of all things except present pain. This seems the case of onr Lord here. Yet even here He turns to His Father, showing that He never loses the sense of the Father's love. The lost in hell will never turn to the Father."
It is worth noticing that our Lord speaks of " the Father " and •'My Father" at least one hundred and ten times in John's Gospel.
[But for this cause came I unto this hour.] This sentence is an elliptical way of declaring our Lord's entire submission to His Father's will, in the matter of the prayer He had just prayed. " But I know that for this cause I came into the world and have reached this hour, to suffer as I am now suffering, and to agonize as I am now agonizing. I do not refuse the cup. If it be Thy will, I am willing to drink it. Only I tell Thee my feelings, with entire submission to Thy will."
We may surely learn from the whole verse that Christians have no cause to despair because they feel trouble of soul, — be- cause they feel perplexed, and know not what to say in the agony of inward conflict, — because their nature shrinks from pain, and cries to God to take it away. In all this there is nothing wicked or sinful. It was the expression of the human nature of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and in Him was no sin.
Rollock says : " This is the language of one recollecting him- self, and collecting his thoughts to remember something besides his agony and pain."
[Father, glorify thy name.'] This passage seems the conclu- sion of the strife and agony of soul which came over our Lord at this particular period. It is as though He said, " I leave the matter in Thy hand, O My Father. Do what Thou seest best. Glorify Thy name and Thy attributes in Me. Do what is meet for setting forth Thy glory in the world. If it be for Thy glory that I should suffer, I am willing to suffer even unto the bearing of the world's sins."
I see in the whole event here described, a short summary of what took place afterwards more fully at Gethsemane. There is a remarkable parallelism at every step.
(a) Does our Lord say here, " My soul is troubled"? Just so He said in Gethsemane, "My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death." (Matt. xxvi. 38.)
(6) Does our Lord say here, " Father, save Me from this hour "? Just so he says in Gethsemane. " O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me." (Matt. xxvi. 39.)
(c) Does our Lord say here, " For this cause came I unto this hour"? Just so he says in Gethsemane, " If this cup may not pass away from Me except I drink it, Thy will be done." (Matt. xxvi. 42.)
(d) Does our Lord say, finally, " Father, glorify Thy name " ?