Jn 16:29-33
Scattered to his own home: All the four gospels record the tradition that the disciples flee at the time of Jesus’ passion. The Synoptic gospels situate this in Gethsemane. But in John, there is no mention of either the desertion or the “agony” in the Gethsemane scene. The evangelist even stresses the fidelity of one of them: the Beloved Disciple stands by the cross during the crucifixion (19:26). Here, he makes reference to the disciples’ failure to remain faithful (v 32).
Scattered to his own home: All the four gospels record the tradition that the disciples flee at the time of Jesus’ passion. The Synoptic gospels situate this in Gethsemane. But in John, there is no mention of either the desertion or the “agony” in the Gethsemane scene. The evangelist even stresses the fidelity of one of them: the Beloved Disciple stands by the cross during the crucifixion (19:26). Here, he makes reference to the disciples’ failure to remain faithful (v 32).
The Synoptics focus on the human side of Jesus, depicting him in agony in Gethsemane. John chooses to focus on the union between the Son and the Father which is the source of Jesus’ strength. The passion is just as real in John as in the Synoptics. The former, however, shows Jesus remaining in command of the whole situation. He suffers because he (or the Father) allows it. No one takes his life from him; he lays it down on his own (10:18).