Many of us are puzzled by this prayer.
Was Jesus saying, "Father, I don't want to die on the cross-- but I'll do it if You insist" ??? No.
Brother Andrew, in his book AND GOD CHANGED HIS MIND, put it this way:
Remember, it was only a short time before this that Jesus said, referring to His coming crucifixion "What shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? No, it was for this reason I came to this hour." (John 12:27) Obviously Jesus would not make such an emphatic statement and then do a complete about-face in the Garden and ask God to keep Him from the dying on the cross.
I'm convinced that the 'cup' He was asking God to take from Him was premature death in the Garden of Gethsemane as a result of the crushing satanic pressure that caused Him to sweat drops of blood (Luke 22:44) as His soul was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. (Matt 26:38).
If He were to die prematurely in the Garden, then He would not die on the cross to save mankind.
So His prayer was in essence, "Father, let this cup pass: I don't want to die here in the Garden. If You have changed Your mind about me dying on the cross later, I'm asking You to change Your mind again... but may your will be done."
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