Down to Earth But Heavenly Minded

What Does Matthew Chapter 26 Mean?

Jesus has concluded His public teaching ministry as well as His final teaching to the disciples before His death and resurrection (Matthew 16:21). He tells them that He will be delivered to be crucified in two days, on Passover. At the same time, the high priest is meeting at his home with the chief priests and elders. These men have already determined that Jesus needs to be killed (John 11:48–53). All that remains is their plans to make this happen (Matthew 26:1–5).

Christ and His disciples go to a dinner in Bethany, at the home of a man identified as Simon the leper. This is probably someone Jesus had healed. While Jesus reclines at the table, a woman opens an extraordinarily valuable bottle of perfumed ointment and anoints His head with it. This is Mary, the sister of Lazarus, the man Jesus has raised from death (John 11:1, 43–44). The disciples call this action a waste, saying the ointment could have been sold and the money given to the poor. John specifies that Judas is the primary complainer in this instance (John 12:1–8). Jesus corrects their attitude. As it will turn out, there will not be time for Jesus’ body to be properly anointed before His hasty burial (Luke 23:52–56; Mark 16:1–5). The woman has performed a beautiful act of devotion that also serves to fill in this gap. Not only is her act justified, but it’s also permanently tied to the story of the gospel (Matthew 26:6–13).

It’s possible that this mild rebuke is the last straw for Judas. He goes to the chief priests and offers to turn Jesus over to them. Christ’s enemies not only need someone to tell them where Jesus can be found away from crowds, they need someone to help identify Him to the arresting soldiers. In an era without photographs, and with little variation of clothes or hair, this was no small thing. They give Judas 30 pieces of silver and move up their timeline for Jesus’ arrest and trial (Matthew 26:14–16).

Jesus and the disciples hold their Passover meal in the borrowed upper room of a house in Jerusalem. Jesus reveals that one of them will betray Him. He acknowledges to Judas that He knows exactly who this traitor is. Jesus introduces the sacrament of communion, commanding His disciples to eat a broken piece of bread as a symbol of His body. They are to drink a cup of wine as a symbol of His blood, soon to be shed for forgiveness of sins. A typical Passover meal used four cups of wine, at designated moments. The third of these is the cup of blessing, and it’s possible this is the one Jesus identifies with His blood. If so, this would mean Jesus abstained from the fourth cup, representing the assembly of God’s people, as a symbol of what will happen at His glorious return (Matthew 26:17–29).

After the Passover meal, Jesus tells the disciples that every one of them will abandon Him, but He will meet them in Galilee when He is raised up. Peter declares that he will not succumb to fear. He brashly promises to die before denying Jesus, putting his own loyalty above that of the other disciples. In response, Jesus predicts that Peter will directly deny association with Him three times before morning (Matthew 26:30–35).

The group walks to a garden called Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives. Jesus has most of the disciples sit down and walks farther in with Peter, James, and John. He asks them to watch while He prays. He will return three times to find them sleeping. Jesus is in indescribable mental agony. The weight of what is about to happen is beyond human understanding. And so, in a very human and entirely legitimate prayer, Jesus tells God what He “desires,” which is that these events would not have to happen. In the same moment, Jesus also explicitly commits to obeying the will of God the Father. Obviously, no one would “want” to suffer torture and death, but Christ is loyal to God’s plan above all else (Matthew 26:36–44).

By the time Judas arrives with a crowd of soldiers and temple officers, Jesus is fully resolved to carry out the work of suffering the Father has given Him to do. It’s possible Judas took this group to the upper room, first, and then came to look for Jesus in Gethsemane. Judas’ pre-arranged sign is a friendly kiss. This is an especially despicable form of betrayal: the act itself requires trust, and Judas goes even further by referring to Jesus as his teacher. Christ, for His part, grants Judas one last kindness by referring to Him—possibly with sarcasm—as a “friend” (Matthew 26:45–50).

Peter (John 18:10) lashes out with a sword, maiming a servant. Peter is no swordsman, and this clumsy attack might even have been meant for Judas. Jesus immediately brings an end to this violence, telling Peter to put his sword back into its sheath. This is not the time or place for bloodshed. Not only does Jesus have the power to defend Himself (John 18:4–8), He could easily ask God to send tens of thousands of angels to fight for Him. That’s not what needs to happen, however, so Jesus agrees to be arrested, and the disciples scatter into the night (Matthew 26:51–56).

Jesus’ illegal and entirely false trial takes place in the middle of the night, at the mansion of the high priest. This occurs before members of the Jewish ruling body known as the Sanhedrin. Most likely, there are only enough members there to make their decisions official. Several false witnesses try to bring a charge against Jesus, but their claims are so contradictory that none of them are compelling (Mark 14:56–59). This not only speaks to Jesus’ innocence, but false witness is a crime in and of itself; it should result in the death penalty (Deuteronomy 19:18). Among these failed attempts is a deliberate misquotation of Jesus own words (Matthew 26:57–61).

Finally, the high priest challenges Jesus over His claims of being the Messiah and the Son of God. Jesus not only accepts these terms, but drastically multiplies them. In His response, Jesus claims the power and judgment of God Himself (Psalm 110:1; Daniel 7:13). The men who have already rejected Jesus’ role as Messiah (John 5:39–40) respond to this with rage and disgust, sentencing Jesus to death and triggering physical abuse (Matthew 26:62–68).

Peter, waiting in the courtyard (John 18:15–18), is accused three times of being with Jesus. Part of this accusation is brought on by his distinctive Galilean accent. Vowing on sacred objects and cursing himself, Peter does everything he can to avoid being associated with Christ in this dangerous moment. He denies even knowing Jesus three times before the rooster crows. He runs away, weeping bitterly under the crushing weight of what he has done (Matthew 26:69–75).

Chapter Context
After a long series of teaching (Matthew 24—25), Matthew 26 begins with Jesus saying He will be delivered up for death. Christ is anointed at a dinner in Bethany and Judas agrees to turn Him over to the chief priests. Jesus holds a Passover meal with the disciples, predicts an act of treachery, and introduces the sacrament of communion. He tells the disciples they will run in fear and that Peter will deny Him, which happens just as prophesied. Christ prays in great sorrow in a garden and is then arrested and taken away and unfairly sentenced to death. After this, Jesus will be taken to the Roman governor, where Jewish leadership will press for Him to be executed as an insurgent.

Verse By Verse

Verse 1 When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples,

For the fifth time in his book, Matthew concludes a long description of Jesus’ teaching with similar words: “When Jesus had finished all these sayings” (Matthew 7:27; 11:1; 13:53; 19:1). Jesus will not teach again before His crucifixion.

The previous two chapters contain what Bible scholars call the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24:3). Jesus, sitting on the Mount of Olives, has described future events, including their own persecution, the destruction of the temple, the return of the Son of Man at an unknown moment, and the judgment to follow His return after a time of tribulation on the earth.

Much of what Jesus has taught must have been baffling to the disciples, especially before Jesus’ death, resurrection, and return to heaven. Eventually, it will become clear to them. For now, though, the time of Jesus’ teaching has come to an end. The time of His great suffering is about to begin.

Verse 2 “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.”

Jesus has concluded His significant teaching to the disciples (Matthew 26:1). Following an extended time in the temple teaching about and confronting the Pharisees, Jesus took the disciples to the Mount of Olives (Matthew 24:3) and taught them directly about future events that would follow His death, resurrection, and return to heaven.

Now, though, Jesus returns His focus to the events of the week before Him. For the fourth and final time in Matthew, He tells His disciples directly that the Son of Man, meaning Himself, will be handed over to be crucified. He has been even more specific about what is to come in earlier statements (Matthew 16:21; 17:22–23; 20:17–19).

This is the first time, though, that Jesus connects His crucifixion directly to Passover. God commanded Israel to celebrate the Passover annually as a way of remembering how He saved them and brought them out of Egypt when they were slaves (Exodus 12). God’s angel brought death to the houses of the Egyptians, but it passed over the houses of Israelites marked with the blood of a lamb.

The Passover celebration began each year with the killing of a lamb. This year during Passover, Jesus, the Lamb of God, will also be killed. Those covered by the blood of the Lamb will be saved from the wrath of God for human sin.

Jesus says Passover is coming after two days. Scholars debate the exact day of the week on which these events occurred, but the literal day of the week is not especially important for understanding what happens.

Verse 3 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas,

Matthew’s change of focus shows that Jesus’ declaration in the previous verse—that He would soon be captured and crucified (Matthew 26:1–2)—was not an empty prediction. Elsewhere in Jerusalem, the chief priests and elders of the people have gathered to discuss the very same thing.

The Jewish religious leaders have wanted Jesus gone for quite a while now. Matthew described their eagerness to destroy Jesus back in chapter 12 (Matthew 12:14). Various earlier plots to arrest Jesus stalled out because many of the people clearly respected Him and thought of Him as a prophet of God (Matthew 21:45–56).

Still, Jesus had so thoroughly and publicly condemned and humiliated the religious leaders that they felt the need to do something soon. This gathering at the home of the high priest does not likely include the entire ruling body known as the Sanhedrin. Matthew reveals it does include the chief priests and some of the lay leaders known as the elders, in addition to the high priest himself.

Matthew and John (John 11:49) name the Jewish high priest at this moment as Caiaphas. Luke mentions Annas (Luke 3:2). It is likely that both men were thought of as high priest during this time. Annas, Caiaphas’ father-in-law, had been removed from the office by secular authorities in A.D. 15. Israel’s law, though, said the high priest’s term could only end in death, meaning that many Jewish people may have continued to recognize Annas as the “real” high priest, as well.

Verse 4 and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him.

Jesus told His disciples openly that He would be condemned by Israel’s religious leaders and handed over to the Romans to be executed (Matthew 16:21–23; Mark 10:33). Matthew shows that this is exactly what the chief priests and elders are plotting to accomplish together. They are gathered at the home of Caiaphas, the high priest. Specifically, they hope to secretly arrest Jesus and kill Him without inciting the crowds to riot over this treatment of a man many believe to be a prophet of God.

Why this risk? Why are they so eager to eliminate Jesus? The religious leaders have two clear motives to get Jesus out of the way. First, their goal is to maintain the peace in Israel and keep the people from rebelling against Rome and bringing the Empire’s wrath down on the tiny country (John 11:48). Not only would this avoid additional bloodshed, it also conveniently keeps the religious leaders in their positions of power and relative comfort.

Secondly, though, Jesus has publicly and thoroughly condemned the scribes and the Pharisees as hypocrites. During this week, He has even depicted their lawful choices as attempts to bring glory only to themselves (Matthew 23:1–7). Jesus’ teaching is a direct threat to the credibility of the men gathered at the home of the high priest on this day.

Verse 5 But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.”

The moment is coming when Jesus will be arrested by Israel’s religious leaders. He knows this (Mark 10:33; Matthew 16:21–23). He knows He will be tried, condemned, and turned over to the Romans to be crucified. In fact, this is central to His mission on earth as the Son of God.

The high priest of Israel, along with the chief priests and elders, are actively working toward that exact goal now, as well. They want Jesus dead (John 11:53). They hope to accomplish it as lawfully as possible, but they’re willing to cut corners. Even meeting to condemn Jesus in this way is a violation of the law (Deuteronomy 17:6; Leviticus 19:15–18).

They know they must be careful, though. Jesus is a popular healer of the sick and demon oppressed. Great crowds of people have followed Him around Israel to hear Him preach and see His miracles. Many people think of Him as a true prophet of God and some have started to believe He could be the Messiah (Matthew 21:9–11). The religious leaders cannot afford to let Jesus’ power and popularity grow, but they also do not want to provoke the people to riot by arresting Jesus during the Passover celebration.

The Passover could be an especially dangerous time in Jerusalem. For one thing, as many as five times as many people crowded into Jerusalem as normal. The crowds brought with them a restless energy. For another thing, they were celebrating God’s miraculous and powerful rescue of their people under the oppression of Egypt. Why couldn’t God do the same for them again with the Romans? Why couldn’t God do it right now? Why couldn’t the Savior, the Messiah, be among them to raise up and overthrow the Romans at this very moment?

