Matthew 26:28 - Printer Friendly

ESV: for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

NIV: This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

NASB: for this is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.

CSB: For this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

NLT: for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many.

KJV: For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

NKJV: For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

The Passover meal was observed by nearly every Jewish person as a way of remembering and celebrating God's rescue of Israel through the blood of the lamb on their doorposts (Exodus 12:7, 14). Now Jesus is using the elements of the Passover meal to introduce something new.

He has broken bread and distributed it to them, describing it as His body (Matthew 26:26). He has given them the third cup of wine included in the meal, the "cup of blessing," and commanded them to drink it. He now describes that cup of wine as "my blood of the covenant."

Jesus' words have a connection to a powerful moment between God and the people of Israel during the time of Moses (Exodus 24:1–8). The blood of animal sacrifices was used to seal an agreement between God and the people. God promised to take care of them, and the people promised to be obedient to all God told them. Then came this:

"Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, 'Behold the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words'" (Exodus 24:8).

The disciples, then, would have grown up knowing that a covenant between God and His people was sealed with the blood of a sacrifice. Now Jesus has described the wine they are drinking as His blood of the covenant. He says that it is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

Jesus is describing a new agreement—a formal promise—between God and many people. This time, though, the covenant will not be for Israel alone. It will be for all people who come to God through faith in Jesus. Jesus' blood will be poured out to pay the price for the sin of all who trust in Him. His blood will seal the agreement God is making to forgive the sins of these Christ-followers or "Christians," taking Jesus' death as the payment for their sin.

The moment is very close now when Jesus' body will be abused, and His blood poured out on the cross. That is the moment Jesus' followers will remember with humble gratitude when they break the bread and drink from the cup together (Luke 22:19). It will come to be known as communion or the Lord's Supper.

Paul will describe it this way in 1 Corinthians 11:26, "For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes."

Matthew 26:17–35 begins with locating the room which will be used for the Passover meal. While they are eating, Jesus announces that one of His closest disciples will become a traitor. Judas discovers that Jesus knows it is him. Jesus introduces the concept of bread and wine as symbols of His sacrificial body and blood. After the meal, Jesus tells the disciples they will fall away that night and that Peter will deny Him three times. They insist that will not happen. Mark 14:10–31, Luke 22:3–23, Luke 22:31–34, and John 13:21–38 feature these events, as well.

The Jewish religious leaders further their plots to arrest and kill Jesus, finding a willing traitor in Judas Iscariot. A woman anoints Christ with oil during a dinner at Bethany. Next, Jesus and the disciples hold the Passover meal in an upper room where Jesus predicts His arrests and introduces the sacrament of communion. Then Jesus prays in unimaginable agony in the garden of Gethsemane before being betrayed by Judas and captured. The disciples scatter. Before the high priest, Jesus explicitly claims to be divine. They convict Him of blasphemy and sentence Him to death. As this happens, Peter denies knowing Jesus and runs away in shame.

After a long series of teaching (Matthew 24—25), Matthew 26 begins with Jesus saying He will be delivered up for death. Christ is anointed at a dinner in Bethany and Judas agrees to turn Him over to the chief priests. Jesus holds a Passover meal with the disciples, predicts an act of treachery, and introduces the sacrament of communion. He tells the disciples they will run in fear and that Peter will deny Him, which happens just as prophesied. Christ prays in great sorrow in a garden and is then arrested and taken away and unfairly sentenced to death. After this, Jesus will be taken to the Roman governor, where Jewish leadership will press for Him to be executed as an insurgent.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.