Mark Bradford's Bible Blog

Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives

³⁹Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. ⁴⁰On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” ⁴¹He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, ⁴²“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”

The account of Jesus and his disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane appears in all four gospels, but the details differ from gospel to gospel. Read my post on Mark’s and John’s versions here. Luke’s version starts with Jesus going to the Mount of Olives “as usual,” and his disciples following him there. Jesus and his disciples had spent their nights there that week, (Luke 21:37) and Jesus didn’t alter his routine, even though he knew Judas would find him there. In Mark, Jesus simply tells his disciples to “stay here and keep watch” (Mark 14:34) But here, Jesus specifically tells them to pray that they will not fall into temptation. At the end of today’s passage, he tells them the exact same thing a second time. What temptations are they about to experience? The temptation to fall asleep? To fight at his arrest? In Peter’s case, the temptation to deny Jesus? We all experience temptation, and Jesus admonition to his disciples applies to us as well. We need to pray that we will not fall into or give in to temptation. None of us can avoid temptation, not even Jesus could. Prayer is our only defense against it. Jesus prayed, and gained the strength he needed for the trials to come. His disciples fell asleep, and did not have the strength they needed when the time came.

Jesus withdrew “about a stone’s throw beyond them,” far enough to be alone, but close enough to be overheard. Apparently all of the disciples didn’t sleep through everything, because someone saw how far Jesus went, and overheard his prayer. The fact that Jesus knelt to pray was unusual for the time. The customary posture for prayer in that culture was standing, with eyes raised to Heaven. It must have been the tremendous weight that he bore that drove him to his knees. I don’t really believe that the position of our body is crucial to our prayer life. Most often I stand and walk around when I pray. But sometimes it’s necessary to bow the knee.

Jesus’ prayer is short and to the point, not unlike his model prayer to his disciples, what we refer to as the Lord’s Prayer. Like that prayer, he simply starts with, “Father.” In Mark, he uses the word, “Abba,” the equivalent of “daddy.” No long salutations, just “Father.” This shows the kind of intimacy Jesus had with his Father, and what Jesus did for us enables us to have that same kind of intimacy with God. He then states a condition for his petition, “if you are willing.” This didn’t mean, “if it’s OK with you.” It meant, “if your will and your perfect plan can still be accomplished.” Do we begin our requests that way?

Then Jesus gets to his request, “take this cup from me.” The fact that Jesus uses the term cup is revealing. Repeatedly in the Old Testament, a cup is a powerful picture of the wrath and judgment of God. (Psalm 75:8, Isaiah 51:17, Jeremiah 25:15) The dread that Jesus felt in that moment was not, I believe, about the physical torture he was about to endure. The real agony he wanted to avoid was drinking the cup of God’s wrath for all of our sin. Jesus was sinless and pure, and yet he had to take all of the sin that everyone who had ever lived and ever would live onto himself and drink the cup of his Father’s wrath. This was something I’m sure that not only Jesus the Son, but God the Father would like to have avoided, and would have, if there had been any other way to save us.

Then, after making his request, Jesus submits to the Father’s will. Sometimes we pray prayers of surrender without ever stating our preference to God. We simply say, “Your will be done.” That’s good, but it’s not wrong to tell God what we would like. He wants us to. Maybe our will is God’s will. Maybe it’s not. But part of surrendering to God is to own up to our own will in whatever it is we’re praying for, and then surrender our will to God the way Jesus did. If we only pray “Your will be done,” we run the risk of “hearing” God say what we want him to say. But after we tell God what we desire, we must then submit to what his will is.

I often say these days, and firmly believe, that the only way to know God’s will is to know God. If we can just know God, knowing his will and submitting to it won’t be a problem. Jesus knew his Father intimately, knew his will. And though it was hard, he found the strength to submit to his Father’s will.

⁴³An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. ⁴⁴And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.^[c]

Many early manuscripts do not contain these two verses, but most modern translations include them. That must mean that the majority of Biblical scholars consider them valid, so we should pay attention to them. Verse 43 says that an angel appeared to Jesus and strengthened him. Why did the angel appear to Jesus and not his disciples? Why did the angel strengthen him and not them? Because Jesus prayed and they slept. If the disciples had prayed that they would not fall into temptation like Jesus told them to, I think it’s likely the angel would have appeared to them as well. The strength Jesus received from the angel enabled him to pray more earnestly. The idea that Jesus perspired drops of blood is a misinterpretation of this verse. What verse 44 more likely means is that the sweat on Jesus’ brow dripped onto the ground the way blood drips. He was already in agony. He had begun to drink the cup of his Father’s wrath.

