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Gethsemane’s prayer (Mk 14:32-42; Mt 26:36-46; Jn 18:1-2)
Besides the above three Gospels, the Gethsemane’s prayer of Jesus is also found in Luke 22:39-46.
Jesus had to face not only the cross, but also the betrayal and denial of his disciples. At this critical moment, prayer was all that he could do to face the predicted reality. As a matter of fact, the power of prayer can make the weak strong.
In the last supper, Jesus has given some prophesies and instructions to the disciples. John 18:1 says, “When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with his disciples over the brook Cedron (汲淪溪), where was a garden, into the which he entered, and his disciples.” Mark 14:32 says, “And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane.” The garden of Gethsemane was situated on the mount of Olives and was a garden full of olive trees. John 18:2 tells us, “And Judas also, which betrayed him, knew the place: for Jesus ofttimes resorted thither (屢次上那裡去聚集) with his disciples.” It is believed that this is the place where they always came to rest in the evening during the final week.
Jesus told his disciples, “ ‘Sit ye here, while I shall pray.’ And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy (就驚恐起來，極其難過); And saith unto them, ‘My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch (你們在這裡等候，警醒).’ ” (v32-34) Why would Jesus pick up three close disciples with him? The fact that “my soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death” showed that he badly needed support now, both physically and spiritually, as he “began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy”. He told his three disciples to watch while he “went forward a little” (v35) to pray alone. He wanted the disciples to watch for enemies and to make sure that nobody disturbed his personal prayer. Luke 22:40 tells us that Jesus also asked the disciples to pray: “Pray that ye enter not into temptation.”
(the first prayer)
“And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him (倘若可行，便叫那時候過去).” (v35) What hour? The hour of the cross, because he continued to pray: “And he said, ‘Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me.’ ” (v36) In Matt 26:39, he prayed, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me.” In Luke 22:42, he prayed, “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me.” What cup? The cup of his blood of the cross, as he said in the last supper when he took the cup of the fruit of the vine, “This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many.” (Mark 14:24)
(why escape the fate?)
Here comes the question: since he knew very well that he was destined to suffer for our sins, why did he still consider escaping from the cup of the blood? As the Son of God, he knew the Father’s plan of salvation and it had to be accomplished by his sacrifice on the cross. He had foretold his suffering as well as resurrection to the disciples many times. Moreover, his suffering had early been prophesied in the Scripture. He should have known the Father’s will, and thus his request would certainly be rejected. What’s more, the Son of God should have the courage to face torture and death. The Father’s plan of salvation could not be screwed up just because he retreated at the last moment. So why would he still offer such unrealistic prayer request?
One possible reason is that in face of such cruel reality by human flesh, it is common for a person to pray for avoiding any travail. His act of praying exposed human weakness. For one thing, he was absolutely very frightened at the moment.(v33) Luke 22:43 described his agony: “And being in an agony (極其傷痛) he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” Just think about it: the suffering he was to bear was not only physical and mental, but spiritual as well. Physically, he would be insulted and tortured by the Jewish leaders and the Roman soldiers. Mentally, he would be forsaken by his close disciples and his own people. Spiritually, he would eventually be deserted by his beloved Father on the cross (Matt 27:46, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”). With all the sufferings combined, the burden was inevitably too heavy for him to bear the sins of the whole world. The Father understood his sentiment and sent an angel to comfort and encourage him: “And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.” (Luke 22:43)
Another reason is that he knew that nothing was impossible with God. Hence, in his prayer he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee.” (v36) He still had the faith that God could change the current state with His mighty power; it only depends on whether He was willing to do so: "if thou be willing" (Luke 22:42). Remember that he once taught his disciples concerning prayer with faith, “For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, ‘Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea’; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” (Mk 11:23-24) Faith could remove a mountain; by the same token, faith could also remove the cup of the blood.
(submit to God’s will)
Anyhow, Jesus knew that all the prayer requests were subject to God’s will. He was willing to submit to the Father’s will instead of his own. Therefore, he said, “Nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.” (v36) As the children of God, we have the privilege to pray for whatever we desire, but the answer to our prayer still depends on the will of God. And whatever the outcome of our prayer is, we should still trust that the will of God is for our good. This is another lesson that Jesus teaches about prayer: “Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?” (Matt 7:9-11)
(watch and pray, no sleep)
While Jesus badly needed prayer support at this moment, he found his close disciples sleeping as he returned. He did not scold them but spoke softly to them: “And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, ‘Simon, sleepest thou? Couldest not thou watch one hour? Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.’ ” (v37-38) He understood their fleshly weakness just like himself—“the spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak”. As for himself, he countered his weakness with prayer—not just once, but three times he prayed. Why? He knew that he had to keep praying until he either got a clear answer or had enough faith to accept the reality, lest he might “enter into temptation”. He felt strongly that Satan was tempting him to retreat from the cross. So, that one hour of prayer was very critical; he had to keep his dialogue with the Father in that one hour. As for Peter and the other two disciples, fleshly need made them continue to sleep and thus their weak body and weak mind were totally conquered. That’s why when Jesus returned the second time, “he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,) neither wist they want to answer him.” (v40)
Too many of us are sleepy Christians and are insensitive to temptation. Why? We do not have a strong mind to keep an hour of prayer in our daily lives. We count prayer time only by minutes! Jesus’ prayer experience teaches us a valuable lesson about prayer—fervent prayer is essential to keep us on the alert against temptation. Otherwise, we can easily “enter into temptation” and end up making our decision by our own will and not by the will of God.
