(53) Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray . . .?--There is a strange and suggestive blending of the possible and the impossible in these words. Could He have brought Himself to utter that prayer, it would have been answered. But He could not so pray unless He knew it to be in harmony with His Father's will, and He had been taught, in that hour of agony, that it was not in harmony, and therefore He would not utter it. Show Presently.--The modern English reader needs to be reminded once more that the word means immediately, without a moment's delay. Twelve legions.--The number is probably suggested by that of the Apostles. Not twelve weak men, one a traitor and the others timorous, but twelve legions of the armies of the Lord of Hosts. Note the Roman word appearing here, as in Mark 5:9; Mark 5:15, as the representative of warlike might. Verse 53. - Thinkest thou that I cannot now (ἄρτι) pray to (παρακαλέσαι, beseech) my Father? Jesus proceeds to show that he needs not Peter's puny assistance. Η δοκεῖς; An putas? Or thinkest thou? The particle, neglected by the Authorized Version, marks the transition to a new motive. The verb παρακαλεῖν has the special meaning of "to summon with authority," "to call upon as an ally." Peter needed still to learn the lesson of Christ's Divinity, his oneness with the Father; and this is furnished by the right interpretation of this word, which was not, as our version seems to make it, the cry of an inferior to one mightier than himself, but the summons of an equal to his great Ally in heaven. So Jesus virtually says, "Have I not power through my own Godhead to summon my Father to support me?" (Sewell, 'Microscope of the New Testament'). Shall presently give me (παραστήσει μοι ἄρτι). The Authorized Version seems to have read ἄρτι twice, "now... presently." The manuscripts show it only once, but vary its position. It most probably belongs to the first clause. The verb rendered "give" has a more pregnant meaning. It is a military term meaning "to place by the side," "to post on one's flank." Hence the Lord implies that at a word the serried ranks of angels would range themselves at his side, true flank comrades, to defend and support him. Twelve legions of angels. Not a dozen weak men. He employs the Roman term "legion" with intention. He had been arrested by a cohort (John 18:3, 12, σπεῖρα), the tenth part of the legion, which numbered six thousand men; he could, it he chose, call to his aid twelve times six thousand angels, who would deliver their Lord from his enemies. If there was to be an appeal to force, which Peter's rash assault suggested, what could withstand his angelic allies, the heavenly hosts, infinitely more numerous, better disciplined, more effectively officered, prompt and happy to do the will of the great Commander? Parallel Commentaries ... Greek Are you not aware that I can call
on My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels? Jump to Previous Able Angels Appeal Couldn't Disposal Entreat Furnish Help Instantly Messengers Once Possible Presently Request Seem Suppose Think Thinkest Twelve Jump to Next Able Angels Appeal Couldn't Disposal Entreat Furnish Help Instantly Messengers Once Possible Presently Request Seem Suppose Think Thinkest Twelve Links Matthew 26:53 NIV How many angels stand in the presence of God?In the book of Enoch, four angels that stand before the Lord of Spirits are given as: Michael, Raphael, Gabriel, and Phanuel.
How much is a legion?A legion was nominally composed of 6,000 soldiers, and each legion was divided up into 10 cohorts, with each cohort containing 6 centuria. The centurion thus nominally commanded about 100 men, and there were 60 centurions in a legion.
What did Jesus say on the cross?And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
What does the Bible say about Legion?Legion means a large group or in another parlance it may mean "many". In the Bible, it was used to refer to the group of demons, particularly those in two of three versions of the exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac, an account in the New Testament of an incident in which Jesus performs an exorcism.
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Jesus could have called ten thousand angels
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