The Passion and Resurrection[a]
Chapter 22
The Conspiracy against Jesus.[b] 1 Now the feast of Unleavened Bread, known as the Passover, was drawing near, 2 and the chief priests and the scribes were looking for some way to put Jesus to death, for they were afraid of the people.
Judas Betrays Jesus.[c] 3 Then Satan entered into Judas, called Iscariot, who was one of the Twelve. 4 And he went to the chief priests and temple guards to discuss how he might betray Jesus to them 5 They were delighted and agreed to give him money. 6 He accepted their offer and began to look for an opportunity to betray him to them when no crowd was present.
The Last Supper[d]
The Preparations for the Passover.[e] When the day of the feast of Unleavened Bread arrived, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed, 8 Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make the preparations for us to eat the Passover.” 9 They asked him, “Where do you want us to make the preparations?”10 He replied, “When you enter the city, a man will meet you carrying a jug of water. Follow him into the house that he enters 11 and say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says this to you: “Where is the room where I can eat the Passover with my disciples?” ’ 12 Then he will show you a large upper room that is furnished. Make the preparations there.” 13 They went forth and found everything just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.
14 The Last Supper.[f] When the hour came, Jesus took his place at table along with the apostles. 15 He said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16 For I tell you that from this moment on I shall never eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”
17 Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he said, “Take this and share it among yourselves. 18 For I tell you that from this moment I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”
19 Jesus Gives His Body and His Blood.[g] Then he took bread, and after giving thanks he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which will be given for you. Do this in memory of me.” 20 And he did the same with the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which will be poured out for you.
21 The Betrayer Foretold.[h]“But behold, the hand of the one who will betray me is here with me on the table. 22 The Son of Man goes on his appointed path, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed.” 23 Then they began to question among themselves as to which one of them might do this.
24 The Disciples Are To Serve on Earth.[i] Then a dispute also broke out among them as to which one of them should be considered the greatest. 25 Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who exercise authority over them are given the title of ‘Benefactor.’[j]
26 “But it must not be so with you. Rather, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the leader must be like the one who serves. 27 For who is greater—the one seated at table or the one who serves? Surely, the one who sits at table. And yet I am in your midst as one who serves.
28 Judges of the Twelve Tribes.[k]“You are the ones who have stood by my side in my trials, 29 and now I confer on you a kingdom just as my Father has conferred one on me. 30 In my kingdom, you will eat and drink at my table, and you will sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.[l]
31 Peter’s Denial Foretold.[m]“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has desired to sift all of you like wheat. 32 But I have prayed that your own faith may not fail. And once you have turned back, you must strengthen your brethren.” 33 Simon said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.” 34 Jesus replied, “I tell you, Peter, before the cock crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.”
35 Instructions for the Time of Crisis.[n] Then Jesus said to them, “When I sent you forth without a money bag or sack or sandals, were you ever in need of anything?” They answered, “No, not a thing.” 36 He then remarked, “But now, the one who has a money bag should take it with him, as well as a sack. And if you do not have a sword, sell your cloak and purchase one.
37 “For I tell you that this Scripture must be fulfilled in me: ‘He was numbered with the wicked.’ Indeed, everything written about me is being fulfilled.” 38 They said, “See, Lord, here are two swords.” He said to them, “That is enough.”
The Passion
39 The Agony in the Garden.[o] Jesus then went forth and made his way, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. 40 When he reached the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” 41 After withdrawing from them about a stone’s throw, he knelt down and prayed, 42 saying, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me. Yet not my will but yours be done.”
43 [p]Then an angel from heaven appeared to him and gave him strength. 44 In his anguish, he prayed so fervently that his sweat became like great drops of blood falling on the ground.
45 When he rose from prayer and returned to the disciples, he found them sleeping, exhausted by grief. 46 He said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not enter into temptation.”
47 Jesus Is Betrayed and Arrested.[q] While he was still speaking, a crowd of men suddenly approached, and the one called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He came up to Jesus to kiss him, 48 but Jesus said, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?”
49 When Jesus’ disciples realized what was about to happen, they asked, “Lord, should we strike with our swords?” 50 And one of them struck a servant of the high priest, slicing off his right ear. 51 But Jesus said, “Stop! No more of this!” He then touched the servant’s ear and healed him.
52 Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders who had come for him, “Why are you coming forth with swords and clubs as though I were a bandit? 53 When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not raise a hand against me. But this is the hour for you and the power of darkness.”[r]
54 Peter Denies Jesus.[s] Then they arrested Jesus and led him away. They brought him into the house of the high priest, and Peter followed at a distance. 55 Lighting a fire in the middle of the courtyard, they sat around it, and Peter sat with them.
56 A servant girl saw him sitting by the fire, looked closely at him, and said, “This man also was with him.” 57 But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know him.” 58 A short time later, someone else saw him and said, “You too are one of them,” but Peter replied, “No, I am not.”
59 About an hour later, another person strongly insisted, “This man was unquestionably with him, for he is a Galilean.” 60 Peter said, “My friend, I do not know what you are talking about.” At that very moment, while he was still speaking, a cock crowed, 61 and the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter recalled the word that the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the cock crows today, you will deny me three times.” 62 And he went out and wept uncontrollably.
63 The men who were guarding Jesus began to mock him and to beat him. 64 They also blindfolded him and kept asking him, “Prophesy! Who hit you?” 65 And they continued to taunt him with insult after insult.
