Daily Bible Reading
Day 79
Today's reading: John 19-21
Look for the promises in God’s word. As you read and find them, write them in your journal along with the scripture reference.
John 19
Pilate Tries to Release Jesus
1. Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged severely.
2. The soldiers braided a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they clothed him in a purple robe.
3. They came up to him again and again and said, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they struck him repeatedly in the face.
4. Again Pilate went out and said to the Jewish leaders, “Look, I am bringing him out to you, so that you may know that I find no reason for an accusation against him.”
5. So Jesus came outside, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Look, here is the man!”
6. When the chief priests and their officers saw him, they shouted out, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” Pilate said, “You take him and crucify him! Certainly I find no reason for an accusation against him!”
7. The Jewish leaders replied, “We have a law, and according to our law he ought to die, because he claimed to be the Son of God!”
8. When Pilate heard what they said, he was more afraid than ever,
9. and he went back into the governor’s residence and said to Jesus, “Where do you come from?” But Jesus gave him no answer.
10. So Pilate said, “Do you refuse to speak to me? Don’t you know I have the authority to release you, and to crucify you?”
11. Jesus replied, “You would have no authority over me at all, unless it was given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of greater sin.”
12. From this point on, Pilate tried to release him. But the Jewish leaders shouted out, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar! Everyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar!”
13. When Pilate heard these words he brought Jesus outside and sat down on the judgment seat in the place called “The Stone Pavement” (Gabbatha in Aramaic).
14. (Now it was the day of preparation for the Passover, about noon.) Pilate said to the Jewish leaders, “Look, here is your king!”
15. Then they shouted out, “Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!” Pilate asked, “Shall I crucify your king?” The high priests replied, “We have no king except Caesar!”
The Crucifixion
16. Then Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.So they took Jesus,
17. and carrying his own cross he went out to the place called “The Place of the Skull” (called in Aramaic Golgotha).
18. There they crucified him along with two others, one on each side, with Jesus in the middle.
19. Pilate also had a notice written and fastened to the cross, which read: “Jesus the Nazarene, the king of the Jews.”
20. Thus many of the Jewish residents of Jerusalem read this notice, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the notice was written in Aramaic, Latin, and Greek.
21. Then the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The king of the Jews,’ but rather, ‘This man said, I am king of the Jews.’”
22. Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”
23. Now when the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and made four shares, one for each soldier, and the tunic remained. (Now the tunic was seamless, woven from top to bottom as a single piece.)
24. So the soldiers said to one another, “Let’s not tear it, but throw dice to see who will get it.” This took place to fulfill the scripture that says, “They divided my garments among them, and for my clothing they threw dice.” So the soldiers did these things.
25. Now standing beside Jesus’ cross were his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
26. So when Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing there, he said to his mother, “Woman, look, here is your son!”
27. He then said to his disciple, “Look, here is your mother!” From that very time the disciple took her into his own home.
Jesus’ Death
28. After this Jesus, realizing that by this time everything was completed, said (in order to fulfill the scripture), “I am thirsty!”
29. A jar full of sour wine was there, so they put a sponge soaked in sour wine on a branch of hyssop and lifted it to his mouth.
30. When he had received the sour wine, Jesus said, “It is completed!” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
31. Then, because it was the day of preparation, so that the bodies should not stay on the crosses on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was an especially important one), the Jewish leaders asked Pilate to have the victims’ legs broken and the bodies taken down.
32. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the two men who had been crucified with Jesus, first the one and then the other.
33. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.
34. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and blood and water flowed out immediately.
35. And the person who saw it has testified (and his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth), so that you also may believe.
36. For these things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled, “Not a bone of his will be broken.”
37. And again another scripture says, “They will look on the one whom they have pierced.”
Jesus’ Burial
38. After this, Joseph of Arimathea, a disciple of Jesus (but secretly, because he feared the Jewish leaders), asked Pilate if he could remove the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission, so he went and took the body away.
39. Nicodemus, the man who had previously come to Jesus at night, accompanied Joseph, carrying a mixture of myrrh and aloes weighing about seventy-five pounds.
40. Then they took Jesus’ body and wrapped it, with the aromatic spices, in strips of linen cloth according to Jewish burial customs.
41. Now at the place where Jesus was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden was a new tomb where no one had yet been buried.
