Matthew 26:55, commentary and pictures

In the garden at His midnight arrest Jesus turned to the armed multitude of priests and elders, temple officers and Roman soldiers who had come with swords and staves to seize Him, and contrasted their secret night seizure of Him as a dangerous thief with His daily open teaching among them in the temple where they could have taken Him at any time. He spoke just after freeing His bound hands to heal the servant's ear wounded by Peter, forbidding the sword and refusing to resist. His capture was not defeat but willing surrender, for He could have escaped or called for angelic rescue yet allowed Himself to be bound so the Scriptures would be fulfilled. By joining the mob the leaders degraded their sacred office, and by choosing darkness for the deed they showed it was their hour and the power of darkness. Though holy and sinless and therefore more keenly sensitive to scorn and disgrace than fallen man, He endured being taken as a criminal and went on to mocking and scourging and the most shameful death to ransom guilty man and to show God is both merciful and just.

Arrest Setting and Rebuke

Jesus spoke these words in the garden of Gethsemane at the nighttime, midnight arrest to the armed, murderous multitude that came to seize Him. That multitude included chief priests and captains and officers of the temple, leading priests and elders, officials, and Roman soldiers carrying staves and spears. He addressed them immediately after Peter cut off the servant's ear with the sword. Though held firmly, He freed His hands to heal the wounded ear, told Peter to put up his sword, and forbade its use.

He contrasted His sitting daily, day after day, openly among them teaching in the temple with their now coming out with swords and staves and clubs to take Him. In the temple they had every opportunity and could have laid hands on Him, but they did not seize Him there. He had not acted secretly, but had been openly with them every day teaching. Against that open teaching stood their coming as against a thief, robber, and dangerous criminal.

By joining the mob the leading priests and elders violated their office and official dignity. By choosing night and secrecy for the seizure they exposed that night suited their purpose and work. This was their hour and the power of darkness.

It was the night of His last agony, reached with His disciples from a hushed city of pilgrims' tents under a broad full Passover moon to a spot He had often visited for meditation and prayer but never with a heart so full of sorrow. Though through life He had walked in the light of God's presence, He now felt shut out from God's sustaining presence. He was numbered with the transgressors while knowing no sin, with the iniquity of all and the guilt of fallen humanity laid upon Him. In conflict with satanic agencies striving to divorce Him from God, great drops of blood came from His pores. Sin appeared so dreadful and the weight of guilt so great that He feared it would shut Him out forever from His Father's love, feeling the wrath of God against transgression, with soul exceeding sorrowful even unto death.

Willing Submission and Meaning

His binding was voluntary surrender and not defeat. He could have escaped, resisted, prevented His capture, or summoned angelic help to deliver Him, but He did not use that power. He freed His hands while held firmly to heal the servant's wounded ear and forbade the use of the sword, then permitted Himself to be taken. This He did so that the Scriptures must be fulfilled.

His words frightened the disciples, and they forsook Him and fled. His betrayal by Judas with expressions of love and with a kiss, followed by condemnation and crucifixion, severely tested them. He had prepared His faithful followers beforehand through an earlier crisis and teaching about the fickleness of the crowd and the rejection and humiliation their Master would face. He strengthened their faith by His personal presence, so they would not be overwhelmed nor base their faith on public opinion when He was betrayed and condemned.

The question exposes the shameful treatment and disgrace of being taken with swords and staves as a thief. He was not insensible to ignominy, but being holy and undefiled He was acutely sensitive to scorn and mockery and abuse and pain. Because His divine and sinless nature was exalted above the nature of man, He felt the disgrace of sin far more keenly than fallen man can. Yet for the sake of guilty man He endured it and went on to be dragged before earthly authorities and mocked and scourged and condemned. He endured the most ignominious and most painful death mortals can experience, the death for the basest of criminals, to ransom man and to prove that God though merciful and compassionate is also just and will not excuse willful continuance in sin.

The arrest began a chain of condemnation after the long agony in the Garden, when betrayed by Judas, one of His professed disciples, He was seized by a band of men and soldiers with staves and spears. After the Garden He was taken to Annas, then to Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin which condemned Him to death but could not execute without Pilate's confirmation, then to Pilate, then sent to Herod who found nothing in Him to condemn yet allowed mockery and every insult to be heaped upon Him, then sent again to Pilate where He was twice tortured by the scourge. When Pilate examined the accusers and found their contradictory testimony valueless he declared he found no fault in Him, which left the Jews almost frantic at the prospect of being baffled. All that night was scene after scene of a character to try the soul of man beyond endurance, but He failed not, bore Himself with dignity through the disgraceful farce of a trial, spoke no word but what tended to glorify God, and did not utter one syllable more than was essential. The same pattern of being seized by a hostile crowd and delivered into the hands of Caiaphas and Pilate despite having taught openly in the temple where they had not arrested Him is the comparison the verse illustrates.