What comes to mind when you hear the word garden? Do you think of a vegetable garden? Do you think of a flower garden? Have you considered there are other types of gardens? Most of us do not think beyond a vegetable or flower garden, though there are other types.
In the cities of Eastern Europe, it is not unusual for their entire yard to be a garden. I remember being on a mission trip in Romania. They had walls around their yard. The yard was full of various plants, including small trees, bushes, flowers, and even vegetables.
When we see that Jesus went to a garden on the night He was betrayed, it was not what we typically think of as a garden. In fact, the word translated as garden means an enclosed field. In this case, it is an olive grove with an olive press in it. When the olives were harvested, they were put in the olive press so that an extremely heavy stone would press every last drop of oil from the olives.
It was no mistake that Jesus went to this place. It symbolized what He would go through in a few hours. He would be crushed by the weight of the world’s sin. Not only the sins of the past but all the sins of the future. This was one half of the cup He asked the Father to remove from Him. The other half? Being separated from the Father. Jesus had always been with the Father. Yet, for a couple of days, He would be separated as He took on the sins of the world.
Since we did not live at the live Jesus walked this earth and living in a country that does not have presses like they back then, we miss the symbolism. We miss the context. This is why we need to study not only the Bible but understand the historical context in which the writers wrote and the people lived. It helps us better understand what is written.
I pray we all realize that Jesus went to an olive grove. I pray we see the symbolism of Him going there. I pray each one of us take time to study and understand the context of Scripture. Jesus was purposeful. He went to the olive grove. It symbolized His suffering. Understand the context of Scripture.
John 18:1 After Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples across the Kidron Valley to a place where there was a garden, which he and his disciples entered.
Marty Pressey 