Matthew 26

1. Background?

The Passover is near, the time of year when every Jewish man returns to Jerusalem to observe the day.  Jesus’ ministry is popular with the common people, however, the Jewish leaders are plotting to kill Him, they only await a discreet opportunity so as not to stir up the masses against them.

⁴ And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill him. ⁵ But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar among the people.

We’re then introduced to a scene that prepares us for what Jesus had been preparing His disciples for, His own crucifixion.  Through the anointing of the “woman”, Jesus says she did it for His burial, which is the climax of the book, filled with meaning and completes Jesus’ mission stated in 1:21.

And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

Matthew 1:21

In the next scene, Judas Iscariot provides the opportunity to arrest Jesus privately by betraying Him, leading the temple police to where he knows Jesus will be in the night, the Garden of Gethsemene.  The price of Judas’ betray was thirty pieces of silver, a significant detail woven in the fabric of prophecy surrounding the Messiah.

Meanwhile, Jesus eats the Passover meal for the last time with his disciples, Judas had already left the dinner to perform his evil deed.  During the meal, the attitude is solemn has Jesus initiates a very serious moment in which we will recognize as the beginning of the “New Testament”.

²⁶ And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. ²⁷ And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; ²⁸ For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

At the conclusion of the dinner, Jesus quotes Zechariah 13:7 which was spoken prophetically in reference to His disciples leaving Him during His imminent arrest, trial, and crucifixion. Jesus’ final moments before His arrest is spent in anguish and prayer.  Though the Son of God He is, He still felt the pangs of humanity, of being betrayed, and the fear of death.  Yet the greatest suffering is something no human has ever felt, being separated from God from an eternal and wholly intimate relationship.

After the prayer, Judas’ temple entourage appears and makes the arrest, the disciples flee, but not before Peter lashes out with a sword.  Jesus rebukes Peter assuring him that God is in control of the situation and these events are fulfilling His word.

⁵² Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword. ⁵³ Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels? ⁵⁴ But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?

Jesus’ captors led Him to the High Priest to stand “trial” in the middle of the night and a verdict of death was reached by morning. After many accusations of which could not be verified, the charge was eventually blasphemy.  Jesus had responded to the High Priest question with a combination of scripture from Daniel 7:13 and Psalm 110:1.  This combination of verses elevated the office of the Messiah to the divine figure referred to as the “Son of Man” who would wield sovereign power of all the nations.  The Jews, unwilling to admit the Son of Man is Jesus, instead accused Him of blasphemy and took Him to Pilate to be sentenced to death.

The tragic chapter closes with Peter’s denial of knowing Jesus, just as Jesus said that He would.  The picture being painted is very dark, the innocent Son of God being betrayed by His people, closest friends, and now is about to face the wrath of God His Father for the sins of the world about to be laid upon Him.

2. What Do We Learn About God?

This portion and the next could be very long and that is an understatement. The reason is, that every theme, role, and ritual that you have seen from Genesis until now culminates in these very scenes of Jesus’ betrayal, arrest, and crucifixion.  But very quickly, let me say what is on the heart from someone who loves God and is looking for Him in His book.

God’s Love is Unknowable and Unfathomable. How did I ever doubt Him?  The character of God is so perfectly lovely and flawless, that when I stand in comparison to Him, I am utterly condemned for my sin.  There is no contest, I have no excuse.  He is God and I am nothing.  We arrive at this observation when you realize that Jesus’ path has always led Him here, to the place of betrayal and abandonment by not only His human friends but soon His own Father.  Jesus could have diverged from this path at any time, He didn’t have to go through with it.  He could have left us in our sin and condemnation, yet God’s will is for sinners to be saved.  The price that must be paid is also the measure of God’s love for us.  Knowing that God’s love is that incredible, there is no reason for anyone to ever doubt His word and not surrender to Him immediately.

God works in different Dispensations, therefore we ought to observe the Bible correctly. You read over it so fast, you don’t realize that time itself shifted when Jesus began the “New Testament”. The “New” covenant deals with sin in general, even the sins which the Old covenant could not cover by means of ritual.  Because of people’s ignorance of God’s dispensations, they’ve made a mess of Bible interpretation.  The importance of getting it right is understand how God is revealing Himself, His character, and how we ought to approach Him on His own terms.

God is Jesus, Jesus is God.  Though the entirety of the trinity isn’t completely hashed out in this passage, the divinity of Jesus is.  When Jesus claimed to be the Son of Man from Daniel 7:13, He was claiming to be the Sovereign God in human form. While other cults attempt to explain away this verse by saying this is a reference to Israel or the Arch Angel Michael, the verse in Daniel clearly shows that this figure is fully sovereign over everything, an attribute that belongs to God alone, and now Jesus takes upon Himself.

3. How Does this Passage Point to Jesus?

This section is almost rhetorical for it is all about Jesus, but so is the other scriptures, it is just this passage is more obvious.  From other scriptures, we have the work to show how they point to this passage.  But from this passage, we have the work to show how it receives all the other’s prophetic meanings, which is why this section could be as long as heaven is high.

When we see Jesus, we see all of God’s love. When the scripture says Jesus did not commit any sin, it means He encapsulates all of God’s character perfectly as does God’s law.  Through God’s laws, we can see the definition of love, but in Jesus, we see it expressed in a human being.  Though this passage doesn’t directly speak of Jesus’ love, or of God’s love, still it is the underlying motive for why Jesus is willing to go through with this bitter payment for sinners.

The Dispensations of the Old and New Testament are fulfilled by Jesus Christ and His one offering for sin. We do well to observe the Old Testament is “old” because it has been fulfilled and God is found faithful for keeping the entirety of all His promises.  When the children of Abraham failed to be faithful to God in the old testament, God paid the price by taking on the curse of the covenant, which He did on the cross.

Simultaneously, the blood Christ pays for the sin of believers the New Testament, in that His blood is able to cleanse sin permanently once and for all.  The final diner was the moment in time Jesus signified the commencement of this covenant to which we now believe and belong in Christ.