⁴⁵When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. ⁴⁶“Why are you sleeping?” he asked them. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”

Jesus went back to the disciples and found them asleep. Verse 45 says they were “exhausted from sorrow.” Remember that they had also just eaten and drunk wine. Anyone who’s ever fallen asleep on the couch after a big meal must disqualify themselves from criticizing the disciples for this. Jesus repeats his admonition from before, “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” Had the disciples done as Jesus said, their reactions over the next few hours might have been very different. We will save ourselves a lot of shame over our actions if we will do as Jesus says and as he did, and pray that we will not fall into or give in to temptation.

Mark Bible Gethsemane, God's will, Jesus, Luke

Jesus Arrested

¹When he had finished praying, Jesus left with his disciples and crossed the Kidron Valley. On the other side there was an olive grove, and he and his disciples went into it. (John 18:1, NIV)

The Kidron Valley was a ravine with a brook running through it. At the time of the Passover, the water in the brook ran red with the blood of Passover lambs. As they crossed over, this would have been a stark reminder to Jesus of the sacrifice he was about to make.

³²They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” ³³He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. ³⁴“My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”

³⁵Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. ³⁶“Abba,^[e] Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” (Mark 14:32-36, NIV)

Gethsemane means “olive press” It was a place where olives were pressed to make olive oil from the surrounding olive groves on the Mount of Olives. Jesus led the remaining 11 disciples there to find a place to pray. Why did they not simply stay in the upper room? Maybe Jesus didn’t want to cause trouble for whoever owned the house. That person was probably a supporter of Jesus, and Jesus wanted to protect him. Mark tells us that Jesus told his disciples where to sit when they got to Gethesemane, but then took Peter, James and John with him to the place where he would pray. Those three had been included in some of the most amazing times of Jesus’ ministry, and now Jesus wanted them to help support him in his hour of need. Jesus was vulnerable with them, and let them see how troubled he was. If Jesus felt the need to ask for support from those who were closest to him in a time like this, how much more do we need the support and prayers of our closest spiritual brothers and sisters in difficult times?

The phrase that strikes me in verse 35 is that Jesus fell to the ground. Have you ever been so overwhelmed with sorrow that you could not even stand? I have to admit that I never have. What troubled Jesus so much wasn’t just the physical torture and humiliation that he knew was coming. It was also, and perhaps mainly, the burden of carrying the sin of the whole world. He was made sin for us (2 Cor 5:21). Jesus was sinless and holy, and the horror of bearing all the sin of everyone who had ever lived and ever would live was almost too much for him, especially since he knew that his Father would look upon him and see all of that sin, and turn away.

Even though Jesus knew what he had to do, and had been telling his disciples about it for weeks, when the time came, he asked his Father if there was any other way to save humanity. Don’t you think God wanted to grant that request? The fact that the Father didn’t make another way shows that there was no other way. Jesus called his Father “Abba”, which was a child’s intimate term, the equivalent of “daddy”. Jesus had the most intimate relationship with his Father, and his actions here made it possible for us to have the same kind of relationship with God.

In the end, Jesus submitted to the Father’s will. For me, this passage proves that, despite what some preach, the Bible does not really teach that believers can simply pray the “prayer of faith”, and expect to get whatever they ask for. If even Jesus did not receive what he asked for in this instance, and had to qualify his request by saying “not my will, but yours”, what makes us think we can claim more authority with God than Jesus could?

³⁷Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? ³⁸Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”

³⁹Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. ⁴⁰When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him.

⁴¹Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. ⁴²Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

Jesus wanted Peter, James and John to pray with him, to support him in prayer and to keep watch for Judas and the temple guards that he knew were coming. In spite of all Jesus had said, the disciples still did not know what was coming. John knew that Judas would betray Jesus, but apparently Jesus had not spelled out for them that he expected Judas to arrive at Gethsemane with troops to arrest him at any moment. If he had, they probably would have been more alert, but then there might have been premature violence, and a more or less peaceful arrest might not have been possible. Jesus needed prayer and support, and he also needed his disciples to survive this night, so that they could become the leaders of his church later on.

To fall asleep while keeping watch is inexcusable. I don’t know what the penalty for that is in the military, but I’m sure it’s not good. When Jesus came back and found them sleeping, he wasn’t reprimanding them, but trying to encourage them to strengthen themselves spiritually for what was to come. Jesus spent the hour in prayer, and he was strengthened to complete his task. The disciples slept, and when the time came, they scattered. If Peter in particular had watched and prayed like Jesus told him to, maybe he would have found the strength not to deny Jesus. It’s interesting that in that moment, Jesus called him Simon, not Peter. Peter was acting like his old self, not the new man of God Jesus wanted him to be.

Jesus went back and prayed the same prayer three times. What does this tell us about persistence in prayer? And Jesus did not receive what he asked for, but because of his persistence in prayer, he did receive the power to do what God wanted him to do. That’s what prayer is really about, achieving intimacy with God, so we can call him “daddy”, and through knowing him, receive the power to do what he asks of us.

