Matthew 26:43 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.

NIV: When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy.

NASB: Again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.

CSB: And he came again and found them sleeping, because they could not keep their eyes open.

NLT: When he returned to them again, he found them sleeping, for they couldn’t keep their eyes open.

KJV: And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy.

NKJV: And He came and found them asleep again, 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.

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.

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.

Accessed 4/29/2024 1:59:47 AM