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Gospel Reading - The Garden of Gethsemane

³⁶Then Jesus brought them to a garden grove, Gethsemane, and told them to sit down and wait while he went on ahead to pray. ³⁷He took Peter with him and Zebedee’s two sons James and John, and began to be filled with anguish and despair.

³⁸Then he told them, “My soul is crushed with horror and sadness to the point of death . . . stay here . . . stay awake with me.”

³⁹He went forward a little, and fell face downward on the ground, and prayed, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup be taken away from me. But I want your will, not mine.”

⁴⁰Then he returned to the three disciples and found them asleep. “Peter,” he called, “couldn’t you even stay awake with me one hour? ⁴¹Keep alert and pray. Otherwise temptation will overpower you. For the spirit indeed is willing, but how weak the body is!”

⁴²Again he left them and prayed, “My Father! If this cup cannot go away until I drink it all, your will be done.”

⁴³He returned to them again and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy, ⁴⁴so he went back to prayer the third time, saying the same things again.

⁴⁵Then he came to the disciples and said, “Sleep on now and take your rest . . . but no! The time has come! I am^a betrayed into the hands of evil men! ⁴⁶Up! Let’s be going! Look! Here comes the man who is betraying me!”

1. literally, “The Son of Man is.”