Moses at the Burning Bush^(A)

3 Now Moses was tending the flock of ^(B)Jethro his father-in-law, ^(C)the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to ^(D)Horeb, ^(E)the mountain of God. ² And ^(F)the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. ³ Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this ^(G)great sight, why the bush does not burn.”

⁴ So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called ^(H)to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!”

And he said, “Here I am.”

⁵ Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. ^(I)Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” ⁶ Moreover He said, ^(J)“I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for ^(K)he was afraid to look upon God.

⁷ And the Lord said: ^(L)“I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry ^(M)because of their taskmasters, ^(N)for I know their ^[a]sorrows. ⁸ So ^(O)I have come down to ^(P)deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land ^(Q)to a good and large land, to a land ^(R)flowing with milk and honey, to the place of ^(S)the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites. ⁹ Now therefore, behold, ^(T)the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the ^(U)oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. ^10 (V)Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”

¹¹ But Moses said to God, ^(W)“Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”

¹² So He said, ^(X)“I will certainly be with you. And this shall be a ^(Y)sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

¹³ Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?”

¹⁴ And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ^(Z)‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” ¹⁵ Moreover God said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is ^(AA)My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’ ¹⁶ Go and ^(AB)gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them, ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared to me, saying, ^(AC)“I have surely visited you and seen what is done to you in Egypt; ¹⁷ and I have said ^(AD)I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’ ¹⁸ Then ^(AE)they will heed your voice; and ^(AF)you shall come, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt; and you shall say to him, ‘The Lord God of the Hebrews has ^(AG)met with us; and now, please, let us go three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ ¹⁹ But I am sure that the king of Egypt ^(AH)will not let you go, no, not even by a mighty hand. ²⁰ So I will ^(AI)stretch out My hand and strike Egypt with ^(AJ)all My wonders which I will do in its midst; and ^(AK)after that he will let you go. ²¹ And ^(AL)I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and it shall be, when you go, that you shall not go empty-handed. ^22 (AM)But every woman shall ask of her neighbor, namely, of her who dwells near her house, ^(AN)articles of silver, articles of gold, and clothing; and you shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So ^(AO)you shall plunder the Egyptians.”

Miraculous Signs for Pharaoh

4 Then Moses answered and said, “But suppose they will not believe me or listen to my voice; suppose they say, ‘The Lord has not appeared to you.’ ”

² So the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”

He said, “A rod.”

³ And He said, “Cast it on the ground.” So he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from it. ⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail” (and he reached out his hand and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand), ⁵ “that they may ^(AP)believe that the ^(AQ)Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”

⁶ Furthermore the Lord said to him, “Now put your hand in your bosom.” And he put his hand in his bosom, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous, ^(AR)like snow. ⁷ And He said, “Put your hand in your bosom again.” So he put his hand in his bosom again, and drew it out of his bosom, and behold, ^(AS)it was restored like his other flesh. ⁸ “Then it will be, if they do not believe you, nor heed the message of the ^(AT)first sign, that they may believe the message of the latter sign. ⁹ And it shall be, if they do not believe even these two signs, or listen to your voice, that you shall take water from ^[b]the river and pour it on the dry land. ^(AU)The water which you take from the river will become blood on the dry land.”

¹⁰ Then Moses said to the Lord, “O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before nor since You have spoken to Your servant; but ^(AV)I am slow of speech and ^[c]slow of tongue.”

¹¹ So the Lord said to him, ^(AW)“Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord? ¹² Now therefore, go, and I will be ^(AX)with your mouth and teach you what you shall say.”

¹³ But he said, “O my Lord, ^(AY)please send by the hand of whomever else You may send.”

¹⁴ So ^(AZ)the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and He said: “Is not Aaron the Levite your ^(BA)brother? I know that he can speak well. And look, ^(BB)he is also coming out to meet you. When he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. ¹⁵ Now ^(BC)you shall speak to him and ^(BD)put the words in his mouth. And I will be with your mouth and with his mouth, and ^(BE)I will teach you what you shall do. ¹⁶ So he shall be your spokesman to the people. And he himself shall be as a mouth for you, and ^(BF)you shall be to him as God. ¹⁷ And you shall take this rod in your hand, with which you shall do the signs.”

Moses Goes to Egypt

¹⁸ So Moses went and returned to ^(BG)Jethro his father-in-law, and said to him, “Please let me go and return to my brethren who are in Egypt, and see whether they are still alive.”

And Jethro said to Moses, ^(BH)“Go in peace.”

¹⁹ Now the Lord said to Moses in ^(BI)Midian, “Go, return to ^(BJ)Egypt; for all the men who ^(BK)sought your life are dead.” ²⁰ Then Moses ^(BL)took his wife and his sons and set them on a donkey, and he returned to the land of Egypt. And Moses took ^(BM)the rod of God in his hand.

