John 12

¹Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was—the one Jesus had raised from the dead. ²So they prepared a dinner for him there. Martha was serving, and Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with him. ³Then Mary took a Roman pound of perfume—pure nard oil, very costly—and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

⁴But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples—the one who was about to betray him—said, ⁵"Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?" ⁶He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the money box and used to pilfer what was put into it.

⁷Jesus said, "Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial preparation. ⁸For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me."

⁹Now a large crowd from among the Judeans learned that he was there, and they came not only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. ¹⁰So the chief priests plotted to kill Lazarus as well, ¹¹because on account of him many of the Judeans were going over and believing in Jesus.

¹²The next day, the large crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. ¹³So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, and they were shouting: "Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord—even the King of Israel!"

¹⁴And Jesus, finding a young donkey, sat on it, just as it is written: ¹⁵"Do not fear, daughter of Zion; look, your king is coming, seated on a donkey's colt."

¹⁶His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and that they had done these things to him.

¹⁷So the crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. ¹⁸This is also why the crowd went to meet him—because they heard that he had performed this sign.

¹⁹The Pharisees therefore said to one another, "You see that you are accomplishing nothing. Look—the world has gone after him!"

²⁰Now there were some Greeks among those who were going up to worship at the festival. ²¹These men approached Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and made a request of him, saying, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus." ²²Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.

²³Jesus answered them, saying, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. ²⁴Truly, truly I tell you: unless the grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. ²⁵The one who loves his life destroys it, and the one who hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life. ²⁶If anyone serves me, let him follow me, and where I am, there my servant will also be. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

²⁷"Now my soul is troubled. And what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? But it is for this very reason that I came to this hour. ²⁸Father, glorify your name." Then a voice came from heaven: "I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again."

²⁹The crowd standing there who heard it said that thunder had occurred. Others said, "An angel has spoken to him."

³⁰Jesus answered and said, "This voice has not come for my sake but for yours. ³¹Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. ³²And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself." ³³He said this to indicate what kind of death he was about to die.

³⁴The crowd answered him, "We have heard from the Law that the Messiah remains forever. So how can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?"

³⁵Jesus therefore said to them, "The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, so that darkness may not overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. ³⁶While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become sons of light." After Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them.

³⁷Although he had performed so many signs in their presence, they did not believe in him, ³⁸so that the word spoken by Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled: "Lord, who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?"

³⁹For this reason they were unable to believe, because Isaiah again said: ⁴⁰"He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, so that they might not see with their eyes and understand with their heart and turn back—and I would heal them."

⁴¹Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke about him.

⁴²Nevertheless, even among the rulers many believed in him, but because of the Pharisees they would not openly acknowledge it, so that they would not be expelled from the synagogue. ⁴³For they loved the glory that comes from people more than the glory that comes from God.

⁴⁴Jesus cried out and said, "The one who believes in me believes not in me but in the one who sent me, ⁴⁵and the one who sees me sees the one who sent me. ⁴⁶I have come as light into the world, so that everyone who believes in me may not remain in darkness. ⁴⁷And if anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. ⁴⁸The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has his judge: the word that I have spoken—that will judge him on the last day. ⁴⁹For I have not spoken from myself, but the Father who sent me has himself given me commandment about what I should say and what I should speak. ⁵⁰And I know that his commandment is eternal life. Therefore what I speak, just as the Father has told me, so I speak."