Much has been preached and written about the Garden of Gethsemane and Jesus praying there the night before His crucifixion. But last week as I was preparing to conclude a seven week study of the “I AM” statements of John with a focus on “I am He” in John 18:5, I came across a detail in John’s eyewitness account of the events that caught my eye and took me off on a fascinating rabbit trail. The Biblical writers, under the inspiration and guidance of the Holy Spirit, provide details for specific reasons. No detail is irrelevant and no relevant detail is omitted. II Timothy 3:16 tells us that “all scripture is inspired and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness”. Often times amazing insights can be gathered from the details – gold nuggets can be found if we just turn over a few stones!
In John 18:1 we are told that Jesus went out with His disciples across the Kidron Valley to the garden. Where is the Kidron Valley? Gethsemane is positioned on the slopes of the Mount of Olives directly west of the Temple and about one-fifth of a mile from the Temple. The Temple was the highest point in Jerusalem and it would be very much in view from the Garden. Between the Temple and the Garden was the Kidron Valley – a wadi ( a wash that was dry except for the heavy winter rains, when it could become a pretty wild river).
So what is the significance of Jesus walking through the Kidron Valley? The Old Testament tells us that during the period of the divided kingdom, there were continue reading…
