The New Testament of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Part 7

AND Jesus went out, and departed from the temple; and his disciples came to him, to show him the buildings of the temple. (2)And he answering said to them: See ye not all these things? Verily I say to you, there shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

(3)And as he sat on the mount of the Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying: Tell us, when will these things be, and what is the sign of thy coming and of the end of the world? (4)And Jesus answering said to them: Take heed, lest any one lead you astray. (5)For many will come in my name, saying: I am the Christ; and will lead astray many. (6)And ye will hear of wars, and rumors of wars. Take heed, be not troubled; for all must come to pa.s.s[24:6]; but not yet is the end!

(7)For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there will be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. (8)But all these are the beginning of sorrows. (9)Then will they deliver you up unto affliction, and will kill you; and ye will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. (10)And then will many be offended, and will deliver up one another, and will hate one another.

(11)And many false prophets will arise, and will lead many astray.

(12)And because iniquity abounds, the love of the many will become cold. (13)But he that has endured to the end, the same shall be saved.

(14)And this good news of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world, for a testimony to all nations; and then shall come the end.

(15)When therefore ye see the abomination of desolation, spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let him that reads mark!) (16)then let those in Judaea flee to the mountains; he that is upon the house, (17)let him not come down to take the things out of his house; (18)and he that is in the field, let him not turn back to take his garments. (19)But woe to those who are with child, and to those who give suck in those days! (20)And pray that your flight be not in winter, nor on a sabbath. (21)For then will be great affliction, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no nor shall be. (22)And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the sake of the chosen, those days shall be shortened. (23)Then if any one say to you: Lo, here is the Christ, or, Here, believe it not. (24)For there will arise false Christs, and false prophets, and will show great signs and wonders; so as, if possible, to lead even the chosen astray. (25)Behold, I have told you before.

(26)If therefore they say to you: Behold, he is in the desert, go not forth; Behold, he is in the secret chambers, believe it not. (27)For as the lightning comes forth from the east, and s.h.i.+nes even unto the west, so shall be the coming of the Son of man. (28)For wherever the carca.s.s is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

(29)And immediately, after the affliction of those days, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

(30)And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the earth[24:30] mourn, and shall see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.

(31)And he will send forth his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his chosen from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

(32)And learn the parable from the fig-tree: When its branch is already become tender, and puts forth leaves, ye know that the summer is near. (33)So also ye, when ye see all these things, know that it is near, at the doors.

(34)Verily I say to you, this generation shall not pa.s.s, till all these things are done. (35)Heaven and earth shall pa.s.s away; but my words shall not pa.s.s away.

(36)But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only. (37)But as the days of Noah, so shall be also the coming of the Son of man. (38)For as they were in the days before the flood, eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, (39)and knew not until the flood came, and took all away; so shall be also the coming of the Son of man. (40)Then shall there be two men in the field, one is taken, and one is left; (41)two women grinding at the mill, one is taken, and one is left.

(42)Watch therefore; for ye know not in what day[24:42] your Lord comes. (43)But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken through. (44)Therefore be ye also ready; for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of man comes.

(45)Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord set over his household, to give them their food in due season? (46)Happy that servant, whom his lord when he comes shall find so doing! (47)Verily I say to you, that he will set him over all his goods. (48)But if that evil servant shall say in his heart: My lord delays his coming; (49)and shall begin to beat his fellow-servants, and shall eat and drink with the drunken; (50)the lord of that servant will come in a day when he looks not for it, and in an hour when he is not aware; (51)and will cut him asunder, and appoint his portion with the hypocrites. There will be the weeping, and the gnas.h.i.+ng of teeth!

XXV.

THEN shall the kingdom of heaven be likened to ten virgins, who took their lamps, and went out to meet the bridegroom. (2)And five of them were wise, and five foolish. (3)The foolish, taking their lamps, took no oil with them; (4)but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. (5)While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.

(6)And at midnight a cry was made: Behold, the bridegroom! Go out to meet him. (7)Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.

