I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered

Then Jesus said to them, "All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written:

'I will strike the Shepherd,

And the sheep will be scattered.'

But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee." Peter said to Him, "Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be." Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times." But he spoke more vehemently, "If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!" And they all said likewise.

Then they came to a place which was named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, "Sit here while I pray." And He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He began to be troubled and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch." He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him. And He said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will." Then He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." Again, He went away and prayed, and spoke the same words. And when He returned, He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him. Then He came the third time and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough! The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand."

- Mark 14:27-42

Yesterday, we read about the Last Supper, and its preparation. Jesus instructed His disciples that they would find a man carrying a pitcher of water. They should follow him and ask where the guest room was for the Teacher to eat the Passover with His disciples. When they had gathered at the Last Supper, Jesus told them all that He would be betrayed by one of them. He instituted the Eucharist for us all. He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, "Take, eat, this is My body." Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And He said to them, "This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many."

Then Jesus said to them, "All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: 'I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.' But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee." The quotation is from the Book of Zechariah. The language in this passage is reminiscent of the warning language about the siege of Jerusalem (and the destruction of the temple), and the times of the end of the age. They will be scattered, but after His Resurrection, He will go before them to Galilee - before Pentecost, the Church will have its beginnings in His appearance to gathered believers there, in the understanding that He Lives.

Peter said to Him, "Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be." Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times." But he spoke more vehemently, "If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!" And they all said likewise. My study bible notes that Peter still doesn't understand the need for divine help with faith. It can't be done of ourselves alone. And His ever-exuberant emotional nature shows itself. A note reads: "Peter's desire is right, but his source of strength -- himself -- is wrong." And we note that the rest of the disciples also said likewise. As with his confession of faith, Peter expresses what they all feel.

Then they came to a place which was named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, "Sit here while I pray." Gethsemane means "oil press" -- it is an orchard of olive trees at the foot of the Mount of Olives. As we have in the past, we remind our readers that in the Greek, the word for "mercy" (eleos) is alike in sound to the word for "olive oil." This oil was the basis for all healing balm, and for anointing oils. In the garden, the events take on the great significance of the pressing out of mercy, and the things that belong to the Messiah or Christ ("Anointed One").

And He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He began to be troubled and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch." He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him. And He said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will." My study bible points out that "Abba" is a very familiar Aramaic form for "Father" -- equivalent to saying "Daddy" or "Papa." It indicates the deep intimacy of Jesus' relationship to the Father. We witness His agony, as He has gone before us in all things in which we might be tempted. He experiences the agony of a human being, as human being, for all of us. When life tests our faith, we know that He has been there first. My study bible says, "Jesus prays to be spared this cup, His death by crucifixion, but obediently entrusts Himself to the will of God. It is not as God that He asks the hour might pass, but as man. His divinity cannot suffer; His humanity can and does."

Then He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." Again, He went away and prayed, and spoke the same words. And when He returned, He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him. Then He came the third time and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough! The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand." A powerful warning is here, to us all. "Watch and pray" are the bywords of Jesus' teaching about the end of the age, and the time of the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. "Watch and pray" are also the words He leaves His disciples, in a very significant way. It is a time of deep temptation, of scattering and fear and violence and evil. In a time of terror, we must "watch and pray." In any time of temptation, especially those of violence, chaos, uncertainty, fear, these are our words to live by. My study bible says that "to watch and pray is the way to avoid entering into temptation -- at any time, anywhere. The spirit of the disciples, their inner selves, is ready to die with Jesus, but their flesh, their physical bodies, is weak and given to sleep."

The power of this moment is unmistakable. Jesus is truly alone, and yet it is a towering moment of strength and faith, despite His deep emotional distress. He asks His friends to keep awake and watch with Him. He knows all that is going to happen. He prays to the Father to have this cup pass if it be His will. Even His friends cannot stay awake with Him, despite three protestations to them. And He is alone in this moment of doubt and fear and agony. He knows the threats to His flock when "the Shepherd is struck." And yet He stays, and prays, and watches. Jesus' example is one for us all, at the times of our deepest struggles. When life hands us powerful blows, we too may feel alone. This tremendous hour of His heroism is not the great act of a general in glorious victory of battle, a politician who wins a great election, the victory of a celebrity who wins a coveted award. This hour of glory and heroism is made by a man alone, whose followers will be scattered in fear, who is about to face an unjust trial and death by crucifixion - an ignominious punishment reserved for the worst criminals. And yet He is the great example to us all in our dark hours when we need our faith to face whatever it is we must go through in life, however hard or unfair. "Watch and pray!" In our most difficult times, let us remember His words, His acts, and that He has been there already for each of us in our humanity. "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation." Faith comes with the help of God. And we remember that to "watch and pray" is the teaching He's left to us for the times in which we, too, await His return.