JESUS AND HIS APOSTLES EAT OF THE PASSOVER. THE APOSTLES DISPUTE WHICH OF THEM SHALL BE GREATEST. JESUS WASHES THEIR FEET. HE TEACHES THEM HOW THEY SHALL EAT OF THE LORD'S SUPPER; GOES WITH THEM TO GETHSEMANE; PRAYS IN THE GARDEN, AND IS BETRAYED BY JUDAS.
AND now the day was come when the Jews made ready for the feast of the passover. To do this, each man among them took a lamb to the temple and killed it, as a sacrifice, before the altar. Then the priest burned its fat on the altar, but the rest of the lamb the man took to his home; there it was roasted with fire, and he and his family ate of it in the night; for, as we have read, the feast of the passover was eaten in the night. Jesus and his apostles were going to keep this feast together, and the apostles came to him and asked at what place they should make it ready. He answered, Go into Jerusalem and there shall meet you a man carrying a pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he is going, and say to the man who lives there, The Master wants thee to show us the chamber where he shall come to eat the feast of the passover with his disciples. And the man will show you a large upper room, furnished; there make ready the feast. And the disciples did as Jesus commanded, and the man showed them the room and they made the feast ready there.
In the evening Jesus came with his twelve apostles and reclined with them at the table. And he said to them, I have greatly desired to eat this passover with you before I die, for I say unto you, I will not any more eat of the lamb that has been sacrificed, until I myself have been sacrificed for the sins of the people. But the apostles did not understand him when he spoke of being sacrificed for the people. They still thought he was going to set up an earthly kingdom, and that now the time for him to do this was coming near. And they began to dispute among themselves, as they had done before, about which of them should be greatest in that kingdom. Then Jesus told them that among the people of this world, those who were great ruled over the rest. But, he said, it shall not be so with you. For whoever among you will be the greatest, let him be the most humble, and the one who will be chief, let him be as if he were the servant of all.
Then Jesus asked them which was the greatest, the person who ate at the table, or the one who served him while he was eating. Yet, he said, I am among you as the one who serves. And he arose from the table and laid aside his outer garment, and took a towel and girded himself with it. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel with which he was girded. And he came to Peter. Now Peter did not wish Jesus to wash his feet as though Jesus were his servant, and he said to him, Lord, wilt thou wash my feet? Jesus answered, Thou dost not understand why I do it now, but thou shalt know afterward. Peter said, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not thou canst not be one of my disciples. Then Peter said, Lord, wash not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus said to him, He that is washed needs only to wash his feet.
So, after he had washed their feet, and put on the garment which he had laid aside, and come to the table again, he said to them, Do you know what I have done unto you? You call me Master and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. If I, then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another's feet, for I have given you an example that you should do as I have done to you.
And as they ate of the passover, Jesus said to them, Verily, I say unto you, one of you who are eating with me shall betray me. Then the disciples were filled with sorrow, and they looked on one another wondering of whom he spoke. Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples whom Jesus loved. Peter therefore motioned to him that he should ask Jesus of whom he spoke. He then that leaned on Jesus' breast, said to him, Lord, who is it? Jesus answered, It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish. And when he had dipped the bread he gave it to Judas Iscariot. After that, Satan went into Judas. Then Jesus said to him, What thou art going to do, do quickly.
Now no man at the table knew what Jesus meant by these words. Some of them thought, because Judas carried the bag in which the money was kept, that Jesus commanded him to go and buy those things of which they had need, or else that he should give something to the poor. Then Judas went out from the house where Jesus and the apostles were. And it was night. When he was gone, Jesus said to them, I will be with you only a little while. Before I leave you, I give a new commandment unto you: it is that you love one another; as I have loved you, so shall ye also love one another. By this every one shall know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another.
And Jesus told the apostles that they would all be tempted to leave him, that night. Peter answered, Though all the rest shall leave thee I never will, for I am ready to go to prison and be put to death with thee. Jesus said, I tell thee, Peter, that this night, before the cock crows twice, thou shalt three times deny that thou knowest me. But Peter answered the more confidently, Though I should die with thee, I will not deny thee. And so they all said.
