David at the Cave of Adullam

1 David departed from there and escaped to ^hthe cave of ⁱAdullam. And when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him. 2 ^jAnd everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul,¹ gathered to him. And he became commander over them. And there were with him ^kabout four hundred men.

3 And David went from there to Mizpeh of Moab. And he said to the king of Moab, “Please let my father and my mother stay² with you, till I know what God will do for me.” 4 And he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him all the time that David was in the stronghold. 5 Then the prophet ^lGad said to David, “Do not remain in the stronghold; depart, and go into the land of Judah.” So David departed and went into the forest of Hereth.

Saul Kills the Priests at Nob

6 Now Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men who were with him. Saul was sitting at Gibeah under ^mthe tamarisk tree on the height with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him. 7 And Saul said to his servants who stood about him, “Hear now, people of Benjamin; will the son of Jesse ⁿgive every one of you fields and vineyards, will he make you all commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, 8 that all of you have conspired against me? No one discloses to me ^owhen my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you ^pis sorry for me or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me, ^qto lie in wait, as at this day.” 9 Then answered ^rDoeg the Edomite, who stood by the servants of Saul, “I saw the son of Jesse ^scoming to Nob, to ^tAhimelech the son of Ahitub, 10 ^uand he inquired of the Lord for him and ^vgave him provisions and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.”

11 Then the king sent to summon Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father’s house, the priests who were at Nob, and all of them came to the king. 12 And Saul said, “Hear now, son of Ahitub.” And he answered, “Here I am, my lord.” 13 And Saul said to him, “Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, in that you have given him bread and a sword and ^uhave inquired of God for him, so that he has risen against me, ^wto lie in wait, as at this day?” 14 Then Ahimelech answered the king, “And who among all your servants is so faithful as David, who is the king’s son-in-law, and captain over³ your bodyguard, and honored in your house? 15 Is today the first time ^uthat I have inquired of God for him? No! Let not the king impute anything to his servant or to all the house of my father, for your servant has known nothing of all this, ^xmuch or little.” 16 And the king said, “You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house.” 17 And the king said to ^ythe guard who stood about him, “Turn and kill the priests of the Lord, because their hand also is with David, and they knew that he fled and did not disclose it to me.” But the servants of the king would not put out their hand to strike the priests of the Lord. 18 Then the king said to Doeg, “You turn and strike the priests.” And Doeg the Edomite turned and struck down the priests, ^zand he killed on that day eighty-five persons who wore the linen ephod. 19 And Nob, the city of the priests, he put to the sword; ^aboth man and woman, child and infant, ox, donkey and sheep, he put to the sword.

20 But one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named ^bAbiathar, escaped and fled after David. 21 And Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the priests of the Lord. 22 And David said to Abiathar, “I knew on that day, ^cwhen Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. I have occasioned the death of all the persons of your father’s house. 23 ^dStay with me; do not be afraid, for he who seeks my life seeks your life. With me you shall be in safekeeping.”

My Soul Longs for the Courts of the Lord

To the choirmaster: according to ^pThe Gittith.¹ A Psalm of ^qthe Sons of Korah.

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

1 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ^dten virgins who took their lamps¹ and went to meet ^ethe bridegroom.² 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were ^wwise. 3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom ^fwas delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. 6 But ^gat midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those virgins rose and ^htrimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and ⁱthose who were ready went in with him to ^jthe marriage feast, and ^kthe door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ^l‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 ^lBut he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, ^mI do not know you.’ 13 ⁿWatch therefore, for you ^oknow neither the day nor the hour.

The Parable of the Talents

14 ^p“For ^qit will be like a man ^rgoing on a journey, who called his servants³ and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one he gave five ^stalents,⁴ to another two, to another one, ^tto each according to his ability. Then he ^rwent away. 16 He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17 So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18 But he who had received the one talent went and ^udug in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19 Now ^vafter a long time the master of those servants came and ^wsettled accounts with them. 20 And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and ^xfaithful servant.^{5 y}You have been faithful over a little; ^zI will set you over much. Enter into ^athe joy of your master.’ 22 And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be ^ba hard man, reaping ^cwhere you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, ^dyou have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered him, ‘You ^ewicked and ^eslothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29 ^fFor to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And ^gcast ^hthe worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place ^gthere will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

The Final Judgment

31 ⁱ“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, ^jthen he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him ^kwill be gathered ^lall the nations, and ^mhe will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates ⁿthe sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34 Then ^othe King will say to ^pthose on his right, ‘Come, you ^qwho are blessed by my Father, ^rinherit ^sthe kingdom ^tprepared for you ^ufrom the foundation of the world. 35 For ^vI was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you ^wgave me drink, ^xI was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 ^vI was naked and you clothed me, ^yI was sick and you ^zvisited me, ^aI was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And ^bthe King will answer them, ^c‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these ^dmy brothers,⁶ you did it to me.’

