Matthew 26:29 - Printer Friendly

ESV: 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.”

NIV: I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.'

NASB: But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it with you, new, in My Father’s kingdom.'

CSB: But I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom."

NLT: Mark my words — I will not drink wine again until the day I drink it new with you in my Father’s Kingdom.'

KJV: But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.

NKJV: But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on 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.

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.

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.

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.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.