak through you].

¹²Brother will betray brother to [be put to] death, and a father [will hand over] his child; and children will rise up and take a stand against parents and have them put to death.

¹³You will be hated by everyone because of [your association with] My name, but the one who [patiently perseveres empowered by the Holy Spirit and] endures to the end, he will be saved.

¹⁴"But when you see theabomination of desolation standing [in the temple sanctuary] where it ought not to be (let the reader understand) then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains.

¹⁵Whoever is on the housetop must not go down [to enter the house], or go inside to take anything out of his house;

¹⁶whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his coat.

¹⁷And woe to those women who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!

¹⁸Pray that it will not occur in winter,

¹⁹for at that time there will be such tribulation as has not occurred, from the beginning of the creation which God made, until now—and never will [be again].

²⁰And if the Lord had not shortened the days, no human life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect, whom He chose [for Himself], He shortened the days.

²¹Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)!' or, 'Look, He is there!' do not believe it;

²²for false Christs and false prophets will arise, and they will provide signs and wonders in order to deceive, if [such a thing were] possible, even the elect [those God has chosen for Himself].

²³But be on your guard; I have told you everything in advance.

²⁴"But in those days, after [the suffering and distress of] that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light,

²⁵and the stars will be falling from the sky, and the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken.

²⁶Then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory [in royal majesty and splendor].

²⁷And then He will send out the angels, and will gather together His elect [those He has chosen for Himself] from the four winds, from the farthest end of the earth to the farthest end of heaven.

²⁸"Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: as soon as its branch becomes tender and it puts out its leaves, you recognize that summer is near.

²⁹Even so, you too, when you see these things happening, know [for certain] that He is near, right at the door.

³⁰I assure you and most solemnly say to you, this generation [the people living when these signs and events begin] will not pass away until all these things take place.

³¹Heaven and earth [as now known] will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

³²But of that [exact] day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son [in His humanity], but the Father alone.

³³"Be on guard and stay constantly alert[and pray]; for you do not know when the appointed time will come.

³⁴It is like a man away on a journey, who when he left home put his servants in charge, each with his particular task, and also ordered the doorkeeper to be continually alert.

³⁵Therefore, be continually on the alert—for you do not know when the master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning—

³⁶[stay alert,] in case he should come suddenly and unexpectedly and find you asleep and unprepared.

³⁷What I say to you I say to everyone, 'Be on the alert [stay awake and be continually cautious]!'"

¹It was now two days before the Passover and [the festival of] Unleavened Bread, and the chief priests and the scribes were searching for a deceitful way to arrest Jesus and kill Him;

²but they were saying, "Not during the festival, for the people might riot."

³While He was in Bethany [as a guest] at the home of Simon the leper, and reclining at the table, a woman came with an alabaster vial of very costly and precious perfume of pure nard; and she broke the vial and poured the perfume over His head.

⁴But there were some who were indignantly remarking to one another, "Why has this perfume been wasted?

⁵For this perfume might have been sold for more than three hundred denarii [a laborer's wages for almost a year], and the money given to the poor." And they scolded her.

⁶But Jesus said, "Let her alone; why are you bothering her and causing trouble? She has done a good and beautiful thing to Me.

⁷For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you wish you can do something good to them; but you will not always have Me.

⁸She has done what she could; she has anointed My body beforehand for the burial.

⁹I assure you and most solemnly say to you, wherever the good news [regarding salvation] is proclaimed throughout the world, what she has done will be told in memory of her."

¹⁰Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve [disciples], went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them.

¹¹When they heard this they were delighted, and promised to give him money. And he began looking for an opportune time to betray Jesus.

¹²On the first day [of the festival] of Unleavened Bread, when [as was customary] they sacrificed the Passover lamb, His disciples asked Him, "Where do You want us to go and prepare for You to eat the Passover?"

¹³And He sent two of His disciples, saying to them, "Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you; follow him;

¹⁴and say to the owner of the house he enters, 'The Teacher asks, "Where is My guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?"'

¹⁵He will show you a large upstairs room, furnished and ready [with carpets and dining couches]; prepare [the supper] for us there."

¹⁶The disciples left and went to the city and found everything just as He had told them, and they prepared the Passover.

¹⁷When it was evening, He came with the twelve [disciples].

¹⁸While they were reclining at the table, Jesus said, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you that one of you will betray Me—one who is eating with Me."

¹⁹They began to be grieved and deeply distressed and to say to Him one by one, "Surely not I?"

²⁰And He replied, "It is one of the twelve [disciples], one who is dipping bread in the bowl with Me.

²¹For the Son of Man goes [to the cross] just as it is written [in Scripture] of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born."

²²While they were eating, Jesus took bread and blessed it [giving thanks and praise], and He broke it, and gave it to them and said, "Take it. This is My body."

²³And when He had taken a cup [of wine] and given thanks, He gave it to them, and they all drank from it.

²⁴And He said to them, "This is My blood of the [new] covenant, [My blood] which is being poured out for many [for the forgiveness of sins].

²⁵I assure you and most solemnly say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God."

²⁶After they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

²⁷Jesus said to them, "You will all fall away [and be ashamed and be afraid to be associated with Me as disciples], because it is written, 'I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.'

