Scriptural text: Matthew 26:17-30
Lesson Context: The lesson takes place midway into the Passover, after Jesus and many others had arrived in Jerusalem for the feast. God commanded the Jewish people to observe the Passover Feast in memory of their dramatic deliverance from bondage in Egypt (Exodus 12). Passover became a national spiritual holiday.
During Jesus’ time, groups of pilgrims slew their lambs at the Jerusalem temple, where the blood would be sprinkled on the altar. Then they went to celebrate the meal with their families or other companions in groups at least 10 people.
Readying the Passover (Matthew 26:17-19):
Preparations (v.17).
The time of killing of the passover was after the middle of the day; and it said “if they killed it before the middle of the day it was not right; and they did not kill it till after the evening sacrifice, and after they had offered the evening incense, and after they had trimmed the lamps, they began to slay the Passovers, or paschal lambs, unto the end of the day; and if they slayed after the middle of the day, before the evening sacrifice, it was right.“
The time and manner of killing the lamb, and by whom, of the sprinkling of the blood, and of their flaying it, and taking out the fat, and burning it on the altar, may be seen in the Misna, The Disciples Came to Christ, that is Peter and John.
Instructions (vv. 18-19).
The city refers to Jerusalem. Jesus and His disciples approached from the neighboring village of Bethany. It seems Jesus had made arrangements with such a man before the festival was upon them. Mark and Luke specify that the disciples were meant to find a man carrying “a pitcher of water”. Fetching water was typically a woman’s work, so his carrying the pitcher would make the man easy to spot.
The Passover Plot (Matthew 26:20-25).
Fellowship (v. 20).
Judas already had agreed to the contract on Jesus’ life, but none of the disciples knew that. Therefore, when the even was come for them to share the Passover, it was easy for Judas to join as one of the twelve with his plan undetected.
Betrayal (vv. 21-25).
After Peter’s confession of Jesus as the Son of God, the Lord had begun to reveal that he would be rejected by the Jewish leaders, suffer, and be killed. This is the first time, however, that they had heard Him say one of you shall betray me. He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish could refer to anyone in the room, for all of them were sharing in that activity during the evening meal. By saying the same shall betray me, Jesus reemphasized that the betrayal would indeed come from within their group.
The phrase Son of man evokes Jesus’ connection with fragile humans as well as with Daniel’s prophesied Messianic figure.
Jesus acknowledged His willing intent to fulfill God’s plan as it is written of him in the Old Testament. Jesus never dodged the work of giving His life to pay sin’s price for our eternal salvation.
In v.25, Judas addressed Jesus with the same form of question as the other disciples, except that he used the title Master rather than Lord. Judas is the only disciple in the Gospel of Matthew to refer to Jesus this way. Judas may have believed that Jesus was a wise teacher, but there is no record that he confessed Jesus as Lord.
Passover and the Kingdom (Matthew 26:26-30).
Bread and Body (v.26).
The Passover meal was infused with symbolic significance. Eating the bread called for the explicit reminder of God’s deliverance. Jesus did not do away with that ancient symbolism. He magnified and expanded it, bringing God’s salvation to fulfillment. The broken bread took on the significance as the body of Christ.
References: Enduring Word Commentary, 2021-2022 Standard Lesson Commentary