Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Luke 22:41
And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
41. he was withdrawn ] Literally, “ He was taken away,” or ‘He tore Himself away’ (comp. Luk 21:1), shewing the reluctance with which He parted from this support of loving sympathy under the imperious necessity of passing through His darkest hour alone. Perhaps He withdrew deeper into the shadow of the ancient olive-trees. (In estimating the force of such words as ekballo, apospao, &c., it should however be borne in mind that in Hellenistic Greek their old classical force was weakened by colloquialism. See 2Ma 12:10 .)
and kneeled down ] “and fell on His face,” Mat 26:39.
Whether from the eight, or from Peter, James, and John also, the evangelist doth not tell us; but some are of opinion, that he took the three disciples along to join with him in prayer, from whom some account might be given of the substance of his prayer, which followeth. I rather think he was alone. And he was withdrawn from them,…. That is, from the three disciples, Peter, James, and John, whom he took along with him, leaving the rest at some further distance; and from these he removed,
about a stone’s cast; fifty, or sixty feet from the place where they were:
and kneeled down and prayed; the following prayer.
About a stone’s throw ( ). Accusative of extent of space. Luke does not tell of leaving eight disciples by the entrance to Gethsemane nor about taking Peter, James, and John further in with him. Kneeled down ( ). Second aorist active participle from . Mr 14:35 says “fell on the ground” and Mt 26:39 “fell on his face.” All could be true at different moments. Prayed (). Imperfect middle, was praying, kept on praying. Was withdrawn [] . The Vulgate has avulsus est, “he was torn away,” as by an inward urgency. Godet adopts this view, and so, apparently, Wyc., he was taken away. Meyer inclines to it; De Wette decidedly rejects it. Compare Act 21:1. Prayed. Imperfect, began to pray.
1) “And he was withdrawn from them,” (kai autos apespasthe ap auton) “And he was withdrawn away from them,” for a distance, as further described; or “torn away,” indicating a reluctance to leave the eight a little way behind as He went to pray alone.
2) “About a stone’s cast,” (hosei lithou bolen) “Of about a stone’s throw away,” about one hundred feet, a distance called, “a little further,” Mat 26:39; Mar 14:35.
3) “And kneeled down, and prayed.” (kai theis ta gonata proseucheto) “And when he had kneeled he prayed,” and Matthew adds that “he fell on his face and prayed,” or kept on praying, Mat 26:39; Mar 14:35 adds he “fell on the ground and prayed.”
(41) About a stones cast.The descriptive touch, implying a report coming directly or indirectly from an eye-witness, is peculiar to St. Luke.
Kneeled down, and prayed.Literally, and was praying. The tense of the latter verb implies continuous and sustained prayer.
41. Withdrawn from them He first withdrew from the body of the disciples, attended by Peter, James, and John. He now withdraws from the three.
About a stone’s cast ‘And he was parted from them about a stone’s throw, and he kneeled down and prayed,’
Then He left them, (again exhorting them to prayer as we learn from Mar 14:34) and moved a short distance from them and Himself kneeled in prayer. As it was customary for Jewish men to pray standing, this attitude of prayer indicated the weight of the burden on Jesus’ heart. Elsewhere such praying on the knees takes place at times of great emotion (Act 7:60; Act 9:40; Act 20:36; Act 21:5). Here then too was evidence of the urgency of the hour and of His willing and dedicated submission.
While some have read into the verb a certain urgency, it can simply refer to being separated from someone. The point is that He wanted to be alone, while at the same time enjoying (He hoped) the support of His disciples.
41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
Ver. 41. And he was withdrawn ] For privacy’ sake to pray, though loth to leave their company, through extreme perplexity, which made him return so often to them, calling upon them to watch with him.
Luk 22:41 . , He withdrew, secessit . Some insist on the literal sense, and render, “tore Himself away” = “avulsus est,” Vulg [190] , implying that Jesus was acting under strong feeling. But did Lk. wish to make that prominent? The verb does not necessarily mean more than “withdrew,” and many of the philological commentators (Wolf, Raphel, Pricaeus, Palairet, etc.) take it in that sense, citing late Greek authors in support. , from them (all); no mention of three taken along with Him, a very important feature as an index of the state of mind of Jesus. The Master in His hour of weakness looked to the three for sympathy and moral support; vide Mat 26:40 . But it did not enter into Lk.’s plan to make that apparent. , a stone’s cast, not too distant to be over heard. is the accusative of measure. : the usual attitude in prayer was standing; the kneeling posture implied special urgency (“in genibus orabant quoties res major urgebat,” Grot.), but not so decidedly as falling at full length on the ground, the attitude pointed at in the parallels.
[190] Vulgate (Jerome’s revision of old Latin version).
he = He Himself.
was withdrawn= was parted. Greek apospao. Only here; Mat 26:51. Act 20:30; Act 21:1.
from. Greek. apo. App-104.
Luk 22:41. , He was severed [withdrawn] from them) with earnest intention [with serious feeling, serio affectu].
and kneeled: Mat 26:39, Mar 14:35
Reciprocal: 1Ki 8:54 – kneeling 2Ch 6:13 – kneeled down Ezr 9:5 – I fell Psa 22:2 – in the night Psa 95:6 – kneel Psa 110:1 – The Lord Dan 6:10 – he kneeled Mar 1:40 – kneeling Mar 14:36 – take Act 7:60 – he kneeled Act 20:36 – he kneeled Eph 3:14 – I
2
See the comments at Mat 26:41-42.
Luk 22:41. Withdrew himself, lit, was himself withdrawn. Drawn by internal anguish, some suppose.
About a stones east. Not so far as to be out of hearing. This was probably the distance from the three disciples (Matthew, Mark), not from the main body, since the next clause refers to what took place in His solitude, and Luk 22:45-46, to the three disciples.
He kneeled down. Peculiar to Luke.
22:41 {14} And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
(14) Prayers are a sure help against the most perilous assaults of our enemies.
Luke presented Jesus praying as any disciple could pray (cf. Rom 11:4; Rom 14:11; Eph 3:14; Php 2:10). His posture reflects His submissive attitude. Luke did not record that Jesus lay prostrate during part of His prayer vigil (Mat 26:39; Mar 14:35).
The prayer itself reveals complete dependence on the Father’s will. Jesus asked for a removal of the cup, the symbol of His sufferings because of God’s judgment on sin (cf. Psa 11:6; Psa 75:8; Isa 51:17; Jer 25:15-17; 2Co 5:21; 1Pe 2:24). He requested it if possible (Gr. ei boulei). Notwithstanding He submitted to His Father’s will above all. Throughout his Gospel Luke made frequent references to Jesus’ conscious fulfillment of God’s purposes.
The submissiveness of Jesus’ prayer is a model for all disciples. When we do not know God’s will specifically, we can voice our request, but we should always submit our preferences to God’s will. Luke pictured Jesus as a real man, not a demigod.
"The effect of the saying is that Jesus, facing the temptation to avoid the path of suffering appointed by God, nevertheless accepts the will of God despite his own desire that it might be otherwise. He does not seek to disobey the will of God, but longs that God’s will might be different. But even this is to be regarded as temptation, and it is overcome by Jesus." [Note: Marshall, The Gospel . . ., p. 831.]
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)