²⁸But after I have been raised [from the dead], I will go ahead of you to Galilee."

²⁹But Peter said to Him, "Even if they all fall away [and desert You, ashamed and afraid of being associated with You], yet I will not [do so]!"

³⁰Jesus said to him, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, this very night, before a rooster crows twice, you will deny [that you even know] Me three times."

³¹But Peter kept saying insistently, "If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!" And they all were saying the same thing as well.

³²Then they went to a place called Gethsemane; and Jesus said to His disciples, "Sit down here until I have prayed."

³³He took Peter and James and John with Him, and He began to be deeply distressed and troubled [extremely anguished at the prospect of what was to come].

³⁴And He said to them, "My soul is deeply grieved and overwhelmed with sorrow, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch."

³⁵After going a little farther, He fell to the ground [distressed by the weight of His spiritual burden] and began to pray that if it were possible [in the Father's will], the hour [of suffering and death for the sins of mankind] might pass from Him.

³⁶He was saying, " Abba, Father! All things are possible for You; take this cup [of judgment] away from Me; but not what I will, but what You will."

³⁷And He came back and found them sleeping, and He said to Peter, "Simon, are you asleep? Were you unable to keep watch for one hour?

³⁸Keep [actively] watching and praying so that you do not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the body is weak."

³⁹He went away again and prayed, saying the same words.

⁴⁰And again He came back and found them sleeping, because their eyes were very heavy; and they did not know how to answer Him.

⁴¹He came back a third time and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough [of that]! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners.

⁴²Get up, let us go. Look, my betrayer is near!"

⁴³And at once, while He was still speaking, Judas [Iscariot], one of the twelve [disciples], came up, and with him a crowd of men with swords and clubs, who came from the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders [of the Sanhedrin].

⁴⁴Now the betrayer had given them a signal, saying, "Whomever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him and lead Him away safely [under guard]."

⁴⁵When Judas came, immediately he went up to Jesus and said, "Rabbi (Master)!" and he kissed Him [forcefully].

⁴⁶They laid hands on Him and seized Him.

⁴⁷But one of the bystanders [Simon Peter] drew his sword and struck [Malchus] the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear.

⁴⁸Jesus said to them, "Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me, as you would against a robber?

⁴⁹Day after day I was with you, teaching in the [courts and porches of the] temple, and you did not seize Me; but this has happened so that the Scriptures would be fulfilled."

⁵⁰Then all of His disciples abandoned Him and fled.

⁵¹A young man was following Him, wearing [only] a linen sheet over his naked body; and some men seized him.

⁵²But pulling free of the linen sheet, he escaped [from them] naked.

⁵³They led Jesus away to the high priest, and all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court) gathered together.

⁵⁴Peter had followed Him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest; and he was sitting with the officers [guards and servants] and warming himself at the fire.

⁵⁵Now the chief priests and the entire Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court) were trying to obtain testimony against Jesus [which they could use] to have Him [condemned and] executed, but they were not finding any.

⁵⁶For many [people] were giving false testimony against Him, but their testimonies were not consistent.

⁵⁷Some stood up and began to give false testimony against Him, saying,

⁵⁸"We heard Him say, 'I will destroy this temple (sanctuary) that was made with hands, and in three days I will build another made without hands.'"

⁵⁹Not even in this respect was their testimony consistent.

⁶⁰The high priest stood up and came forward and asked Jesus, "Have You no answer to give [in response] to what these men are testifying against You?"

⁶¹But Jesus kept silent and gave no answer at all. Again the high priest was questioning Him, and saying to Him, "Are You the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed), the Son of the Blessed One?"

⁶²Jesus said, "I am; and you will [all] see the Son of Man seated [with authority] at the right hand of Power (the Father), and coming with the clouds of heaven."

⁶³Then tearing his robe [to express his indignation], the high priest said, "What further need do we have of witnesses?

⁶⁴You have heard the blasphemy [that is, His claim to be the Son of God]. What is your decision?" And they all condemned Him to be [guilty and] deserving of death.

⁶⁵And some began to spit on Him, and to blindfold Him, and to beat Him with their fists, and to say to Him, "Prophesy [by telling us who hit you]!" Then the officers took custody of Him and struck him in the face.

⁶⁶While Peter was down below in the courtyard, one of the servant-girls of the high priest came,

⁶⁷and when she saw Peter warming himself, she looked intently at him and said, "You were with Jesus the Nazarene, too."

⁶⁸But he denied it, saying, "I neither know nor understand what you are talking about." Then he went out [of the courtyard] to the porch,[and a rooster crowed.]

⁶⁹The servant-girl saw him, and began once more to tell the bystanders, "This [man] is one of them."

⁷⁰But again he denied it. After a little while, the bystanders again said to Peter, "You are in fact one of them, for [it is clear from your accent, that] you are a Galilean, too."

⁷¹But he began to invoke a curse [on himself] and to swear [an oath], "I do not know this man you are talking about!"

⁷²Immediately a rooster crowed the second time. And Peter remembered what Jesus said to him: "Before a rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times." And thinking of this, he began weeping [in anguish].