Luke 22:45Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

When he discovered the disciples in slumber, he admonished them and urged them to stay vigilant in prayer during temptation, so they would not be defeated by it. To avoid succumbing to temptation means to not be ensnared by it or come under its dominion. Alternatively, he instructs us to pray for the safeguarding of our possessions and to avoid any distress. To willingly immerse ourselves in temptations is an act of arrogance and folly. How does James (James 1:2) express, “Receive with great joy when you fall into various temptations”? Are we not creating a contradiction? No, for James did not instruct us to throw ourselves into temptation; rather, when we find ourselves under trial, we should not despair but embrace joy, enabling the unwilling to experience freedom.

Luke does not indicate the number of times the Lord offered prayers, but rather reveals an aspect that Matthew and Mark do not cover: how an angel provided Him with strength during His supplications, and the great drops of blood that fell to the earth. When Luke mentions that He, after praying, approached the disciples, it is ambiguous as to which occasion this refers, yet it does not conflict with the accounts of the other two Gospel writers. Furthermore, John notes that the Lord entered the garden with His disciples, but he omits details about His actions there until the moment when His betrayer arrived accompanied by the Jews to apprehend Him.

Examine the subsequent verses in the same chapter, and you will gain a profound comprehension of this passage as well.

Matthew 26:45-46

Their eyelids were heavy, and they were unaware of what to reply to Him (Mark 14:40). This was the state the Savior found His disciples in when He approached them after praying once more. They were so overtaken by slumber that they could not respond; they were oblivious to both the past and the present. St. Luke depicts their state as being in a deep sleep due to sorrow. Their condition was also influenced by the fatigue stemming from sorrowful reflections and emotions ignited by the Savior's words before, during, and after the Last Supper. It is particularly remarkable that, despite receiving a firm reprimand from the Savior, they remained in such profound slumber.

Jesus, who had previously exhibited remarkable courage, now appeared to be weighed down by profound sorrow. How long ago He declared, "Now the Son of Man is glorified," "Take heart, I have conquered the world." Yet now, He was prepared to beseech the Father that this cup might be removed from Him. What could have provoked such anguish in Jesus' spirit, resulting in such a swift transformation of His state? It was certainly not merely the anticipation of physical agony that awaited Him. While death is often seen as burdensome, for the righteous it should not be more daunting than for the unrighteous. It has been observed that the guilty individual seeks punishment to alleviate a troubled conscience, and many endure physical suffering without dread.

Christ spent an hour in prayer; however, neither the specifics of His petition nor its conclusion are recorded, as those who were meant to witness had dozed off at the outset. After completing His supplication, Jesus approached the disciples seeking comfort in their company but discovered that they were asleep. It was particularly disheartening to witness Peter, who had earlier vowed to sacrifice his life for the Lord, succumbing to the common frailty. "Simon, are you asleep?" (Mark 14:37).

Despite His suffering, those surrounding Him, including His most intimate friends and disciples, showed no willingness to offer Him solace or support. When the Redeemer emerged from the shadows of the garden to find His followers, they were lost in slumber. Even Peter was overcome by sleep, prompting the Saviour to gently admonish him: ‘Simon, are you asleep? Could you not stay awake for one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation.’ To temper this acknowledgment of their human frailty, Christ added with kind understanding, ‘The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.’ He withdrew twice more into the thicket, praying the same plea, and upon each return, discovered His disciples so profoundly asleep that they could not respond to His inquiries or mild rebukes.

When He finished praying, He approached the disciples: the Lord visited them three times, finding them in slumber (refer to the parallel in Matthew). However, since Luke consolidates the Lord's three prayers into one, he depicts His visit to the disciples as a singular moment of prayer, merging His statements, which were not uttered simultaneously (see Matt. 26:41, 46). The phrase "sleeping for sorrow" is included not to justify the disciples but to clarify their unusual and seemingly inappropriate rest. While sadness in some might lead to wakefulness rather than sleep, extreme sadness can lead to a profound relaxation of the nervous system, resulting in a state of stupor or insensibility. Could this condition of the disciples also be attributed to the influence of the spirit of darkness, which, having struck the Shepherd, also instilled fear in the sheep?

In deep anguish, Jesus Christ pauses His prayers and approaches His three beloved disciples, seeking solace in their company and supplication. However, He discovers them asleep, weighed down by their own sorrow. Their heavy hearts, coupled with the vague but persistent anticipation of the impending parting that the Lord had recently forewarned them about, along with their exhaustion from a long day’s toil, had drained their strength to the extent that they could not muster the energy to pray. “You are sleeping, Simon!” Jesus exclaimed to Peter, who had vowed just an hour earlier to give his life for his Master. “Couldn’t you stay awake for just one hour with me? Stay alert and pray,” He urged the other two disciples who had stirred.