Israel’s religious leaders wanted to avoid riots and uprisings. It would be best to wait for the Passover to end before arresting Jesus. Soon, though, a man named Judas would change their minds about waiting any longer (Matthew 26:14).

Context Summary
Matthew 26:1–5 shows that Jesus knows exactly what is going to happen to Him in the next few days. He tells the disciples He will be handed over for crucifixion at Passover. Meanwhile, the high priest, chief priests, and elders are plotting to arrest Jesus secretly and have Him killed. They decide to wait until after the Passover feast so as not to provoke the crowds to riot in defense of Jesus.

Verse 6 Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper,

Matthew describes an unusual event in Bethany, two miles east of Jerusalem on the Mount of Olives. Jesus had previously stayed in Bethany, at the home of His friends Mary, Martha, and Lazarus (John 11:1). Now, Matthew finds Jesus sharing a meal at the home of a man identified as “Simon the leper,” mentioned only here in the New Testament.

Though the text does not mention it, it is very likely Jesus healed this Simon from his leprosy. The law required people with this disease to live apart from others. If he still carried the illness, all those who ate with him would have been officially unclean during the Passover celebration. Further, the fear and stigma associated with diseases like leprosy would have made a gathering in his home impossible. Everyone would have kept their distance if Simon had not been given a clean bill of health.

Verse 7 a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table.

It’s not explicitly stated if this instance of Jesus being anointed with oil while in Bethany is the same event recorded in John 12:1–11. It could be a different event that happened around the same time. However, most Bible scholars believe Matthew’s details are part of the same event. This would mean the woman who anoints Jesus’ head here is Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus (John 11:1).

In both descriptions, the act is extravagant. It would not have been uncommon to anoint the head of an honored guest with simple household oil. This woman, though, uses an extremely expensive perfumed ointment to anoint Jesus. Matthew describes an alabaster flask, one which would have likely required the neck of the bottle to be broken so that the oil could be poured out. The woman pours the thick, aromatic oil over Jesus’ head as He reclines at the table with the other dinner guests. She does so in full view of all those gathered at Simon’s home.

If the events are the same, John describes the oil as a pound of ointment made from pure nard. He shows Mary pouring the oil on Jesus’ feet and wiping His feet with her long hair. A pound is a lot of oil. It’s not surprising that John says the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume (John 12:3). Everyone would quickly have become aware of Mary’s intimate act of anointing Jesus, the one who had raised her dead brother back to life.

Verse 8 And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste?

A woman at a dinner party has done an extraordinary and extravagant thing. She has poured a bottle of extremely expensive oil over Jesus’ head to anoint Him. John 12:1–11 seems to describe the same moment, making this woman Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus. The oil was a full pound of nard ointment that she also poured over Jesus’ feet and then wiped off with her hair. By any measure, this is an act of enormous honor and respect, as well as an act of great and intimate humility.

How do the disciples reclining at the table with Jesus react to this aromatic devotion from the woman? Matthew tells us they are indignant, not because of the woman’s boldness but because of the cost of the oil. “Why this waste?” they say. John, if telling the same story, makes it clear that the primary objection comes from Judas Iscariot, the disciple who will soon betray Jesus (John 12:4–6).

Verse 9 For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.”

The disciples raise what seems like a practical objection to an extravagant act of devotion. She has poured enormously expensive oil over Jesus’ head. If John 12:1–11 tells the same story, this woman is Mary, the sister of Lazarus (John 11:1) and she also poured the oil over Jesus’ feet and wiped them off with her hair. The house is now thick with the heavy, perfumed smell of nard ointment.

The disciples are indignant (Matthew 26:8). John’s version puts the words only in the mouth of Judas, who will soon betray Jesus. In either case, the objection is financial. That perfume could have been sold for lots of money, and the money could have been given to the poor.

The clear implication is that the resource had been wasted by the woman in pouring all that oil all over Jesus. How foolish, they thought. In John’s version, Judas’ motive is more clearly selfish. Judas was responsible for the group moneybag and regularly helped himself to the cash. He was thinking about how much he could have pocketed if they sold that perfume instead of using it up on Jesus (John 12:6).

Verse 10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me.

The disciples have not been impressed by a woman’s extravagant act of devotion and worship. She has opened an enormously-expensive bottle of perfumed oil and has poured it all over Jesus’ head. If John 12:1–11 tells the same story, the perfume was worth nearly as much as a year’s wages and the woman poured it over Jesus’ feet, as well.

The disciples condemned the woman for this, at least to each other. Why not sell that expensive bottle of oil and give all the money to the poor? Why seemingly waste it, anointing Jesus in this outrageous way?

Jesus, though, knows what they’re thinking and saying to each other. He rebukes them and uses a question to tell them to leave the woman alone. Jesus describes her extravagant act of devotion as a beautiful thing. He will show that in pouring this oil over Him, this woman has begun to prepare Him for the burial that will follow the brutal events of the coming days, something the disciples still don’t seem to grasp.

Verse 11 For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.

John 12:1–11 seems to describe this same event. It is clear that Judas is one of the disciples who objected to this anointing of Jesus with expensive oil. His motive was selfish. He wanted some of the money that would have been gained from selling the oil for himself. He was a thief.

Other disciples, though, may have had more noble motives. They were deeply aware of the devastating poverty all around them in Israel. They were also aware of their responsibility to help care for their poor friends and neighbors. Maybe the perfumed oil that now filled their nostrils should have been sold to raise money for the poor and hurting. It’s not unthinkable for them to wonder what other good might have been done with such a valuable resource.

In this case, Jesus even corrects those with good motives. His response is not harsh, but it is instructive. He tells them they will always have the poor with them—they will never lack opportunities to help those in need. This woman, though, has not wasted a bottle of expensive oil on just anyone. She has anointed the Messiah, the Son of God, the King, the one who will soon be crucified to pay for the sins of humanity. This is not merely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, it’s a once-in-history chance for this woman to honor God.

Jesus emphasizes that He will not be with them long. To worship the king in this way while the king is briefly present is a beautiful thing, Jesus has said. More than that, Jesus will show that this woman has contributed to what Jesus will experience in the coming week. She has begun to prepare Him for the burial to follow His death.

Verse 12 In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial.

The disciples had expressed disapproval for a woman’s extravagant act of anointing Jesus with oil (Matthew 26:6–9). “Why this waste?” they asked. The price of the ointment was nearly a year’s wages, assuming the description in John 12:1–11 is of the same event. Why not sell the ointment and feed some hungry people? This is not a completely unreasonable concern; the disciples are aware of the poor around them and Jesus’ commands to care for others.

Jesus has corrected them for attempting to rebuke the woman. He calls her act of devotion “beautiful” (Matthew 26:10) thing. It’s not that giving to the poor is not important. Instead, Jesus emphasizes that His time with them in person is short. This is the only opportunity she will ever have to make this specific gift.

Now He adds another detail to the meaning behind this bold anointing. Whether this woman, likely Mary (John 11:1), understood it or not, the ointment she poured over Jesus has served to prepare Him for His burial. Anointing the body of someone who has died was an important part of the burial custom of the time. Jesus knew He would soon be crucified, as He had repeatedly told the disciples. More was going on in this anointing than extravagant hospitality. This woman was participating in the preparations for the Messiah’s death and burial.

This forms an indirect prophesy of sorts. There will be no time to properly anoint Jesus between His death and burial (Luke 23:52–56). The event Matthew describes here is something of a provision of God, seeing to that detail. After Jesus’ burial, several women will bring spices to further anoint His body only to find Him missing (Mark 16:1–5).

Verse 13 Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”

Jesus rejected the disciples’ idea that the woman who anointed Him (John 12:1–11) should have sold the ointment instead, to make better use of the money. Rather, He has called her act a beautiful thing (Matthew 26:1–10). More than that, He has said that her act of devotion was preparing His body for burial (Matthew 26:11–12). This will occur within the week, and there will not be time between Jesus’ death and His burial for the normal process of anointing (Luke 23:52–56). In fact, Jesus declares that what this woman has done will be forever tied to the story of the gospel!

It’s important to note that Jesus does not merely defend Mary (John 11:1) by saying what she has done is merely permissible. He elevates her act of devotion to Him as a moment which will be remembered throughout history as the “good news” of the kingdom of heaven is proclaimed around the world.

Mary’s act was bold, extravagant, and to some even seemed inappropriate. It was worship for the Messiah who would die and be buried and then resurrected, and it was entirely right and good. Given the pungent, perfumed aroma of nard in such quantities, it is likely a moment that literally lingered for all who were near to Jesus in the days leading up to His arrest, conviction, and crucifixion.

Verse 14 Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests

Matthew often moves his telling of the events of Jesus life out of strict chronological order. This is a common tactic in ancient records: linking similar themes or moments together. Here, Matthew connects Judas’ decision to betray Jesus with Jesus’ defense of the woman who anointed him with extremely expensive ointment.

Assuming John 12:1–11 is describing the same event, it is Judas who asked why the perfume was not sold and the money given to the poor. Jesus insisted that the woman, Mary, was participating in the preparation of His body for burial.

Perhaps that was the breaking moment for Judas. He may have felt stung by Jesus’ correction. He may have suspected Jesus knew he had been stealing money from the group’s moneybag (John 12:6). Perhaps he recognized that Jesus was really, truly expecting to die and be buried. This would quash any hope for Jesus to be a military or political figure. Misguided hope that Jesus would defy Rome to usher in a new kingdom on earth was fading.

Whatever reasons Judas gave himself, Satan was involved in his decision to offer Jesus to the chief priests. The Devil put the idea in Judas’ heart (John 13:2), Judas acted on it, and Satan entered him when the time came to act (John 13:27).

Verse 15 and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver.

Under the influence of Satan (John 13:2, 27), one of Jesus’ chosen twelve disciples, Judas Iscariot, has made a traitorous decision. He will betray the Lord to the Jewish religious leaders who want to arrest and kill him (John 13:3–4). Matthew positions this decision following Jesus’ correction of the disciples over expensive ointment. They said the woman who anointed Jesus should have sold the oil and given the money to the poor. Jesus insisted she was preparing His body for burial (Matthew 26:1–14).

John 12:6 reveals that Judas was already stealing from the group moneybag at this point. He may have been growing in disillusionment with Jesus’ approach to Rome, the Pharisees, and Israel. His decision now to betray Jesus also comes with an apparent financial motive. He asks the chief priests what they will give him to deliver Jesus over to them. They pay Judas 30 pieces of silver.

This was not a large amount of money. It is the amount in the law that was to be paid by the owner of an ox that accidentally gored a slave to death (Exodus 21:32). Zechariah only sarcastically referred to this as a “lordly price” (Zechariah 11:13). It is a shockingly low amount for the betrayal of the Son of God, of course, and it reveals how little value Israel’s religious leaders placed on Jesus. It also suggests that Judas’ motivations might have been personal, in that he perhaps came to resent Jesus and His mission.

Verse 16 And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.

The chief priests and elders have been plotting together at the home of the high priest about how to arrest and kill Jesus (John 11:53). They had decided to wait until after the Passover, to avoid causing an uproar among the crowds of people packed into Jerusalem for the celebration. The last thing they wanted were riots over this popular preacher and healer.

Now, a perfect opportunity has come along, causing them to risk moving up their timetable. One of Jesus’ inner circle of twelve disciples, Judas Iscariot, has come to them and offered to deliver Jesus over to them. This is a meaningful offer, since the ancient world didn’t have the advantages of photographs, cameras, or telephones to track someone like Jesus to a specific location. With Judas’ help, they will be able to find and arrest Jesus in the middle of the night, far from the view of the crowds. This is the chance they have been waiting for.

Now it’s up to Judas to find the perfect moment to betray his master. He has been paid his 30 pieces of silver. It will be up to him to follow through.