42. And so, because it was the Jewish day of preparation and the tomb was nearby, they placed Jesus’ body there.
John 20
The Resurrection
1. Now very early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been moved away from the entrance.
2. So she went running to Simon Peter and the other disciple whom Jesus loved and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”
3. Then Peter and the other disciple set out to go to the tomb.
4. The two were running together, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and reached the tomb first.
5. He bent down and saw the strips of linen cloth lying there, but he did not go in.
6. Then Simon Peter, who had been following him, arrived and went right into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen cloth lying there,
7. and the face cloth, which had been around Jesus’ head, not lying with the strips of linen cloth but rolled up in a place by itself.
8. Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, came in, and he saw and believed.
9. (For they did not yet understand the scripture that Jesus must rise from the dead.)
Jesus’ Appearance to Mary Magdalene
10. So the disciples went back to their homes.
11. But Mary stood outside the tomb weeping. As she wept, she bent down and looked into the tomb.
12. And she saw two angels in white sitting where Jesus’ body had been lying, one at the head and one at the feet.
13. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” Mary replied, “They have taken my Lord away, and I do not know where they have put him!”
14. When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus.
15. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?” Because she thought he was the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will take him.”
16. Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni” (which means Teacher).
17. Jesus replied, “Do not touch me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father. Go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
18. Mary Magdalene came and informed the disciples, “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them what Jesus had said to her.
Jesus’ Appearance to the Disciples
19. On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the disciples had gathered together and locked the doors of the place because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.”
20. When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
21. So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. Just as the Father has sent me, I also send you.”
22. And after he said this, he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
23. If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven; if you retain anyone’s sins, they are retained.”
The Response of Thomas
24. Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.
25. The other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “Unless I see the wounds from the nails in his hands, and put my finger into the wounds from the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will never believe it!”
26. Eight days later the disciples were again together in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”
27. Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and examine my hands. Extend your hand and put it into my side. Do not continue in your unbelief, but believe.”
28. Thomas replied to him, “My Lord and my God!”
29. Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are the people who have not seen and yet have believed.”
30. Now Jesus performed many other miraculous signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not recorded in this book.
31. But these are recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
John 21
Jesus’ Appearance to the Disciples in Galilee
1. After this Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias. Now this is how he did so.
2. Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael (who was from Cana in Galilee), the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples of his were together.
3. Simon Peter told them, “I am going fishing.” “We will go with you,” they replied. They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4. When it was already very early morning, Jesus stood on the beach, but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.
5. So Jesus said to them, “Children, you don’t have any fish, do you?” They replied, “No.”
6. He told them, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they threw the net, and were not able to pull it in because of the large number of fish.
7. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” So Simon Peter, when he heard that it was the Lord, tucked in his outer garment (for he had nothing on underneath it), and plunged into the sea.
8. Meanwhile the other disciples came with the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from land, only about a hundred yards.
9. When they got out on the beach, they saw a charcoal fire ready with a fish placed on it, and bread.
10. Jesus said, “Bring some of the fish you have just now caught.”
11. So Simon Peter went aboard and pulled the net to shore. It was full of large fish, one hundred fifty-three, but although there were so many, the net was not torn.
12. “Come, have breakfast,” Jesus said. But none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” because they knew it was the Lord.
13. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish.
14. This was now the third time Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Peter’s Restoration
15. Then when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these do?” He replied, “Yes, Lord, you know I love you.” Jesus told him, “Feed my lambs.”
16. Jesus said a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He replied, “Yes, Lord, you know I love you.” Jesus told him, “Shepherd my sheep.”
17. Jesus said a third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was distressed that Jesus asked him a third time, “Do you love me?” and said, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.” Jesus replied, “Feed my sheep.
18. I tell you the solemn truth, when you were young, you tied your clothes around you and went wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and others will tie you up and bring you where you do not want to go.”
19. (Now Jesus said this to indicate clearly by what kind of death Peter was going to glorify God.) After he said this, Jesus told Peter, “Follow me.”
Peter and the Disciple Jesus Loved
20. Peter turned around and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them. (This was the disciple who had leaned back against Jesus’ chest at the meal and asked, “Lord, who is the one who is going to betray you?”)
21. So when Peter saw him, he asked Jesus, “Lord, what about him?”
22. Jesus replied, “If I want him to live until I come back, what concern is that of yours? You follow me!”
23. So the saying circulated among the brothers and sisters that this disciple was not going to die. But Jesus did not say to him that he was not going to die, but rather, “If I want him to live until I come back, what concern is that of yours?”
A Final Note
24. This is the disciple who testifies about these things and has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true.
25. There are many other things that Jesus did. If every one of them were written down, I suppose the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.