In
relation to Gethsemane, Hebrews 5:7-8 gives further explanation about Christ’s
struggle to obey God in the face of his temptation to avoid suffering by
disobeying God. The description in Hebrews broadly includes the entire passion
sequence and other suffering in Christ’s life, not simply the single event of
his anguish in Gethsemane. However, the Gethsemane experience is surely
included as one of the events within the broad description in Hebrews 5:7-8 of
Jesus’ true and relevant human experience that constitute him a “high priest” (αρχιερευς, v. 10; cf. 2:17; 4:15).
Hebrews
5:7-8 introduces the theme of Christ’s suffering in relation to his progress in
obedience with the generalizing statement of the temporal context: “in the days
of his flesh”. This statement draws together his entire human life while the
passage also alludes to the specific suffering in his passion. The emotional
distress and struggle to submit his wishes as a man to God’s will are at least
reminiscent of his Gethsemane prayers if not directly parallel to those offered
with “great sobs and tears” (κραυγης ισχυρας και δακρυων). For the readers of Hebrews, having been
told about Christ’s empathy for them in being tempted (2:17-18; 4:15), they
receive a vivid reminder from his earthly life that his experience of suffering
was not minimized or mitigated by his deity. Christ’s successful, obedient
struggle against temptation is set before the readers as the example and
motivation for their own struggle against the temptation to apostasy (cf.
12:1-4). Just as for them now, Jesus was called by God to obedience with the
suffering of the cross, and in a much greater way. Hebrews 5:7-8 recalls the
severe degree of his temptation despite his Sonship so that the audience can
find courage in Christ’s example.
Jesus’
development in obedience through suffering—“he learned, from the things he
suffered, obedience” (v. 8; εμαθεν αφ’ ων επαθεν την υπακοην)—is his progress throughout his life
experiences to be constituted for the official role of priest. The final
position of “obedience” and the addition of the definite article (the
obedience) emphasize the particular obedience that God required of him “in the
days of his flesh”, an obedience that could only be accomplished by the Son as
a man. I think it is right to see here that what Jesus accomplishes is a
specifically human obedience that was originally required of Adam (cf. Rom
5:19), and can now be credited to the new humanity in Christ for justification
as a gift of righteousness (Rom 5:17). By his obedience that culminates in
choosing to go to the cross, Jesus reverses disobedient humanity to reclaim in
himself the original design of creation and humanity.
Moreover,
we have seen above that the suffering and struggle to obey was constitutive for
him to become the compassionate priest who can empathize with his people in
terms of their temptation (cf. 2:17; 4:15). The suffering that sets a context
for temptation in Jesus’ life and the readers’ lives is purposeful. This means
that even Christ’s prayer, offered to the God, the one who could “save him out
of death” (σωζειν αυτον εκ θανατου),
was that he would be rescued with divine support in the midst of his death—not
a prayer that Jesus would be protected entirely form peril. The difference of
this prayer from Christ’s prayer in Gethsemane, where he asked for another way besides
his imminent peril (“if it is possible”, ει δυνατον εστιν, Mark 14:35//), is not a contradiction
because Hebrews 5:7 underscores his plea for help to endure the suffering.
Also
distinct from the Gethsemane accounts are the great sobs and tears of
Hebrews 5:7. This description certainly reflects the anguish of his prayers on
the night before his death, but “sobs and tears” may refer more precisely to
his suffering on the cross. The Gospels tell of no loud cries and tears in
Gethsemane, but the Gospels bear clear evidence that Jesus screamed with loud
shouts and cries at Golgotha. Furthermore, Christ’s final prayer of surrender
into the Father’s hands (Luke 23:46) seem to fit the Hebrews 5:7 prayer for
support as he entered into death. As was the case throughout his life, Christ’s
suffering during the crucifixion was likely a context for his temptation in a
severe, maximal degree. This possibility of his temptation while suffering on
the cross is reinforced by the way Hebrews 5:7-8 functions as an exhortation
for the readers in context of their temptation.
Therefore,
Hebrews 5:7-8 corresponds to both Christ’s suffering in Gethsemane and
Golgotha. Gethsemane is clearly a context of temptation because of the way the
Gospels note Christ’s warnings about temptation to his disciples. Golgotha is a
likely context for his temptation because of the way Hebrews 5:7-8 employs his
suffering there as an example of his having experienced concrete temptation in
a maximum degree that makes him able to sympathize with the troubled audience. (John
E. McKinley, Tempted for Us: Theological Models and the Practical Relevance
of Christ’s Impeccability and Temptation [Paternoster Theological
Monographs; Eugene, Oreg.: Wipf and Stock, 2009], 32-34)