Context Summary
Matthew 26:6–16 finds Jesus and the disciples in Bethany at the home of a man identified as “Simon the leper.” A woman, likely Mary the sister of Lazarus, opens a bottle of extremely expensive ointment and anoints Jesus’ head as He reclines at the table during dinner. The disciples think the ointment should have been sold and the money given to the poor, but Jesus insists she has done a beautiful thing that will prepare Him for burial. Judas then offers to turn Jesus over to the chief priests. They pay him 30 silver pieces, a price ironically associated with the cost of a common slave.

Verse 17 Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover?”

At this time in Israel’s history, Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were often considered a single, weeklong event. It began on the Jewish date of Nisan 15 and continued through Nisan 21. The disciples need a location which is suitable for the Passover meal, and assume that Jesus will want all of them to be present.

This cannot be a last-minute choice since these preparations were extensive. First, a lamb was taken to the temple to be slaughtered by the priests. Then it was brought to the place of the meal to be cooked with bitter herbs, along with the other dishes. Four glasses of wine would be consumed per guest at designated moments in the meal. All this needed to be made ready for Jesus and the twelve disciples to eat and celebrate together after sundown on Thursday evening.

Jesus will give specific directions to find the place for their Passover meal. This event, detailed in upcoming verses, will become known in history as the Last Supper.

Verse 18 He said, “Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.’”

The disciples have asked Jesus where they should go to prepare the Passover meal for all of them to eat together (Matthew 26:17). None of them lived in Jerusalem. They didn’t have a natural spot to prepare a meal for at least 13 guests. Also, the law required the meal to be eaten within Jerusalem’s walls. The city was packed, and places to eat as a large group would have been scarce. On top of all of that, it was already the crucial day. The meal was to be eaten after sundown, just a few hours away.

Jesus’ answer to them is mysterious. He tells them to go into the city, Jerusalem, to a “certain man.” Matthew leaves out the details added in Mark: They will be met by a man carrying a jar of water. They are to follow him to whatever house he enters and then talk to the owner of that house (Mark 14:13–14). They are to say to that man that the time is short and that they will keep the Passover at his house. Mark adds that the man will show them to a large, furnished upstairs room (Mark 14:15), that later became known simply as the “upper room,” the place of the Last Supper.

Verse 19 And the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared the Passover.

Jesus has given the disciples directions for finding the place where they will observe the Last Supper. It is not clear whether He had made prior arrangements. He may have been relying on the Spirit to prepare the owner of the house to be ready for Jesus and the disciples to meet there. It may be that there was a level of secrecy involved since Jesus understood the Jewish religious leaders wanted to arrest and kill Him. That would happen later in the evening (Matthew 26:47), but not before He had completed His time with the disciples.

Some Bible scholars speculate that the house with the upper room was owned by the father of John Mark, though there is no hard evidence for this. In any case, the room was provided, and the disciples prepared for the Passover meal in keeping with the Jewish Scriptures. They would eat it together after sundown, as the first day of the Passover week officially began.

Verse 20 When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve.

Matthew records the beginning of what has famously become known as the Last Supper. This is Jesus’ final meal with His twelve disciples before His arrest, trials, conviction, and crucifixion. Jesus knows exactly what is coming later in the evening. Though He has warned them repeatedly about it (Matthew 16:21–23), the disciples seem unaware of what will happen over the next few days. They likely know that Jesus is wanted by the Jewish religious leaders (John 11:57). They may be nervous about being in Jerusalem for the Passover, as required by the law.

They would have waited until sundown to eat the Passover meal together. In Jewish timekeeping, sundown was the beginning of the day to follow. The Passover began on 15th of the month known as Nisan.

It was not common in this culture to sit on chairs around a table to eat a meal. Instead, formal meals were served in the Middle Eastern style. Participants would sit on cushions in a U-shaped pattern around a low table and lean back as they ate a long and leisurely meal. Together with His twelve handpicked disciples, Jesus reclined and ate, leading the group through the prescribed steps required in the law for each stage of the Passover meal.

Verse 21 And as they were eating, he said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”

Jesus and His twelve disciples are gathered in the upper room of a house (Matthew 26:17–19). They are all reclining around a low table while sitting on cushions and eating the Passover meal together (Matthew 26:20). At some point during the meal, Jesus makes an announcement that changes the course of the discussion for the rest of the dinner. Jesus declares with absolute certainty that one of these close companions will become a traitor.

Matthew has already revealed that Judas Iscariot has agreed to turn Jesus over to the chief priests for 30 pieces of silver (Matthew 26:14–16). Matthew has not described Judas’ other motives. We know from John that Judas has already been stealing from the group moneybag (John 12:6). These perspectives are all hindsight: at the time of this meal, Jesus is the only one who knows which person is false. It will not be until later that Matthew, John, and the rest learn the tragic details.

While Jesus is aware, the rest of the company has no idea that Judas is the betrayer. They are accustomed to hearing difficult pronouncements from Jesus. In fact, they each express fear that they will be the one to fall, despite having no plan to wrong Jesus in any way (Matthew 26:22).

Verse 22 And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, “Is it I, Lord?”

Strangely, each of the disciples asks Jesus if he is the one who will betray the Lord (Matthew 26:20–21). This comes after Jesus predicting that one of them is a traitor. On one hand, this is an extraordinary moment of humility and perspective. None of them, other than Judas (Matthew 26:14–16), have had any ill intent towards Christ at this point. Yet they all worry that Jesus’ dire prophecy might apply to them. They’re used to Jesus giving them difficult teachings, and they realize the possibility of falling into sin. This makes them understandably sad, thinking they could hurt their Master. In this moment, only Jesus and Judas know that Judas has taken money in exchange for an agreement to turn the Lord over to the chief priests (Mark 14:10).

Another possibility is that these questions are rhetorical: statements of innocence, rather than actual questions. In English, a common response to an accusation is “who, me?” The disciples might be saying something like “you don’t think I would do that, would you?” The sorrow they express might be sadness that Jesus would even suspect such a thing. Later, Peter and others will insist their willingness to die before abandoning Christ (John 13:36–38). They will be wrong about that, though only Judas will be guilty of directly betraying Jesus to His enemies.

In an interesting detail, Judas will refer to Jesus as a teacher, rather than a master, when he speaks (Matthew 26:25). Whether Judas asks the exact same question as the others, before then, is not explicitly stated.

Verse 23 He answered, “He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me.

While eating the Passover meal with His disciples, Jesus has announced that one of them will betray Him (Matthew 26:20–21). Matthew’s readers know Judas has already pocketed money for turning Jesus over to the chief priests (Matthew 26:14–16). The other 11 disciples will learn many of these details after the fact (John 12:6), but do not know the information at this time. In sorrow and fear, they each ask Jesus if they will be the betrayer (Matthew 26:22).

Jesus’ answer is both cryptic and heartbreaking. It was common to dip a piece of bread or a piece of meat inside bread into a bowl containing a mix of fruit, nuts, and vinegar. This would have helped to cut the bitterness of the “bitter herbs.” Sharing a common bowl in this way was a picture of hospitality and fellowship. In saying this, Jesus made the point that the one who will betray Him had shared closeness and intimacy: one who should have been a true friend.

In truth, this is a non-answer, since every one of them at some point dipped their hand into the same dish Jesus has used. John specifies that Jesus handed a piece of bread directly to Judas (John 13:26), a detail likely missed in the instant it happened and only understood once the disciples recounted their memories to one another.

Verse 24 The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”

Jesus has announced to the Twelve that one of them will betray Him (Matthew 26:20–23). Referring to Himself as the Son of Man, Jesus again notes that what happens to Him is part of prophecy. What comes in the following hours is what He has been expecting (Matthew 16:21–23). It is the reason He has come to earth. He is ready for it. Ultimately, that fate leads to resurrection and glory (John 17:1–5).

It is a much different outcome, though, for the one who is betraying Christ. Jesus declares “woe” or judgment for that man. He adds that it would have been better for that man if he had never been born. Only Jesus knows that He is speaking of Judas (Matthew 26:14–17), one of the twelve men who has travelled with Him for much of the previous three years. Judas will suffer greatly for his betrayal.

This statement raises many important issues. Judas will suffer because He is not a true believer in Christ, despite his earlier actions (Matthew 7:21–23). Judas will not lose prior salvation (John 10:28), he will prove by his actions that he never had it (John 14:15). The idea that Judas would have been “better off” unborn also hints at the reality of an eternal hell (Mark 9:48). If Judas’ fate is worse than never existing, it implies something other than nonexistence (Matthew 25:41, 46).

Verse 25 Judas, who would betray him, answered, “Is it I, Rabbi?” He said to him, “You have said so.”

While the other disciples are clueless as to his treachery, Judas knows he is the betrayer Jesus had spoken of (Matthew 26:20–23). The rest of the disciples immediately asked Jesus if they were the guilty one, but He has only said that it would have been better for the betrayer if he had never been born, pronouncing a judgment of “woe” on the man (Matthew 26:24).

Now Judas finally asks what the others have already asked, with a difference. The others had called Jesus “Lord.” Scripture does not say, explicitly, that everyone but Judas had asked that exact question. It’s possible that Judas did, continuing to pretend that he was not already guilty (Matthew 26:14–17). Here, however, he responds to Jesus’ damnation of the traitor by asking, but not acknowledging Jesus as “Master.” Rather, he only calls Him a “teacher,” which is not wrong at all (Mark 9:5; John 1:49), but strongly contrasts with the other disciples.

This begs the question of why Judas asked, at all? Perhaps he was trying to cover his guilt by joining in with the others. Perhaps he wanted to see if Jesus already knew he was the guilty one. Or, if Judas had already made his defense (Matthew 26:22), this might be a sarcastic or resigned statement of someone who knows he’s caught. In either case, Jesus acknowledges that He knows the truth.

John adds details to the story. Jesus gives a morsel of bread to Judas after dipping it in the bowl that He has mentioned. At that moment, Satan enters fully into Judas (John 13:27). Jesus tells him to do what he is going to do quickly. Judas immediately leaves. The other disciples think Jesus has sent him on an errand, not realizing Judas is the betrayer (John 13:28–30). In the rush of these events happening, such details would have been easily missed until the disciples talked about them later in the week.

Verse 26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”

Matthew is describing what eventually became known as the Last Supper. This is the final time Christ and the disciples were all together for a meal before His arrest and crucifixion. This was the Passover meal (Matthew 26:17–19), which the law required Israelites to eat together according to a specific set of guidelines. While eating together, Jesus has already said something shocking: One of you will betray me (Matthew 26:21). The guilty party is Judas (Matthew 26:24–25), but none of the other men know this, yet.

Now Matthew records more surprising words from Jesus, introducing a sacrament in which Christians still participate today.

In the middle of the meal, Jesus picks up a loaf or cake of bread. He blesses it: He gives thanks to God the Father for the bread. This might have been the customary prayer of thanks for bread among the Jewish people. Next, Jesus breaks the bread, also according to the custom of the day. He distributes it to the disciples, perhaps one by one or perhaps passing it around the low table. Jesus then gives a command to eat, noting that the bread is His body.

The disciples likely had no idea what Jesus meant by this statement. It would only become clear after His death and resurrection. When taken together with the command in the following verse to drink the wine, as His blood, the concept of remembrance will become clearer (Luke 22:19).

Verse 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you,

Jesus is once more saying surprising and difficult things to the disciples. He has just broken a loaf of bread and given each of them the pieces, telling them to eat while referring to the bread as His body.

Now Jesus takes a cup of wine. He gives thanks to God the Father for the blessing of the wine, perhaps using the customary prayer of thanks to the “Creator of the fruit of the vine.” He distributes the wine to each of the disciples.

Jesus was using this moment in the Passover meal to introduce something new to the disciples and, through them, to the church that would soon be born. The requirements for the Passover meal included drinking four cups of wine. This was likely the time for the “cup of blessing.” Jesus associates that cup, representing God’s gift to Israel, with His own blood. He commands the disciples to drink it, with that specific command in mind.

In the following verse, Jesus describes what that cup of wine will now represent (Matthew 26:28; Luke 22:19).

Verse 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

The Passover meal was observed by nearly every Jewish person as a way of remembering and celebrating God’s rescue of Israel through the blood of the lamb on their doorposts (Exodus 12:7, 14). Now Jesus is using the elements of the Passover meal to introduce something new.

