Introduction

Introduction

The last week before Jesus went to the cross is popularly known as Passion Week (or Holy Week in some traditions). It falls between Palm Sunday, when a hopeful crowd crowned Jesus as their long-anticipated king, and Easter Sunday, when a victorious Jesus broke the bondage of death and rose physically from the dead.

When we hear the word “passion”, we usually think of strong powerful emotions, particularly intense love. But the English word “passion” comes from the Latin passio, which means “suffering or enduring suffering”. In many ways, this describes the profundity and intensity of the events that took place in Jesus’ last week, during which He demonstrated His immeasurable love for us when He “endured the cross, scoring its shame” (Hebrews 12:2)! The Passion Week of Christ thus encompasses both the strong emotion of intense love and intense suffering.

Jesus was about 30 years old when He began His ministry (Luke 3:23). The earlier part of His ministry was carried out in the northern province of Galilee, where He used Capernaum, a key commercial centre on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee, as His home base (Matthew 4:13). Towards the tail-end of His earthly ministry, we are told that “Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51).

Against the backdrop of Peter’s confession of faith that Jesus is “the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16), “Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer (Greek paschō) many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life” (16:21).

This same Greek word paschō is used in Acts 1:3 where Luke recounts, “After his suffering (paschō), he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive”. Interestingly, the King James Bible renders the word paschō as “passion”—“To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion (paschō) by many infallible proofs”.

Passion Week: The Main Events

Most studies on Passion Week tend to begin with Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. For our study, we begin our narrative a day earlier, with the story of Mary anointing Jesus for His burial “six days before the Passover” (John 12:1).

The chapters in this book are organised by days, unfolding the key events of Jesus’ last week in chronological order, starting from His arrival in Bethany and culminating in His burial and resurrection. Each chapter will look at Jesus’ interaction with His disciples and enemies, and draw lessons and reflections for Christians today.

The timeline for Passion Week is laid out below. Relevant Scriptures are provided for you to read the biblical record for yourself. Jesus exhorted us to “study the Scriptures diligently because . . . These are the very Scriptures that testify about [him]” (5:39–40).

Friday

John 12:1 Jesus arrives in Bethany, a little town just 3 km from Jerusalem, just before the start of the Sabbath.

Saturday (Sabbath)

Matthew 26:6–13, Mark 14:3–9, John 12:2–11 At a dinner held after the Sabbath in Jesus’ honour, Mary anoints Him with expensive perfume. I have included this story because Jesus specifically instructed us to remember what Mary did for Him (Matthew 26:13).

Palm Sunday

Matthew 21:1–11, Mark 11:1–11, Luke 19:28–40, and John 12:12–15 Jesus rides on a donkey into Jerusalem to show He is the Messiah, fulfilling the specific messianic prophecy of Zechariah 9:9. The people proclaim Him as their long-anticipated king.

Monday

Matthew 21:12–22, Mark 11:12–21, and Luke 19:45–46 Jesus curses a fig tree. Jesus clears the temple, a second time. The differences in the details suggest that Jesus cleared the temple twice, once at the beginning of His ministry (John 2:13–17), and again at its close.

Tuesday

Matthew 21:23–25:46, Mark 11:20–13:37, Luke 20:1–21:38, and John 12:20–36 Jesus teaches His followers and faces a debate with religious leaders in the temple courts. On the Mount of Olives, Jesus speaks on the end-times events and gives us what is now known as the Olivet Discourse.

Wednesday

Matthew 26:1–5, 14–16, Mark 14:1–2, and Luke 22:1–6 The Bible doesn’t say what Jesus did on Wednesday. Some scholars speculate that Jesus continues to teach in the temple courts. Others suggest that after three intense and exhausting days in Jerusalem, Jesus spends this day resting in Bethany in anticipation of Passover. On this day also, Judas Iscariot conspires with the Sanhedrin to betray Jesus.

Maundy Thursday

Matthew 26:17–56, Mark 14:12–52, Luke 22:7–53, and John 13:1–18:11 The following events take place: The Passover Meal and the Lord’s Supper, the washing of the disciples’ feet, and the Upper Room Discourse and Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer

Good Friday

Matthew 26:57–27:61, Mark 14:53–15:47, Luke 22:54–23:56, and John 18:12–19:42 The following events take place: Jesus prays in Gethsemane, His betrayal and arrest, three Jewish religious trials before the Sanhedrin, Peter’s denial of Christ, three Gentile civil trials before Pilate and Herod, the crucifixion, darkness, the death, and burial of Jesus

Saturday (Sabbath)

Matthew 27:62–66, and Luke 23:56 Jesus is in the tomb. Because this was the Jewish Sabbath, no activities were carried out or recorded.

Resurrection Sunday

Matthew 28:1–15, Mark 16:1–8, Luke 24:1–35, and John 20:1–23 Jesus’ followers find an empty tomb. Jesus rises from the dead and appears to His disciples.

Footprints on Calvary Road

In this book, we are going to take a walk with Jesus as we follow His footprints on Calvary Road, from Bethany (Friday) to the empty tomb (Resurrection Sunday).

As the Roman soldiers led Jesus to the execution grounds, He could not carry the crossbeam of the cross, having been weakened by the brutal torture and flogging. A passerby, Simon from Cyrene, was forced to carry the cross for Jesus. Simon was the only man privileged to literally carry Jesus’ cross! Like Simon, we want to be able to take the cross and journey with our Lord on the Calvary Road. But unlike Simon, we want to do so voluntarily and lovingly. We want to obey Jesus’ words, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me” (Matthew16:24 NLT).