Study Desk

The Triumphal Entry And when they came near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples and said to them, "Go into the village before you, and right away as you enter into it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. And if anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?' say ‘The Lord has need of it, and will send it here again at once.'" And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. And some of those who were standing there said to them, "What are you doing, untying the colt?" So they told them, just as Jesus had said, and they allowed them to take it. And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, and he sat on it. And many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches they had cut from the fields. And those who went ahead and those who were following were shouting, "Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest heaven!" And he went into Jerusalem to the temple, and after looking around at everything, because the hour was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve. And on the next day as they were departing from Bethany, he was hungry. And when he saw from a distance a fig tree that had leaves, he went to see if perhaps he would find anything on it. And when he came up to it he found nothing except leaves, because it was not the season for figs. And he responded and said to it, "Let no one eat fruit from you any more forever!" And his disciples heard it. And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered into the temple courts and began to drive out those who were selling and those who were buying in the temple courts, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those who were selling doves. And he did not permit anyone to carry objects through the temple courts. And he began to teach and was saying to them, "Is it not written, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations,' but you have made it a cave of robbers!" And the chief priests and the scribes heard it, and began considering how they could destroy him. For they were afraid of him because the whole crowd was astounded by his teaching. And when evening came they went out of the city. And as they passed by early in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. And Peter remembered and said to him, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered!" And Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God! Truly I say to you that whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea!' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. For this reason I say to you, whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you have received it, and it will be done for you. And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your sins."

And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came up to him

And one of the scribes came up and heard them debating. When he saw that he answered them well, he asked him, "Which commandment is the most important of all?"

And continuing, Jesus said while teaching in the temple courts, "How can the scribes say that the Christ is David's son?

And in his teaching he said, "Beware of the scribes, who like walking around in long robes and greetings in the marketplaces

Now after two days it was the Passover and the feast of Unleavened Bread, and the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how, after arresting him by stealth, they could kill him.

And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas—one of the twelve—arrived, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders.

And they led Jesus away to the high priest, and all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together.

And as soon as morning came, after formulating a plan, the chief priests, with the elders and scribes and the whole Sanhedrin, tied up Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate.

And with him they crucified two robbers, one on his right and one on his left. And those who passed by reviled him, shaking their heads and saying, "Aha! The one who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself by coming down from the cross!" In the same way also the chief priests, along with the scribes, were mocking him to one another, saying, "He saved others; he is not able to save himself! Let the Christ, the king of Israel, come down now from the cross, so that we may see and believe! Even those who were crucified with him were reviling him. And when the sixth hour came, darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?" (which is translated, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?") And some of the bystanders, when they heard it, said, "Behold, he is summoning Elijah!" And someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed, and gave it to him to drink, saying, "Leave him alone! Let us see if Elijah is coming to take him down." But Jesus uttered a loud cry and expired. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And when the centurion who was standing opposite him saw that he expired like this, he said, "Truly this man was God's Son!" And there were also women observing from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and Joses, and Salome, who used to follow him and serve him when he was in Galilee, and many other women who went up with him to Jerusalem. And when it was already evening, since it was the day of preparation (that is, the day before the Sabbath), Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the council who was also himself looking forward to the kingdom of God, came acting courageously and went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. And Pilate was surprised that he was already dead, and summoning the centurion, asked him whether he had died already. And when he learned of it from the centurion, he granted the corpse to Joseph. And after purchasing a linen cloth and taking him down, he wrapped him in the linen cloth and placed him in a tomb that had been cut from the rock. And he rolled a stone over the entrance of the tomb. Now Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was placed.

Jesus Taken to Pilate And as soon as morning came, after formulating a plan, the chief priests, with the elders and scribes and the whole Sanhedrin, tied up Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate. And Pilate asked him, "Are you the king of the Jews?" And he answered him and said, "You say so." And the chief priests began to accuse him of many things. So Pilate asked him again, saying, "Do you not answer anything? See how many charges they are bringing against you!" But Jesus did not answer anything further, so that Pilate was astonished. Now at each feast he customarily released for them one prisoner whom they requested. And the one named Barabbas was imprisoned with the rebels who had committed murder in the rebellion. And the crowd came up and began to ask him to do as he customarily did for them. So Pilate answered them, saying, "Do you want me to release for you the king of the Jews?" (For he realized that the chief priests had handed him over because of envy.) But the chief priests incited the crowd so that he would release for them Barabbas instead. So Pilate answered and said to them again, "Then what do you want me to do with the one whom you call the king of the Jews?" And they shouted again, "Crucify him!" And Pilate said to them, "Why? What evil has he done?" But they shouted even louder, "Crucify him!" So Pilate, because he wanted to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas. And after he had Jesus flogged, he handed him over so that he could be crucified. So the soldiers led him away into the palace (that is, the governor's residence) and called together the whole cohort. And they put a purple cloak on him, and after weaving a crown of thorns they placed it on him. And they began to greet him, "Hail, king of the Jews!" And they repeatedly struck him on the head with a reed, and were spitting on him, and they knelt down and did obeisance to him. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him, and they led him out so that they could crucify him. And they forced a certain man who was passing by, Simon of Cyrene (the father of Alexander and Rufus), who was coming from the country, to carry his cross. And they brought him to the place Golgotha (which is translated "Place of a Skull"). And they attempted to give him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him and divided his clothes among themselves by casting lots for them to see who should take what. Now it was the third hour when they crucified him. And the inscription of the charge against him was written, "The king of the Jews." And with him they crucified two robbers, one on his right and one on his left.

In the same way also the chief priests, along with the scribes, were mocking him to one another, saying, "He saved others; he is not able to save himself!

And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, "Who is this man who speaks blasphemies? Who is able to forgive sins except God alone?"

And the Pharisees and their scribes began to complain to his disciples, saying, "Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?"

So the scribes and the Pharisees were watching closely to see if he would heal on the Sabbath, in order that they could find a reason to accuse him.

saying, "It is necessary for the Son of Man to suffer many things and to be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and to be killed, and to be raised on the third day.

And when he departed from there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to be terribly hostile, and to question him closely about many things,

And both the Pharisees and the scribes were complaining, saying, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them!"

And he was teaching every day in the temple courts, and the chief priests and the scribes and the most prominent men of the people were seeking to destroy him.

And it happened that on one of the days while he was teaching the people in the temple courts and proclaiming the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes approached together with the elders