Mark 14:10-2510And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went unto the chief priests, to betray him unto them. 11And when they heard it, they were glad, and promised to give him money. And he sought how he might conveniently betray him. 12And the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the passover, his disciples said unto him, Where wilt thou that we go and prepare that thou mayest eat the passover? 13And he sendeth forth two of his disciples, and saith unto them, Go ye into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water: follow him. 14And wheresoever he shall go in, say ye to the goodman of the house, The Master saith, Where is the guestchamber, where I shall eat the passover with my disciples? 15And he will show you a large upper room furnished and prepared: there make ready for us. 16And his disciples went forth, and came into the city, and found as he had said unto them: and they made ready the passover. 17And in the evening he cometh with the twelve. 18And as they sat and did eat, Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, One of you which eateth with me shall betray me. 19And they began to be sorrowful, and to say unto him one by one, Is it I? and another said, Is it I? 20And he answered and said unto them, It is one of the twelve, that dippeth with me in the dish. 21The Son of man indeed goeth, as it is written of him: but woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! good were it for that man if he had never been born. 22And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body. 23And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it. 24And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many. 25Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God. (Mark 14:10‑25)
The disciples asked the Lord Jesus where He wished them to prepare the passover supper which was not to be eaten in the Temple, but in the homes. They had no homes in Jerusalem, but Jesus knew where they could have a room. He told two of them,
“Go ye into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water; follow him. And wheresoever he shall go in, say ye to the goodman (owner) of the house, The Master saith, Where is the guestchamber, where I shall eat the passover with My disciples? And he shall show you a large upper room furnished... there make ready for us.”
The two disciples were so directed that they could not make a mistake. The man with the pitcher of water met them, and led them directly to the “upper room” where our Lord knew they would find all that was needed for the solemn meal.
This was not what we would call a “feast,” but to remember that God had saved their nation from death in Egypt, and to rejoice and thank Him. It was to praise God that they sang a hymn (or psalm) that evening before they left (Deut. 12:7,127And there ye shall eat before the Lord your God, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein the Lord thy God hath blessed thee. (Deuteronomy 12:7)
12And ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your menservants, and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your gates; forasmuch as he hath no part nor inheritance with you. (Deuteronomy 12:12)).
That same night Jesus showed the disciples to keep a new “feast”: He took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and gave to them to eat; then He gave thanks also for the cup, in which was the “fruit” (juice) of the grape vine, and gave them to drink.
This was a most simple “feast,” told of in few words, yet to be done to remember the greatest of all events, the Lord Jesus giving His body in death, and His blood, not as the passover for one nation, but to save the souls of men, women, boys, and girls, of every nation who will believe in Him.
We may wonder that the Lord’s directions to find the place to keep the “feast” are so fully written: how can anyone now be helped by hearing of the man with a pitcher of water whom the disciples followed?
We find God’s Word is called “water” (Eph. 5:2626That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, (Ephesians 5:26)); it is to our souls, what water is to our bodies. It tells of God’s salvation and of all His way for His people. Yet they could not understand it without the Holy Spirit. Jesus said,
From this it seems meant that the guide of the disciples, the man with the pitcher of water, was as a picture of the Spirit, with the words of God, Who guides those who follow Him to the right place to honor the Lord Jesus. It is meant for those who love Him to still keep the simple “feast,” as later written of (Acts 20:77And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight. (Acts 20:7); 1 Cor. 11:2626For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till he come. (1 Corinthians 11:26)).
ML 07/23/1944