When Jesus permitted Himself to be taken and bound in Gethsemane after His agony and betrayal, all of His disciples abandoned Him and fled, leaving Him alone in His humiliation and hour of greatest need despite their pledges to remain with Him. They ran in terror for their lives, offended and mortified by His submitting to the mob instead of delivering Himself, unable to understand why He would not use His power to escape. Their flight was without excuse, for they had just seen His power when His captors fell helpless to the ground and when He healed the servant's ear Peter had cut off, proving He could have freed Himself if He chose. In scattering when the Shepherd was struck, they fulfilled His forewarning in the upper chamber that they would each go their own way and leave Him alone, yet not alone because the Father was with Him. Their desertion, led by Peter's self-confident boast of fidelity to prison and to death followed by flight and denial, stands as a warning to all against self-confidence and self-righteousness and a call to humility and tender care for the erring.
Arrest and Desertion
The night belonged to Gethsemane, where Jesus went with His disciples for His last agony to a place He had often visited for meditation and prayer but never with a heart so full of sorrow. He who had always walked in the light of God's presence now seemed shut out from God's sustaining presence as one numbered with transgressors. The guilt of fallen humanity and the iniquity of all was laid upon Him who knew no sin, He felt the wrath of God against transgression, and He feared to be shut out forever from His Father's love.
It followed His long agony in the Garden, His betrayal by Judas, one of His professed disciples, and His arrest by a band of men and soldiers with staves and spears. The Sanhedrin condemned Him to death, but He could not be executed without confirmation, so He was brought before Pilate to be legally condemned, and after examining His accusers Pilate declared he found no fault in Him. When Jesus permitted Himself to be taken and bound, all the disciples abandoned Him and fled, despite having pledged and declared they would remain with Him and never do so. They fled in fear for their lives and left Him alone in His humiliation and hour of greatest need.
Terror seized them when Peter proposed resistance, and they all abandoned Jesus and fled. Terror overcame them when He said that Scripture must be fulfilled. They were terrified when He permitted Himself to be taken and bound instead of delivering Himself, and unable to understand His submitting to the mob they abandoned Him. They were offended by the humiliation brought on Him and on themselves, mortified and terror-stricken by conduct they could not understand, blaming Him for not using His power to escape, and acting on Peter's proposal to save themselves. Offended and frightened when He allowed Himself to be bound and accepted this humiliation for Himself and for them, they blamed Him and abandoned Him.
Their flight was without excuse because they had just seen His power when those who came to arrest Him fell helpless to the ground and when He healed the servant's ear that Peter cut off, so they knew He could have freed Himself from the murderous mob if He chose. Although they had seen His power to stop His enemies and heal the wounded servant, offended and frightened they blamed Him and abandoned Him. They abandoned Him because they did not understand His loneliness as One separated from heaven living as a man, and did not give Him the gratitude, homage and visible acts of love He should have received. They lacked strong faith in Him as the world's Redeemer to withstand satanic temptation, so those who should have been first in offices of love were last.
Prophecy and Lessons
The scattering of the disciples fulfilled the prediction that when the shepherd was struck the sheep would be scattered, for the desertion had been foreseen and they had been forewarned in the upper chamber that the hour would come when each would go his own way and leave Him alone. Yet He would not be left truly alone, because the Father was with Him. Their flight in fear was a triumph for Satan and brought sorrow to the angels. Angels witnessed and recorded every act of cruelty and every pang of anguish He suffered, so that those responsible would see it all again.
Peter had been warned by his Master of approaching danger, but in self-confidence and presumption he affirmed constant fidelity and zeal superior to the others and declared himself willing to follow to prison and to death. When the storm of opposition came in his Master's humiliation he with the others ran away, and then the ardent, self-confident, zealous Peter repeatedly denied his Lord before bitterly repenting. Commission of any known sin and neglect of the duties of life at home or abroad destroys faith and disconnects the soul from God, because sin is heinous and highly offensive to God. The desertion is a warning to all to beware of self-confidence and self-righteousness, and teaches humility and the tenderness and care to be shown to the erring and to those who need sympathy and love.
Because the faithful disciples had already seen professed followers abandon Him when their hopes were disappointed, they were less surprised when people who had claimed to love Him turned from Him in His trouble. They had been prepared so that the turning away of others would not deepen their grief beyond bearing nor carry them away in fear and disappointment. They learned not to base their faith on the world's fickle approval. Afterward, left as sheep without a shepherd, they felt keen reproof. They saw where they could have shown Him favor and attention while near Him and enjoying His counsel and love for suffering humanity, and they mourned their censuring spirit, feeling this sorrow most when taking His bruised body from the cross.
