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Part 1
Go, Jesus, go unto thy pain!
I will unceasingly lament thee
Till me thy comfort reappeareth,
When I am reconciled with thee.

It was now two days before Passover and the feast of Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and scribes were seeking how to arrest him by stealth, and kill him; for they said:

Yea, not on the feast, that there not be an
uproar among the people.

And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at table, a woman came with a glass jar of pure and precious nard; and she broke the jar and poured it over his head. But there were some who were indignant and said:

What point hath all this nonsense? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred dinarii and the sum given to the poor.

And they murmured about her.

They deal with us like heretics
And for our blood are thirsting,
But vaunt that they are Christians too,
Who God alone are serving;
Ah God, thy great and precious name
Must of their mischief be the seal!
But thou one day shalt waken.

But Jesus said:

Let her alone; why do ye trouble her? She hath done a good work for me. Ye will always have the poor with you, and whenever ye will, ye can do good to them! But me ye will not always have. She hath done what she could; she hath come forth to anoint my body for my burial. Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, it will be told in memory of her what she hath now done.

And Judas Iscariot who was one of the twelve, went to the chief priests in order to betray him. When they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money. And he sought an opportunity to betray him.

To me the world hath dealt deceit
With lying and with false conceit,
With snares and hidden pitfalls.
Lord, me protect
Amidst this threat,
Guard me from artful malice.

And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the passover lamb, his disciples said to him:

Where wouldst thou have us go and prepare for thee to eat the paschal lamb?

And he sent two of his disciples, and said to them:

Go into the city, and a man will meet you who carries a jar of water; follow him, and wherever he enters, say to the householder, "The Master says to thee, 'Where is my guest room, where I am to eat the paschal lamb with my disciples?'" And he will show you a large room which is plastered and made ready; there prepare for us.

And the disciples set out and went to the city, and found it as he had told them, and they prepared the paschal lamb. At evening, then, he came with the twelve. And as they were at table eating, Jesus said:

Truly, I say to you, one of you who is eating with me will betray me.

And they became sorrowful and said to him one after another:

Is it I?

I, I and my transgressions,
Which to the grains are likened
Of sand beside the sea.
These have in thee awakened
The sorrow that doth strike thee
And this most grievous host of pain.

He answered and said to them:

One of the twelve, who is dipping in the dish with me. For indeed the Son of man goeth forth, as it is written of him. But woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed; it were better for this man, had he not been born.

And as they were eating, Jesus took the bread, gave thanks and brake it, and gave it to them, saying:

Take, eat, this is my body.

And took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And he said to them:

This is my blood of the New Testament, which is poured out for many. Truly, I say to you that I shall henceforth not drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God.

My Savior, I'll forget thee not;
For I have sealed thee in my bosom,
And of thy flesh and blood partaken,
And all my hope now set on thee.

And when they had said the hymn of praise, they went out to the Mount of Olives. And Jesus said to them:


Ye will in this night all be annoyed because of me. For it is written, "I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will scatter." But after I am risen up, I will go before you into Galilee.

Wake up, O man, from sinful sleep,
Be lively now, ye errant sheep,
And better soon thy living!
Wake up, in truth the time is nigh
When shall come forth eternity
With thy reward to give thee.
Perhaps this is the final day,
For who can know how we shall die.

But Peter say to him:

Even though they all be annoyed, I will not be annoyed.

And Jesus said to him:


Truly, I say to thee, today this very night, before the cock hath twice crowed, wilt thou thrice deny me.

But he said still further:

Yea, even though I must die with thee, will I not deny thee.

And they all spoke likewise. And they came to an enclosure with the name of Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples:

Sit down here, while I go on and pray.

And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to tremble and be afraid, and said to them:

My soul is troubled unto death; remain here and watch.

O troubled heart, have courage now,
Do not be so despondent,
For ev'rything will yet be good,
All thy cross, woe and sorrow
Will find themselves to nought but joy
Transformed within the briefest time;
Of this thou shalt have knowledge.

And going a little further, he fell to the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass by; and he said:

Abba, my Father, with thee are all things possible, lift from me this cup. But not what I will, but what thou wilt.

Deal with me, God, of thy good will,
Help me in all my suff'ring,
What now I ask, deny me not,
Whene'er my soul's departure,
Receive it, Lord, into thy hand,
For all is good, if good the end.

And came and found them sleeping. And said to Peter:

Simon, sleepest thou? Was thou not able to
watch one hour? Watch ye and pray, that ye
not fall into temptation. The spirit is
willing, but the flesh is weak.

And went away again and prayed, saying the same words. And came again, and found them once more sleeping, for their eyes were heavy with sleep, and they knew not what to answer him. And he came for a third time and said to them.