²Now Judas, who betrayed him, knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples. ³So Judas came to the grove, guiding a detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and Pharisees. They were carrying torches, lanterns and weapons.

⁴Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, “Who is it you want?”

⁵“Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied.

“I am he,” Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.) ⁶When Jesus said, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground. (John 18:2-5, NIV)

John is the only one who tells this story of the men who came to arrest Jesus falling back to the ground when Jesus says “I am he”. That’s pretty amazing, and it makes me wonder why the others left it out. In Young’s Literal Translation, verses 5 and 6 read like this:

Jesus saith to them, `I am [he];’ — and Judas who delivered him up was standing with them; —

⁶when, therefore, he said to them — `I am [he],’ they went away backward, and fell to the ground.

See that the word “he” is in brackets, which I think means that Jesus’ actual answer is “I AM”. There are more instances coming up in Jesus’ trial when he is asked who he is, and his answer is “I AM”. This may be the first instance of that. If so, no wonder they fell backwards. Jesus is declaring publicly that he is God. It seems to me that at that moment, God the Father was speaking through Jesus in his own voice, and the sheer power of God’s voice made them fall backwards in amazement.

⁷Again he asked them, “Who is it you want?”
And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.”

⁸“I told you that I am he,” Jesus answered. “If you are looking for me, then let these men go.” ⁹This happened so that the words he had spoken would be fulfilled: “I have not lost one of those you gave me.”

¹⁰Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.)

¹¹Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?” (John 18:7-11, NIV)

⁴³Just as he was speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, appeared. With him was a crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders.

⁴⁴Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The one I kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away under guard.” ⁴⁵Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, “Rabbi!” and kissed him. ⁴⁶The men seized Jesus and arrested him. ⁴⁷Then one of those standing near drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear. (Mark 14:43-47, NIV)

While Jesus was still telling Peter, James, and John to wake up, Judas arrived with the temple guards. Where were the other eight disciples? Maybe the crowd came by a different way than where they were, but I would think they would have seen or heard them coming, and would have warned Jesus and the others. I would also think that since Jesus was a familiar figure in the temple courts, he would not need to be identified by a kiss, but apparently Judas needed to greet Jesus so the guards would know who to arrest. But why the false show of affection? It seems unnecessary and insulting. Maybe Judas was trying to convince himself that he was really doing this for Jesus’ own good. He may not have realized then that the religious leaders intended to kill Jesus. Maybe he even thought Jesus would prove he was the Messiah to the elders, and they would accept him and proclaim him king. Throughout history, many who thought they were doing the church a favor were really doing the Kingdom great harm. Many make the mistake of thinking they know better than God.

We can see from John’s version that Peter was the one who cut off the servant’s ear, and John identifies the servant as Malchus. Only Luke tells that Jesus healed the servant’s ear (Luke 22:50-51). Most Biblical scholars believe that Mark’s gospel is actually Peter’s gospel. Mark was a constant companion to Peter in the early days of the church, and scholars think that Mark’s gospel is largely comprised of stories of Jesus that Mark heard Peter tell. Not for the first time in the Gospel of Mark, Peter leaves out details regarding himself in his account. He doesn’t say that it was he who cut off the man’s ear. But maybe this part of Mark’s gospel is not from Peter, but from Mark himself. He was there, as we will see. Maybe he didn’t want to embarrass Peter further when he was about to relate Peter’s denial of Christ. Peter, not unlike Judas, thought he knew better than God in that moment. If Jesus had not healed Malchus, Peter certainly would have been arrested along with Jesus.

⁴⁸“Am I leading a rebellion,” said Jesus, “that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? ⁴⁹Every day I was with you, teaching in the temple courts, and you did not arrest me. But the Scriptures must be fulfilled.” ⁵⁰Then everyone deserted him and fled. (Mark 14:48-50, NIV)

The religious leaders were too afraid of the crowds to arrest Jesus in broad daylight where everyone could see. They waited until they could seize him in the dead of night, when the crowds weren’t around. If you have to make sure no one sees what you’re doing, you’re not doing anything good. At this point, Jesus’ prediction in verse 27, “All of you will desert me” comes true. As I said yesterday, Jesus had spent the previous hour in earnest prayer, and he had the strength to face arrest, while the disciples had spent the hour sleeping, and did not have the strength, so they fled.

