And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words.
Again He withdrew to the place of His former struggle in Gethsemane and prayed for some time in the same words, repeating in submission the same plea about drinking the cup, making the prayer three times. Prostrated on the ground through fearful hours He prayed more earnestly in even greater suffering than before, until bloody sweat was forced from His pores as great drops falling to the ground. In that prayer He bore the guilt of fallen humanity as one numbered with the transgressors, facing the burden of the world's guilt and the powers of darkness alone while seeming shut out from God's sustaining presence. His repeated appeal expresses real human anguish and shrinking from the sacrifice, yet absolute submission, for though He could have refused humiliation and death He surrendered His will to the Father's will and chose to save humanity at any cost to Himself. Coming back He found James, John, and Peter asleep when love for their suffering Master should have kept them awake, leaving Him alone without the sympathy and strengthening word He longed for, and their drowsiness kept them from hearing His voice and receiving evidence that could have strengthened their faith for the trials ahead.
Prayer Repeated in Gethsemane
The prayer was offered in Gethsemane after the Passover, on a quiet night beneath a full moon, in a place often visited for meditation and prayer. The disciples looked anxiously for His usual place of retirement, that He might rest there. On the approach and entry He was utterly sad and silent as never before. A strange sadness deepened as He proceeded, so that His companions dared not question Him about its cause. His form swayed as if about to fall, every step was taken with labored effort, and He groaned aloud as if suffering under the pressure of a terrible burden. Twice His companions supported Him or He would have fallen to the earth.
He withdrew again to the place of His former struggle and prayed there for some time, speaking the same words. He repeated the same plea in submission to the Father about drinking the cup. The prayer was made three times. He staggered back fainting and exhausted after finding the disciples asleep and excusing their weakness. His repeated appeal was real human anguish and shrinking from the sacrifice, yet absolute submission to the Father's will.
Prostrated on the ground, He prayed through fearful hours in great agony. He prayed more earnestly in suffering even greater than before, in superhuman agony. His voice was no longer in triumph as when He had sung praise conscious of Sonship and spoken in tenderness, but full of human anguish on the still evening air, changed from like a mighty cedar serene in majesty to like a broken reed. Bloody sweat was forced from His pores until His sweat was as great drops falling to the ground, staining the very sod where God's dear Son was prostrated. A messenger from heaven came to console Him amid the overwhelming anguish.
Bearing Humanity's Guilt Alone
In this prayer He was numbered with the transgressors to bear the guilt of fallen humanity, with the iniquity of all laid upon Him who knew no sin. He faced the burden of the world's guilt in unparalleled distress, returning to repeat the same plea for deliverance from the cup three times amid overwhelming anguish. He withdrew again to pray in the same words and was left to face the powers of darkness alone when His disciples fell asleep. Through His earthly life He had walked in the light of God's presence, but now He seemed shut out from God's sustaining presence. Feeling the terrible wrath of God against transgression, sin appeared so dreadful and the weight of guilt so great that He was tempted to fear it would shut Him out forever from His Father's love, and His soul was exceeding sorrowful even unto death.
His repeated appeal expresses real human anguish and shrinking from the sacrifice, yet submission to the Father's will in choosing to save humanity at any cost to Himself. It shows absolute submission to God, for though He could have refused humiliation and death, He surrendered His will to the Father's will. His sinless life and atoning death made it possible for sinful people to be treated as innocent. Accepting the cup was necessary to save the human race from eternal ruin, as He prayed the same plea about the cup three times while submitting to the Father's will. His longing in Gethsemane for sympathy from His disciples shows that the desire for love and sympathy is implanted in the human heart by God.