He has broken bread and distributed it to them, describing it as His body (Matthew 26:26). He has given them the third cup of wine included in the meal, the “cup of blessing,” and commanded them to drink it. He now describes that cup of wine as “my blood of the covenant.”

Jesus’ words have a connection to a powerful moment between God and the people of Israel during the time of Moses (Exodus 24:1–8). The blood of animal sacrifices was used to seal an agreement between God and the people. God promised to take care of them, and the people promised to be obedient to all God told them. Then came this:

“Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, ‘Behold the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words’” (Exodus 24:8).

The disciples, then, would have grown up knowing that a covenant between God and His people was sealed with the blood of a sacrifice. Now Jesus has described the wine they are drinking as His blood of the covenant. He says that it is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

Jesus is describing a new agreement—a formal promise—between God and many people. This time, though, the covenant will not be for Israel alone. It will be for all people who come to God through faith in Jesus. Jesus’ blood will be poured out to pay the price for the sin of all who trust in Him. His blood will seal the agreement God is making to forgive the sins of these Christ-followers or “Christians,” taking Jesus’ death as the payment for their sin.

The moment is very close now when Jesus’ body will be abused, and His blood poured out on the cross. That is the moment Jesus’ followers will remember with humble gratitude when they break the bread and drink from the cup together (Luke 22:19). It will come to be known as communion or the Lord’s Supper.

Paul will describe it this way in 1 Corinthians 11:26, “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”

Verse 29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father ‘s kingdom.”

During this Passover meal with His disciples (Matthew 26:17–19), Jesus has given them something new to practice after His death and resurrection (Luke 22:19). Today this is called the Lord’s Supper or communion. He has commanded them to eat bread He has broken and to drink from a cup He has poured out. He called the bread His body and the cup of wine His blood. He said the blood is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins (Matthew 26:26–28). That sacrificial death will happen very soon after He gives these commands, when Jesus is killed on the cross (Matthew 27:35–36).

The practice of communion by Christians since that day is not only about remembering Christ’s sacrifice. Nor is it merely about gratitude for His blood poured out for the forgiveness of our sins. Jesus was clear that this practice of communion is also about looking forward. Jesus indicates that He will not drink again until He is with the disciples in His Father’s kingdom. Jesus is referring to the banquet, or great feast, that will begin His Father’s kingdom on earth. This is the kingdom Jesus has been preaching about since beginning His ministry (Matthew 6:33). It is the time to come when all things will be made right, and He will reign as king forever.

Four cups of wine were included in the Passover meal, each representing a promise from God to Israel. These guarantees are summarized in Exodus 6:6–7: relief from the burdens of Egypt, rescue from slavery, redemption, and becoming the people of God.

Some Bible scholars suggest Jesus introduced the third cup, the cup of blessing or redemption, as His blood of a new covenant between God and the people of Jesus. This would imply that Jesus abstained from the fourth cup in the Passover meal, promising not to drink wine again until the coming of the kingdom when He will be reunited with His people forever.

Verse 30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

The Passover meal always ended with the singing of the last part of what was called the Hallel, from Psalm 113–118 or perhaps Psalm 136. “Hallel” refers to the repeated word “hallelujah.” As the acting head of the household, in this moment, Jesus, would have sung one line after another as the disciples responded by singing the word “hallelujah.”

The Israelites had sung these promises from God, year after year, for centuries. Now the disciples were singing them together with the Lord Himself, one last time, before the great act of love which would bring so many of these promises into reality: “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!” (Psalm 118:29).

After concluding the meal with the hymn, the group got up from the table and walked back to their nighttime campsite at the Mount of Olives (Matthew 24:3). Judas had already gone (John 13:26–30). It was just Jesus and the 11 remaining disciples. They will end up at a place called the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36).

Verse 31 Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’

The Passover meal has ended (Matthew 26:17–29). Jesus and 11 of His disciples (John 13:29–30) are walking in the night toward the Mount of Olives. Jesus has told them several difficult things during the evening. He has said that one of them would betray Him, causing each man to doubt his own loyalty. Now Jesus says that all of them will fall away because of Him this night.

Jesus is describing something different from betrayal, though the disciples might not yet understand that. Jesus knew Judas was the one who would act as an active traitor (Matthew 26:14–16), turning Jesus over to be killed (John 11:57). The rest of the twelve would not betray Him, but Jesus declares that they will “fall away.” They will leave Him alone and run to save themselves (Matthew 26:56).

Christ adds that this event will be a fulfillment of written prophecy; it is part of God’s sovereign plan for what is about to happen. He quotes from Zechariah 13:7 to make the point, noting how the flock of sheep will scatter when the shepherd is struck.

The connection between this moment and what is happening in the context of Zechariah 13 is complicated. Jesus’ primary point is that He is the shepherd. His sheep—the disciples and His other followers—will scatter this night when He is “struck” by God the Father through what is about to happen.

Verse 32 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.”

Jesus has told His disciples a devastating thing. They have just shared the Passover meal together (Matthew 26:17–29). Now, walking in the open night air toward the Mount of Olives (Matthew 26:30), Jesus said they would all fall away because of Him (Matthew 26:31). The idea of “falling away” would suggest they will be faithless to Him. Their courage will fail, and they will run and hide to save themselves. This is not the active treason of Judas, who is acting to deliberately harm Jesus (Matthew 26:14–16).

Thankfully, Jesus doesn’t leave His prediction there. He predicts their fearful response but also assures them that this falling away on their part is temporary. He says that after He is raised up, He will go ahead of them back to Galilee.

It would have been difficult for the disciples to comprehend what this might mean. Jesus, though, knows exactly what is about to happen. He will be “struck,” and they will scatter (Matthew 26:56). He will be raised from the dead (Matthew 28:5–6). Then He will meet them again back up north, away from Jerusalem, in their home region of Galilee (Matthew 28:10).

Verse 33 Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.”

Peter, as pictured in the Gospels, is ever brash and often wrong. That fearlessness, though, makes him a natural leader for the rest of the disciples. He often boldly says what they are all feeling. Earlier, Peter heard Jesus predict that one of the group would become a traitor (Matthew 26:21). He’s taken in the more recent prediction that all the disciples would “fall away” that very night (Matthew 26:31). Jesus has not condemned them, rather promising they will be reunited after He is resurrected (Matthew 26:32). Peter, though, hears only the prediction of failure and disloyalty and cowardice on their part. He refuses to believe it.

This leads to a heartfelt, but foolish declaration from Peter: even if everyone else fails you, I never will! That probably sounded insulting to the other disciples. And yet, Jesus knows Peter’s confidence in his own strength will not be enough in the coming hours (Matthew 26:56; 69–75). Peter will learn, eventually, that Jesus does not want followers who are strong in themselves but who rely on Him.

Verse 34 Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.”

In keeping with his impulsive nature, Peter has rejected Jesus’ prediction that all the disciples will fall away. He has declared that even if everyone else runs away and hides, he will never do so (Matthew 26:30–33). That’s not only derisive to the other disciples, it’s also incredibly bold.

Jesus knows, though, that Peter’s courage cannot stand the test that is coming. He tells Peter that the bold disciple will not just fall away to save himself (Matthew 26:56), he will in fact deny Jesus three times during the night before the rooster crows to signal the start of a new day (Matthew 26:69–75).

This would have been devastating for Peter to hear, especially coming directly from Jesus. The traitorous actions of Judas would be the worst of all: to actively work to harm his master (Matthew 26:21–22). On the other extreme, to “fall away” implies running and hiding when Jesus was in danger. To “deny” his relationship to Christ suggested a level of cowardice and unfaithfulness Peter simply could not imagine of himself. He had never known Jesus to be wrong, but Peter would not accept this statement (Matthew 26:35; 69–75).

Peter will learn, eventually, that Jesus does not want followers who think they are strong in themselves. He wants those who know they are strong in Him.

Verse 35 Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same.

Peter is flatly contradicting the words of Jesus. This is remarkable, in that Peter was one of the first to declare Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the Living God (Matthew 16:16). He has been the boldest of all the disciples. He was the one who asked Jesus if He could walk on the water with Him (Matthew 14:28). Peter, though, also became afraid and began to sink (Matthew 14:30). Jesus has said that all the disciples will fall away in fear (Matthew 26:31), something Peter entirely denied.

Then, in a moment that must have been heartbreaking for Peter, Jesus added that not only will Peter fall away, but he will deny Jesus three times (Matthew 26:34). In short, Peter’s great faith in his own courage will be revealed to be untrustworthy (Matthew 26:69–75). Faced with immediate danger or death, this very night, Peter will succumb to fear.

Peter still refuses to believe this is possible. He insists that even if it means dying with Jesus, he will never deny Him. Peter demonstrates once more that he is a leader, for good or bad. All the other disciples parrot his claims. They will all soon prove to be wrong (Matthew 26:56). Jesus does not want their self-confidence. They will eventually learn to keep their confidence in Him.

Context Summary
Matthew 26:17–35 begins with locating the room which will be used for the Passover meal. While they are eating, Jesus announces that one of His closest disciples will become a traitor. Judas discovers that Jesus knows it is him. Jesus introduces the concept of bread and wine as symbols of His sacrificial body and blood. After the meal, Jesus tells the disciples they will fall away that night and that Peter will deny Him three times. They insist that will not happen. Mark 14:10–31, Luke 22:3–23, Luke 22:31–34, and John 13:21–38 feature these events, as well.

Verse 36 Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.”

Jesus and His remaining 11 disciples (John 13:29–30) have been walking from the place where they ate the Passover meal (Matthew 26:17–19) toward the Mount of Olives. Now they come to a place called Gethsemane on the mountain’s western side. John describes it as a garden near a brook called Kidron and a place the group often went together (John 18:1–2). They are still inside the boundaries of Jerusalem, as the Passover rules required. It may now be as late as 10 or 11 p.m.

The name Gethsemane literally means “oil press,” suggesting that the spot was among the olive groves on the mountain. This title is ironic, at least, in that Jesus will experience intense spiritual pressure as He prays there (Mark 14:34; Luke 22:44).

Jesus tells eight of the disciples to sit down while He goes over to another area to pray. The following verse (Matthew 26:37) shows that He takes Peter, James, and John with Him farther into the garden. He may have wanted them to protect His solitude and privacy while He prayed.

Verse 37 And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled.

Having left the main part of the city, after a Passover meal (Matthew 26:17–19), Jesus and the disciples arrive at a spot they have come to several times before. It is a garden at a place called Gethsemane on the western side of the Mount of Olives. It is late in the evening, perhaps 10 or 11 p.m. Jesus intends to spend some time in the garden praying by Himself away from the group. He has asked eight of the disciples to sit and wait for Him (Matthew 26:36).

Now He takes Peter and the two sons of Zebedee farther in with Him. James and John are these other men. Together with Peter, these three are often called Jesus’ inner circle: His closest disciples. These are the three He took to the top of the mountain to see Him transfigured into His glorious appearance (Matthew 17:1–2).

Jesus has apparently remained composed throughout the evening, all the while knowing that the time of His betrayal, arrest, and suffering was about to begin (Matthew 16:21). Now, though, Jesus begins to become sorrowful and troubled. He will tell these three He is sad to the point of death (Matthew 26:38). Other Gospels indicate the unimaginable agony of these emotions (Mark 14:34; Luke 22:44).

This sudden, overt reference to His own feelings is even weightier, in that Christ is so rarely described in the Gospels by what He is feeling. He has spoken of the events about to take place very directly and in terms of the fulfillment of prophecy. Never, however, did those depictions make mention of how He felt about it. He has shown He is willing. Now He shows how difficult this is for Him. As One who is fully human, anticipation of these experiences is its own form of torture.

Verse 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.”

Jesus knows that very soon Judas will arrive with the chief priests and elders to arrest Him (Matthew 26:46–47). He has led the disciples to a favorite spot at Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives (Matthew 26:36). He left eight of them sitting a distance away and continued into the garden with his inner circle of Peter, James, and John (Matthew 26:37).