²¹ And the Lord said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do all those ^(BN)wonders before Pharaoh which I have put in your hand. But ^(BO)I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go. ²² Then you shall ^(BP)say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord: ^(BQ)“Israel is My son, ^(BR)My firstborn. ²³ So I say to you, let My son go that he may serve Me. But if you refuse to let him go, indeed ^(BS)I will kill your son, your firstborn.” ’ ”

²⁴ And it came to pass on the way, at the ^(BT)encampment, that the Lord ^(BU)met him and sought to ^(BV)kill him. ²⁵ Then ^(BW)Zipporah took ^(BX)a sharp stone and cut off the foreskin of her son and ^[d]cast it at ^[e]Moses’ feet, and said, “Surely you are a husband of blood to me!” ²⁶ So He let him go. Then she said, “You are a ^[f]husband of blood!”—because of the circumcision.

²⁷ And the Lord said to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness ^(BY)to meet Moses.” So he went and met him on ^(BZ)the mountain of God, and kissed him. ²⁸ So Moses ^(CA)told Aaron all the words of the Lord who had sent him, and all the ^(CB)signs which He had commanded him. ²⁹ Then Moses and Aaron ^(CC)went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel. ^30 (CD)And Aaron spoke all the words which the Lord had spoken to Moses. Then he did the signs in the sight of the people. ³¹ So the people ^(CE)believed; and when they heard that the Lord had ^(CF)visited the children of Israel and that He ^(CG)had looked on their affliction, then ^(CH)they bowed their heads and worshiped.

First Encounter with Pharaoh

5 Afterward Moses and Aaron went in and told Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘Let My people go, that they may ^[g]hold ^(CI)a feast to Me in the wilderness.’ ”

² And Pharaoh said, ^(CJ)“Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, ^(CK)nor will I let Israel go.”

³ So they said, ^(CL)“The God of the Hebrews has ^(CM)met with us. Please, let us go three days’ journey into the desert and sacrifice to the Lord our God, lest He fall upon us with ^(CN)pestilence or with the sword.”

⁴ Then the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people from their work? Get back to your ^(CO)labor.” ⁵ And Pharaoh said, “Look, the people of the land are ^(CP)many now, and you make them rest from their labor!”

⁶ So the same day Pharaoh commanded the ^(CQ)taskmasters of the people and their officers, saying, ⁷ “You shall no longer give the people straw to make ^(CR)brick as before. Let them go and gather straw for themselves. ⁸ And you shall lay on them the quota of bricks which they made before. You shall not reduce it. For they are idle; therefore they cry out, saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ ⁹ Let more work be laid on the men, that they may labor in it, and let them not regard false words.”

¹⁰ And the taskmasters of the people and their officers went out and spoke to the people, saying, “Thus says Pharaoh: ‘I will not give you straw. ¹¹ Go, get yourselves straw where you can find it; yet none of your work will be reduced.’ ” ¹² So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble instead of straw. ¹³ And the taskmasters forced them to hurry, saying, “Fulfill your work, your daily quota, as when there was straw.” ¹⁴ Also the ^(CS)officers of the children of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were ^(CT)beaten and were asked, “Why have you not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and today, as before?”

¹⁵ Then the officers of the children of Israel came and cried out to Pharaoh, saying, “Why are you dealing thus with your servants? ¹⁶ There is no straw given to your servants, and they say to us, ‘Make brick!’ And indeed your servants are beaten, but the fault is in your own people.”

¹⁷ But he said, “You are idle! Idle! Therefore you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord.’ ¹⁸ Therefore go now and work; for no straw shall be given you, yet you shall deliver the quota of bricks.” ¹⁹ And the officers of the children of Israel saw that they were in trouble after it was said, “You shall not reduce any bricks from your daily quota.”

²⁰ Then, as they came out from Pharaoh, they met Moses and Aaron who stood there to meet them. ^21 (CU)And they said to them, “Let the Lord look on you and judge, because you have made ^[h]us abhorrent in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us.”

Israel’s Deliverance Assured^(CV)

²² So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Lord, why have You brought trouble on this people? Why is it You have sent me? ²³ For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has done evil to this people; neither have You delivered Your people at all.”

The Plot to Kill Jesus^(A)

22 Now ^(B)the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called Passover. ² And ^(C)the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might kill Him, for they feared the people.

^3 (D)Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the ^(E)twelve. ⁴ So he went his way and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him to them. ⁵ And they were glad, and ^(F)agreed to give him money. ⁶ So he promised and sought opportunity to ^(G)betray Him to them in the absence of the multitude.

Jesus and His Disciples Prepare the Passover

^7 (H)Then came the Day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover must be ^[a]killed. ⁸ And He sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat.”

⁹ So they said to Him, “Where do You want us to prepare?”

¹⁰ And He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him into the house which he enters. ¹¹ Then you shall say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, “Where is the guest room where I may eat the Passover with My disciples?” ’ ¹² Then he will show you a large, furnished upper room; there make ready.”