Disciples Sleeping and Warned
James, John, and Peter were with Him on that night of agony in the garden, which John was permitted to witness, while Peter slept during the prayer in the same words. After praying for some time in deep woe and grief He came back hoping they would speak some word of love that would strengthen and comfort Him in His sorrow when He had asked them to watch with Him, but He found them asleep and excused their weakness. Satan and his evil angels were on the ground and caused them to fall asleep when love for their suffering Master should have kept them awake, leaving Him to face the powers of darkness alone. He staggered back fainting and exhausted to the place of His former struggle and prayed again with the same submission about drinking the cup.
Their drowsiness kept them from hearing His voice and receiving evidence of the scene's spiritual significance that could have strengthened them for the trials ahead, leaving them unaware despite sensing the angels' presence. If they had watched with Christ in His hour of pain they would have better understood the sorrow that pressed upon Him and would have been fitted to behold His death on Calvary's cross. They would have remembered what He had told them many times before about His suffering and death and rising again from the dead, and rays of hope would have shone to them amid the gloom and their faith would have been strengthened even when Satan and his angels seemed to be gaining the victory. Watching would have taught them that instead of setting up an earthly kingdom where nations would bow and they would be chief rulers, He was nearing a shameful death as slaves died on a cross that would blow their earthly hopes. He had come to suffer and die for the sins of the world to set up a kingdom of love, peace, and purity in the hearts of men until fitted for heaven, and they would have been ready and able to bear the scorn and mockery that fell on Christ and would not have left Him alone in His bitter trial.
Peter afterward remembered sleeping during that prayer, and after denying Jesus he returned repentant and reconverted to that same spot, prostrated himself where Jesus had been prostrated, and with blinding tears and broken heart wept penitential tears that moistened the sod. He left a converted man humbled and fitted to pity the tempted, sympathize with the weak and erring, caution the presumptuous, and strengthen his brethren. The account warns that people who need divine instruction may miss it when they fail to remain in communion with heaven. It belongs to the coming trial of betrayal, humiliation, condemnation, and death for which He prepared the faith of the disciples against the fickleness of people who had once followed Him. It connects with His teaching about drinking His cup and sharing His baptism, which James understood more fully when he faced execution.
Again He withdrew to the place of His former struggle in Gethsemane and prayed for some time in the same words, repeating in submission the same plea about drinking the cup, making the prayer three times. Prostrated on the ground through fearful hours He prayed more earnestly in even greater suffering than before, until bloody sweat was forced from His pores as great drops falling to the ground. In that prayer He bore the guilt of fallen humanity as one numbered with the transgressors, facing the burden of the world's guilt and the powers of darkness alone while seeming shut out from God's sustaining presence. His repeated appeal expresses real human anguish and shrinking from the sacrifice, yet absolute submission, for though He could have refused humiliation and death He surrendered His will to the Father's will and chose to save humanity at any cost to Himself. Coming back He found James, John, and Peter asleep when love for their suffering Master should have kept them awake, leaving Him alone without the sympathy and strengthening word He longed for, and their drowsiness kept them from hearing His voice and receiving evidence that could have strengthened their faith for the trials ahead.
Prayer Repeated in Gethsemane
The prayer was offered in Gethsemane after the Passover, on a quiet night beneath a full moon, in a place often visited for meditation and prayer. The disciples looked anxiously for His usual place of retirement, that He might rest there. On the approach and entry He was utterly sad and silent as never before. A strange sadness deepened as He proceeded, so that His companions dared not question Him about its cause. His form swayed as if about to fall, every step was taken with labored effort, and He groaned aloud as if suffering under the pressure of a terrible burden. Twice His companions supported Him or He would have fallen to the earth.
He withdrew again to the place of His former struggle and prayed there for some time, speaking the same words. He repeated the same plea in submission to the Father about drinking the cup. The prayer was made three times. He staggered back fainting and exhausted after finding the disciples asleep and excusing their weakness. His repeated appeal was real human anguish and shrinking from the sacrifice, yet absolute submission to the Father's will.