Now Jesus does something unique in His depiction in the Gospels. He confesses a deeply troubled state of mind. Jesus describes this as being so distressed that He almost feels the emotion would kill Him. Other Gospels explain the strain of this moment in similar ways (Mark 14:34). The three men He has brought into this private area are there, it seems, to provide Jesus with company.

Jesus’ language describing His distress resembles some of what David wrote in the Psalms. For instance, David wrote in Psalm 143:3–4, “For the enemy has pursued my soul; he has crushed my life to the ground; he has made me sit in darkness like those long dead. Therefore my spirit faints within me; my heart within me is appalled.”

Christians are sometimes tempted to think that feelings of sadness are a kind of failure. Many who have walked closely with God, however, have also experienced deep feelings of sorrow and emotional agony. This is part of the human experience, and Jesus is fully human (Hebrews 4:15). He knows what it is like to feel that way and was able to say so to His most trusted friends.

Some interpreters see Jesus’ remark here as more literal than emotional. Luke, the physician, refers to Jesus’ sweat as resembling bloody drips (Luke 22:44). This has led to speculation that Jesus was hemorrhaging blood from the skin. The more likely situation is that Jesus was profusely sweating. Christ was certainly enduring emotional trauma. Luke also reports that an angel from heaven appeared to strengthen Jesus (Luke 22:43). His mortal, human body needed help to endure the anticipation of what was to come.

Verse 39 And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

Bible commentators have debated, downplayed, exaggerated, and otherwise argued over the meaning of Jesus’ words in this prayer. After asking Peter, James, and John to watch with Him, Jesus moves a bit away from them and falls on His face (Matthew 26:36–38). This posture is used throughout the Bible, and history, by those taking the most humble and submissive position possible. In prayer, before God, this reflects a person making a request of great urgency. Jesus is also clearly exhausted in this moment. Other Gospels note the incredible stress He is experiencing (Mark 14:34; Luke 22:44).

The word cup is often used in Scripture to describe God’s judgment or a time of great suffering. Jesus Himself asked James and John if they could “drink the cup” assigned to Him, meaning the suffering that He would soon endure (Matthew 20:22). Jesus knew He would soon experience God’s judgment for the sins of humanity on the cross. He also knew He was nearing some strain, beyond human comprehension, of His communion with the Father (Matthew 27:46), for the first time in His eternal life.

As One fully human (Hebrews 4:15), Jesus seems overwhelmed and saddened to the point of death by this anticipation. He appears to pray, face to the ground, that God the Father would keep this from happening, if possible. Taken entirely out of context, this could raise questions about Christ’s role in His own sacrifice. In some sense, Jesus does not “want” to experience these things. No human being “wants” to suffer humiliation, torture, and death. That’s the point of His prayer: He is asking that “if” there is a possible way to avoid it, that He might avoid it.

Critically, though, Jesus immediately binds His request to submission. In virtually the same breath as He makes His appeal, He resolves to obey the will of the Father. Even more powerful than the anguish of His human emotions is Jesus’ absolute commitment to obeying God. There is never a question as to whether Christ will follow through on His mission. This prayer is a cry to God, declaring both natural emotions and perfect faithfulness (Philippians 2:8).

This attitude when making requests to God is the perfect model for Christians, in all possible situations. It is good to ask the Father for exactly what we want; we are told to do this when we pray (Philippians 4:6; James 4:2). However, a Christlike prayer not only asks for something, but also commits to obeying God’s will, even if the answer should be “no.”

Verse 40 And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour?

Jesus is overwhelmed by sorrow at the anticipation of what is about to happen to Him. The Gospels depict His anguish beyond human comprehension (Matthew 26:36–38; Mark 14:34; Luke 22:44). Christ will not merely be mocked, beaten, tortured, and killed on a cross in great humiliation. He will bear the wrath of God the Father for the sins of humanity (1 Peter 2:24). He will experience some unfathomable, inexplicable strain in His relationship to the Father during that time (Matthew 27:46).

In this state of mind, He has prayed something shocking in both its honesty and humility. He has expressed His desire that, if possible, that these things would not happen. That’s an entirely human, natural response, and means nothing more than that Jesus does not “want” to suffer such horrible things. In almost the same breath, however, Christ declares His absolute commitment to follow the Father’s will and not His own (Matthew 26:39).

Now He returns to His three most trusted disciples. He has asked them to watch with Him while He prays. Perhaps He meant for them to watch in the sense of keeping a lookout to protect His privacy and solitude. Perhaps He meant for them to join Him in praying, even at a distance. Or, He might simply have wanted the comfort of their presence.

Instead, Jesus finds all three sleeping. It is very late at night by this point, and the disciples are also likely greatly troubled by the things Jesus has said to them. Luke writes that Jesus found them “sleeping for sorrow” (Luke 22:45). They’ve also come from the Passover meal and the four cups of wine. None of those serve as an adequate excuse, however. Jesus wakes them and asks, pointedly, if they could not have stayed awake for one hour to watch with Him.

He will ask them to watch and pray once more.

Verse 41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Falling on His face in prayer, in a dark olive grove, Jesus is in literal agony, full of sorrow and sweating profusely (Matthew 26:38; Mark 14:34; Luke 22:44). He has prayed to His Father that, if possible, the cup of God’s judgment could pass from Him (Matthew 26:39), though He has made it clear that He will submit to the Father’s will. He has returned to find His three most trusted disciples sleeping instead of “watching” with Him (Matthew 26:40).

Now Jesus urges them to watch and pray. He wants them to ask that they not fall prey to temptation. Jesus may be talking about the temptation to sleep or He might mean the temptation that will soon arrive to abandon Jesus because of danger. Jesus acknowledges that their spirit is willing to do what is right and honorable, but their flesh—their desires, appetites, urges—is weak (Romans 7:22–25). To be tempted is no sin (Hebrews 4:15), but when we fall to temptation, it is our fault alone (1Corinthians 10:13).

Jesus’ words provide a clear instruction for one way to battle temptation to do wrong: Prayer. Prayer is a God-given weapon against our own sinful desires. God means for believers to overcome temptation, in part, through urgent and faithful prayer (James 5:16).

Verse 42 Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”

Most of the disciples are sitting together some distance away from Jesus (Matthew 26:36). He has brought Peter, James, and John deeper into the garden at Gethsemane and has asked them to watch with Him (Matthew 26:37). Now for the second time, He has left them to walk about a stone’s throw away (Luke 22:40) and pray in agony to God the Father (Matthew 26:38–39; Mark 14:34; Luke 22:44).

Jesus again emphasizes that He wants His Father’s will to be done. His natural, human emotions are agonized over what He knows is coming (Hebrews 4:15). The reference to drinking connects to Jesus’ previous prayer in verse 39, where He describes the coming judgment of and separation from God as a “cup.” He knows the time has come to endure these things, and He is declaring His desire—His preference—not to do so to God the Father. He will trust His Father’s decision.

Jesus, of course, has understood for a long time that His destiny was to die on the cross for the sins of humanity, to be raised back to life in a demonstration of the power of God. He has repeatedly told the disciples that His arrest, conviction, and execution were near (Matthew 16:21). It is likely this awareness of what will soon take place that drives Him to ask the Father whether it is possible to have it pass on from Him. He only makes the request, though, with the understanding that He will do absolutely anything the Father directs. God’s will is primary, above and beyond His request.

Verse 43 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.

For the second time, Jesus has moved away from Peter, James, and John after asking them to watch with Him and to pray. For the second time, He has returned to find them sleeping (Matthew 26:37–42).

The verse points out that these men are extremely tired. Given that it’s late at night and dark and following a big supper with wine, it is not surprising their eyes are heavy. Jesus has expressed, as well, that He knows their spirits are willing, but their flesh is weak (Romans 7:22–25). Still, after waking them the first time, He wondered that they could not pull it together enough to watch with Him for an hour.

This time, we’re not told that Jesus even bothers to wake them up. Instead, He returns to the same spot in the garden to pray for a third time.

Verse 44 So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again.

Jesus is in emotional turmoil. He is in agony almost beyond comprehension (Matthew 26:37–38; Mark 14:34; Luke 22:44) at the prospect of the suffering He will experience in the coming hours (Matthew 16:21). He knows God’s judgment for humanity’s sinfulness will be poured out on Him. He knows, also, that He will experience some strain, beyond human comprehension, in His relationship with God the Father (Matthew 26:46) during this time.

Christ’s response to these unimaginable stresses is a model for all saved believers. After expressing what He is feeling to His closest disciples, Jesus moves off by Himself to pray. When He prays, He lays face down on the ground in a position of absolute humility and respect.

His prayer is specific. He tells God the Father what He wants: for this suffering to pass by Him, if possible. In the exact same moment, however, He also submits to the will of God the Father, declaring His willingness to experience whatever God wills (Matthew 26:39–40). It’s noteworthy that Jesus does not make this prayer once. He prays in this same way three times in a row. He repeats what He has already prayed.

This is not because God doesn’t know the desires or the heart of His own Son. Jesus repeats this act because giving our requests to God is a way of sharing the mental and emotional burden with Him. Paul commands this exact process for anxious believers (Philippians 4:4–7).

We are not Jesus, of course, and there is a mystery here. The Son of God is making a request of God the Father to avoid the cup He has come to earth to drink. He is also submitting, willingly and obediently, to whatever the Father chooses. What is the relationship, exactly, between these two who are also one? It may be beyond our human capacity to understand on this side of eternity. What we do know is that Jesus, as One fully human (Hebrews 4:15), is expressing His very human emotions in a perfectly sinless way.

Verse 45 Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

Jesus’ previous prayers (Matthew 26:36–44) came in moments of intense personal anguish (Mark 14:34; Luke 22:44). Now, so far as Matthew’s description seems, He is calm and collected. After praying three times, He seems to have eliminated stresses from His mind, regarding what has been planned for Him (Matthew 16:21). The time has come, and He will not resist it. This is what the Father wants from Him.

Now Jesus returns to Peter, James, and John, still sleeping, and He wakes them one last time. He tells them to sleep later. The time for praying and waiting is over. He, the Son of Man, is betrayed into the hands of sinners. These sinners include Judas, the chief priests, and the elders. Jesus tells His disciples to “see,” pointing to the mob coming to arrest Him (Matthew 26:47).

Verse 46 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”

As He wakes Peter, James, and John from their naps, Jesus seems composed and resolved. He had asked them to watch and pray. They could not stay awake. Jesus has told them to sleep later. The betrayal is happening right now. Now He adds that it is time for them to go because His betrayer is at hand (Matthew 26:36–45).

The betrayer, of course, is Judas, one of the twelve disciples who has followed Jesus for the previous three years. Judas approaches through the dark, leading a group of Roman soldiers, Jewish temple officers, and others. They are carrying clubs and swords and torches, casting shadows around the olive orchard. It is late, perhaps midnight by this time.

Jesus knows exactly why they have come and what they will do with Him after arresting them (Matthew 16:21). This time, though, He will not disappear into the night or miraculously evade them (John 7:30, 44; 10:39). The moment has come (Mark 14:41).

Context Summary
Matthew 26:36–46 follows Jesus and the disciples into a place called Gethsemane, on the Mount of Olives. He takes Peter, James, and John aside from the main group, then prays to God the Father in indescribably intense anguish. He prays a sincere wish that what’s about to happen would not be necessary, but entirely submits to the will of God the Father. The disciples cannot stay awake, despite being roused more than once by Christ. Jesus prays three times, before pointing out Judas, the betrayer, who is coming with a crowd to arrest Him. These events are also depicted in Mark 14:32–42 and Luke 22:39–46.

Verse 47 While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people.

Jesus’ time of prayer in the garden is over (Matthew 26:36–40). It is late and likely quite dark on the Mount of Olives in the garden at Gethsemane. Jesus has awakened His three closest disciples, pointing down the path toward an approaching mob led by his betrayer (Matthew 26:45–46).

