UK 22{In the closing events of the Lord's life on earth, what moral degradation! what enmity against 'God is seen in man's rejection of Christ? Priests, scribes, rulers, disciples, all witness to man's departure from God. The higher a man's position in the world, the more is his wretched condition manifest. But in the Lord, what a contrast! His lowliness, meekness, patient grace, with others, while Himself in suffering, shine out in all this contradiction of sinners.
Verses 1, 2: The time for the Passover lamb to be slain, and the feast of unleavened bread to be kept, drew nigh. The chief priests and scribes, that should care for the oppressed, sought how they might kill Him; they were the oppressors.
Verses 3-6: Satan found a ready instrument in one of His disciples: Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve apostles, offered himself to betray Him, and these leaders were glad, and ready to pay the money his avarice demanded. He arranged to betray Him unto them when the crowd was not there, for they were afraid of what the people might do.
Verses 7-13: The day came, when the pass-over should be killed, the day of unleavened bread. The Lord sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and prepare us the passover, that we may eat." He tells them where and how to find the place. A man bearing a pitcher of water, follow him, and say to the good man of the house, "The Master (Teacher) saith unto thee, Where is the guest chamber, where I shall eat the passover with My disciples? And he shall show you a large upper room furnished: there make ready." And they found everything just as He said, and there they made ready the passover.
Verse 14: And when the hour was come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him. Perfect in all His ways, He is a lesson to us, a pattern of punctuality, an example for us. He does not keep His disciples waiting for Him. They should not keep Him waiting for them, when the hour is come.
Verses 15, 16: He tells out the intense desire of His heart to eat this passover with them before He suffered. Redemption was in His mind, not looking back to Egypt as they would do, but redemption from sin, and death and Satan's power. He was the great sacrifice, the true paschal Lamb. They could not fully enter into it yet, but His love desired that as His friends, they should share His feelings. And He tells them in eating it, "I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the Kingdom of God.
Verses 17, 18: The passover cup (the joy of redemption in figure), He could give thanks for and give to them. He would eat the pass-over, but not drink the cup, until the kingdom of God shall come. He could not have the joy of it, till it was accomplished in His death and resurrection. As yet He was the Nazarite separated from His brethren.
Verses 19, 20: The memorial supper is distinct from the passover, and could only be entered into when He had gone on high, from whence it is given to Christians. (1 Cor. 11:2323For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: (1 Corinthians 11:23)). It is the precious remembrance of the Lord in death. His body given for us, His blood shed for us. It is a dead Christ that is before us in the symbols. We know Him risen and glorified. We remember Him in His sufferings and death.
This cup is the New Testament (covenant) in My blood." The covenant will be established when Israel is returned to their own land and acknowledged as Jehovah's people. We, the Church, have a nearer place as His body and His bride, and in the friendship of this are called to share in all His joys. We are accepted in Him, "the Beloved," and it is becoming that we should share the spoils of His victory and celebrate His triumphs and proclaim His worth.
Verses 21-23: What a sadness must have fallen on them as He said, "But, behold, the hand of Him that betrayed Me is with Me on the table. And truly the Son of Man goeth, as it was determined, but woe unto that man by whom He is betrayed." Alas! one of themselves was the traitor. They believe Him, and begin to inquire among themselves which of them it was that should do this thing.
Verses 24-27: And yet there was a strife among them, which of them should be accounted the greatest. They could not hide their selfish desire for a place among men, even at such a solemn moment. The Lord brings the true character of the Christian out -the leader must be servant of all, and that is what HE was. "I am among you as one that serveth." He does not reproach them, but gives them credit for their following Him.
Verse 28: "Ye are they which have continued with Me in My temptations." He knew their hearts, their faith, and their failures, and encouraged them on to think of the glorious future and reward that awaited them.
. Verses 29, 30: "And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as My Father hath appointed unto Me; that ye may eat and drink at My table in My Kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel." How He appreciates our heart's desire to please Him, though our ways are sometimes so full of failure.
Verses 31-34: And the Lord said: "Simon, Simon, behold Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." This gracious warning should have aroused Peter's fears and stirred him to prayer to be kept, but he did not know his own weakness. Confident in his own strength and in his love for the Lord, he answered, "Lord, I am ready to go with Thee, both into prison and to death." The warning is unheeded and the Lord makes it still more alarming. "I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest Me.”
Peter's faith was sustained by Christ's intercession, it could not fail; he was wheat, but he most be sifted; he was one of Christ's brethren, but he would be turned aside, and so would need to be "turned again," the meaning of "converted" in this passage.
What sorrow and sin it would have saved Peter had he hearkened to the Lord's warning! What a lesson this is for us all to keep humble and dependent on the Lord.