⁵¹A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, ⁵²he fled naked, leaving his garment behind. (Mark 14:51, NIV)

Most Biblical scholars believe this young man was John Mark, the author of this gospel. As I said in yesterday’s blog, many suppose that the Last Supper was held in an upper room at a house owned by Mark’s family. We know from the account of Peter’s escape from prison in Acts 12 that the home of John Mark’s mother, Mary, was a place the followers of Jesus often gathered to pray (Acts 12:12). So it would make sense that this would have been a place for Jesus and his disciples to “hang out” as well. This might explain why Mark was wearing so little at the garden. Maybe he was at the house, and Judas came there first with the temple guards, because that was where they were when Judas left them. When Judas found they were no longer there, he would have tried the Mount of Olives next, because, as we just read in John 18:2, Judas knew the place. Jesus and his disciples went there often. Perhaps Mark grabbed something to wear in a hurry, and ran to Gethsemane to try to get there ahead of Judas so he could warn them. Why would Mark include this seemingly unimportant detail? Maybe to say, “I was there”, or maybe it was to take some of the embarrassment onto himself and deflect it away from Peter. If you’re willing to embarrass yourself in order to save someone else from embarrassment, that’s being a true friend.

Mark Bible Gethsemane, Jesus, Jesus arrested, John, Mark

Gethsemane

³²They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” ³³He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. ³⁴“My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”

³⁵Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. ³⁶“Abba,^[e] Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

Gethsemane means “olive press” It was a place where olives were pressed to make olive oil from the surrounding olive groves on the Mount of Olives. Jesus led the remaining 11 disciples there to find a place to pray. Why did they not simply stay in the upper room? Maybe Jesus didn’t want to cause trouble for whoever owned the house. That person was probably a supporter of Jesus, and Jesus wanted to protect him. Mark tells us that Jesus told his disciples where to sit when they got to Gethesemane, but then took Peter, James and John with him to the place where he would pray. Those three had been included in some of the most amazing times of Jesus’ ministry, and now Jesus wanted them to help support him in his hour of need. Jesus was vulnerable with them, and let them see how troubled he was. If Jesus felt the need to ask for support from those who were closest to him in a time like this, how much more do we need the support and prayers of our closest spiritual brothers and sisters in difficult times?

The phrase that strikes me in verse 35 is that Jesus fell to the ground. Have you ever been so overwhelmed with sorrow that you could not even stand? I have to admit that I never have. What troubled Jesus so much wasn’t just the physical torture and humiliation that he knew was coming. It was also, and perhaps mainly, the burden of carrying the sin of the whole world. He was made sin for us (2 Cor 5:21). Jesus was sinless and holy, and the horror of bearing all the sin of everyone who had ever lived and ever would live was almost too much for him, especially since he knew that his Father would look upon him and see all of that sin, and turn away.

Even though Jesus knew what he had to do, and had been telling his disciples about it for weeks, when the time came, he asked his Father if there was any other way to save humanity. Don’t you think God wanted to grant that request? The fact that the Father didn’t make another way shows that there was no other way. Jesus called his Father “Abba”, which was a child’s intimate term, the equivalent of “daddy.” Jesus had the most intimate relationship with his Father, and his actions here made it possible for us to have the same kind of relationship with God.

In the end, Jesus submitted to the Father’s will. For me, this passage proves that, despite what some preach, the Bible does not really teach that believers can simply pray the “prayer of faith,” and expect to get whatever they ask for. If even Jesus did not receive what he asked for in this instance, and had to qualify his request by saying “not my will, but yours,” what makes us think we can claim more authority with God than Jesus could?

³⁷Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? ³⁸Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”

³⁹Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. ⁴⁰When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him.

⁴¹Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. ⁴²Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

Jesus wanted Peter, James and John to pray with him, to support him in prayer and to keep watch for Judas and the temple guards that he knew were coming. In spite of all Jesus had said, the disciples still did not know what was coming. John knew that Judas would betray Jesus, but apparently Jesus had not spelled out for them that he expected Judas to arrive at Gethsemane with troops to arrest him at any moment. If he had, they probably would have been more alert, but then there might have been premature violence, and a more or less peaceful arrest might not have been possible. Jesus needed prayer and support, and he also needed his disciples to survive this night, so that they could become the leaders of his church later on.

To fall asleep while keeping watch is inexcusable. I don’t know what the penalty for that is in the military, but I’m sure it’s not good. When Jesus came back and found them sleeping, he wasn’t reprimanding them, but trying to encourage them to strengthen themselves spiritually for what was to come. Jesus spent the hour in prayer, and he was strengthened to complete his task. The disciples slept, and when the time came, they scattered. If Peter in particular had watched and prayed like Jesus told him to, maybe he would have found the strength not to deny Jesus. It’s interesting that in that moment, Jesus called him Simon, not Peter. Peter was acting like his old self, not the new man of God Jesus wanted him to be.

Jesus went back and prayed the same prayer three times. What does this tell us about persistence in prayer? And Jesus did not receive what he asked for, but because of his persistence in prayer, he did receive the power to do what God wanted him to do. That’s what prayer is really about, achieving intimacy with God, so we can call him “daddy,” and through knowing him, receive the power to do what he asks of us.

Mark Bible Bible, Gethsemane, Jesus, Mark