Matthew refers to the traitor, Judas Iscariot, as “one of the twelve” to show the depth of his betrayal. Matthew had traveled and served alongside Judas for three years as part of Jesus’ dozen handpicked disciples (Matthew 10:1–4). Judas had carried the moneybag for the group (John 12:6). Like the rest, he was a trusted member of this brotherhood of Jesus-followers.

Now, though, Judas arrives with a crowd carrying torches and lanterns (John 18:3), along with clubs and swords. The crowd comes under the authority of the chief priests and elders and includes both Roman soldiers and temple police: members of the temple guard (Luke 22:52). They are armed as if they have come to capture a revolutionary intent on overthrowing the Romans.

Matthew has written of Judas’ offer to sell Jesus’ whereabouts to the chief priests (Matthew 26:14–16). In the ancient world, there were no photographs, and clothing and hairstyles were much less diverse. Without someone to personally identify a wanted man, capture could be difficult. Away from a crowd, Jesus enemies needed someone close to Him to make an arrest. Judas received 30 pieces of silver for this information.

It’s possible that Judas first led the crowd to the upper room where the Passover meal was held (John 13:29–30), found it empty, and then came to this spot where he had come before with Jesus and the disciples (Matthew 24:3).

Verse 48 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.”

Judas’ job was to lead the chief priests to Jesus and quickly identify Him for the soldiers and temple police to arrest (Matthew 26:14–16). It is unclear how many of the priests and elders were present in the garden at this late hour. Judas had arrived, though, with a crowd carrying swords and clubs and torches. They may have thought they had come to capture an armed rebel bent on revolution (John 11:48; Luke 23:2).

Matthew again calls Judas simply “the betrayer.” Judas had worked out a sign with the security forces ahead of time. He would use a friendly, seemingly harmless kiss to identify Him the target. That was the Person they were to seize and arrest.

Given Jesus’ conflict with authorities and His public preaching, modern audiences might wonder why Judas needed to identify Jesus, rather than simply tell His enemies where to find Him. For one thing, it was late at night and dark. For another, those who came to take Jesus away may have never seen Him before, even if they had heard much about Him. Without the existence of pictures or television, famous people were not always recognizable by sight. Clothes and personal appearance, in that era, were relatively uniform. The chief priests did not want to take any chances about arresting the wrong man—or having one of the disciples pretend to be Him—and allowing Jesus to escape.

Verse 49 And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him.

Judas Iscariot earns the name he will carry for all of history. Jesus and Matthew have called him “the betrayer” (Matthew 26:46, 48) and now he carries out the role. This was a moment arranged by Judas (Matthew 26:14–16) for reasons that are not entirely clear. He was paid for his betrayal, but not an outrageous amount. He may have been disillusioned with Christ’s refusal to trigger rebellion against Rome. He may have become bitter and doubtful. It might have been a combination of all three: greed, disappointment, and spite. All we know for sure is that Satan tempted Judas, one of Christ’s closest companions, to hand Him over to death (John 13:2, 26–27).

The sign used to identify Jesus was arranged beforehand (Matthew 26:48). Jesus was known by name and by reputation, but this was long before photographs or extremely diverse clothes. Judas needed to do more than just tell others where Jesus was; he needed to directly aim the mob at the right person.

This moment multiplies the awful, hateful nature of Judas’ choice. This is meant to be an expression of mutual trust and friendship, and the words he uses are meant to show respect. Other gospel writers offer additional details. Luke reports (Luke 22:48) that Jesus asks pointedly, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?” Jesus didn’t want Judas to miss the weight of what he was doing. Not only is he acting as a traitor, but he’s also doing it using a vile perversion of pretended love.

Verse 50 Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him.

The traitor Judas Iscariot (Matthew 26:14–16, 48) has done his work. He has led the crowd of soldiers and temple police to Jesus and has identified the One to be arrested with a kiss. Jesus does not resist. He calls Judas “friend,” an especially cutting remark, since Judas is using pretended friendship to betray Jesus to His death. Rather than resist, Jesus simply tells Judas to go about his business.

Judas may have expected a fight, and not necessarily from Jesus. The disciples are armed (Luke 22:38) and Peter has declared his willingness to die for Christ (Luke 22:33). Jesus, for His part, makes no effort whatsoever to resist. Other gospel writers add details to the scene. John, especially, notes that Jesus is making a deliberate choice to make this an easy arrest. When they identified their target, He replied, “I am he” (John 18:4–6). They all fell to the ground, either out of fear or in response to some power that Jesus released in that moment.

Still, Jesus did not resist or run. He once more identified Himself and told the crowd of arresters to let those who were with Him go (John 18:8). Ignoring that advice is Peter (John 18:10), who will react with violence (Matthew 26:51).

Verse 51 And behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear.

A crowd of soldiers and temple police have been sent by the chief priests and elders to arrest Jesus (Matthew 26:48–50). One of His own disciples, Judas, has led them here and has identified Jesus with a kiss (Matthew 26:14–16). Jesus is not resisting or attempting to run.

One of the disciples, though, resists with violence. John tells us that disciple is Peter (John 18:10), which is not a surprise. It’s possible Peter was still stinging from Jesus’ declaration that he would deny the Lord three times before morning (Matthew 26:30–35). Peter had insisted that he would not abandon Jesus and would certainly die with Him. He was clearly ready to take his stand with Jesus against an entire crowd of armed men.

Of course, Peter is no soldier. In that era, it was assumed that all people wielded a sword in their right hand. For Peter to hit his target’s right side (Luke 22:50) suggests a strange incident. Either Peter swung overhand, or missed at first and took another swipe, or the target was facing away from him at that moment. Some commentors suggest that Peter was taking a wild swing at Judas and simply missed, striking a man nearby. For whatever reason, and in whatever way, Peter succeeds in cutting off Malchus’ right ear (John 18:10).

Jesus makes it clear in the following verse that Peter was missing the point. He was using the wrong method, at the wrong time, on the wrong person (Matthew 26:52).

Verse 52 Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword.

Matthew does not name the disciple who jumped in to defend Jesus from the crowd that had come to arrest him. John, though, lets us know that disciple was Peter (John 18:10). Peter may have thought the moment of truth Jesus warned him about had come. Jesus told the disciples they would all abandon Him and told Peter that he would deny Jesus three times before morning (Matthew 26:30–35). Peter likely wanted to show Jesus that he was not afraid to die defending him right then and there. So, Peter drew the sword he brought with him (Luke 22:38) and swung it, cutting off the right ear of a servant (Luke 22:50). Peter is not a trained warrior, and some commentors suspect he was really aiming for Judas.

Jesus is not interested in an armed conflict in this moment. According to Luke, Christ immediately heals the servant’s ear (Luke 22:51). Jesus rebukes Peter for trying to use violence to stop what is meant by God to happen in this moment.

Some have pointed to Jesus’ words here as a reason to never take up arms in conflict. That is reading too much into this event. He does not tell Peter to throw the sword away, but to put it back into its sheath. We know from John’s account that Jesus told his arresters to let His disciples go (John 18:8). In that context, Jesus seems likely to mean that He does not wish for Peter to die by the sword tonight in a foolish attempt to save Him. Christ, Himself, does not need to be protected by an earthly sword (John 18:36).

Jesus will go on to say that He does not need to be defended from what is happening because, ultimately, this is the reason He has come (Matthew 26:53).

Verse 53 Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels?

Peter may have thought he was proving himself to Jesus. He lashed out with a sword, probably with the clumsy wildness of an amateur, and maimed a servant who was part of the crowd (Matthew 26:51; John 18:10). This may have been an effort to win back the Master’s respect, after Jesus said Peter would deny Him that night (Matthew 26:30–35). This earned Peter an immediate rebuke (Matthew 26:52) and a command to put his sword back into its sheath. Other gospels note that Jesus explicitly told the arresting mob to let the disciples go (John 18:8–9). Peter’s actions are liable to get him killed.

Not only was this reaction dangerous, but incredibly foolish. Of all people, Jesus Christ is the last who would need to be defended using an earthly weapon (John 18:36). Jesus makes that point in dramatic fashion, comparing angel armies to Roman armies. A Roman legion at full strength had approximately 6,000 soldiers. Taken literally, Jesus is saying God the Father could send 72,000 angels to defend Him if asked. A single angel is credited, in the Old Testament, with killing 186,000 Assyrian soldiers (2 Kings 19:35). Does the Son of the living God really need a fisherman to step in and attack those who came to arrest Him?

Jesus’ words may sound belittling, but He wants everyone listening to understand clearly that these men cannot arrest Him against His will. He will go with them by His own choice. He is submitting to the will of His Father. He does not want to be defended from fulfilling His purpose. John’s account of these events makes that even more obvious (John 18:4–8).

Verse 54 But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?”

Earlier in the garden, Jesus was in agony (Matthew 26:36–38). He prayed to God the Father that, if possible, the impending suffering could pass from Him. He never wavered, however, in a commitment to submit to the will of God the Father above His own (Matthew 26:39). It’s not that Jesus couldn’t stop other people from harming Him. He is submissive to the Father’s will, but Jesus revealed in the previous verse that the Father would also be responsive to Jesus’ appeal to stop it. God the Father would send 12 legions of angels—72,000 beings of indescribable power (2 Kings 19:35)—to step in if Jesus asked Him to (Matthew 26:53).

Jesus wants everyone to know that He is choosing, by His own determination, to submit to the Father’s will (Philippians 2:8). He will cooperate with God’s plan for this night and the following day (Matthew 16:21). He will not turn back now.

In addition, Jesus notes that this is a fulfillment of prophecy. Every Scripture about the suffering and death of the Messiah would be broken if He did not willingly go with those who had come to arrest Him. Jesus did not need Peter (Matthew 26:51–52) to fight for Him.

Verse 55 At that hour Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? Day after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me.

Jesus has rebuked Peter (Matthew 26:51–52) and any other disciples who may have been thinking about jumping in to fight those who had come to arrest the Lord. If Jesus Christ had not wanted to be arrested, He would not have needed their help. The power of heaven would be unleashed on His behalf (Matthew 26:53). In fact, their decision to battle with swords would just get them killed. Jesus is going to go with those who have come for Him because He wants to (John 18:4–8), because it is His Father’s will (Matthew 26:42), and because it is how He will fulfill the prophecies about Him (Matthew 26:54).

However, just because Christ knows what will happen (Matthew 16:21) and goes willingly, that does not mean He won’t point out the absurdity of the situation. He turns toward those who have come in a large mob, with swords and clubs, in a secluded garden, in the dark of night. He mocks them by asking if they came to arrest a robber. Did they expect Him to put up a fight? He points out that He spent many days teaching publicly, coming and going freely, and they didn’t seize Him then.

Jesus knows why this is, and so do most of the men who came to make the arrest. The Jewish religious leaders don’t want to stir up the crowds who respected Jesus and thought of Him as a prophet of God (John 11:47–48, 57). They did not want to threaten their position with the people. They wanted to get rid of Jesus quietly, under cover of darkness, which they would attempt to do this very night before the people could figure out what was going on. Part of that plan is to pin Jesus’ death on the already-hated Romans (Matthew 27:1–2; Mark 10:33; Luke 18:32).

Verse 56 But all this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left him and fled.

Jesus has told His own disciples not to fight to defend Him from being arrested (Matthew 26:51–54), and now He has mocked those who have come for Him. They brought a miniature army, with clubs and swords, as if they would need those to capture some violent bandit. Christ is making it clear that He is going willingly with those who have come for Him (Philippians 2:8; Matthew 26:42).

At least one reason for these declarations is to prevent anyone else from getting hurt. John said that Jesus clearly identified Himself and told those who had come to arrest Him to let His disciples go (John 18:8). Along those same lines, He instantly healed the man Peter had wounded and told Peter and the others not to fight (Luke 22:51).

Finally, Jesus emphasizes to everyone present that His arrest and the events to follow will fulfill the Scriptures of the prophets. Nothing is happening which is not supposed to happen. It’s the opposite: this is the moment God has been engineering all along. Jesus will not stop it, because it’s why He has come (John 18:36–37).

