Bible Review

The more common expression for this act of clemency is to “lift up the face” (James L. Mays, ed., Harper’s Bible Commentary [San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988], p. 118).

Raymond E. Brown, The Death of the Messiah: From Gethsemane to the Grave, Anchor Bible Reference Library (New York: Doubleday, 1994), p. 1379.

In Mark there is no departure corresponding to the third return in Mark 14:41. Had there been one in his source, why would Mark have omitted it? Hence, it is Matthew who added the departure (26:44) for the sake of neatness, and moved up the ordinal “third” to match “a second time,” which he had inserted in 26:42 to make the numerrical series complete.

In addition, Matthew did not tolerate the tension between the singular “Were you not strong enough to watch one hour?” and the plural “Keep ye watching” (Mark 14:38), so he has Jesus accuse all the disciples (Matthew 26:40).

Matthew does expand Luke in the case of the Lord’s Prayer (compare Matthew 6:9–13 and Luke 11:2–4).

Isaiah and Sharfman, Rashi’s Commentary, p. 332.

Gerald Janzen, Genesis 12–50: Abraham and All the Families of the Earth (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1993), p. 149.

Samson Raphael Hirsch, The Pentateuch, trans. Gertrude Hirschler (Brooklyn: Judaica Press, 1982), pp. 162–163.