Very old olive trees in the Garden of Gethsemane.
John 18:1-14 (NRSV)
The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus
After Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples across the Kidron valley to a place where there was a garden, which he and his disciples entered.
When the last meal was finished and when Jesus’s talk and prayer with his disciples were ended, he and his friends left the upper room. They were bound for the Garden of Gethsemane. They would leave by the gate, go down the steep valley and cross the channel of the brook Kidron. There a symbolic thing must have happened. All the Passover lambs were killed in the Temple, and the blood of the lambs was poured on the altar as an offering to God. The number of lambs slain for the Passover was immense. On one occasion, thirty years later than the time of Jesus, a census was taken and the number was 256,000. We may imagine what the Temple courts were like when the blood of all these lambs was dashed on to the altar. From the altar there was a channel down to the brook Kidron, and through that channel the blood of the Passover lambs drained away. When Jesus crossed the brook Kidron, it would still be red with the blood of the lambs which had been sacrificed; and as he did so, the thought of his own sacrifice would surely be vivid in his mind.
–William Barclay
2Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, because Jesus often met there with his disciples. 3So Judas brought a detachment of soldiers together with police from the chief priests and the Pharisees, and they came there with lanterns and torches and weapons.
4Then Jesus, knowing all that was to happen to him, came forward and asked them, “Whom are you looking for?”
5They answered, “Jesus of Nazareth.”
Jesus replied, “I am he.”
See the courage of Jesus: he gives himself up to the authorities.
Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. 6When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they stepped back and fell to the ground.
See the authority of Jesus: one single, unarmed figure before whom the Roman soldiers and Jewish police retreated and fell to the ground.
7Again he asked them, “Whom are you looking for?”
And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.”
8Jesus answered, “I told you that I am he. So if you are looking for me, let these men go.” 9This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken, “I did not lose a single one of those whom you gave me.”
See the protective love of Jesus: his thought was not to protect himself, but to shield his friends.
10Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it, struck the high priest’s slave, and cut off his right ear. The slave’s name was Malchus.
11Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword back into its sheath. Am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?”
See the utter obedience of Jesus: if this was God’s will, that was enough for him.
Two gardens.
The entrance of Christ into the Garden at once reminds us of Eden. The contrasts between them are indeed striking.
In Eden, all was delightful; in Gethsemane, all was terrible.
In Eden, Adam and Eve parlayed with Satan; in Gethsemane, the last Adam sought the face of His Father.
In Eden, Adam sinned; in Gethsemane, the Savior suffered.
In Eden, Adam fell; in Gethsemane, the Redeemer conquered.
The conflict in Eden took place by day; the conflict in Gethsemane was waged at night.
In the one, Adam fell before Satan; in the other, the soldiers fell before Christ.
In Eden the race was lost; in Gethsemane Christ announced, “Of them whom thou givest me have I lost none” (John 18:9).
In Eden, Adam took the fruit from Eve’s hand; in Gethsemane, Christ received the cup from His Father’s hand.
In Eden, Adam hid himself; in Gethsemane, Christ boldly showed Himself.
In Eden, God sought Adam; in Gethsemane, the last Adam sought God!
From Eden Adam was “driven”; from Gethsemane Christ was “led.”
In Eden the sword was drawn (Gen. 3:24); in Gethsemane the sword was sheathed (John 18:11).
–Arthur W. Pink
Jesus before the High Priest
12So the soldiers, their officer, and the Jewish police arrested Jesus and bound him.
“The Taking of Christ” — alabaster, from the early 1300’s (Museum Mayer van den Bergh, Antwerp)
from This Day with the Master,
by Dennis F. KinlawCAN MAN SEIZE GOD?
On the night of Jesus’ arrest, what was it that bound the Lord to those Roman soldiers? Surely the ropes and cords were not strong enough to hold the Creator of the universe. If Sampson could break the ropes of the Philistines, certainly the Son of God could do the same. No, Christ was not bound by the soldiers; he was bound by his own compassionate, divine, loving heart that caused him to give himself to them. It was Christ’s love for you and me that caused him to go with those soldiers who eventually nailed his body to the cross.
Can man seize God? Never! God gave himself away that night. Jesus was in perfect control all throughout his arrest, trial, and crucifixion.
God will never let you get into a situation in which he is not in perfect control. When you find yourself in circumstances that seem to be full of chaos and confusion, look to Christ. If you belong to him, you will find him there in perfect control of your situation.
It was Jesus, the One in whom all things exist, who sustained the Roman soldier’s life while he roughly placed the Son of God on the cross, and it was Jesus who gave that soldier the physical strength to drive the spikes into his hands.
13First they took him to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. 14Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that it was better to have one person die for the people.
Annas was a former high priest; four of his sons had also been high priest and Caiaphas is his son-in-law. His family was immensely rich and they had, over the years, bought the position of high priest from the Romans, who sold it to the highest bidder and most active collaborator. Jesus is certainly not expecting anything close to justice here.
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Music:
HERE is the St. Olaf Choir from Northfield, Minnesota, and “What Wondrous Love Is This.”
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Reflections:
1) One technique for studying Scripture is to read with your senses alert. I think that method is particularly rich in this passage. Imagine what the garden with its old trees looked like in the moonlight that night, what it smelled like. Can you hear the approach of the soldiers? Was there a gasp from the disciples when Judas came in view? Did the tension rise when the ear was sliced off and the blood spurted? What was the look on Jesus’ face as he spoke to Peter? What was the look on Annas’ face when he saw the bound Jesus arrive? How does his house look, and smell? And so on.
2) Are you seeing more of what it cost Christ to be your Savior?
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The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
DWELLING in the Word 