Verses 35-38: And He said unto them, "When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye anything?" And they said, "Nothing." They were as well off under Messiah's care as in the days of Solomon's plenty when Israel was in full blessing. (1 Kings 4:2727And those officers provided victual for king Solomon, and for all that came unto king Solomon's table, every man in his month: they lacked nothing. (1 Kings 4:27).) In everything they had been supplied. Now a change was to take place, He was going away. He prepares them for it, saying, "But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one." This was in view of the fact that He was to be "numbered with the transgressors," as the Scripture foretold, "The things concerning Me have an end," meant that He was not to be King for the present, and they would need to know what resources they had in 'God by the Spirit dwelling in them when He was gone on high. Individual faith would need to be exercised by each one. They did-not understand the figurative language, and thought He was talking of material things, and so said, "Lord; behold, here are two swords." He would not explain further, but replied, "It is enough," as if He would say, you cannot understand this now. Christianity is entirely different from law. It does not interfere with the world, nor try to shape the world's course, but brings in love and grace to meet the present exigencies. It was an officer in Caesar's army that was a man of greater faith than all Israel (Matt. 8.) It was another centurion that was the first Gentile received into the Church of God. Philemon and others in the New Testament had slaves. They were received without putting them under conditions or laws to give up these things. The Lord did not take Peter's sword, or these two swords from them. There was room for grace to work, and doubtless it did work. Philemon set Onesimus free. And Peter by and by would be ashamed of his sword. He would only need the spiritual kind the Lord here refers to. (1 Peter 2:2323Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: (1 Peter 2:23).) "Let not your heart be troubled, ye believe in 'God, believe also in Me," provides for us, all we can need, though rejection and suffering may be our lot still, but only by His ordering. Bless His Name!
Verses 39-44: He came out, and went, as He was wont, to the Mount of Olives; and His disciples also followed Him. And when He was at the place, He said unto them, "Pray that ye enter not into temptation." He felt their need of prayer, as He felt His own. He goes on about a stone's cast from them and kneeled down and prayed, saying, "Father, if Thou be willing, remove this cup from Me: nevertheless not My will, but Thine be done." His is perfect submission to His Father's will, cost Him what it might. It was deep and real need, and there appeared an angel unto Him from heaven, strengthening Him. And being in an agony, He prayed more earnestly still, till His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. None can tell the depth of sorrow of that moment of strong crying and tears to Him who was able to save Him out of death. (Heb. 5:77Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; (Hebrews 5:7).) And He was heard in that He feared. He takes the cup from the Father's hand, and gave Himself up to the death of the cross.
Verses 45, 46: And when He rose up from prayer, and was come to His disciples, He found them sleeping for sorrow, and said unto them, "Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.”
Verses 47-51: The temptation soon came: While He yet spake, behold a multitude, led by Judas, one of the twelve who drew near unto Jesus to kiss Him. Some began to think of fighting, saying, "Lord, shall we smite with the sword?" And one of them smote the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear. The only one that was calm was the Lord. He said, "Suffer ye thus far," and He touched his ear and healed him. Thus He gently rebuked His servant and put right what he had put wrong. And what would it be to the man? We think such grace may have touched his heart to learn more about this Savior; perhaps we shall meet him in glory.
Verses 52, 53: He had power as well as pity and compassion, but He will yield up to the enemy for He had taken it in hand; and He said to the chief priests and captains of the temple, and the elders, which were come to Him, "Be ye come out, as against a thief, with swords and staves? When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched forth no hands against Me; but, this is your hour, and the power of darkness.”
Verses 54-62: Then took they Him, and led Him and brought Him into the high priest's house. And Peter followed afar off. And now around a fire a maid points out Peter as one who had been with Jesus, but he denied that he knew him three times, and the cock crew. And the Lord turned and looked on him, and Peter remembered the word of the Lord and went out and wept bitterly. Poor Peter! When he should have been praying, he was sleeping. When Jesus was yielding Himself, Peter was fighting. When Jesus was standing, guarded and treated as a felon, Peter was warming himself at the fire. When Jesus confessed the truth, Peter is hiding himself under a lie, and to prove that he was not of Jesus' company, he curses and swears. (Matt. 26:7474Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew. (Matthew 26:74).) But that look of love brought him to his senses. It broke him down completely as to what he had done. For Peter truly loved the Lord, and we know the Lord loved Peter with an eternal love, and this look of His is another proof of it. Yes, and He will follow him up to restore his soul again to its communion which it had lost.
Verses 63-65: The men that held Jesus mocked Him and smote Him, blindfolded Him and smote Him on the face and said, "Prophesy who smote Thee?" And many other things blasphemously spake they against Him.
Verses 66-71: When it was day, the great men came together, and led Him into their council, saying, "Art Thou the Christ? Tell us." And He said unto them, "If I tell you, ye will not believe: and if I also ask you, ye will not answer Me, nor let Me go. Henceforth shall the Son of Man sit on the right hand of the power of God." Then said they all, "Art Thou then the Son of God?" And He said unto them, "Ye say that I am." They are condemned out of their own mouth. They refused Him as the Messiah, condemned Him for telling the truth as Son of Man and Son of God! He could not say otherwise. He had nothing to conceal. He confesses who He is and this condemned them. His place henceforth is at the right hand of the power of God. They condemn Him for His own confession, as they rejected Him before as their Messiah. Their blind religious enmity, the worst of all kinds, has destroyed them.