1. Early in the morning all the chief priests and the leaders of the people decided to execute Jesus.
2. They tied him up, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate, the governor.
3. Then Judas, who had betrayed Jesus, regretted what had happened when he saw that Jesus was condemned. He brought the 30 silver coins back to the chief priests and leaders.
4. He said, “I’ve sinned by betraying an innocent man.”They replied, “What do we care? That’s your problem.”
5. So he threw the money into the temple, went away, and hanged himself.
6. The chief priests took the money and said, “It’s not right to put it into the temple treasury, because it’s blood money.”
7. So they decided to use it to buy a potter’s field for the burial of strangers.
8. That’s why that field has been called the Field of Blood ever since.
9. Then what the prophet Jeremiah had said came true, “They took the 30 silver coins, the price the people of Israel had placed on him,
10. and used the coins to buy a potter’s field, as the Lord had directed me.”
11. Jesus stood in front of the governor, ⌊Pilate⌋. The governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”“Yes, I am,” Jesus answered.
12. While the chief priests and leaders were accusing him, he said nothing.
13. Then Pilate asked him, “Don’t you hear how many charges they’re bringing against you?”
14. But Jesus said absolutely nothing to him in reply, so the governor was very surprised.
15. At every Passover festival the governor would free one prisoner whom the crowd wanted.
16. At that time there was a well-known prisoner by the name of Barabbas.
17. So when the people gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which man do you want me to free for you? Do you want me to free Barabbas or Jesus, who is called Christ?”
18. Pilate knew that they had handed Jesus over to him because they were jealous.