You should think of us as Christ's servants, who have been put in charge of God's secret truths.

The one thing required of such servants is that they be faithful to their master.

I praise you because you always remember me and follow the teachings that I have handed on to you.

For I received from the Lord the teaching that I passed on to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took a piece of bread,

"Mortal man," he said, "I am making you a lookout for the nation of Israel. You will pass on to them the warnings I give you.

"Listen," he told them, "we are going up to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law. They will condemn him to death

and then hand him over to the Gentiles, who will make fun of him, whip him, and crucify him; but three days later he will be raised to life."

He said to them, "Go throughout the whole world and preach the gospel to all people.

Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned.

and said to them, "This is what is written: the Messiah must suffer and must rise from death three days later,

and in his name the message about repentance and the forgiveness of sins must be preached to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem.

I did not receive it from any human being, nor did anyone teach it to me. It was Jesus Christ himself who revealed it to me.

"this is my blood, which seals God's covenant, my blood poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

God offered him, so that by his blood he should become the means by which people's sins are forgiven through their faith in him. God did this in order to demonstrate that he is righteous. In the past he was patient and overlooked people's sins; but in the present time he deals with their sins, in order to demonstrate his righteousness. In this way God shows that he himself is righteous and that he puts right everyone who believes in Jesus.

Because of our sins he was given over to die, and he was raised to life in order to put us right with God.

Christ was without sin, but for our sake God made him share our sin in order that in union with him we might share the righteousness of God.

In order to set us free from this present evil age, Christ gave himself for our sins, in obedience to the will of our God and Father.

But by becoming a curse for us Christ has redeemed us from the curse that the Law brings; for the scripture says, "Anyone who is hanged on a tree is under God's curse."

For by the blood of Christ we are set free, that is, our sins are forgiven. How great is the grace of God,

Your life must be controlled by love, just as Christ loved us and gave his life for us as a sweet-smelling offering and sacrifice that pleases God.

Every Jewish priest performs his services every day and offers the same sacrifices many times; but these sacrifices can never take away sins.

Christ, however, offered one sacrifice for sins, an offering that is effective forever, and then he sat down at the right side of God.

Christ himself carried our sins in his body to the cross, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness. It is by his wounds that you have been healed.

For Christ died for sins once and for all, a good man on behalf of sinners, in order to lead you to God. He was put to death physically, but made alive spiritually,

And Christ himself is the means by which our sins are forgiven, and not our sins only, but also the sins of everyone.

and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the first to be raised from death and who is also the ruler of the kings of the world. He loves us, and by his sacrificial death he has freed us from our sins

I will make you and the woman hate each other; her offspring and yours will always be enemies. Her offspring will crush your head, and you will bite her offspring's heel."

My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? I have cried desperately for help, but still it does not come.

But you are enthroned as the Holy One, the one whom Israel praises.

They called to you and escaped from danger; they trusted you and were not disappointed.

All who see me make fun of me; they stick out their tongues and shake their heads.

It was you who brought me safely through birth, and when I was a baby, you kept me safe.

Do not stay away from me! Trouble is near, and there is no one to help.

They open their mouths like lions, roaring and tearing at me.

My throat is as dry as dust, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You have left me for dead in the dust.

All my bones can be seen. My enemies look at me and stare.

O LORD, don't stay away from me! Come quickly to my rescue!

Rescue me from these lions; I am helpless before these wild bulls.

"Praise him, you servants of the LORD! Honor him, you descendants of Jacob! Worship him, you people of Israel!

In the full assembly I will praise you for what you have done; in the presence of those who worship you I will offer the sacrifices I promised.

All nations will remember the LORD. From every part of the world they will turn to him; all races will worship him.

All proud people will bow down to him; all mortals will bow down before him.

People not yet born will be told: "The Lord saved his people."

Save me, O God! The water is up to my neck;

I am worn out from calling for help, and my throat is aching. I have strained my eyes, looking for your help.

My sins, O God, are not hidden from you; you know how foolish I have been.

It is for your sake that I have been insulted and that I am covered with shame.

My devotion to your Temple burns in me like a fire; the insults which are hurled at you fall on me.

I dress myself in clothes of mourning, and they laugh at me.

But as for me, I will pray to you, LORD; answer me, God, at a time you choose. Answer me because of your great love, because you keep your promise to save.

Don't let the flood come over me; don't let me drown in the depths or sink into the grave.

Don't hide yourself from your servant; I am in great trouble---answer me now!

You know how I am insulted, how I am disgraced and dishonored; you see all my enemies.

When I was hungry, they gave me poison; when I was thirsty, they offered me vinegar.

Strike them with blindness! Make their backs always weak!

May their camps be left deserted; may no one be left alive in their tents.

Keep a record of all their sins; don't let them have any part in your salvation.

But I am in pain and despair; lift me up, O God, and save me!

This will please the LORD more than offering him cattle, more than sacrificing a full-grown bull.

The LORD listens to those in need and does not forget his people in prison.

He will save Jerusalem and rebuild the towns of Judah. His people will live there and possess the land;

The people reply, "Who would have believed what we now report? Who could have seen the LORD's hand in this?

We despised him and rejected him; he endured suffering and pain. No one would even look at him--- we ignored him as if he were nothing.

But because of our sins he was wounded, beaten because of the evil we did. We are healed by the punishment he suffered, made whole by the blows he received.

"He was treated harshly, but endured it humbly; he never said a word. Like a lamb about to be slaughtered, like a sheep about to be sheared, he never said a word.

He was placed in a grave with those who are evil, he was buried with the rich, even though he had never committed a crime or ever told a lie."

After a life of suffering, he will again have joy; he will know that he did not suffer in vain. My devoted servant, with whom I am pleased, will bear the punishment of many and for his sake I will forgive them.

"Seven times seventy years is the length of time God has set for freeing your people and your holy city from sin and evil. Sin will be forgiven and eternal justice established, so that the vision and the prophecy will come true, and the holy Temple will be rededicated.

And at the end of that time God's chosen leader will be killed unjustly. The city and the Temple will be destroyed by the invading army of a powerful ruler. The end will come like a flood, bringing the war and destruction which God has prepared.

The LORD Almighty says, "Wake up, sword, and attack the shepherd who works for me! Kill him, and the sheep will be scattered. I will attack my people

Was it not necessary for the Messiah to suffer these things and then to enter his glory?"

And Jesus explained to them what was said about himself in all the Scriptures, beginning with the books of Moses and the writings of all the prophets.

and said to them, "This is what is written: the Messiah must suffer and must rise from death three days later,

God announced long ago through all the prophets that his Messiah had to suffer; and he made it come true in this way.

But to this very day I have been helped by God, and so I stand here giving my witness to all, to small and great alike. What I say is the very same thing which the prophets and Moses said was going to happen:

that the Messiah must suffer and be the first one to rise from death, to announce the light of salvation to the Jews and to the Gentiles."

They tried to find out when the time would be and how it would come. This was the time to which Christ's Spirit in them was pointing, in predicting the sufferings that Christ would have to endure and the glory that would follow.

Christ himself carried our sins in his body to the cross, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness. It is by his wounds that you have been healed.