Garden of Gethsemane #54

The Garden of Gethsemane was a place on the western slope of the Mount of Olives, just across the Kidron Valley from Jerusalem, where Jesus went to pray with his disciples on the night before his crucifixion. It is the scene of his agonized prayer and of his arrest by the temple guard, and it has long been a place of Christian pilgrimage and reflection.

Biblical Significance

Matthew and Mark name the place Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36; Mark 14:32), a name understood to derive from an Aramaic phrase meaning an olive press, which fits a grove of olive trees on the hillside. Luke says that Jesus went out to the Mount of Olives as was his custom (Luke 22:39), and John says he crossed the Kidron Valley to a garden he often visited with his disciples, so that Judas knew where to find him (John 18:1-2). Only John calls it a garden.

There, Jesus left most of the disciples and took Peter, James, and John further in, telling them that his soul was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death (Matthew 26:36-38; Mark 14:32-34). He fell to the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour of suffering might pass from him, but that the Father’s will should be done (Matthew 26:39; Mark 14:35-36). Three times he returned to find the disciples asleep and urged them to watch and pray so that they would not fall into temptation, saying that the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak (Matthew 26:40-46). Luke adds that an angel from heaven strengthened him (Luke 22:43), although some early manuscripts omit that verse and the one that follows it.

The scene ends with the arrival of Judas leading a crowd with swords and clubs, who arrested Jesus with a kiss. The disciples scattered (Matthew 26:47-56; John 18:2-11). The Gethsemane account shows Jesus’ full humanity, his struggle with the coming suffering, and his obedience to the Father, and it has shaped Christian teaching on prayer in time of trial.

Today

Several places on the lower slope of the Mount of Olives claim the name Gethsemane. The Franciscan Church of All Nations, completed in 1924 and built over a rock associated with the agony of Jesus, stands beside an enclosed garden with very old olive trees. The neighboring Russian Orthodox Church of Mary Magdalene and a Greek Orthodox garden also lay claim to the tradition. Christians have venerated the area since at least the fourth century, and the fourth-century church historian Eusebius mentions the place in his writings. The exact location of the grove Jesus used cannot be proved, but the general area on the slope facing the temple across the valley fits the Gospel accounts well. The old olive trees themselves are of great age, though whether they date to the first century remains a matter of dispute.