Then He said to them, “My soul is consumed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch.”
Parallel translations
- WEB He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here, and watch.”
- KJV And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch.
- NKJV Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch.”
- NASB And He *said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch.”
- NLT He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus tells them his soul is sorrowful to the point of death and asks them to keep watch. His grief is profound yet he turns to the Father and seeks the company of friends.
Overview
His words echo the lament of the Psalms, expressing overwhelming sorrow as he faces bearing God's wrath against sin. He does not despair but presses on in prayer and asks his disciples to stay alert. The scene shows the true cost of redemption to the sinless Son.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- John 12:27Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? No, it is for this purpose that I have come to this hour.
- Mark 13:35–37Therefore keep watch, because you do not know when the master of the house will return—whether in the evening, at midnight, when the rooster crows, or in the morning.
- 1 Pet 5:8Be sober-minded and alert. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
- Isa 53:3–4He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.
- 1 Pet 4:7The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear-minded and sober, so that you can pray.
- Isa 53:12Therefore I will allot Him a portion with the great, and He will divide the spoils with the strong, because He has poured out His life unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors. Yet He bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors.
- Lam 1:12Is this nothing to you, all you who pass by? Look around and see! Is there any sorrow like mine, which was inflicted on me, which the LORD made me suffer on the day of His fierce anger?
- Mark 14:37–38Then Jesus returned and found them sleeping. “Simon, are you asleep?” He asked. “Were you not able to keep watch for one hour?
- Eph 6:18–19Pray in the Spirit at all times, with every kind of prayer and petition. To this end, stay alert with all perseverance in your prayers for all the saints.
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 14:34 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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