And as they were eating together, Jesus took bread and blessed it, and broke it in pieces and gave it to his apostles, saying, Take and eat, for this is my body which is broken for you. He meant that the bread was like his body, and represented it, because his body was soon to be broken and crucified, and offered up on the cross for them. Then he took some Wine in a cup, and when he had thanked God, he gave it to them and they all drank of it. And he said to them, This wine is my blood, which is shed for the forgiveness of sins. He meant that the wine was like his blood, and represented it, because his blood was very soon to be shed, like the blood of the sacrifices at the altar, so that all who believed in him might have their sins forgiven. Then he commanded his apostles to meet together, after he should be put to death, and to eat the bread and drink the wine in the same way that he had shown them; and as often as they did it to remember him.
And he talked with them, and told them not to be troubled because he was to be taken away from them. He was going to heaven, he said, to make ready a place for them there; afterward he would come and take them, so that where he was they might be. And he said to them, Obey my commandments, for it is he who obeys my commandments that loves me; and whoever loves me my Father will love.
Then he promised the apostles that his Father would send the Holy Spirit into their hearts to make them remember and understand every thing he had told them; and to teach them, also, what they should teach others. And the Holy Spirit, he said, would be their Comforter while he was away from them.
And Jesus said to them, I am the vine and ye are the branches; he meant that he was like a vine, and the apostles were like branches growing out of the vine. The good branches, he said, that bore fruit, his Father took care of, but the bad branches that bore no fruit, were cut off and taken away. And if they wanted to bear fruit, that is, if they wanted to do good works and serve him, they must stay joined to him, like branches to the vine, for without him to help them they could do nothing that was good. Then he told the apostles he had chosen them to bear fruit, and preach, and do good works among the people. Yet they must remember what he had before told them, that the people would not love them for doing these things, but would persecute them.
And now, he said, you have sorrow, because I am to be taken away from you; but after I have risen from the dead, I will see you again, and then you shall have joy.
And he commanded them when they asked anything from God, to ask it in his name and for his sake. Before that time, he said, they had never prayed in this way, but now they should do it, and God would always hear them and answer them. God would hear the disciples when they prayed in Jesus' name, because Jesus had obeyed all God's commandments for them, and had also borne the punishment for their sins.
Then he lifted up his eyes to heaven and prayed for his disciples, and for all those persons who should believe in him from the words that the disciples preached. He prayed that they might be kept from sin, and might love one another; and he said it was his will that they should come and be with him in heaven, where they could see his glory which his Father had given him.
After these things Jesus and his apostles sang a hymn together, and then they went out from the house where they had eaten the passover, and came to the mount called the mount of Olives, which was a little way from Jerusalem; and they went into a garden that was there, called the garden of Gethsemane.
And Jesus said to his apostles, Sit you here while I go yonder and pray. And he went a little way from them, and kneeled down and prayed. And now, because he was being punished for our sins, and knew that in a few hours he would be crucified, he was in an agony, and his sweat seemed like great drops of blood falling down to the ground; and an angel came and comforted him. When he rose up from prayer and went back to his disciples, he found them sleeping, and he said to them, Why sleep ye? Arise and pray, lest you be tempted to do wrong. And he went away and prayed again, and came and found them sleeping. But when he came the third time, he said, Rise up, and let us be going: behold, he who will betray me is coming near.
Now Judas had been watching when Jesus went to the garden. And because it was night and only a few of his disciples were with him, Judas thought it the best time to betray his Master. Therefore he went to the chief priests and elders and told them, and they gave him a band of men to go with him and take Jesus; and now Judas was bringing them to the garden, and Jesus knew of it, yet he did not flee, but waited to let them take him, because the time had come for him to die. And while he was yet speaking with his apostles, and telling them that the one who would betray him was near, Judas came, and with him the band of men carrying swords and staves and lanterns.
And Judas had given them a sign, saying, The one that I shall kiss is he; take him and hold him fast. Then he came to Jesus, and said, Master, Master, and kissed him. Jesus said to him, Judas, dost thou betray me with a kiss? Then the men laid their hands on Jesus and took him. When the apostles saw them take Jesus, they said to him, Lord, shall we fight with the sword? And Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck a servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. But Jesus said, Put thy sword back again into the sheath. Might I not now pray to my Father that he should send me quickly many thousands of angels to fight for me and save me from death? But how then could the words of the prophets come true, which say that I am to die for the people? Then Jesus touched the servant's ear and healed it. And he said to the men that took him, Have you come out with swords and staves, as though I were a thief, to take me? I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did nothing to me. Then all his apostles, being afraid, left him and fled.