[36] Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whither goest thou? Jesus
answered him, Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt
follow me afterwards.
[37] Peter said unto him, Lord, why cannot I follow thee now? I will lay down my life for thy sake.
[38] Jesus answered him, Wilt thou lay down thy life for my sake?
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, The cock shall not crow, till thou hast
denied me thrice.
.........................................
[58] And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down among them.
[56] But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him, and said, This man was also with him.
[57] And he denied him, saying, Woman, I know him not.
[58] And after a little while another saw him, and said, Thou art also of them. And Peter said, Man, I am not.
[59] And about the space of one hour after another confidently
affirmed, saying, Of a truth this fellow also was with him: for he is a
Galilaean.
[60] And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew.
[61] And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered
the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow,
thou shalt deny me thrice.
[62] And Peter went out, and wept bitterly.
It
is Judas we remember, but it is Peter's betrayal we should remember
more, for he was closest to Jesus, and when strangers suspected him of
allegiance to the Messiah, he chose to protect himself, to deny a bond
that had been forged in absolute truth. Jesus had done nothing to
warrant Peter's betrayal. He had given Peter the role of the rock on
which the new testament of love was to change the world. So what was
Peter doing, throwing that away?
Hearing the third denial, "the
Lord turned, and looked upon Peter." What was in that look Jesus gave to
the man he had trusted most, a man who had just sold his soul as easily
as Judas had done. And for what? Not thirty pieces of silver, but to
keep himself safe. It was a coward's choice, and Peter knew it, and he
"wept bitterly." But again, I wonder, what was the look that Jesus gave
to him? Was it one of sadness, or was it, even so, the affirmation of
love?
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