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Matthew 26:1-35 – The Plot Thickens

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This passage is as follows:

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When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.”

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Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him.  But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.”

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Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, 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.  And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste?  For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.”  But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman?  For she has done a beautiful thing to me.  For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.  In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial.  Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”

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Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver.  And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.

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

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When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve.  And as they were eating, he said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”  And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, “Is it I, Lord?”  He answered, “He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me.  The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”  Judas, who would betray him, answered, “Is it I, Rabbi?” He said to him, “You have said so.”

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Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”  And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.  I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.”

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

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(End of passage)

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There are a few events in this section that do not seem to be in the correct sequence.  These events are as follows:

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1. Jesus finishes parables. (2-3 days before the crucifixion)

2. Chief priests and elders plot to kill Jesus. (2-3 days before the crucifixion)

3. Jesus anointed at Bethany. (John has this 6 days before his crucifixion, which would have been the day before the triumphant entry into Jerusalem)

4. Judas is paid to deliver Jesus to the chief priests. (1-2 days before the crucifixion)

5. 1st day of unleavened bread. (1 day before the crucifixion)

6. The disciples prepared the Passover. (1 day before the crucifixion)

7. The last supper. (on the day of crucifixion since the supper was in the evening and their days begin at dusk)

8. Jesus predicts Peter’s denial. (on the day of crucifixion since the supper was in the evening and their days begin at dusk)

 

Do you see what is out of sequence here?

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Matthew has the anointing of Jesus a little out of order.  Is this a contradiction? Not really because Matthew says, “When Jesus was at Bethany.”  So Matthew is looking back at when Jesus was at Bethany.  In Matthew 21:17, Matthew mentions that Jesus went to Bethany after the Triumphal entry to lodge there.  But John 12:12 mentions that the Triumphal Entry is the day after Jesus was anointed at Bethany.  Is this a contradiction?  Not really.  There is no reason that both cannot be true.  So, why does Matthew, knowing that he is looking back at the anointing of Jesus put this event here and not in order (answer is below 2nd paragraph down)?

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Also, notice here that Jesus tells his disciples too prepare the Passover on the first day of unleavened bread.  The last day of unleavened bread was on the 21st of the month of Nissan and most Jews celebrate 7 days of unleavened bread.  This would put the first day on the 14th of the month, the same day that Jesus was crucified.  However, the Hasidic Jews celebrate 8 days of unleavened bread, thus this would have been the way that Jesus was celebrating it then.  There was also an issue about the fact that not all the Passover sacrifices could have been performed on the temple altar.  Josephus recorded that in 4 B.C. there were 250,000 Passover sacrifices in Jerusalem.  The priests could only manage to perform 18,000 of these.  So, typically, most people would sacrifice their Passover lamb the day before and eat the Passover after dusk, so it would be on the same Passover day that would be celebrated in the afternoon of the next day.

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We are getting close to the crucifixion and Matthew puts this together with other times that Jesus reminds the disciples that he is going to be crucified.  In verse 2, Jesus says, “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.”  In verse 12, Jesus says, “In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial.”  In verse 18, Jesus says, “My time is at hand.”  In verse 21, Jesus says, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”  In verse 28, Jesus says, “this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”  In verse 29, Jesus says, “I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.”  In verse 31-32, Jesus says, “For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’  But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.”  So, in this passage, Jesus gives 7 reminders to his disciples that he is going to die.

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Now, while Jesus is giving all these clues to the disciples, the chief priests and elders are conspiring to kill him.

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Verses 1-5,

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When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.”

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Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him.  But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.”

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So, Matthew is painting a picture here.  Here is Jesus reminding the disciples that in two days he’s going to be crucified. 

 

MEANWHILE, (and how many times does MEANWHILE get depicted in stories and movies? – A LOT!), MEANWHILE, they are plotting to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him.  Why are they plotting to do this by stealth? 

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There would be an uproar by the people if they knew about it.

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The next thing that happens is that Matthew flashes back to the woman with the perfume.  By the way, how many times do you see a flashback in a story or in a movie?

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Verses 6-13,

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“Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, 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.  And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste?  For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.”  But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman?  For she has done a beautiful thing to me.  For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.  In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial.  Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”

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What is significant about this story about the woman that anointed Jesus with the perfume?