(the second prayer)
“And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words.” (v39) Matt 26:42 says, “He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, ‘O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.’ ” At this second time of prayer, he knew that the chance of the Father withdrawing the cup was extremely low. The will of the Father was still to have him drink the cup. He was getting ready to accept it.
As we have said in verse 40, he returned to find the disciples still sleeping, “for their eyes were heavy”. They were accustomed to sleeping in this hour of the night anyway, indicating that their Lord was struggling alone all the time without any prayer support from them.
(the third prayer)
Matt 26:44 says, “And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.” Mark 14:41-42 says, “And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, ‘Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.’ ” After three times of prayer, he came up with a decisive mind of what to do without any more doubt. He saw that the hour of arrest has finally come, as the sign was very clear: “lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.” The next verse tells us that “while he yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the twelve, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves (棒)” (v43).
When he was arrested, he said to those who arrested him, “I was daily with you in the temple teaching, and ye took me not: but the scriptures must be fulfilled.” (v49) Peter attempted to defend his master with a sword. John 18:11 says, “Then said Jesus unto Peter, ‘Put up thy sword into the sheath; the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?’ ” Since the answer of prayer was so clear that he had to drink the “cup”, he was no longer in fear but calmly faced the reality with courage—“behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners” (v41), followed by action—“Rise up, let us go.” (v42)
(the effect of three times of prayer)
Although three times of earnest prayer did not affect the outcome at all, Jesus’ praying effort produced the following positive effects:
1. His feeling has changed from being negative to positive;
2. His courage and faith increased;
3. His understanding of God’s will increased too.
Prayer may not change God’s heart, nor the environment or our current situation. But it does change our mind—to change our thinking from being negative to positive, to change our spirit from weak to strong, to change from hesitation to action. It gives us the courage and faith to pass the tough time with ease.
Remark: The relationship of Jesus’ burden with Gethsemane
(the background information of the garden of Gethsemane)
1. The town of Capernaum
Capernaum is a small town in Galilee. A majority of Jesus’ ministries takes place here. Its primary industry is the manufacture of a device used for pressing the olives to produce olive oil. Olive oil products include food ingredients, cistern oil, lubricating oil, skin protective fluid, preservatives, etc. Inside the town, there are synagogues in which Jesus always preaches. Five of Jesus’ disciples have grown up in this town. They are Peter, Andrew, James, John and Matthew.
2. The process of pressing the olives
The device that is used to press the olives is made of graystone (玄武石). This is the process of pressing the olives: the olives are first put inside a circular ‘sea’. An ass is tied with a wooden stick to walk around the ‘sea’ and turn the millstone in the middle of the ‘sea’ to press the olives. The pressed olives are then collected and put inside the bags. The bags of pressed olives are placed beneath a stone pillar. The stone pillar is then lowered to press the bags and thus the olive oil is produced. This stone pillar is called ‘olive pressing stone’, ‘Gethsemane’ in Hebrew. Galilee is the place of manufacturing olive pressing stones.
3. The garden of Gethsemane
This garden is situated on the mount of Olives and is separated from Jerusalem by the brook Cedron. Olive trees are planted in the garden. The meaning of ‘Gethsemane’ is ‘olive pressing stone’, which represents the burden and pressure that mount on Jesus’ body as he suffers on the cross.
(the relationship of Jesus with the olives)
1. olive oil
Olive oil is used to anoint the Jewish prophets, priests and kings in the Old Testament period, signifying that the anointed figures are gifted and called by God. ‘Messiah’ in Hebrew means ‘anointed with olive oil’. Jesus is the anointed King and the Messiah (i.e. ‘the anointed’) hoped for by the people of Israel.
2. olive branch
In the Old Testament, God refers olive tree to the unbelieving country of Israel. God said in Isa 11:1, “And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots.” ‘Branch’ in Hebrew shares the same root word with ‘Nazareth’. The Jews believe that this new ‘branch’ of the olive tree refers to the Messiah who is going to restore the kingdom of Israel. Jesus’ parents brought the young Jesus back to Nazareth in order that the prophet’s saying that the Messiah “shall be called a Nazarene” might be fulfilled.(Matt 2:23) Jesus the Nazarene is the olive ‘branch’ prophesied in the Old Testament.
3. olives
In his 3-year preaching life, Jesus always passed by the olive pressing stones (i.e. ‘Gethsemane’) that were used for pressing olives. During the final days prior to his crucifixion, Jesus came to Jerusalem and worked for a week. After eating the last supper, he came to the olive-pressing garden, i.e. the garden of Gethsemane, on the mount of Olives. He knelt down and began to experience the burden (the sin of the whole world) on him. The burden was so heavy that he was pressed heavily. The olives under the olive pressing stone signified the heavy-laden Jesus. What pressed on him were our sins. The burden of the whole world—all of our sins—pressed on him alone.
[Source: ‘That the world may know’ DVD, Chapter 24—the burden of the whole world. Producer: Focus on the Family.]