At those words all the disciples scatter into the darkness. Matthew writes that they “left him,” in the sense that they all abandoned Jesus. This is what Jesus said they would do just a few hours earlier (Matthew 26:31). This is a natural reaction to being faced by an arresting mob. However, it’s clear Jesus wanted the disciples to get away for their own safety. They need to be preserved to start, in the coming weeks and months, the work for which He had trained them (John 16:12–15).

For now, the disciples will feel the danger of being associated with Jesus. They will experience the confusion and sadness resulting from His arrest and conviction (John 20:19).

Context Summary
Matthew 26:47–56 paints the scene of Jesus’ betrayal and arrest in the garden of Gethsemane. Judas arrives leading an armed crowd of soldiers, temple guards, and others. Judas identifies Jesus to the arresting crowd using a friend’s kiss. Peter (John 18:10) wildly swings a sword and cuts a man’s ear off in a misguided effort to defend Jesus. Jesus tells him to put the sword away. If He wanted saving, He could ask the Father and 12 legions of angels would arrive. He will not resist. The Scriptures of the prophets must be fulfilled. This passage parallels Mark 14:43–50, Luke 22:47–53, and John 18:1–11.

Verse 57 Then those who had seized Jesus led him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders had gathered.

Led by Judas (Matthew 26:25), the betrayer (Matthew 26:48), a group of Roman soldiers and Jewish temple guards have seized Jesus and bound Him (John 18:12). They now bring Jesus to the home of the high priest Caiaphas. At the same time, the members of the Jewish ruling body, the Sanhedrin, are being gathered in another part of Caiaphas’ mansion to meet about Jesus.

Matthew does not record Jesus’ first interview with Annas, the former high priest before Caiaphas. Annas was Caiaphas’s father-in-law. He had been removed from his position by secular authorities, and many of the Jewish people still considered him the “true” high priest. Jesus was taken to both men, likely to get a guilty verdict from everyone with any authority before the people could object to Jesus’ arrest and trials.

John records Jesus’ brief first interview with Annas before He was sent to Caiaphas. Annas questions Jesus about His teaching. Jesus responds that He has taught openly and in public for all to hear, suggesting that Annas ask others what they heard Him say. One of the officers strikes Jesus for this supposed disrespect. Jesus challenges the man, and Annas sends Jesus to appear before Roman-appointed Caiaphas (John 18:19–24).

Verse 58 And Peter was following him at a distance, as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and going inside he sat with the guards to see the end.

Peter acted with some degree of courage when Roman soldiers and Jewish temple officers came to arrest Jesus (John 18:10). Jesus, though, rebuked Peter for trying to defend Him with a sword (Matthew 26:51–53). Still, Peter has not fully abandoned Jesus. He and John have secretly followed the crowd escorting Jesus to the home of the high priest (John 18:15). This is not a wise move, especially since Jesus made efforts to keep the disciples away from His enemies (John 18:8).

Finally, as Jesus is appearing before Caiaphas and the gathered council in Caiaphas’ mansion, Peter works his way inside and sits with the guards to see what will be done with Jesus. Again, John’s account provides more details. Peter is only able to get inside after John, who knows the family of the high priest, and he convinces a servant girl to let Peter enter (John 18:15–16).

Verse 59 Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death,

The Jewish ruling body was known as the Sanhedrin. It included the high priest, along with 70 men made up of priests, teachers of the law, and laymen known as elders. It’s likely not all 70 were gathered at this hasty late-night trial conducted in Caiaphas’ mansion. Only 23 would have been needed to make any decisions official.

Matthew makes it clear this is only a “trial” by appearances. The chief priests and the council had already decided the verdict and the sentence: they wanted to put Jesus to death. They just needed evidence they can use to justify their prejudice. This leads them to seek false testimony about Jesus that would allow them to condemn Him. This is not only unethical, but punishable, in this case by death, under Mosaic law (Deuteronomy 19:18).

These ruling religious leaders hated Jesus for what He had said about them (Matthew 23:1–7). They rejected and despised what He said about Himself (John 15:18). They did not want to disrupt the status quo with the Romans (John 11:48), to the point of rejecting their own long-promised Messiah (John 5:39–40). Given His popularity (Mark 12:12) and invincibility in public debate (Luke 20:40), Jesus had to die if they were going to continue in their positions of power and influence over the people.

Verse 60 but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward. At last two came forward

The chief priests and ruling council known as the Sanhedrin were ready to see Jesus put to death by the Romans (Matthew 26:57–59). Though they’ve already passed a verdict and sentence in their own minds, they need official charges with which to charge Him. To get this, they look for people willing to make misleading or false claims. To seek Jesus’ death out of prejudice is already wicked (John 11:53). To pursue false witnesses is a blatant violation of the same Law these men claim to uphold (Deuteronomy 19:18).

Unfortunately, it’s not easy to coordinate these lies. Simply stating what Jesus has said and done isn’t enough. Jesus, of course, had done nothing wrong. No true statement is going to show that He’s committed any sin or crime (John 8:46). Those attempting to twist Christ’s words into something damning wind up contradicting one another (Mark 14:56–59).

Two came forward with a statement that, itself, is not useful, but it provides an opening for the chief priest. Their account (Matthew 26:61) is a misquote.

Verse 61 and said, “This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days.’”

To condemn someone to death under Jewish law (Matthew 26:57–59), two witnesses were required to verify the accusation. In this case, Jesus’ enemies are looking for an act of blasphemy or sacrilege to show Jesus deserved to die. Unfortunately for them, Jesus has neither sinned nor committed a crime (John 8:46), so those who say otherwise wind up contradicting one another (Mark 14:56–59). Of course, all of this is so illegal that Jesus’ accusers ought to be put to death, themselves (Deuteronomy 19:18), but they will press on.

Finally, two men came forward together to accuse Jesus of saying something the council can twist into a blasphemy charge. According to them, Jesus said He could rip down the physical temple in Jerusalem and then rebuild it in three days. That could be construed as a blasphemy against the temple—a thin charge for a death sentence, but better than nothing.

However, their quote is false. The witnesses had not only taken Jesus out of context, they’ve changed His words: “‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up’…But he was speaking about the temple of his body” (John 2:19–21). It was this prediction that brought Jesus’ followers greater faith after the resurrection: “When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken” (John 2:22). He has subtly declared He will be raised to life three days after being destroyed.

This accusation, itself, won’t be needed. Jesus will be condemned by the Jewish religious leaders for words He will speak directly to them, in response to the high priest’s challenge over this misquoted statement (Matthew 26:62).

Verse 62 And the high priest stood up and said, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?”

The ruling council is seeking something they can accuse Jesus of that deserves a death sentence (Matthew 26:57–59). They are running out of options. After a string of failed false accusations (Mark 14:56–59), two men have finally mis-quoted Jesus, claiming He has said something which could be understood as blasphemy against the temple (Matthew 26:60–61). Not only are these not His actual words (John 2:19–21), but Jesus was speaking about His future resurrection from the dead.

Caiaphas wants to move things along. To make this sham trial at least appear valid, He wants to charge Jesus with something based directly on His own words before the council. The high priest insists Jesus answer this charge against Him. He’s likely looking to trap Jesus in a lie, an admission of guilt, or some other mistake.

Jesus will not answer these prejudiced questions (Isaiah 53:7). When He does speak, He will utter a truth which the council interprets as blasphemy and sufficient to have Him killed.

Verse 63 But Jesus remained silent. And the high priest said to him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.”

Caiaphas, the high priest, seems to be getting agitated. He wants Jesus to say something in front of the council they can use to charge Him with blasphemy and sentence Him to death (Matthew 26:57–62). He has demanded Jesus answer a charge from two witnesses, who claimed Jesus said He would destroy the temple in Jerusalem and rebuild it in three days. The supposed blasphemy—and false quotation (John 2:19–21)—was not enough to condemn Jesus to death. Caiaphas needed more.

Jesus, though, would not even answer that charge. He knew they had misquoted Him and that He had been talking about His own future resurrection, not the destruction of the city temple. He also knew that to get to His resurrection, He would have to be sentenced to death by the men before whom He stood now. He would not try to defend Himself from false charges (Isaiah 53:7).

Whether in frustration, or a moment of cleverness, Caiaphas finally hits on the most controversial statements Jesus ever suggested in His teaching. The high priest asks Jesus directly, challenging Him to swear by the living God, whether He is the Christ, the Son of God. In other words, is Jesus truly the Messiah?

Caiaphas’ strategy might have been purely procedural. If Jesus resists, they may be able to charge Him with refusing to answer a question backed by a legal oath from the high priest. If He answers that He is not the Messiah, the crowds will no longer be stirred to possible rebellion (John 11:48). If Jesus says He is the Son of God, the council will use that declaration to sentence Him to death.

Of course, that requires these men to refuse to believe Jesus is, in fact, the Messiah (John 5:39–40). As it turns out, Jesus will answer this challenge with absolute truth, leaving no room for doubt about what He means. That’s enough for His enemies to declare this sham trial a success (Matthew 26:64–66).

Verse 64 Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

Caiaphas, the high priest, wants to sentence Jesus to death for blasphemy (Matthew 26:57–59). After several failed attempts, he finally challenges Jesus to answer whether He is the Christ—the Messiah—and the Son of God. These terms had created enormous controversy when Jesus used them in His ministry (John 5:18). Where Jesus ignored obviously false accusations thus far (Isaiah 53:7), He not only confirms this “accusation,” He multiplies it with an absolute claim of divine power. This response gives the high priest and the council all they need to condemn Him.

Mark quotes Jesus as saying it more directly in the form of “I am.” Matthew’s quote, though, carries the same weight. Jesus is not being elusive. He is saying, in essence, “what you have said is so,” or “that’s exactly right.”

Jesus doesn’t stop there. He is more than just a human Messiah sent by God to set up an earthly kingdom. In fact, Jesus declares they will see Him, as the Son of Man, seated on God’s right hand and coming back to earth on the clouds of heaven in judgment. The phrase “from now on” may mean “when you see me again in the future” or it may mean that Jesus is claiming to hold that position in their eyes, right in front of them, from now on. He stands before them not only as the future king, but the rightful king right now who will one day take the throne.

Jesus’ words make direct reference to Psalm 110:1 and Daniel 7:13. They would have left no doubt in the minds of Caiaphas or those on the council: Jesus of Nazareth is claiming to be the eternal Messiah and Son of God. Their reaction corresponds to the enormous nature of Jesus’ claims (Matthew 26:65).

From his perspective, Caiaphas could not have asked for a better answer. In his own mind, Caiaphas likely thinks he has baited Jesus into making an arrogant, exaggerated claim. He wanted to put Jesus to death (John 11:48–53), and this is a statement the council sees as blasphemous. At the same time, the high priest and the council would now be held responsible for rejecting the Son of God when He revealed Himself to them, face to face, for who He truly was (John 5:39–40).

Verse 65 Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy.

Jesus has given the high priest and Jewish ruling council exactly what they wanted to condemn Him to death (Matthew 26:57–59). He has told them the truth about His identity. He has openly declared He is the Christ, the Son of God, who will sit on God’s right hand and return in judgment on the clouds (Psalm 110:1; Daniel 7:13). Since these men have already rejected Jesus’ ministry (John 5:39–40) and sought to kill Him (John 11:48–53), they are infuriated by this claim (Matthew 26:64).

In indignation and grief over this supposed affront to God’s character, the high priest dramatically tears his robes. This was a common sign used to represent deep grief and rejection of some wicked action. It’s the moment Caiaphas has been waiting for. He turns from Jesus to the council and declares that Jesus has uttered blasphemy. There is no more need for lying, misleading witnesses (Matthew 26:60; Mark 14:56–59). Everyone present has heard these words, and everyone has clearly understood what Jesus meant.

Caiaphas thinks he has won. However, Jesus has accomplished exactly what He needed to do. He has expected to be condemned and then crucified (Matthew 16:21). He will not resist what comes next.

Verse 66 What is your judgment?” They answered, “He deserves death.”

In a tense moment, the high priest has pressed Jesus to answer a direct question, under oath before God, about whether He is the Christ, the Son of God (Matthew 26:62–63). Jesus has been waiting for this moment, as well, to make His official claim before Israel’s official ruling body (Isaiah 53:7).

