The Meaning of Matthew 26:20 Explained

Matthew 26:20

KJV: Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve.

YLT: And evening having come, he was reclining (at meat) with the twelve,

Darby: And when the evening was come he lay down at table with the twelve.

ASV: Now when even was come, he was sitting at meat with the twelve disciples;

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Now  when the even  was come,  he sat down  with  the twelve. 

What does Matthew 26:20 Mean?

Study Notes

sat down with the twelve
The order of events on the night of the Passover supper appears to have been:
(1) The taking by our Lord and the disciples of their places at the table;
(2) the contention who should be greatest;
(3) the feet washing;
(4) the identification Judas as the traitor;
(5) the withdrawal of Judas;
(6) the institution of the supper;
(7) the words of Jesus while still in the room Matthew 26:26-29 ; Luke 22:35-38 ; John 13:3-35 ; Matthew 14:1-31
(8) the words of Jesus between the room and the garden Matthew 26:31-35 ; Mark 14:26-31 ; John 15:16 ; John 15:17 it seems probable that the high-priestly prayer John 17:1-26 was uttered after they reached the garden;
(9) the agony in the garden;
(10) the betrayal and arrest;
(11) Jesus before Caiaphas; Peter's denial.

Context Summary

Matthew 26:14-25 - A False Friend Exposed
While Mary sacrificed a large sum of money to show her love to Jesus, Judas sold Him for the hire of a slave. See Zechariah 11:12.
The Lord had a great desire to eat this last meal with His own; and it was a proof of His loving anticipation of the strain to which they were to be exposed in soul and body, that He had made arrangements for it with some secret disciple. How glad this loving soul must have been to make the loan of that guest chamber!-but have you placed your heart at His disposal? See 1 Corinthians 5:7.
It was a time of testing as well as of fellowship. None of us should sit at the table of the Lord without careful self-examination and confession. We all need to say, Lord, is it I? and to ask that we may be clad in the white robes through His precious blood. Remember, also, that they who in all humility and self-distrust fear lest they should commit the deed of treachery, are always the ones to whom it will be impossible. [source]

Chapter Summary: Matthew 26

1  Jesus foretells his own death
3  The rulers conspire against him
6  The woman anoints his feet
14  Judas bargains to betray him
17  Jesus eats the Passover;
26  institutes his holy supper;
30  foretells the desertion of his disciples, and Peter's denial;
36  prays in the garden;
47  and being betrayed by a kiss,
57  is carried to Caiaphas,
69  and denied by Peter

Greek Commentary for Matthew 26:20

He was sitting at meat [ανεκειτο]
He was reclining, lying back on the left side on the couch with the right hand free. Jesus and the Twelve all reclined. The paschal lamb had to be eaten up entirely (Exodus 12:4, Exodus 12:43). [source]
He sat down [ἀνέκειτο]
But this rendering misses the force of the imperfect tense, which denotes something in progress. The Evangelist says he was sitting or reclining, introducing us to something which has been going on for some time. [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Matthew 26:20

Matthew 26:17 To eat the passover [παγειν το πασχα]
There were two feasts rolled into one, the passover feast and the feast of unleavened bread. Either name was employed. Here the passover meal is meant, though in John 18:28 it is probable that the passover feast is referred to as the passover meal (the last supper) had already been observed. There is a famous controversy on the apparent disagreement between the Synoptic Gospels and the Fourth Gospel on the date of this last passover meal. My view is that the five passages in John (John 13:1., John 13:27; John 18:28; John 19:14, John 19:31) rightly interpreted agree with the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 26:17, Matthew 26:20; Mark 14:12, Mark 14:17; Luke 22:7, Luke 22:14) that Jesus ate the passover meal at the regular time about 6 p.m. beginning of 15 Nisan. The passover lamb was slain on the afternoon of 14 Nisan and the meal eaten at sunset the beginning of 15 Nisan. According to this view Jesus ate the passover meal at the regular time and died on the cross the afternoon of 15 Nisan. See my Harmony of the Gospels for Students of the Life of Christ, pp.279-284. The question of the disciples here assumes that they are to observe the regular passover meal. Note the deliberative subjunctive (ετοιμασωμεν — hetoimasōmen) after τελεις — theleis with ινα — hina For the asyndeton see Robertson, Grammar, p. 935. [source]

What do the individual words in Matthew 26:20 mean?

Evening now having arrived He was reclining with the twelve disciples
Ὀψίας δὲ γενομένης ἀνέκειτο μετὰ τῶν δώδεκα μαθητῶν

Ὀψίας  Evening 
Parse: Adjective, Genitive Feminine Singular
Root: ὀψία 
Sense: late.
δὲ  now 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: δέ  
Sense: but, moreover, and, etc.
γενομένης  having  arrived 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Participle Middle, Genitive Feminine Singular
Root: γίνομαι  
Sense: to become, i.
ἀνέκειτο  He  was  reclining 
Parse: Verb, Imperfect Indicative Middle or Passive, 3rd Person Singular
Root: ἀνάκειμαι  
Sense: to lie at a table, eat together, dine.
δώδεκα  twelve 
Parse: Adjective, Genitive Masculine Plural
Root: δώδεκα  
Sense: twelve.
μαθητῶν  disciples 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Plural
Root: μαθητής  
Sense: a learner, pupil, disciple.

What are the major concepts related to Matthew 26:20?

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