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The Olive Press Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called
Gethsemane, and saith George Eldridge If we had been in Jerusalem at night on the fourteenth of Nisan in 33 A.D., we would have seen a full moon flooding the Kidron Valley. That valley lies to the east of Jerusalem at the foot of the Mount of Olives and is three miles long. In Hebrew the name Kidron means “turbid, dark,” referring to the waters that run through that valley during certain times of the year. John calls it the brook Cedron (John 18:1) perhaps thinking of David fleeing Absalom where we are told “the king also himself passed over the brook Kidron” (2 Samuel 15:23). There would usually be little water in it on Nisan 14. During the last supper our Lord presented the emblems of unleavened bread and the cup containing “fruit of the vine” to his closest disciples. The unleavened bread represented his sinless flesh, leaven being a consistent symbol of sin in the Scriptures. As Jesus himself said, “The bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. … I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst” (John 6:33,35). The bread represented the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ. When he offered them the cup, Jesus “said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves” (Luke 22:17). That cup symbolized his blood, his life. It was not retained for his own benefit but was given freely, sacrificed for the remission of sin. We must all drink of it to be justified by faith, accepting life from this one source. The cup represented the sin offering. As Jesus and his disciples left the upper room and began walking to the Mount of Olives, they undoubtedly passed the temporary camps of pilgrims who had come from afar to participate in the events of Passover, which would begin on the morrow and last seven days more. The city could hardly hold all those who flocked to it on this occasion, let alone provide shelter for them all. The word Gethsemane means “oil press,” which is appropriate because the Mount of Olives was a place where olive trees grew in abundance. The oil obtained from crushing olives was an important commodity in the Jewish economy. The Kidron Valley would be dotted with many such olive presses in that day. The disciples knew this beautiful place well for the Lord came there on many occasions. They did so again this night, not just because it was near the city. Our Lord might have wanted to make it easier for the leaders of Israel to take him. They had tried in the past to lay hold of him, but they feared the common people. So Jesus left the city and came to the place where he would be “pressed” so the holy spirit would be poured out upon his followers in a great sanctifying oil. Although being in Gethsemane made it easier to seize him, it also provided a convenient way of escape for his disciples. John says this was a place “where [there] was a garden” (John 18:1). The history of the human race also begins in a garden. The contrast between the two is significant:
On previous occasions Jesus avoided his enemies (John 8:59; John 12:36), but now his hour had come. He went to a place where his enemies could easily take him. Judas knew this place: “Judas also, which betrayed him, knew the place: for Jesus ofttimes resorted thither with his disciples” (John 18:2). The next verse reads, “Judas then, having received a band of men …” The word “band” is Strong’s #4686 and is defined by Professor Strong as “a mass of men (a Roman military cohort).” The American Heritage Dictionary defines cohort as “one of the ten divisions of a Roman legion, consisting of 300 to 600 men.” In addition to this band of soldiers there was a “multitude” with Judas (Luke 22:47) including the chief priests, captains of the temple, and elders (Luke 22:52). This diverse group of Jews and Gentiles had come to seize the Light of the World with torches and weapons (John 18:3). Did they think he would hide from them? Little did they know he was ready to be led as a lamb to the slaughter. Once before when men sought to take him by force, he departed from them (John 6:15). Although he knew he would be crucified, he now advanced boldly to meet them: “Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon him, went forth, and said unto them, Whom seek ye? They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he” (John 18:4,5). Could it be that none recognized him? When Jesus said “I am he,” John says they went backward and fell to the ground. Clearly they were in awe of his presence, manner, and his words. In serene dignity and in the same voice they had heard raise the dead and rebuke the money changers, they were appalled and fell backward to the ground. They had no power over Jesus and he was using none over them. He asked his question a second time, received the same answer, and tells them to take him and let his disciples go. This was so “the saying might be fulfilled … Of them which thou gavest me have I lost none” (John 18:9). Jesus was about to suffer for those he loved. There was no need that they suffer with him lest their suffering be thought a part of the redemption price, something that could never be. John Mark The probability was that they intended to seize them all. In Mark 14:51,52 a certain young man having but a linen cloth over his naked body was seized, but he managed to escape leaving the cloth behind. Who was that “certain young man”? Although we are not told explicitly, there is reason to believe he was John Mark (Acts 12:12). How do you suppose the Master’s agony at the place of the olive press came to be recorded? No one was with the Lord; the disciples were all asleep. Who heard him pray? It could have been this “certain young man.” If he lived on or near the property and heard the commotion, he might wrap a sheet around himself and go investigate. Early Christian tradition held that the garden of Gethsemene belonged to Mark’s family. Mark is the only gospel writer to speak of this young man, and he could have been the one to hear the Lord’s prayer and supplication. Surely it was God’s overruling so we could sympathize with and appreciate our Lord’s sufferings on our behalf. Simon Peter “Then Simon Peter having a sword drew it, and smote the high priest’s servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus” (John 18:10). This unforeseen action by Peter showed a zeal that was not yet regulated by spiritual understanding, but by a self-confidence and energy of the flesh in its unconsidered haste. Peter stands out from the eleven through the entire gospel narrative. No other name of a disciple appears as often as his. Jesus spoke to him directly more than to any other. Sometimes it was in praise, sometimes in critical instruction. He was reproved by Jesus and Peter attempted to reprove his master. No other disciple so boldly confessed and openly acknowledged and encouraged Jesus as Peter did. None of the others ever intruded, interfered, or tempted the Lord as Peter. Jesus even blessed Peter in a way unlike any other man. Jesus knew that Peter could be relied upon, so he called him Peter (Greek: Petros, rock) instead of his given name Simon. Like all of us, Peter had his faults. The saddest time in his life was when he denied the Lord. He had said, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you” (Matthew 26:35, RSV) and he meant it. He was not a hypocrite, but when he said it, he did not know of his own weaknesses. “Then saith the damsel that kept the door unto Peter, Art not thou also one of this man’s disciples? He saith, I am not” (John 18:17). As the apostle Paul was to later write, “Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12). Although Peter failed and wept bitterly over his failure (Matthew 26:75), he was later commissioned by the Lord to do a great work (John 21:15-19). The closing lines of a poem entitled “Simon Stone” speak of that poignant time on the shore of the Sea of Galilee:
In some ways we all are of the “Peter” class now. We feel in our hearts that what Jesus did for Peter he will do for us. We too are that same combination of fire and water. Peter shows us how the weak can become strong, how the fearful can become bold. This was demonstrated at Pentecost to Peter and to us when the holy spirit’s influence and power brought the disciples courage and wisdom. When Peter attempted to defend Jesus in Gethsemane, the Lord replied, “The cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?” (John 18:11). Our Lord referred to the one offering him this cup as “my Father.” And he is now our Father as well. He loves us as his sons and daughters. How an awareness of this sweetens our cup if we would but receive it from our Father’s hand. When we see God’s hand in all things for us, our hearts will be at rest and in perfect peace!
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