Jesus declares that He is indeed the Christ, the Messiah, who will wield the power of God Himself and return to earth to judge with God’s judgment (Matthew 26:64). This references Psalm 110:1 as well as the prophecies of Daniel 7:13–14:

“Behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.”

This is not a vague statement. There is no room, at all, for anyone to misunderstand what Jesus means here. This is a claim to not merely be the Chosen One of God, but a claim to be God. Fully grasping Jesus’ claim—and rejecting it (John 5:39–40)—the high priest tears his robes, declares that they have all heard Jesus speak blasphemy, and demands the council make their judgment. Israel’s ruling religious leaders answer instantly: He deserves death. This, of course, is what they’d already planned to do (John 11:48–53).

Israel, through the highest levels of leadership, has now formally rejected the Son of God as the Messiah (Matthew 23:37). They have scorned Him to His face and sentenced Him to die.

Verse 67 Then they spit in his face and struck him. And some slapped him,

The high priest and the council have achieved what they had long since set out to do (John 11:48–53). They have crossed the legal barrier they could not previously overcome (Matthew 26:57–60). Based on His own words—true though they are—Jesus has been proclaimed guilty of blasphemy and sentenced to death (Matthew 26:61–66). The trial itself has not been legal in several ways. It has taken place in the middle of the night in the home of the high priest instead of during the daytime in the temple, and its outcome was decided before the trial even began. False witnesses were used.

None of that really matters, though, because what was needed has been accomplished. Jesus has revealed Himself as the Christ to Israel’s religious leaders and has been officially rejected and condemned (Matthew 16:21). They have been given the opportunity to receive God’s Son, and they have decided instead to kill Him (John 5:39–40).

At this point, abuse of Jesus begins to get more serious. Either the members of the Sanhedrin themselves or their servants or guards begin to spit in Jesus’ face and strike Him. The word “struck” here is from a Greek term which is often translated as “beat,” and often refers to use of fists. Christ is now being beaten and mocked. According to the Jewish leaders, He is a false Messiah who will soon die.

While Scripture does not say so directly, this abuse may also serve another purpose. Jesus’ enemies may feel that their ability to mock and mistreat Him is more evidence that He is not really the Son of God. In their minds, the real Messiah would immediately put an end to such things. He would lash out and strike down all who strike Him. They do not know that He is choosing not to resist, not to defend Himself, so He can carry out the will of His Father (Matthew 26:42).

Jesus flattened a group of soldiers with a mere word earlier that evening (John 18:4–7); if any of them were there, one can only imagine what they thought of this moment.

Verse 68 saying, “Prophesy to us, you Christ! Who is it that struck you?”

Jesus has declared Himself to be the one and true Messiah (Matthew 26:64). This has left no possible room for misinterpretation: Jesus says He is not only the Savior, not only favored by God, but that He is God. The high priest and council have condemned Him for blasphemy and sentenced Him to die (Matthew 26:65–67). Now the abuse has begun. Some spit in His face and beat Him.

Mark clarifies that Jesus is blindfolded at this point (Mark 14:65). This is why abusers mock Him by telling Him to prophesy about who is hitting Him. Their point is that if Jesus were really the Christ, He would know this supernaturally.

Jesus, of course, knows all of this (Matthew 16:21). He has resolved Himself to submit to His Father’s will and take all the cruelty which comes His way (Matthew 26:42). He will refuse to resist or ask His Father to send 12 legions of angels to save Him (Matthew 26:53). He will walk to the cross as a lamb to the slaughter to die for the sins of humanity as the sinless Son of God (Acts 8:32–35; Philippians 2:8).

Context Summary
Matthew 26:57–68 describes Jesus’ sham trial before members of the Jewish ruling body. False witnesses accuse Jesus of crimes worthy of a death sentence; their attempts are so transparently false that the effort fails. Finally, the high priest challenges Jesus to state that He is the Messiah and the Son of God. Jesus agrees, and even adds to the declaration. The high priest and council agree Jesus is guilty of blasphemy and condemn Him to death. Mark 14:53–65, Luke 22:63–71, John 18:12–14, and John 18:19–24 explain different perspectives on the same events.

Verse 69 Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.”

As Jesus begins to suffer physical abuse (Matthew 26:67–68), the scene shifts to Peter just outside in the courtyard of the high priest’s home (Matthew 26:57). He is in the most dangerous place he could possibly be at this moment. His master has just been condemned to death for blasphemy (Matthew 26:64–66). This is not where Jesus wanted Peter to be (John 18:8), though He has already predicted what will happen (Matthew 26:30–35).

A servant girl approaches Peter with an accusation. She has recognized him. She says that he was with Jesus the Galilean—a connection others will make due to Peter’s distinctive regional accent (Matthew 26:73). Peter knows if he acknowledges his connection to Jesus in this moment, he may well be arrested. He could also be tried and suffer the same sentence as the “false Messiah.”

Peter, once ready to die with Jesus fighting a group of soldiers at Gethsemane (Matthew 26:51; John 18:10), is now pressured to decide whether to admit his relationship with Jesus to a servant girl.

Verse 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.”

Several hours ago, Jesus had told His disciples they would fall away—to lose courage and run—because of Him (Matthew 26:30–32). Peter insisted he would never abandon Jesus, even if everyone else did. Jesus told Peter that not only would he fall away, but he would even deny Jesus three times before the rooster crowed. Peter insisted he would die first (Matthew 26:33–35). The bravery shown when he lashed out in the garden (Matthew 26:51; John 18:10) seems to have passed.

Peter now comes to the predicted moment of choice. He is in the courtyard of the high priest’s home (Matthew 26:69). Perhaps he has heard the judgment from inside that Jesus has been found guilty by the Sanhedrin and condemned to die. This is not where Jesus wants Him to be (John 18:8), but Peter has come, anyway. A servant girl has approached Peter. She is sure he is one of those with Jesus. At least part of this is due to Peter’s distinctive Galilean accent (Matthew 26:73).

Now Peter chooses not to face risk, but to deny Jesus “before them all.” He pleads ignorance: the first of his three denials of Christ.

Verse 71 And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

Jesus said Peter would deny Him three times before morning came on this endless-seeming night (Matthew 26:30–35). Peter said he would die before doing that. That was before he knew he would be sitting in the courtyard of the high priest immediately following Jesus’ death sentence inside (Matthew 26:69).

One servant girl has said that she knows Peter as one who was with Jesus. Peter is only here because John, who knows the family of the high priest, was able to gain access (John 18:15–18). The girl might have seen the disciples with Jesus. Peter denies his association with Christ, to everyone who heard this, and starts to move away. He got as far as the entrance to the courtyard when another servant girl saw him. This one made her accusation to those standing around Peter: this is one of the followers of Jesus of Nazareth.

Peter knows he’s in a vulnerable position. The guards who brought Jesus bound to this household could easily grab him and haul him inside, as well.

Verse 72 And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.”

Peter has been accused, for the second time, of being associated with the now-condemned Jesus (Matthew 26:69–71). Since Peter is in the courtyard of the high priest’s house, he recognizes that he is in real danger (Matthew 26:64–66).

For the second time, Peter denies any association with Jesus. He swears by an oath not merely that he is not a follower, but that He does not even know Jesus, at all. The use of an oath means Peter swears by something sacred that he is telling the truth. Peter likely remembered well that Jesus had condemned exactly this kind of oath-swearing, saying instead, “Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil” (Matthew 5:37).

Peter’s oath and denial shows how desperate he is to get away and save himself from possible arrest and execution. This is the second of three predicted failures (Matthew 26:30–35). Unfortunately for Peter, the more he speaks, the more his Galilean accent reminds people of those who are closest to Jesus (Matthew 26:73).

Verse 73 After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for your accent betrays you.”

For the third time, Peter is accused of being a disciple of Jesus. These servants in the courtyard of the high priest’s home have called Jesus “the Galilean” and “Jesus of Nazareth.” Their association with this just-condemned “false messiah” is that He is from up north in the region of Galilee (Matthew 26:69–72).

As is the case in many nations, people from different parts of Israel had different accents. Those from the metropolis of Jerusalem did not pronounce words exactly as did those from the small towns to the north. Those who had heard Peter accused of being with Jesus, by the servant girls, now approach to say he even sounds like Jesus: “Your accent betrays you.”

Morning is close. Jesus told Peter he would deny him three times before the rooster crowed (Matthew 26:30–35). Peter has denied even knowing Jesus twice so far. He’s about to make it three.

Verse 74 Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed.

Peter told Jesus he would die before ever denying him (Matthew 26:30–35). In that spirit, he had pulled a sword and attacked those coming to arrest Jesus earlier that night (Matthew 26:51; John 18:10). Jesus, though, had rebuked Peter for fighting, submitting to His own arrest Matthew 26:52–54). By this time, Peter may have heard the report from inside the high priest’s house that Jesus had been found guilty and condemned to die (Matthew 26:64–66).

When people in the courtyard began to accuse Peter of being with Jesus, he recognized he was in real danger of being arrested and executed. Suddenly, his courage has failed, and he does not want to die. Before he can leave, though, he is approached one more time by people in the courtyard who recognize his accent is like that of the “Galilean” condemned to death (Matthew 26:73).

Peter begins to swear a curse on himself if he is lying. He once again vows on something sacred that he truly, really, honestly doesn’t even know Jesus, at all. Following that third denial, the rooster crows signaling morning has come. Jesus’ words have proved true, and Peter knows that he has proved faithless to his master, after all (Matthew 26:75).

Verse 75 And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

An unpleasant realization has come back to Peter in a rush, in a single moment. Christ had told Peter he would deny Jesus three times before the rooster crowed (Matthew 26:30–35). Peter had boldly and brashly declared that he would die with Jesus before such a thing could happen. He’d wielded a sword in a misguided attempt to prevent Jesus’ arrest (Matthew 26:51; John 18:10). Now the rooster had called out and Peter is painfully aware of his denials: three, just as Jesus had said.

Peter had the chance to follow through on his earlier pledge of loyalty. He was in the courtyard of the home where Jesus was condemned to die, where Jesus was being beaten (Matthew 26:64–69). All Peter had to do was admit that, yes, he was one of Jesus’ disciples. He could declare he did in fact believe that Jesus was the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of the living God (Matthew 16:15–17). That would have been honest, even if it might have resulted in being taken for death, rather than denying the Lord.

Peter finally got away from danger after his third denial. This is not a clean escape, however. The crushing weight of his own disloyalty, cowardice, and lies is crashing down around him. Eventually, Peter will come to know that Jesus did not want him to die that night (John 18:8). He would experience Jesus’ forgiveness and learn that he would one day die for Jesus, after all (John 21:18–19). Tonight, though, Peter would suffer in knowing that he was not as strong in himself as he thought he was. He would need that humility to carry out what God had next for him in the coming weeks, months, and years.

Context Summary
Matthew 26:69–75 finds Peter sitting outside in the courtyard of the high priest’s home. Inside, Jesus is being unfairly convicted and condemned to die. Three times, Peter is accused of being a Jesus-follower. Three times, he denies even knowing Jesus, swearing oaths and cursing himself if he is lying. Hearing a rooster, Peter remembers Jesus had said he would deny Him in exactly this way. The man who bragged he would die before turning from Jesus now flees in tears of shame. Parallel accounts are found in Mark 14:66–72, Luke 22:54–62, John 18:15–18, and John 18:25–27.

Chapter Summary
The Jewish religious leaders further their plots to arrest and kill Jesus, finding a willing traitor in Judas Iscariot. A woman anoints Christ with oil during a dinner at Bethany. Next, Jesus and the disciples hold the Passover meal in an upper room where Jesus predicts His arrests and introduces the sacrament of communion. Then Jesus prays in unimaginable agony in the garden of Gethsemane before being betrayed by Judas and captured. The disciples scatter. Before the high priest, Jesus explicitly claims to be divine. They convict Him of blasphemy and sentence Him to death. As this happens, Peter denies knowing Jesus and runs away in shame.