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“Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
Jan 4, 2022 · Answer. Just before His arrest, Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane, and He said to His disciples, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” ( Matthew 26:41 ).
Jesus tells his disciples to watch and pray so that they will not enter into temptation. He says "the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" to express his human struggle and desire to avoid the cup of suffering.
This phrase is a quotation from Jesus' prayer in the garden of Gethsemane, where he asked God to spare him from the cup of suffering. It expresses his readiness to suffer for our salvation, but also his human weakness and temptation. See various commentaries on this verse and its context.
Jesus acknowledges that their spirit is willing to do what is right and honorable, but their flesh—their desires, appetites, urges—is weak (Romans 7:22–25). To be tempted is no sin (Hebrews 4:15), but when we fall to temptation, it is our fault alone (1Corinthians 10:13).
Jun 27, 2022 · Jesus said to His disciples, "The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak" (Matthew 26:41). Learn the biblical context, meaning, and application of this phrase, and how it relates to our struggle against temptation and sin.
This verse is part of Jesus' prayer in the garden of Gethsemane before his arrest. He urges his disciples to watch and pray so that they will not fall into temptation, and he reveals his own struggle with his human nature.