(8)And the foolish said to the wise: Give us of your oil, for our lamps are going out. (9)But the wise answered, saying: Not so; there will not be enough for us and you. Go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves. (10)And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they who were ready went in with him to the marriage; and the door was shut. (11)And afterward come also the rest of the virgins, saying: Lord, Lord, open to us. (12)But he answering said: Verily I say to you, I know you not.

(13)Watch, therefore; because ye know not the day, nor the hour!

(14)For as a man going abroad called his own servants, and delivered to them his goods; (15)and to one gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and straightway went abroad. (16)And he that received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained other five talents. (17)Likewise also he that received the two gained other two. (18)But he that received the one went away and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money. (19)After a long time the lord of those servants comes, and reckons with them. (20)And he that received the five talents came and brought other five talents, saying: Lord, thou deliveredst to me five talents; behold, I gained other five talents beside them. (21)His lord said to him: Well done, good and faithful servant; thou wast faithful over a little, I will set thee over much. Enter thou into the joy of thy lord. (22)And he also that received the two talents came and said: Lord, thou deliveredst to me two talents; behold, I gained other two talents beside them. (23)His lord said to him: Well done, good and faithful servant; thou wast faithful over a little, I will set thee over much. Enter thou into the joy of thy lord. (24)And he also that received the one talent came and said: Lord, I knew thee that thou art a hard man, reaping where thou didst not sow, and gathering where thou strewedst not. (25)And fearing, I went and hid thy talent in the earth. Lo, thou hast thine own. (26)And his lord answering said to him: Wicked and slothful servant! Thou knewest that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I strewed not? (27)Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers; and when I came, I should have received my own with interest. (28)Take therefore the talent from him, and give to him that has the ten talents. (29)For to every one that has shall be given, and he shall have abundance; but from him that has not, even what he has shall be taken away. (30)And cast forth the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be the weeping, and the gnas.h.i.+ng of teeth!

(31)And when the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the angels with him, then will he sit on his throne of glory. (32)And before him shall be gathered all the nations; and he will divide them one from another, as the shepherd divides the sheep from the goats.

(33)And he will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

(34)Then will the King say to those on his right hand: Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. (35)For I was hungry, and ye gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger and ye took me in, (36)naked and ye clothed me; I was sick, and ye visited me; I was in prison, and ye came to me.

(37)Then will the righteous answer him, saying: Lord, when saw we thee hungering and fed thee, or thirsting and gave thee drink? (38)And when saw we thee a stranger and took thee in, or naked and clothed thee?

(39)And when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came to thee? (40)And the King will answer and say to them: Verily I say to you, inasmuch as ye did it to one of the least of these my brethren, ye did it to me.

(41)Then will he say also to those on the left hand: Depart from me, accursed, into the everlasting fire; prepared for the Devil and his angels. (42)For I was hungry, and ye did not give me to eat; I was thirsty, and ye did not give me drink; (43)I was a stranger, and ye did not take me in; naked, and ye did not clothe me; sick, and in prison, and ye did not visit me.

(44)Then will they also answer, saying: Lord, when saw we thee hungering, or thirsting, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to thee? (45)Then will he answer them, saying: Verily I say to you, inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

(46)And these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into everlasting life.

XXVI.

AND it came to pa.s.s, when Jesus finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples: (2)Ye know that after two days comes the pa.s.sover, and the Son of man is delivered up to be crucified.

(3)Then a.s.sembled together the chief priests, and the elders of the people, in the court of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, (4)and consulted together that they might take Jesus by craft, and put him to death. (5)But they said: Not at the feast, that there may not be a tumult among the people.

(6)And Jesus being in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, (7)there came to him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head as he reclined at table. (8)And his disciples seeing it were displeased, saying: To what purpose is this waste? (9)For this might have been sold for much, and given to the poor. (10)And Jesus knowing it, said to them: Why trouble ye the woman? For she wrought a good work upon me. (11)For the poor ye have always with you; but me ye have not always. (12)For she, in pouring this ointment on my body, did it to prepare me for burial. (13)Verily I say to you, wherever this good news shall be preached in the whole world, this also that she did shall be told, for a memorial of her.

