“Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. So the crowd answered him, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.’ When Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them.
Comment: The Man-Jesus was looking down the barrel at the coming Cross and all that this would mean to him. The God-Jesus talked to His Co-eternal God-Father and asked Him ‘Is there any other way? Please glorify Yourself in what is coming.’ Were those who heard thunder denying the possibility of God answering Jesus plea? Did those who heard angel voices understand what was said? Certainly Jesus affirmed the voice as God’s and re-iterated that it introduced Judgement of the Devil, who had dominated the lives of mankind, and that His being crucified would be involved in all this. People were in a quandary – Jesus claimed to be the Messiah; they believed that the Messiah would not die; they heard a voice from heaven affirming Jesus words; Jesus said I’m about to die! They had heard, or heard of, Jesus teaching about being the Light of the world. ‘The light, Me, I am still here. Don’t let the darkness (of ignorance, fear, doubt?) overcome you now!’ He says this both to them and to us!
Prayer: With that man of old, I would say ‘Lord Jesus, I believe – help me to wrestle victoriously with my unbelief!’
As I read it! 