John 18:1
After Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples across the Kidron valley to a place where there was a garden, which he and his disciples entered.
In John, there is a clear transition, as we noted, between Jesus’ last meal with his disciples and the commencement of events leading to his crucifixion. The drama that the Church has called “the Passion” begins with Jesus’ journey to this place, a garden across the Kidron valley. Interestingly, John is the only one to describe this place as a garden. While we are used to naming this spot as “the garden of Gethsemane,” that’s actually a conflation of designations found in the gospels. Mark and Matthew call the place simply Gethsemane – no mention of a garden – while Luke names it as the “Mount of Olives” – no mention of a garden or Gethsemane.
Why does this matter? Not, I should be clear, because of any worries about inconsistencies among the evangelists. I’ve said on many occasions that we are far better off regarding the gospels as first-century confessions of faith rather than as twenty-first century histories. For this reason, when there are differences between accounts, the question of “who got it right?” doesn’t serve us nearly as well as asking instead, “what is this evangelist confessing?” And in this case, I think John’s description of this place as a garden is telling.
John, it should be noted, shares with us no temptation scene. Mark, Matthew, and Luke all report that, after Jesus’ baptism and before his public ministry commences, Jesus is tempted in the wilderness for forty days. Not so, John. Rather, that temptation – or at least the hour of Jesus’ trial – comes now, in a garden that may be intended to remind us of the Garden of Eden. Keep in mind that John, through his gospel, is in many ways re-telling the history of Israel. Hence, he begins his story with the first words of Genesis, “In the beginning…” and at various points makes strong allusions to the Exodus account.
So also, I believe, he is at this point in the story calling to mind that other garden, Eden, where the story of the tragedy of human disobedience, sin, and suffering begins. John, as author and artist, wants us to know just how high the stakes of this story are. For when we watch events unfold, we are watching a replay of history, a second-chance, as Jesus intercedes – and changes! – the history of humanity’s interactions with God and, as a result, our very destiny.
Prayer: Dear God, you sent Jesus to be a second Adam, the one who stands with and for all humanity, and we can only give thanks that he does so in grace and love. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Post image: Panorama of Jerusalem’s Eastern Hill and the Kidron Valley (Wikimedia Commons).
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