When Jesus permitted Himself to be taken and bound in Gethsemane after His agony and betrayal, all of His disciples abandoned Him and fled, leaving Him alone in His humiliation and hour of greatest need despite their pledges to remain with Him. They ran in terror for their lives, offended and mortified by His submitting to the mob instead of delivering Himself, unable to understand why He would not use His power to escape. Their flight was without excuse, for they had just seen His power when His captors fell helpless to the ground and when He healed the servant's ear Peter had cut off, proving He could have freed Himself if He chose. In scattering when the Shepherd was struck, they fulfilled His forewarning in the upper chamber that they would each go their own way and leave Him alone, yet not alone because the Father was with Him. Their desertion, led by Peter's self-confident boast of fidelity to prison and to death followed by flight and denial, stands as a warning to all against self-confidence and self-righteousness and a call to humility and tender care for the erring.
Arrest and Desertion
The night belonged to Gethsemane, where Jesus went with His disciples for His last agony to a place He had often visited for meditation and prayer but never with a heart so full of sorrow. He who had always walked in the light of God's presence now seemed shut out from God's sustaining presence as one numbered with transgressors. The guilt of fallen humanity and the iniquity of all was laid upon Him who knew no sin, He felt the wrath of God against transgression, and He feared to be shut out forever from His Father's love.
It followed His long agony in the Garden, His betrayal by Judas, one of His professed disciples, and His arrest by a band of men and soldiers with staves and spears. The Sanhedrin condemned Him to death, but He could not be executed without confirmation, so He was brought before Pilate to be legally condemned, and after examining His accusers Pilate declared he found no fault in Him. When Jesus permitted Himself to be taken and bound, all the disciples abandoned Him and fled, despite having pledged and declared they would remain with Him and never do so. They fled in fear for their lives and left Him alone in His humiliation and hour of greatest need.
Terror seized them when Peter proposed resistance, and they all abandoned Jesus and fled. Terror overcame them when He said that Scripture must be fulfilled. They were terrified when He permitted Himself to be taken and bound instead of delivering Himself, and unable to understand His submitting to the mob they abandoned Him. They were offended by the humiliation brought on Him and on themselves, mortified and terror-stricken by conduct they could not understand, blaming Him for not using His power to escape, and acting on Peter's proposal to save themselves. Offended and frightened when He allowed Himself to be bound and accepted this humiliation for Himself and for them, they blamed Him and abandoned Him.
Their flight was without excuse because they had just seen His power when those who came to arrest Him fell helpless to the ground and when He healed the servant's ear that Peter cut off, so they knew He could have freed Himself from the murderous mob if He chose. Although they had seen His power to stop His enemies and heal the wounded servant, offended and frightened they blamed Him and abandoned Him. They abandoned Him because they did not understand His loneliness as One separated from heaven living as a man, and did not give Him the gratitude, homage and visible acts of love He should have received. They lacked strong faith in Him as the world's Redeemer to withstand satanic temptation, so those who should have been first in offices of love were last.
Prophecy and Lessons
The scattering of the disciples fulfilled the prediction that when the shepherd was struck the sheep would be scattered, for the desertion had been foreseen and they had been forewarned in the upper chamber that the hour would come when each would go his own way and leave Him alone. Yet He would not be left truly alone, because the Father was with Him. Their flight in fear was a triumph for Satan and brought sorrow to the angels. Angels witnessed and recorded every act of cruelty and every pang of anguish He suffered, so that those responsible would see it all again.
Peter had been warned by his Master of approaching danger, but in self-confidence and presumption he affirmed constant fidelity and zeal superior to the others and declared himself willing to follow to prison and to death. When the storm of opposition came in his Master's humiliation he with the others ran away, and then the ardent, self-confident, zealous Peter repeatedly denied his Lord before bitterly repenting. Commission of any known sin and neglect of the duties of life at home or abroad destroys faith and disconnects the soul from God, because sin is heinous and highly offensive to God. The desertion is a warning to all to beware of self-confidence and self-righteousness, and teaches humility and the tenderness and care to be shown to the erring and to those who need sympathy and love.
Because the faithful disciples had already seen professed followers abandon Him when their hopes were disappointed, they were less surprised when people who had claimed to love Him turned from Him in His trouble. They had been prepared so that the turning away of others would not deepen their grief beyond bearing nor carry them away in fear and disappointment. They learned not to base their faith on the world's fickle approval. Afterward, left as sheep without a shepherd, they felt keen reproof. They saw where they could have shown Him favor and attention while near Him and enjoying His counsel and love for suffering humanity, and they mourned their censuring spirit, feeling this sorrow most when taking His bruised body from the cross.