Ah, would ye now sleep and rest? It is enough, the hour is come. See, the Son of man is delivered into the hands of sinners. Stand up, let us go; he who betrays me is near.

He comes, he comes, he is now present!
My Jesus, ah, he seeketh thee,
Take flight now, and let me go,
My Health, instead of thee in bondage.

And as soon as he had spoken, Judas, one of the twelve, came forth, and a large crowd with him with swords and cudgels, sent from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. And the betrayer had given them a sign, and had said, "The one I shall kiss is the man; seize him and lead him away safely." And he came, went up to him at once, and said to him:

Rabbi, Rabbi.

And kissed him.

Untrue world, thy fawning kisses
Are to righteous souls a bane.
All thy tongues are full of arrows,
And the words which they have uttered
Have to fell us been inspired.

And they laid hands upon him and seized him. But one of those who were standing there drew forth his sword and struck the high priest's servant and cut off his ear. And Jesus answered and said to them:

Ye have come out as though against a murderer, with swords and with cudgels, to take me. I have been with you daily in the temple and have taught, and ye did not seized me. But let the scripture be fulfilled.

Jesus, free of any wrong,
There within the garden,
There where they have bound thee now
Fast in cruel fetters;
When us would the evil foe
Bind fast in transgressions,
Then let us, O friend of man,
Thereby find salvation.

And the disciples all abandoned him and fled. And there was a young man who followed after him with a linen cloth about his naked body; and the young men seized him. But he left the linen cloth and ran away naked from them.

I will here stand beside thee,
Do thou me not forsake,
I will not ever leave thee
When thee thy heart doth break.
When thy heart feels death's pallor
Within death's final stroke,
E'en then will I embrace thee
Within my arms and lap.

Part 2

My Helper is no more with me;
My Jesus, shall I then now lose thee
And see thee led to thy destruction?
This brings my soul the greatest pain.
On innocence which doth no evil,
Upon the lamb which doth no wrong
Within the unfair council throng
A fatal sentence hath been spoken.

And they led Jesus to the high priest, where all the chief priests and elders and scribes had assembled. But Peter followed them at a distance, as far as the court of the high priest's palace; and he was there and sat by the servants and warmed himself by the firelight. But the chief priests and the whole council sought witness against Jesus, that they might put him to death, and found none. Many bore false witness against him, but their witness did not agree. And some arose and bore false witness against him and said:

We have heard him say, "I will destroy the temple which has been made with hands and in three days build another which is not made with hands."

But their testimony still did not agree.

What human pow'r and wit contrive
Shall us in no wise frighten;
He sitteth in the highest seat,
He shall expose their counsels.
When they most cunningly attack,
God will pursue another path,
It stands in his hands' power.

And the high priest arose among them and questioned Jesus and said:

Hast thou no answer to that which these testify against thee?


But he was silent and made no answer.

Commend thou all thy pathways
And all that grieves thy heart
To the most faithful keeping
Of him who ruleth heav'n.
To clouds and air and breezes
He gives their course to run,
He will find pathways also
Whereon thy foot may walk.

And the high priest asked him again, saying to him:

Art thou Christ, the Son of the Exalted One?

And Jesus said:

I am that. And ye will see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.


Then the high priest tore his mantle and said:

What need we of further witnesses? Ye have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?

And they all condemned him as deserving death. And some began to spit on him and to cover his face and with their fists to strike him, saying to him:

Prophesy to us.

And the servants struck him in the face.

Thou countenance so noble,
At which should shrink and quail
The mighty world's great burden,
How spat upon thou art,
How pale thou art become now!
Who hath thine eyes' bright light,
Unlike no other light once,
So shamefully abused?

And Peter was below in the courtyard of the palace, when one of the maids of the high priest came. And as she saw Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said:

And thou was also with Jesus of Nazareth.

But he denied it and said:

I do not know him, nor do I know what thou meanest.

And he went out to the fore-court; and the cock crew. And the maid looked at him and began again to say to the bystanders there:

This man is one of them.

And he denied it again. And after a little while the bystanders said again to Peter:


Surely thou art one of them; for thou art a Galilean, and thy speech soundeth thus.

But he began to invoke a curse upon himself and to swear:

I do not know the man of whom ye speak.

And the cock crew a second time. And Peter remembered the words which Jesus had spoken to him, before the cock hath twice crowed, wilt thou thrice deny me. And he began to weep.

Lord, I have in deed been sinful,
Yea, I'm pressed by weight of sin,
I have the path not followed
Which thou didst reveal to me,
And now would I in my terror
Gladly from thy wrath conceal me.

And as soon as it was morning, the chief priests took counsel with the elders and scribes and the whole assembly, and binding Jesus, they led him away and handed him over to Pilate. And Pilate asked him:

Art thou the King of the Jews?

