be done. For
whenever Jesus came to Jerusalem, great crowds gathered around him.
None of the priests dared to lay a finger on him in the open. The
crowds would never let them. It seemed to the people as if the Messiah
might have come at last.

But something had to be done, the priests and the rulers said. The
week was going by. The Feast of the Passover was nearly there.

"We shall have to do away with Jesus quietly," someone said.

"Yes," the others agreed, "we can't wait till the day of the Passover.
If we should do anything to him on that day, there would be a riot."

They were at their wits' end to know how to get rid of Jesus. The
craftiest men in Jerusalem could not think what to do.

There was a knock at the door. It was one of Jesus' twelve disciples,
who had come to see the priests and rulers.

His name? His name was Judas Iscariot.

"What will you give me," Judas said, "if I turn Jesus over to you?"

The priests and rulers could hardly believe their ears.

"Thirty pieces of silver you shall have," they cried, "if you give us
Jesus!"

So for thirty pieces of silver Judas agreed to show them where Jesus
was, at some time when there was no one around but the twelve
disciples.

"Send soldiers when I tell you," Judas said. "The other disciples will
all be there, and the soldiers won't know which man to take. But I
will go up to Jesus and kiss him. The man I kiss will be the one you
want."

Some dark night soon, a quiet place with no one around to see--and
nobody would have to worry about Jesus of Nazareth any more!

[Illustration]

13. The Last Night

It was Thursday. On Friday afternoon the lambs would be killed for the
Passover, and on Friday evening all good Jews would sit down to eat
the lambs at the Passover feast. The disciples wondered where Jesus
was planning to celebrate the feast with them.

But Jesus did not wait until Friday to have a meal with all his
disciples. On Thursday he sent two of them into Jerusalem from
Bethany. He told them the name of the man to whom they were to go.

"Go to this man," said Jesus, "and tell him that I said the time has
come. He will show you where we are going to have supper tonight. Then
you can get the supper ready."

That evening Jesus and the twelve disciples met together at the house
in Jerusalem. On the second floor there was a room, where food was
spread upon the table.

As they were eating supper, Jesus suddenly spoke.

"One of you