And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.
Parallel translations
- WEB He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible to you. Please remove this cup from me. However, not what I desire, but what you desire.”
- BSB “Abba, Father,” He said, “all things are possible for You. Take this cup from Me. Yet not what I will, but what You will.”
- NKJV And He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will. ”
- NASB And He was saying, “Abba! Father! All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will.”
- NLT “Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”
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 prays 'Abba, Father,' asking that the cup be removed, yet yields fully to the Father's will. This is the model of trusting submission in suffering.
Overview
'Abba' expresses intimate trust, and 'the cup' signifies the suffering and divine judgment Jesus must drink. He honestly asks for relief but surrenders his desire to the Father's purpose. Here the second Adam obeys where the first failed, securing salvation through perfect submission to God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 19
- Gal 4:6And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
- Rom 8:15–16For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
- John 5:30I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.
- Heb 5:7–8Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;
- John 12:27Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour.
- Phil 2:8And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
- John 18:11Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy sword into the sheath: the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?
- Mark 10:27And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.
- John 6:38–39For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.
- 2 Tim 2:13If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.
- John 4:34Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.
- Ps 40:8I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.
- Matt 6:9After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
- Gen 18:14Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.
- Jer 32:27Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?
- Titus 1:2In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;
- Matt 26:39And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
- Luke 22:41–42And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
- Heb 6:18That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:
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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 14:36 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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