But he answered and said to him:

Thou sayest.

And the chief priests accused him severely. But Pilate asked him again and said:

Hast thou no answer? See how harshly they have charged thee.

But Jesus made no further reply, so that Pilate marveled. But he was wont at the Passover feast to release to them a prisoner whom they asked for. And there was one named Barabbas, taken prisoner with the rebels who in an insurrection had
committed a murder. And the crowd came up and asked him to do as he was wont. But Pilate answered them:

Do ye want me to release to you the King of the Jews?

For he perceived that the chief priests had handed him over out of envy. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to prefer by far that he should release Barabbas. But Pilate answered again and said to them:

What would ye then that I do with him whom ye blame as the King of the Jews?

They cried out again:

Crucify him.

But Pilate said unto them:

What evil hath he done?

But they cried out all the more:

Crucify him.

O enchanting cry of death!
Jesus on the cross must perish,
Only that I from destruction
Of my curséd soul be free,
And by me both cross and passion
Softly to be born may be.

Pilate, now, mindful to satisfy the crowd, released to them Barabbas; and he handed Jesus over to them to be scourged and crucified. And the soldiers led him into the praetorium and called together the whole company; and they clothed him in a purple cloak, and, plaiting a crown of thorns, they put it on him. And they began to salute him:

Hail to thee, the King of the Jews!
And struck him on the head with the reed, and spat upon him and fell upon their knees and worshipped him.

Sorely hast thou been derided,
Covered with the greatest scorn,
And with thorns thou hast been crownéd:
What was it that brought thee to this?
That thou mightest bring me pleasure,
Place on me the crown of honor.
Thousand, thousand times to thee,
Dearest Jesus, thanks for this.

And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak, and put his own clothes on him, and led him away to crucify him. And they compelled a passer-by named Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Ruffus, to bear his cross. And they brought him to the place called Golgotha, which is to be interpreted the place of a skull. And they gave him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, and he did not take it. And when they had crucified him, they divided his garments and cast lots to see who would receive each part.

That word they must allow to stand,
No thanks to all their efforts:
He is with us by his own plan,
With his own gifts and Spirit.
Our body let them take,
Wealth, rank, child and wife,
Let them all be lost,
And still they cannot win;
God's realm is ours forever.

And it was the third hour when they crucified him. And above him was written the charge against him, namely a King of the Jews. And they crucified him with two murderers, one to his right and one to his left. And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, He was reckoned among the transgressors. And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying:

Fie upon thee, how well thou dost destroy the temple and buildest it in three days! Help now thyself and come down from the cross!

So also the chief priests mocked him to one another with the scribes, saying:

He hath helped others, he cannot help himself. If he is Christ and King in Israel, let him now come down from the cross, that we may see and believe.

And those who were crucified with him reviled him also. And after the sixth hour there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried aloud and said:

Eli, Eli, lama asabthani?

This is interpreted, my God, my God, wherefore hast thou forsaken me?

No one hath God forsaken
Who trusts in him alway,
And though now many hate him,
Yet shall he not be grieved;
God will protect his people,
At last shall raise them high,
And give them their due blessing,
In this age and beyond.

And some of the bystanders, when they heard this, said:

See, he calleth to Elijah.

Then one ran up and, filling a sponge with vinegar, fixed it to a reed and gave him to drink, saying:

Wait, let us see whether Elijah comes and takes him down.

But Jesus cried aloud and died.

World and heaven, O now hearken,
Jesus crieth loud and clear.
To all sinners doth he say
That he now hath done enough,
That the Eden is restored,
That which we before did forfeit.

And the curtain in the temple was rent in twain, from top to bottom. But the centurion, who stood facing him and saw that he had died with such a cry, said:

Truly, this man was the Son of God.

And there were also women there, who looked upon this from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome, who had also followed after him when he was in Galilee, and had ministered unto him; and many other women who had gone up with him to Jerusalem. And at evening, since it was the day of Preparation, that is the day before the Sabbath, there came Joseph of Arimathaea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God; he took courage and went inside to Pilate and asked him for the body of Jesus. But Pilate was amazed that he was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he was already dead. And when he heard it of the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph.

O Jesus thou,
My help and rest!
I ask thee now with weeping,
Help that I until the grave
For thee may be yearning.

And he bought a linen shroud, and taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud, and laid him in a tomb which had been hewn out of a rock; and he rolled a stone before the door of the tomb. But Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of Joses, saw where he had been laid.

Beside thy tomb and its great stone
Will I alway, my Jesus, pasture,
And for this thy most worth passion
With heartfelt joy and thanks be glad.
Lo, this the title thou shalt merit:
My life shall come from this thy death,
Here have I laid my sin-filled woe
And in myself have buried Jesus.