John 18

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¹After Jesus had spoken these words, He went out with His disciples across the Kidron Valley, where they entered a garden. ✦ ²Now Judas His betrayer also knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with His disciples. ✦ ³So Judas brought a band of soldiers and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees. They arrived at the garden carrying lanterns, torches, and weapons. ✦ ⁴Jesus, knowing all that was coming upon Him, stepped forward and asked them, “Whom are you seeking?” ✦ ⁵“Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered. Jesus said, “I am He.” And Judas His betrayer was standing there with them. ✦ ⁶When Jesus said, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground. ✦ ⁷So He asked them again, “Whom are you seeking?” “Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered. ✦ ⁸“I told you that I am He,” Jesus replied. “So if you are looking for Me, let these men go.” ✦ ⁹This was to fulfill the word He had spoken: “I have not lost one of those You have given Me.” ✦ ¹⁰Then Simon Peter drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus. ✦ ¹¹“Put your sword back in its sheath!” Jesus said to Peter. “Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given Me?” ✦ ¹²Then the band of soldiers, with its commander and the officers of the Jews, arrested Jesus and bound Him. ✦ ¹³They brought Him first to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. ✦ ¹⁴Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that it would be better if one man died for the people. ✦ ¹⁵Now Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus. Since that disciple was known to the high priest, he also went with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest. ✦ ¹⁶But Peter stood outside at the door. Then the disciple who was known to the high priest went out and spoke to the doorkeeper, and brought Peter in. ✦ ¹⁷At this, the servant girl watching the door said to Peter, “Aren’t you also one of this man’s disciples?” “I am not,” he answered. ✦ ¹⁸Because it was cold, the servants and officers were standing around a charcoal fire they had made to keep warm. And Peter was also standing with them, warming himself. ✦ ¹⁹Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus about His disciples and His teaching. ✦ ²⁰“I have spoken openly to the world,” Jesus answered. “I always taught in the synagogues and at the temple, where all the Jews come together. I said nothing in secret. ✦ ²¹Why are you asking Me? Ask those who heard My message. Surely they know what I said.” ✦ ²²When Jesus had said this, one of the officers standing nearby slapped Him in the face and said, “Is this how You answer the high priest?” ✦ ²³Jesus replied, “If I said something wrong, testify as to what was wrong. But if I spoke correctly, why did you strike Me?” ✦ ²⁴Then Annas sent Him, still bound, to Caiaphas the high priest. ✦ ²⁵Simon Peter was still standing and warming himself. So they asked him, “Aren’t you also one of His disciples?” He denied it and said, “I am not.” ✦ ²⁶One of the high priest’s servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, “Didn’t I see you with Him in the garden?” ✦ ²⁷Peter denied it once more, and immediately a rooster crowed. ✦ ²⁸Then they led Jesus away from Caiaphas into the Praetorium. By now it was early morning, and the Jews did not enter the Praetorium, to avoid being defiled and unable to eat the Passover. ✦ ²⁹So Pilate went out to them and asked, “What accusation are you bringing against this man?” ✦ ³⁰“If He were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed Him over to you.” ✦ ³¹“You take Him and judge Him by your own law,” Pilate told them. “We are not permitted to execute anyone,” the Jews replied. ✦ ³²This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to indicate the kind of death He was going to die. ✦ ³³Pilate went back into the Praetorium, summoned Jesus, and asked Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” ✦ ³⁴“Are you saying this on your own,” Jesus asked, “or did others tell you about Me?” ³⁵“Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed You over to me. What have You done?” ✦ ³⁶Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world; if it were, My servants would fight to prevent My arrest by the Jews. But now My kingdom is not of this realm.” ✦ ³⁷“Then You are a king!” Pilate said. “You say that I am a king,” Jesus answered. “For this reason I was born and have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to My voice.” ✦ ³⁸“What is truth?” Pilate asked. And having said this, he went out again to the Jews and told them, “I find no basis for a charge against Him. ✦ ³⁹But it is your custom that I release to you one prisoner at the Passover. So then, do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” ✦ ⁴⁰“Not this man,” they shouted, “but Barabbas!” (Now Barabbas was an insurrectionist.) ✦

Tap any verse for its study page. Underlined terms mark a concept, person, or place; ✦ marks verses with cross-references.

