Topical Encyclopedia
Definition and ContextThe term "bloody sweat" refers to the phenomenon described in the Gospel of Luke, where Jesus Christ, during His intense prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, experienced a condition known as hematidrosis. This rare medical condition involves the excretion of blood or blood pigments through the skin, often associated with extreme stress or anguish.
Biblical ReferenceThe primary biblical reference to the bloody sweat of Jesus is found in
Luke 22:44. The Berean Standard Bible states: "And in His anguish, He prayed more earnestly, and His sweat became like drops of blood falling to the ground." This passage highlights the profound emotional and spiritual distress Jesus faced as He anticipated His impending crucifixion and the weight of humanity's sins.
Theological SignificanceThe bloody sweat of Jesus is significant for several reasons. It underscores the true humanity of Christ, who experienced genuine human emotions and physical responses to stress. This event also illustrates the depth of Jesus' obedience and submission to the Father's will, as He prepared to take upon Himself the sins of the world. The intensity of His prayer and the physical manifestation of His anguish reveal the gravity of the atonement He was about to accomplish.
Medical PerspectiveFrom a medical standpoint, hematidrosis is an extremely rare condition that can occur under conditions of extreme physical or emotional stress. The capillaries around the sweat glands can rupture, causing blood to mix with sweat. While some skeptics question the literal interpretation of this event, the description in Luke's Gospel aligns with known medical phenomena, lending credibility to the account.
Symbolic InterpretationSymbolically, the bloody sweat can be seen as a precursor to the shedding of Christ's blood on the cross. It serves as a powerful reminder of the suffering He endured for the redemption of humanity. The imagery of blood in the Bible often signifies life, sacrifice, and covenant, and in this context, it foreshadows the new covenant established through Jesus' sacrificial death.
Historical and Cultural ContextIn the cultural and historical context of the time, sweating blood would have been seen as an extraordinary and ominous sign. The Jewish understanding of blood as life (
Leviticus 17:11) adds a layer of depth to the narrative, emphasizing the life-giving nature of Christ's impending sacrifice. The Garden of Gethsemane, where this event took place, was a place of pressing, as its name suggests ("Gethsemane" means "oil press"), symbolizing the pressing weight of the world's sins upon Jesus.
Devotional ReflectionFor believers, the account of Jesus' bloody sweat serves as a profound meditation on the cost of salvation and the depth of Christ's love and commitment to humanity. It invites Christians to reflect on their own willingness to submit to God's will, even in times of great personal trial and suffering. The event encourages believers to find solace in the knowledge that Jesus fully understands human anguish and is present with them in their own moments of distress.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
Bloody SweatBLOODY SWEAT
(swet hosei thromboi haimatos): Described inLuke 22:44 as a physical accompaniment of our Lord's agony at Gethsemane (on the passage, which is absent in some manuscripts, see Westcott and Hort, The New Testament in Greek). Many old writers take this to mean that the perspiration dropped in the same manner as clots of blood drop from a wound, regarding the Greek word prefixed as expressing merely a comparison as inMatthew 28:3, where leukon hos chion means "white as snow." Cases of actual exudation of blood are described in several of the medieval accounts of stigmatization, and Lefebvre describes the occurrence of something similar in his account of Louise Lateau in 1870. For references to these cases see the article "Stigmatization" in Encyclopedia Britannica (11th edition), XXII, 550. It is perhaps in favor of the older interpretation that the word used by Aeschylus for drops of blood is stagon (Agam. 1122) and by Euripides stalagmos, not thromboi. None of the instances given by Tissot (Traite des nerfs, 279), or Schenck (Observ. med., III, 45:5), can be said to be unimpeachable; but as the agony of our Lord was unexampled in human experience, it is conceivable that it may have been attended with physical conditions of a unique nature.
Alex. Macalister
Smith's Bible Dictionary
Bloody SweatOne of the physical phenomena attending our Lord's agony in the garden of Gethsemane is described by St. Luke, (Luke 22:44) "His sweat was as it were great drops (lit. clots) of blood falling down to the ground." Of this malady, known in medical science by the termdiapedesis , there have been examples recorded in both ancient and modern times. The cause assigned is generally violent mental emotion.
Library
What Happened Before the Crucifixion.
... on the Mount of Olives, I gave Myself up to the pangs of cruel death, and when I
felt that he was present before Me, I was bathed in abloody sweat, because of...
Looking unto Jesus
... Sure, thy griefs are not so heavy as his were, when drops of blood were forced
through his skin, and abloody sweat did stain the ground!...
Our Lord in the Garden
... 26:36. Gethsemane can I forget? Or there Thy conflict see, Thine agony and
bloody sweat,"And not remember Thee? "THEN cometh Jesus...
Gethsemane
... They saw His face marked with thebloody sweat of agony, and they were filled
with fear. His anguish of mind they could not understand....
On Our Lord's Passion, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension
... 78 Q. What did Jesus Christ suffer? A. Jesus Christ suffered abloody sweat,
a cruel scourging, was crowned with thorns, and was crucified....
The Means Whereby Our Lord Quickened Her Soul, Gave Her Light in...
... I thought of thebloody sweat, and of the affliction He endured there; I wished,
if it had been possible, to wipe away that painfulsweat from His face; but I...
The Beatific vision
... We shall never see him as thebloody sweat streams from his whole body; but we shall
see him as he hath put all things under him, and hath conquered hell itself...
"It is Finished"
... Thebloody sweat was forced from His pores, and fell in drops upon the ground.
Thrice the prayer for deliverance was wrung from His lips....
Going to Gethsemane, and Agony Therein.
... [Commentators give instances ofbloody sweat under abnormal pathological conditions.]
45 And when he rose up from his prayer, he came { ^a cometh} unto the...
Consolation in Christ
... vent. Behold thebloody sweat as it distils from every pore of his body,
and falls in gouts of gore upon the frozen ground. See...
Resources
What is the Geneva Bible? | GotQuestions.orgQuestions about Salvation (All) | GotQuestions.orgWhat is the Catholic sacrament of Holy Eucharist? | GotQuestions.orgBloody: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
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