Section 156
Peter's denials
Jerusalem, house of Caiaphas
| Matthew 26:58, 69-75 | Mark 14:54, 66-72 | Luke 22:54b-62 | John 18:15-18, 25-27 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 58aBut Peter was following him at a distance, coming as far as the courtyard of the high priest. After going inside, | 54aPeter had followed Jesus at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. | 54band Peter was following at a distance. | 15Now Simon Peter was following Jesus, as was the other disciple. That disciple was known to the high priest, so he went with Jesus into the high priest's courtyard, 16but Peter stood outside at the gate. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out, spoke to the gatekeeper, and brought Peter in. 17Then the servant girl who was the gatekeeper said to Peter, “You are not also one of this man's disciples, are you?” He said, “I am not.” |
| 58bhe sat with the officers to see the outcome. | 54bThere he sat with the officers, warming himself in the light of the fire. | 55Some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, and Peter sat down among them. | 18(Now the servants and the officers had made a charcoal fire, because it was cold, and they were standing there warming themselves. Peter was also standing with them, warming himself.) |
| 69Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a servant girl came to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” | 66Now as Peter was in the courtyard below, one of the servant girls of the high priest came. 67When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with Jesus of Nazareth.” | 56When a servant girl saw him sitting in the light of the fire, she looked at him intently and said, “This man also was with him.” | 25aMeanwhile, Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. So they said to him, “You are not also one of his disciples, are you?” |
| 70But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about!” | 68But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are talking about!” Then he went outside to the gateway, and a rooster crowed. | 57But Peter denied him, saying, “Woman, I do not know him.” | 25bHe denied it and said, “I am not.” |
| 71Then he went out to the gateway, and another servant girl saw him and said to those who were there, “This man also was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72But again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.” | 69When the servant girl saw him again, she began saying to those who were standing nearby, “This man is one of them.” 70aBut again he denied it. | 58After a little while, someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not.” | |
| 73After a little while, those who were standing there came up and said to Peter, “Truly you also are one of them, for even your accent gives you away.” 74Then he began to invoke curses and to swear: “I do not know the man.” And immediately a rooster crowed. 75Then Peter remembered what Jesus had said to him: “Before a rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly. | 70bAfter a little while, those who were standing nearby said to Peter once again, “Truly you are one of them, for you also are a Galilean, and your accent is like theirs.” 71But he began to invoke curses and to swear: “I do not know this man of whom you speak.” 72Then a rooster crowed a second time, and Peter remembered what Jesus had said to him: “Before a rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept. | 59After about an hour had gone by, another man kept insisting, “Truly this man also was with him, for he too is a Galilean.” 60But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about!” And immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed. 61Then the Lord turned and looked at Peter, and Peter remembered what the Lord had said to him, “Before a rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” 62And Peter went out and wept bitterly. | 26But one of the servants of the high priest, who was a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, said, “Did I not see you with him in the garden?” 27Peter denied it again, and immediately a rooster crowed. |
Notes
The House of Caiaphas
The St. Peter in Gallicantu (cock crow) Church commemorates Peter’s three denials of Jesus and his repentance. It lies on the eastern slope of present-day Mount Zion. This site also commemorates the illegal trial of Jesus staged by Caiaphas and Annas, and the imprisonment of Jesus. Outside the existing church is an ancient stairway which is actually a main walkway up the side of Mount Zion. It is very likely that Jesus, after being taken prisoner in Gethsemane, was led up these stairs to the house of Caiaphas. These stairs were in existence in Jesus’ day.
This location for Caiaphas was determined by reports from Christian pilgrims from the 3rd century A.D. Their reports say this site “was known by all.” About 460 A.D. the Empress Eudoxia built a church on the ruins of Caiaphas’ house to commemorate Peter’s denial and repentance. The present day church was built over the remains of a basilica destroyed on this site by the Persians in 614 A.D. Some archaeologists believe that the house of Caiaphas was located higher up on the summit of Mount Zion in the present day Jewish quarter.