Where this chapter connects

Matt 26 ·32 John 18 ·23 Luke 22 ·23 Mark 14 ·23 John 19 ·17 Matt 27 ·13 Mark 15 ·11 Luke 23 ·10

Christ at the center

John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.

How John 18 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Resources, by level

Lay

★ Start hereDocumentaryFollowing the MessiahAppian Media · Free · evangelical
A free, beautifully shot 10-part series walking the lands of Jesus' life — Bethlehem, Galilee, Jerusalem, and more.
★ Start hereVideoBibleProject — video overviews & word studiesBibleProject · 5–10 min · Free · evangelical
Free animated overviews of every book of the Bible, plus themes and Hebrew/Greek word studies — the best visual on-ramp to any book. (Biblical-theology, broadly evangelical, not distinctly Reformed.)
★ Start hereAudioThrough the WordThrough the Word · ~10 min/chapter · Free · evangelical
A clear ~10-minute audio teaching for every one of the Bible's 1,189 chapters — the most systematic free way to study chapter by chapter.
DocumentaryHolyLandSiteHolyLandSite · Free · evangelical
Free on-location videos tying biblical events to the actual sites in Israel — the Temple Mount, Galilee, Capernaum, and more.
ApologeticsCold-Case Christianity (J. Warner Wallace)J. Warner Wallace · Free · evangelical
A cold-case homicide detective examines the Gospels' reliability — forensic faith for skeptics and seekers.

Pastoral

★ Start hereSermonMLJ Trust — Martyn Lloyd-Jones sermonsMartyn Lloyd-Jones · Free · reformed
1,600+ free sermons from "the Doctor," including landmark verse-by-verse series (Romans, John, Ephesians, Acts) — a gold standard of expository preaching.
SermonGrace to You — John MacArthurJohn MacArthur · Free · reformed
Decades of careful verse-by-verse expository sermons, especially through the New Testament. (MacArthur, d. 2025; archive remains free.)
SermonGospel in Life — Tim KellerTim Keller · Free · reformed
Tim Keller's gospel-centered preaching — sermons stream free (the complete downloadable archive is paid).
ArticleRecommended NT commentaries (9Marks / Schreiner)Thomas R. Schreiner · Free · reformed
A trusted pastor-oriented guide to the best commentary on each New Testament book.
SermonChuck Smith — C2000 SeriesChuck Smith · Free · evangelical
Free verse-by-verse audio through the entire Bible from the founder of Calvary Chapel.
VideoVerse By Verse Ministry InternationalVerse By Verse Ministry Int'l · Free · evangelical
In-depth, verse-by-verse expository teaching book-by-book — strong for working straight through a whole New Testament book.
VideoLook at the Book — John PiperJohn Piper · Free · reformed
Watch Piper trace the logic of a passage phrase by phrase on screen — a model of close reading.

Seminary

★ Start hereApologeticsGary Habermas — the resurrectionGary Habermas · Free · evangelical
130+ free videos and lectures from the scholar behind the "minimal facts" method — the start-here on the historical evidence for the resurrection. (Only his books are paid.)
★ Start hereCommentaryThe Gospel According to John (Pillar NT Commentary)D. A. Carson · ~720 pp · Paid · reformed
The go-to mid-level exegetical commentary on John — rigorous and readable.

Commentaries & study tools

VideoBibleProject — John videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
VideoWatch teaching on John 18YouTube · Lay · Free
Sermons and chapter teaching from across YouTube.
CommentaryEnduring Word — John 18David Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical
Readable, verse-by-verse exposition of the whole chapter.
CommentaryMatthew Henry on JohnMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
ReferenceBlue Letter Bible — John 18Blue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free
Interlinear, lexicon, and study tools across the chapter.

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