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1. Jesus uses it to tell his disciples that his death is near.That is why Matthew is including it at this point in his gospel.

2. Jesus says that wherever the gospel is proclaimed, this story will be told.All 4 gospels in the New Testament have this story, by the way.None of the other writings that claim to be gospels have this story.Luke connects the idea that she was grateful because her sins were forgiven.This message is also implied here in Matthew.  By saying “She has done a beautiful thing to me,” and saying,

3. “You will not always have me,” Jesus is emphasizing her gratitude.  Are you grateful that your sins were forgiven today?

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After the story of the woman that anointed Jesus, we come back from our flashback.

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Verses 14-16,

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Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver.  And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.

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Why did Judas betray Jesus?

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First let us get to know some things about Judas:

1. Judas’ last name identifies him as a part of a sect of Judaism that believed zealously in the overthrow of the Romans.They were thought to be assassins.When Jesus did not seem to be leading a rebellion, Judas might have seen no use for him in the scheme of his sect.

2. Judas is always listed last in lists of the disciples in the gospels.This may be an indication of the lack of a personal relationship with Jesus as Peter, James, and John are always listed first.

3. John 12:1-8 not only shows that Judas was greedy about the perfume spent on Jesus, but it says he was a thief, having charge of the money bag and helping himself to it.

4. Judas must have thought that Jesus, if he was the Messiah, would overthrow the Romans and restore the kingdom to the Israelites.However, Jesus keeps talking about his death.Judas must have decided that Jesus was not the Messiah he was looking for, and look for a way to cash in on his betrayal.

5. When Judas approached the chief priests, his first 5 words are, “What will you give me…”Judas was surely in this for material gain.

6. After Judas betrayed Jesus, he was filled remorse and committed suicide.Figuring out why he did this is more difficult than his betrayal of Jesus.Perhaps he did not realize that they would kill Jesus till they turned Jesus over to Roman soldiers.Perhaps he thought that they would just rough him up and release him.

7. Judas never called Jesus “Lord” like the other disciples.Perhaps Judas did not believe in Jesus as the other disciples did.To Judas, Jesus was just a man and he called him “Rabbi” only.

 

So now, this brings us to the first day of unleavened bread.  Let’s see what happens next.

 

Verses 17-25,

 

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

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When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve.  And as they were eating, he said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”  And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, “Is it I, Lord?”  He answered, “He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me.  The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”  Judas, who would betray him, answered, “Is it I, Rabbi?” He said to him, “You have said so.”

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Now, I mentioned previously that the days of unleavened bread in those days began on the day before Passover and lasted for 8 days.  Typically, In Jerusalem, the Passover was celebrated on the 14th of the month of Nissan between 3 PM and 5 PM.  This would especially be celebrated in the temple.  Since so many people came there from all over Israel, it was celebrated by more people in their homes, or in homes of friends or relatives right after the sun set on the 13th of Nissan.  Since the Jewish day went from sunset to sunset, they would technically be celebrating it on the same day.  So, how Jesus and the disciples arrange their Passover meal fits right in with what we know about how Passovers were celebrated in Jerusalem at that time. 

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Right while they were eating, Jesus breaks the news to them that one of them will betray him.  It notes that the disciples were very sorrowful.  Notice that the disciples ask one after the other, “Is it I, LORD?”  The disciples call Jesus Lord.  But when it gets to Judas, Judas says, “Is it I, RABBI?”  This should have been a dead giveaway to the other disciples.  Judas did not make Jesus the Lord of his life.  The other gospels fill us in on the fact that this is when Judas goes to meet with the chief priests to bring them for the betrayal of Jesus.  They also mention that the other disciples did not know why Judas left.  What is Jesus’ take on his betrayal?

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Jesus says, “The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”  Jesus knows what his fate is.  His fate is even written in Scripture.  But woe to the one that betrays him.

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Here is the definition of “woe” according to Mirriam-Webster’s dictionary:

1: a condition of deep suffering from misfortune, affliction, or grief.

2: ruinous trouble : CALAMITY, AFFLICTION.

 

So, there would certainly be some calamity, or punishment for this sin.  Judas will be paying this back for a long time.  This is the result of failing to make Jesus your Lord.  You will betray him in some way and you will spend eternity without him.

Now, all this took place while they were eating the Passover meal.  Let’s take a quick look at what is all involved with the Passover meal.