Prostrated on the ground, He prayed through fearful hours in great agony. He prayed more earnestly in suffering even greater than before, in superhuman agony. His voice was no longer in triumph as when He had sung praise conscious of Sonship and spoken in tenderness, but full of human anguish on the still evening air, changed from like a mighty cedar serene in majesty to like a broken reed. Bloody sweat was forced from His pores until His sweat was as great drops falling to the ground, staining the very sod where God's dear Son was prostrated. A messenger from heaven came to console Him amid the overwhelming anguish.
Bearing Humanity's Guilt Alone
In this prayer He was numbered with the transgressors to bear the guilt of fallen humanity, with the iniquity of all laid upon Him who knew no sin. He faced the burden of the world's guilt in unparalleled distress, returning to repeat the same plea for deliverance from the cup three times amid overwhelming anguish. He withdrew again to pray in the same words and was left to face the powers of darkness alone when His disciples fell asleep. Through His earthly life He had walked in the light of God's presence, but now He seemed shut out from God's sustaining presence. Feeling the terrible wrath of God against transgression, sin appeared so dreadful and the weight of guilt so great that He was tempted to fear it would shut Him out forever from His Father's love, and His soul was exceeding sorrowful even unto death.
His repeated appeal expresses real human anguish and shrinking from the sacrifice, yet submission to the Father's will in choosing to save humanity at any cost to Himself. It shows absolute submission to God, for though He could have refused humiliation and death, He surrendered His will to the Father's will. His sinless life and atoning death made it possible for sinful people to be treated as innocent. Accepting the cup was necessary to save the human race from eternal ruin, as He prayed the same plea about the cup three times while submitting to the Father's will. His longing in Gethsemane for sympathy from His disciples shows that the desire for love and sympathy is implanted in the human heart by God.
Disciples Sleeping and Warned
James, John, and Peter were with Him on that night of agony in the garden, which John was permitted to witness, while Peter slept during the prayer in the same words. After praying for some time in deep woe and grief He came back hoping they would speak some word of love that would strengthen and comfort Him in His sorrow when He had asked them to watch with Him, but He found them asleep and excused their weakness. Satan and his evil angels were on the ground and caused them to fall asleep when love for their suffering Master should have kept them awake, leaving Him to face the powers of darkness alone. He staggered back fainting and exhausted to the place of His former struggle and prayed again with the same submission about drinking the cup.
Their drowsiness kept them from hearing His voice and receiving evidence of the scene's spiritual significance that could have strengthened them for the trials ahead, leaving them unaware despite sensing the angels' presence. If they had watched with Christ in His hour of pain they would have better understood the sorrow that pressed upon Him and would have been fitted to behold His death on Calvary's cross. They would have remembered what He had told them many times before about His suffering and death and rising again from the dead, and rays of hope would have shone to them amid the gloom and their faith would have been strengthened even when Satan and his angels seemed to be gaining the victory. Watching would have taught them that instead of setting up an earthly kingdom where nations would bow and they would be chief rulers, He was nearing a shameful death as slaves died on a cross that would blow their earthly hopes. He had come to suffer and die for the sins of the world to set up a kingdom of love, peace, and purity in the hearts of men until fitted for heaven, and they would have been ready and able to bear the scorn and mockery that fell on Christ and would not have left Him alone in His bitter trial.
Peter afterward remembered sleeping during that prayer, and after denying Jesus he returned repentant and reconverted to that same spot, prostrated himself where Jesus had been prostrated, and with blinding tears and broken heart wept penitential tears that moistened the sod. He left a converted man humbled and fitted to pity the tempted, sympathize with the weak and erring, caution the presumptuous, and strengthen his brethren. The account warns that people who need divine instruction may miss it when they fail to remain in communion with heaven. It belongs to the coming trial of betrayal, humiliation, condemnation, and death for which He prepared the faith of the disciples against the fickleness of people who had once followed Him. It connects with His teaching about drinking His cup and sharing His baptism, which James understood more fully when he faced execution.