1754 | Matthew 26:16
out for him thirty pieces of sil ver . o 16 From then on Ju das watched for an op por tu nity to hand him over .
The Last Supper
26:17-19pp — Mk 14:12-16 ; Lk 22:7-13 26:20-24pp — Mk 14:17-21 26:26-29pp — Mk 14:22-25 ; Lk 22:17-20 ; 1Co 11:23-25
17 On the first day of the Fes ti val of Un leav ened Bread , p the dis ci ples came to Jesus and asked , “ Where do you want us to make prep a ra tions for you to eat the Pass over ?”
18 He re plied , “ Go into the city to a cer tain man and tell him , ‘ The Teacher says : My ap pointed time q is near . I am go ing to cel e brate the Pass over with my dis ci ples at your house .’ ” 19 So the dis ci ples did as Jesus had di rected them and pre pared the Pass over .
20 When eve ning came , Jesus was re clin ing at the ta ble with the Twelve . 21 And while they were eat ing , he said , “ Truly I tell you , one of you will be tray me .” r
22 They were very sad and be gan to say to him one af ter the other , “ Surely you don ’ t mean me , Lord ?”
23 Jesus re plied , “ The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will be tray me . s 24 The Son of Man will go just as it is writ ten about him . t But woe to that man who be trays the Son of Man ! It would be bet ter for him if he had not been born .” 25 Then Ju das , the one who would be tray him , said , “ Surely you don ’ t mean me , Rabbi ?” u Jesus an swered , “ You have said so .” 26 While they were eat ing , Jesus took bread , and when he had given thanks , he broke it v and gave it to his dis ci ples , say ing , “ Take and eat ; this is my body .” 27 Then he took a cup , and when he had given thanks , he gave it to them , say ing , “ Drink from it , all of you . 28 This is my blood of the a covenant , w which is poured out for many for the for give ness of sins . x 29 I tell you , I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on un til that day when I drink it new with you y in my Fa ther ’ s king dom .”
30 When they had sung a hymn , they went out to the Mount of Ol ives . z
26:15 o Ex 21:32 ; Zec 11:12
26:17 p Ex 12:18‐20
26:18 q Jn 7:6 , 8 , 30 ; 12:23 ; 13:1 ; 17:1
26:21 r Lk 22:21-23 ; Jn 13:21
26:23 s Ps 41:9 ; Jn 13:18
26:24 t Isa 53 ; Da 9:26 ; Mk 9:12 ; Lk 24:25-27 , 46 ; Ac 17:2 , 3 ; 26:22 , 23
26:25 u Mt 23:7
26:26 v Mt 14:19 ; 1Co 10:16
26:28 w Ex 24:6-8 ; Heb 9:20 x Mt 20:28 ; Mk 1:4
26:29 y Ac 10:41
26:30 z Mt 21:1 ; Mk 14:26
26:31 a Mt 11:6 b Zec 13:7 ; Jn 16:32
Jesus Predicts Peter ’ s Denial
26:31-35pp — Mk 14:27-31 ; Lk 22:31-34
31 Then Jesus told them , “ This very night you will all fall away on ac count of me , a for it is written :
“ ‘ I will strike the shepherd , and the sheep of the flock will be scattered .’ b b
a 28 Some manuscripts the new b 31 Zech . 13:7
goes beyond the desire for money , although “ thirty pieces of silver ” ( v . 15 ) may have equaled 120 drachmas , i . e ., more than four months ’ minimum wages . Most likely , he could not accept the fact that Jesus was not going to lead a literal rebellion to help overthrow Rome . 26:17 – 35 This passage describes what is called the Last Supper , the meal from which Christians developed their practice of the Lord ’ s Supper ( communion , the Eucharist ). See especially 1 Cor 11:17 – 34 . In this context , it was the Jewish Passover meal , celebrated on the first day ( which began at nightfall ) of the weeklong Festival of Unleavened Bread ( v . 17 ; see Exod 12 ). “ The first day ” was the 14th of Nisan ( March-April ) and was also called the day of Preparation of the Passover . The Passover meal was eaten the evening of the 14th after sunset — and therefore technically on the 15th , since the Jewish day ended at sunset . The Festival of Unleavened Bread lasted seven days , from the 15th to the 21st of Nisan ( see Lev 23:5 – 6 ). 26:18 – 19 As with the securing of the donkey for Jesus ’ entrance into Jerusalem ( 21:1 – 3 ), this could either be a prearranged strategy or a sign of Jesus ’ supernatural knowledge and authority . 26:18 My appointed time . Ultimately refers to the time of his death .
26:20 reclining at the table . See note on v . 7 . 26:21 As with the previous predictions of his death and resurrection , this one shows that Jesus is not caught off guard by these tragic events . 26:23 The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me . Not a clear disclosure of the betrayer ’ s identity because all will have dipped their bread into the sauce as part of the Passover ritual . It was the custom — still practiced by some in the Middle East — to take a piece of bread or a piece of meat wrapped in bread and dip it into a bowl of sauce ( made of stewed fruit ) on the table . 26:24 Like so many biblical texts , this one juxtaposes divine sovereignty with human responsibility without any hint of tension between the two . The death of the divine Messiah is predicted in Isa 52:13 — 53:12 , but the actual perpetrators are fully accountable . It would be better for [ the betrayer ] if he had not been born . Refutes any notion of universalism ( that everyone will eventually be saved ) or annihilationism ( that the lost simply cease conscious existence after death ). 26:25 You have said so . A veiled affirmative , perhaps also implying Judas ’ s self-indictment . John 13:22 – 30 suggests that most of the disciples did not hear this particular interchange . 26:26 – 28 When Jesus “ took bread ” ( v . 26 ) and
“ took a cup ” ( v . 27 ) and declared , “ This is my body . . . This is my blood ” ( vv . 26,28 ), he is adding rich symbolism to the already highly symbolic Passover meal ( see notes on vv . 26,27,28 ). 26:26 took bread . . . broke it . The broken bread represents his body , soon to be crucified . 26:27 a cup . The cup of wine , probably the third of four in the Passover meal and symbolizing redemption , stands for the blood shed in his death “ for the forgiveness of sins ” ( v . 28 ). 26:28 covenant . God ’ s new one , prophesied in Jer 31:31 – 34 . 26:29 Jesus may have left the fourth and final cup of wine of the Passover ceremony undrunk to anticipate the great end-time banquet still to come ( Isa 25:6 – 8 ). 26:30 hymn . One of the praise psalms or Hallel psalms ( Pss 113 – 118 ) with which the Passover meal concluded ( see note on Mark 14:26 ). the Mount of Olives . Immediately opposite the eastern gate to the temple precincts and the city of Jerusalem , across the Kidron Valley . 26:31 – 35 Jesus predicts Peter ’ s denial . In v . 31 Jesus interprets Zech 13:7 as predicting an attack on himself as the Messianic “ shepherd ,” leading to “ the sheep ” ( his followers ) being “ scattered .” Verse 56 fulfills v . 31 , and 28:7 fulfills v . 32 . Peter protests that he will not desert his Lord , but Jesus replies that Peter