41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ^e‘Depart from me, you ^fcursed, into ^gthe eternal fire prepared for ^hthe devil and his angels. 42 For ⁱI was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, ^jyou did not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away ^kinto eternal punishment, but the righteous ^kinto ^leternal life.”

The Plot to Kill Jesus

1 When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, 2 ^m“You know that after two days ⁿthe Passover is coming, and ^othe Son of Man ^pwill be delivered up to be crucified.”

3 ^qThen the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in ^rthe palace of the high priest, whose name was ^sCaiaphas, 4 ^tand plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. 5 But they said, “Not during the feast, ^ulest there be an uproar among the people.”

Jesus Anointed at Bethany

6 ^vNow when Jesus was at ^wBethany in the house of Simon the leper,⁷ 7 a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table. 8 And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? 9 For this could have been sold for a large sum and ^xgiven to the poor.” 10 But ^yJesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. 11 For ^zyou always have the poor with you, but ^ayou will not always have me. 12 In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it ^bto prepare me for burial. 13 Truly, I say to you, wherever ^cthis gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told ^din memory of her.”

Judas to Betray Jesus

14 ^eThen one of the twelve, whose name was ^fJudas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they ^gpaid him ^hthirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that moment he sought an opportunity ⁱto betray him.

The Passover with the Disciples

17 ^jNow on ^kthe first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover?” 18 He said, “Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, ^l‘The Teacher says, ^mMy time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.’” 19 And the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared the Passover.

20 ⁿWhen it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve.⁸ 21 And as they were eating, ^ohe said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” 22 And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, “Is it I, Lord?” 23 He answered, ^p“He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me. 24 The Son of Man goes ^qas it is written of him, but ^rwoe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! ^sIt would have been better for that man if he had not been born.” 25 Judas, who would betray him, answered, “Is it I, ^tRabbi?” He said to him, ^u“You have said so.”

Institution of the Lord’s Supper

26 ^vNow as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and ^wafter blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; ^xthis is my body.” 27 And he took a cup, and when he ^yhad given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for ^xthis is my ^zblood of the⁹ covenant, which is poured out for ^amany ^bfor the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you ^cin my Father’s kingdom.”

Jesus Foretells Peter’s Denial

30 ^dAnd when they had sung a hymn, ^ethey went out to ^fthe Mount of Olives. 31 Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will ^gstrike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ 32 But after I am raised up, ^hI will go before you to Galilee.” 33 ⁱPeter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” 34 ^jJesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, ^kbefore the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” 35 ^lPeter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same.

Jesus Prays in Gethsemane

36 ^mThen Jesus went with them ^eto a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” 37 And taking with him ⁿPeter and ^othe two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, ^p“My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and ^qwatch¹⁰ with me.” 39 And going a little farther he fell on his face ^rand prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let ^sthis cup pass from me; ^tnevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” 40 And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? 41 ^qWatch and ^upray that you ^vmay not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 42 Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, ^wyour will be done.” 43 And again he came and found them sleeping, for ^xtheir eyes were heavy. 44 So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for ^ythe third time, saying the same words again. 45 Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on.¹¹ See, ^zthe hour is at hand, and ^athe Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”

Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus

47 ^bWhile he was still speaking, ^cJudas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. 48 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.” 49 And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, ^dRabbi!” And he kissed him. 50 Jesus said to him, ^e“Friend, ^fdo what you came to do.”¹² Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. 51 And behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his ^gsword and struck the servant¹³ of the high priest and cut off his ear. 52 Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place. For ^hall who take the sword will perish by the sword. 53 ⁱDo you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me ^jmore than twelve ^klegions of angels? 54 ^lBut how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?” 55 At that hour Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? Day after day ^mI sat in the temple ⁿteaching, and you did not seize me. 56 But ^lall this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” ^oThen all the disciples left him and fled.

Jesus Before Caiaphas and the Council

57 ^pThen ^qthose who had seized Jesus led him to ^rCaiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders had gathered. 58 And ^sPeter was following him at a distance, as far as ^rthe courtyard of the high priest, and going inside he sat with ^tthe guards to see the end. 59 Now the chief priests and the whole council^{14 u}were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death, 60 but they found none, ^vthough many false witnesses came forward. At last ^wtwo came forward 61 and said, “This man said, ^x‘I am able to ^ydestroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days.’” 62 And the high priest stood up and said, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?”¹⁵ 63 ^zBut Jesus remained silent. ^aAnd the high priest said to him, ^b“I adjure you by ^cthe living God, ^dtell us if you are ^ethe Christ, ^fthe Son of God.” 64 Jesus said to him, ^g“You have said so. But I tell you, from now on ^hyou will see the Son of Man ⁱseated at the right hand of Power and ^hcoming on the clouds of heaven.” 65 Then the high priest ^jtore his robes and said, ^k“He has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy. 66 What is your judgment?” They answered, ^l“He deserves death.” 67 Then ^mthey spit in his face ⁿand ^ostruck him. And some slapped him, 68 saying, “Prophesy to us, you ^pChrist! Who is it that struck you?”