66 Jesus before the Sanhedrin.[t] When the dawn came, the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the scribes, assembled, and they brought him before their Sanhedrin.[u] 67 Then they said, “If you are the Christ, tell us!” He replied, “If I tell you, you will not believe; 68 and if I question you, you will not answer. 69 But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.”
70 All of them asked, “Are you then the Son of God?” He replied, “It is you who say that I am.” 71 Then they said, “What need do we have for any further testimony? We have heard it ourselves from his own lips.”
Footnotes
- Luke 22:1 The salvation of human beings is accomplished in a unique event: Christ’s Death and Resurrection. This is the Paschal mystery. The account that follows is fashioned by this principal testimony; hence it must be read as a unified whole. From the beginnings of the Church, this is the Gospel, the essence of the Christian announcement.
- Luke 22:1 Before the episodes of the Passion unfold, the plot thickens with the adversaries of Jesus. The leaders of the people take the initiative in the plot, and the traitor serves them as an instrument, but it is the spirit of evil who initiates the last combat.
- Luke 22:3 See note on Mt 26:14-16.
- Luke 22:7 Now we see the initiative of Jesus, which appears so clearly in this last supper. The account is an integral part of the Passion, i.e., the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, for the Church that announces the Gospel of Christ the Savior is also the Christian community that celebrates the Eucharist, the memorial of salvation. Jesus enters the decisive event; this last act is, as it were, the summary of his every act and word: sharing, offering, gift, presence, and covenant of God in the midst of his followers.
7
Luke has placed actions and words of Jesus here that the other evangelists report in other contexts. This is so the community can meditate on them each time it assembles to break the bread of the Lord. He thus leaves us a liturgical rule (the text of the Eucharistic institution) and, connected with it, communitary and missionary directives. - Luke 22:7 Jesus takes the initiative, freely and fully, for this last Passover of the old covenant, this repast that inaugurates a new covenant.
- Luke 22:14 For the Jews, the Passover is the memorial of the liberation of the people (see Ex 12); for Jesus, it prefigures the Messianic Banquet in which all human beings are reunited in the presence of God. All his hope for happiness becomes a promise for believers.
- Luke 22:19 In a prophetic gesture Jesus proclaims and establishes the new covenant between God and humanity (see Ex 24:8; Jer 31:31), which he is preparing to seal by his freely accepted sacrifice. In this action, by changing the bread and wine into his body and blood (see 1 Cor 10:6; 11:23-27), he institutes the Eucharist, which calls to mind and renders present to the gathered community his act of love for humanity (see Acts 2:42, 46). Along with Paul, Luke has preserved for us what is perhaps one of the earliest texts of the first Christian Eucharists.
- Luke 22:21 The announcement of Judas’s plan stresses the initiative of Jesus, who does not deviate from his sacrifice. Celebrating the Eucharist, believers and the leaders of the community must question themselves concerning their loyalty toward the Lord.
- Luke 22:24 To celebrate the Eucharist means to abandon one’s search for honor and to discover that all authority in the Christian community has no other title except that of service.
- Luke 22:25 Benefactor: a term often used for leaders of pagan nations.
- Luke 22:28 See note on Mt 19:27-30.
- Luke 22:30 The image, drawn from the Jewish tradition, signifies a privileged share in the glory of the Messiah.
- Luke 22:31 It is not in the quality of her human leaders but in the prayer of Jesus that the Church finds the assurance of perseverance in the faith.
- Luke 22:35 A time of happiness is ending. Henceforth, the Church must confront trials. And she must not think of defending herself with the weapons employed by societies to achieve their freedom or ensure their interests.
- Luke 22:39 Tempted to refuse the terrible and humiliating trial of the cross, Jesus struggles in prayer to accept the will of the Father. The divine aid that he receives, as once Elijah did (see 1 Ki 19:7-8), does not mitigate the tragedy of the moment. This passage remains one of the great texts on the distress of human beings in the face of their death. It is intended to be a lesson, as is emphasized, from its beginning to its end, by the repeated invitation to pray so as not to be the prey of a temptation that seems to be all-consuming.
- Luke 22:43 These two verses are not found in some early mss.
- Luke 22:47 Immediately cutting short any resistance on the part of his disciples, Jesus heals the servant wounded by one of them—this is the single miracle in the account of the Passion. It is typical of Luke that the servant be healed (for tradition holds that Luke was a physician).
- Luke 22:53 All the events happen under the sign of Satan, who has stirred up the powers of darkness against Jesus.
- Luke 22:54 Luke seems to report the true chronology of the events more exactly than Matthew and Mark. After his arrest, Jesus is quickly brought to the house of the high priest, where Annas his predecessor most likely also dwelled. Annas interrogates him but in a private manner (Jn 18:12-24). While Jesus is waiting for the trial, which according to Luke took place only in the morning, the guards pass time by insulting him and making fun of him.
Peter finds himself in the same courtyard and, recognized by the bystanders, denies his Master. Jesus, who has probably heard everything from where he stood, looks at him (a point mentioned only by Luke), strengthening him in his faith that had been profoundly shaken (v. 61). Note how Luke does not emphasize the crescendo of the denials. Rather, he attenuates them, and moreover does not speak of curses and oaths. - Luke 22:66 In contrast to Matthew and Mark, Luke does not mention the false testimonies brought against Jesus. In any case, the authorities have resolved to put him to death and seek only to have their decision confirmed. Jesus speaks solemnly about his mission and his person. He is the Envoy of God, united with him in a very particular way, and his kingdom will be inaugurated henceforth, from his Resurrection (v. 69; Ps 110:1; Dan 7:13).
- Luke 22:66 Sanhedrin: see note on Mk 14:55.