(14)Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests, (15)and said: What will ye give me, and I will deliver him to you? And they weighed out to him thirty pieces of silver. (16)And from that time he sought opportunity to deliver him up.

(17)And on the first day of the feast of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying to him: Where wilt thou that we prepare for thee to eat the pa.s.sover? (18)And he said: Go into the city to such a man, and say to him: The Teacher says, my time is at hand; I will keep the pa.s.sover at thy house with my disciples. (19)And the disciples did as Jesus directed them, and made ready the pa.s.sover.

(20)And when evening was come, he reclined at table with the twelve.

(21)And as they were eating, he said: Verily I say to you, that one of you will betray me. (22)And they were exceedingly sorrowful, and began to say to him, each one: Lord, is it I? (23)And he answering said: He that dipped his hand with me in the dish, the same will betray me.

(24)The Son of man goes indeed, as it is written of him; but woe to that man through whom the Son of man is betrayed! It were good for him, if that man had not been born.

(25)And Judas, his betrayer, answering said: Rabbi, is it I? He says to him: Thou saidst it.

(26)And as they were eating, Jesus took the loaf[26:26], and blessed, and broke, and gave to the disciples, and said: Take, eat; this is my body. (27)And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave to them, saying: Drink all ye of it. (28)For this is my blood of the new covenant[26:28], which is shed for many, for remission of sins.

(29)And I say to you, that I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you, in the kingdom of my Father.

(30)And having sung, they went out into the mount of the Olives.

(31)Then Jesus says to them: All ye will be offended because of me this night. For it is written: I will smite the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad. (32)But after I have risen, I will go before you into Galilee.

(33)Peter answering said to him: Though all shall be offended because of thee, I will never be offended. (34)Jesus said to him: Verily I say to thee, that this night, before a c.o.c.k crows, thou wilt thrice deny me. (35)Peter says to him: Even though I should die with thee, I will not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.

(36)Then Jesus comes with them to a place called Gethsemane, and says to the disciples: Sit ye here, while I go yonder and pray. (37)And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful, and to be troubled. (38)Then says he to them: My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, unto death. Tarry ye here, and watch with me.

(39)And going forward a little, he fell on his face, praying, and saying: My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pa.s.s away from me.

But yet, not as I will, but as thou wilt. (40)And he comes to the disciples, and finds them sleeping; and he says to Peter: Were ye so unable to watch with me one hour? (41)Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

(42)Again, a second time, he went away and prayed, saying: My Father, if this can not pa.s.s away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done. (43)And coming he again found them sleeping; for their eyes were heavy.

(44)And leaving them, he went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. (45)Then he comes to his disciples, and says to them: Do ye sleep the remaining time, and take your rest[26:45]!

Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. (46)Rise, let us be going. Behold, he is at hand that betrays me.

(47)And while he was yet speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great mult.i.tude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people. (48)And his betrayer gave them a sign, saying: Whom I shall kiss, that is he; hold him fast. (49)And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said: Hail, Rabbi; and kissed him.

(50)And Jesus said to him: Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then they came, and laid hands on Jesus, and held him fast. (51)And, behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, and striking the servant of the high priest took off his ear.

(52)Then says Jesus to him: Put back thy sword into its place; for all they who take the sword shall perish with the sword. (53)Thinkest thou that I can not now pray to my Father, and he will send[26:53] me more than twelve legions of angels? (54)How then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?

(55)In that hour Jesus said to the mult.i.tudes: Are ye come out as against a robber, with swords and staves, to take me? I sat daily with you teaching in the temple, and ye did not lay hold of me. (56)But all this has been done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then the disciples all forsook him, and fled.

(57)And they who laid hold of Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were a.s.sembled. (58)And Peter followed him afar off, unto the court of the high priest; and entering in, he sat with the servants, to see the end.