And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed,
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Greek word translated "withdrawn" here carries a sense of urgency, as if Jesus was almost "torn away" from his disciples by the overwhelming spiritual pressure he was experiencing. This wasn't a casual stroll, but a necessary separation driven by the internal agony he faced.
And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed,
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus has just shared the Passover meal with his disciples, instituting a new covenant, and has forewarned them of their impending betrayal and his own suffering. Now, he leads them to the Mount of Olives, specifically to the Garden of Gethsemane, where he begins to experience intense sorrow and dread as he anticipates the crucifixion. He then separates himself from the sleeping disciples to pray alone, wrestling with the immense weight of the task before him.
Jesus didn't just wander off; His separation from His closest friends was intentional, a wrestling match with God that required absolute solitude. This wasn't a casual retreat.
The Greek word used here, apospasthen, can imply being 'torn away' or 'severed.' It suggests an internal urgency, a powerful, almost violent, impulse that drove Jesus to distance Himself. He needed to face the Father alone, away from even the comfort of His most loyal disciples. This wasn't because He didn't love them, but because the weight of what was to come was a burden too immense to share, a divine and human struggle that had to be undertaken in a sacred, solitary space.
An Internal Urgency
Jesus knelt. It wasn't just a physical act, but a profound statement of His heart's posture before His Father in the face of unimaginable suffering.
The act of kneeling is a universal symbol of humility, reverence, and submission. In this critical moment, as Jesus confronted the 'cup' of God's wrath – the consequence of humanity's sin – His physical posture mirrored His internal state: complete surrender to the Father's will.
Ask a follow-up
Kneeling in Agony
The Greek tense for 'prayed' here isn't a single, quick action. It speaks of a prayer that was just starting, a deep dive into conversation with God that would continue and intensify.
Luke uses a specific grammatical tense for 'prayed' (the imperfect tense) that indicates an ongoing, continuous action. This wasn't a brief, perfunctory prayer. Jesus was entering into a prolonged, intense period of prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. It was the beginning of His wrestling, the initiation of a deep communion with the Father that would unfold over time, marked by increasing earnestness and agony.
A Prayer Unfolding
This moment in Gethsemane captures Jesus' profound human struggle as He faces the immense weight of bearing the world's sin, highlighting His submission to God's will even in the face of terrifying suffering.
c. 30 AD
Jesus and disciples in Jerusalem
Jesus arrives in Jerusalem for Passover, knowing His arrest and crucifixion are imminent.
c. 30 AD
The Last Supper
Jesus institutes the Lord's Supper with His disciples, foretelling His betrayal and Peter's denial.
c. 30 AD— this verse
Jesus' Prayer in Gethsemane
Jesus, accompanied by Peter, James, and John, goes to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. He withdraws a short distance from them to wrestle with the agony of His impending suffering and death.
c. 30 AD
Betrayal and arrest
Judas Iscariot arrives with a detachment of soldiers and temple guards to arrest Jesus.
c. 30 AD
Jesus before the Sanhedrin
Jesus is interrogated by the Jewish high council (the Sanhedrin).
c. 30 AD
Jesus before Pilate and Herod
Jesus is brought before the Roman governor Pontius Pilate and later Herod Antipas.
c. 30 AD
Crucifixion and Burial
Jesus is crucified at Golgotha and then buried in a tomb.
This passage describes Jesus falling on his face in prayer, similar to the kneeling mentioned in Luke, highlighting the intense posture and deep reverence during His agony.
Mark 14:35Mark also records Jesus going a little farther and falling on the ground, emphasizing the private and profound nature of His prayer in Gethsemane.
Hebrews 5:7This verse speaks of Jesus offering 'up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears' to the one who was able to save Him from death, directly paralleling the earnest prayer described in Luke.
1 Peter 2:21This verse reminds us that Christ left us an example to follow in His steps, which includes how He faced suffering and prayed through it, as seen in Luke 22:41.
Romans 8:26Just as Jesus prayed in His agony, this verse explains that the Spirit helps us in our weakness when we don't know what to pray for, connecting to the human struggle Jesus experienced and our own need for prayer.
vincentLuke 22:41: "And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,"
Was withdrawn (ἀπεσπάσθη)The Vulgate has avulsus est, "he was torn away," as by an inward urgency. Godet adopts this view, and so, apparently, Wyc., he was taken away. Meyer inclines to it; De Wette decidedly rejects it. Compare Acts 21:1.PrayedImperfect, began to pray.
bengelLuke 22:41: "And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,"
Luke 22:41 . Ἀπεσπάσθη , He was severed [‘withdrawn’] from them) with earnest intention [with serious feeling, “serio affectu”].
The Greek word translated "withdrawn" here carries a sense of urgency, as if Jesus was almost "torn away" from his disciples by the overwhelming spiritual pressure he was experiencing. This wasn't a casual stroll, but a necessary separation driven by the internal agony he faced.
Jesus has just shared the Passover meal with his disciples, instituting a new covenant, and has forewarned them of their impending betrayal and his own suffering. Now, he leads them to the Mount of Olives, specifically to the Garden of Gethsemane, where he begins to experience intense sorrow and dread as he anticipates the crucifixion. He then separates himself from the sleeping disciples to pray alone, wrestling with the immense weight of the task before him.
Jesus has just shared the Passover meal with his disciples, instituting a new covenant, and has forewarned them of their impending betrayal and his own suffering. Now, he leads them to the Mount of Olives, specifically to the Garden of Gethsemane, where he begins to experience intense sorrow and dread as he anticipates the crucifixion. He then separates himself from the sleeping disciples to pray alone, wrestling with the immense weight of the task before him.
"And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed," — The Greek word translated "withdrawn" here carries a sense of urgency, as if Jesus was almost "torn away" from his disciples by the overwhelming spiritual pressure he was experiencing. This wasn't a…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026