As Jesus enters the Garden of Gethsemane, John brings us to the climax of his Gospel. Jesus is not caught off guard, and He is not reluctantly swept toward the cross. Knowing exactly what awaits Him, He deliberately moves toward His betrayal, arrest, and death as the true Passover Lamb, willingly giving Himself for sinners.
But the setting of a garden points us back to another garden. In Eden, sin brought death, separation, and exile from the presence of God. Now, in Gethsemane, Jesus comes as the second Adam to undo what the first Adam brought into the world. He moves toward the curse, the abandonment, and the judgment that sinners deserve, so that our guilt can be removed, our sins forgiven, and what was lost in Eden finally restored.