¹³ So they went and ^(I)found it just as He had said to them, and they prepared the Passover.

Jesus Institutes the Lord’s Supper

^14 (J)When the hour had come, He sat down, and the ^[b]twelve apostles with Him. ¹⁵ Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; ¹⁶ for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it ^(K)until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”

¹⁷ Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves; ¹⁸ for ^(L)I say to you, ^[c]I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

^19 (M)And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My ^(N)body which is given for you; ^(O)do this in remembrance of Me.”

²⁰ Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, ^(P)“This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you. ^21 (Q)But behold, the hand of My betrayer is with Me on the table. ^22 (R)And truly the Son of Man goes ^(S)as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!”

^23 (T)Then they began to question among themselves, which of them it was who would do this thing.

The Disciples Argue About Greatness

^24 (U)Now there was also a dispute among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest. ^25 (V)And He said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called ‘benefactors.’ ^26 (W)But not so among you; on the contrary, ^(X)he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves. ^27 (Y)For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet ^(Z)I am among you as the One who serves.

²⁸ “But you are those who have continued with Me in ^(AA)My trials. ²⁹ And ^(AB)I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, ³⁰ that ^(AC)you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, ^(AD)and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial^(AE)

^31 [d]And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, ^(AF)Satan has asked for you, that he may ^(AG)sift you as wheat. ³² But ^(AH)I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, ^(AI)strengthen your brethren.”

³³ But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.”

^34 (AJ)Then He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.”

Supplies for the Road

^35 (AK)And He said to them, “When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?”

So they said, “Nothing.”

³⁶ Then He said to them, “But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one. ³⁷ For I say to you that this which is written must still be ^[e]accomplished in Me: ^(AL)‘And He was numbered with the transgressors.’ For the things concerning Me have an end.”

³⁸ So they said, “Lord, look, here are two swords.”

And He said to them, “It is enough.”

The Prayer in the Garden^(AM)

^39 (AN)Coming out, ^(AO)He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him. ^40 (AP)When He came to the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

^41 (AQ)And He was withdrawn from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and prayed, ⁴² saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless ^(AR)not My will, but Yours, be done.” ^43 [f]Then ^(AS)an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. ^44 (AT)And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

⁴⁵ When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. ⁴⁶ Then He said to them, “Why ^(AU)do you sleep? Rise and ^(AV)pray, lest you enter into temptation.”

Betrayal and Arrest in Gethsemane^(AW)

⁴⁷ And while He was still speaking, ^(AX)behold, a multitude; and he who was called ^(AY)Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him. ⁴⁸ But Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a ^(AZ)kiss?”

⁴⁹ When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” ⁵⁰ And ^(BA)one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.

⁵¹ But Jesus answered and said, “Permit even this.” And He touched his ear and healed him.

^52 (BB)Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, “Have you come out, as against a ^(BC)robber, with swords and clubs? ⁵³ When I was with you daily in the ^(BD)temple, you did not try to seize Me. But this is your ^(BE)hour, and the power of darkness.”

Peter Denies Jesus, and Weeps Bitterly^(BF)

^54 (BG)Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest’s house. ^(BH)But Peter followed at a distance. ^55 (BI)Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them. ⁵⁶ And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, “This man was also with Him.”

⁵⁷ But he denied ^[g]Him, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.”

^58 (BJ)And after a little while another saw him and said, “You also are of them.”

But Peter said, “Man, I am not!”

^59 (BK)Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, “Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a ^(BL)Galilean.”

⁶⁰ But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are saying!”

Immediately, while he was still speaking, ^[h]the rooster crowed. ⁶¹ And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then ^(BM)Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, ^(BN)“Before the rooster ^[i]crows, you will deny Me three times.” ⁶² So Peter went out and wept bitterly.

Jesus Mocked and Beaten^(BO)

^63 (BP)Now the men who held Jesus mocked Him and ^(BQ)beat Him. ^64 [j]And having blindfolded Him, they ^(BR)struck Him on the face and asked Him, saying, “Prophesy! Who is the one who struck You?” ⁶⁵ And many other things they blasphemously spoke against Him.

Jesus Faces the Sanhedrin^(BS)

^66 (BT)As soon as it was day, ^(BU)the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, came together and led Him into their council, saying, ^67 (BV)“If You are the Christ, tell us.”

But He said to them, “If I tell you, you will ^(BW)by no means believe. ⁶⁸ And if I ^[k]also ask you, you will by no means answer ^[l]Me or let Me go. ^69 (BX)Hereafter the Son of Man will sit on the right hand of the power of God.”

⁷⁰ Then they all said, “Are You then the Son of God?”

So He said to them, ^(BY)“You rightly say that I am.”

^71 (BZ)And they said, “What further testimony do we need? For we have heard it ourselves from His own mouth.”