Luke 22:15

KJV

And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer:

KJV (with Strong's)

And {G2532} he said {G2036} unto {G4314} them {G846}, With desire {G1939} I have desired {G1937} to eat {G5315} this {G5124} passover {G3957} with {G3326} you {G5216} before {G4253} I {G3165} suffer {G3958}:

Complete Jewish Bible

and he said to them, “I have really wanted so much to celebrate this Seder with you before I die!

Berean Standard Bible

And He said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before My suffering.

American Standard Version

And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer:

Commentary

### SUMMARY
Luke 22:15 captures Jesus' profound and earnest desire to share a final Passover meal with His disciples before His impending suffering. This poignant declaration reveals the deep intentionality behind this pivotal gathering, which would serve as the institution of the New Covenant through the Lord's Supper, transforming an ancient tradition into a forward-looking remembrance of His ultimate sacrifice and a foretaste of future fellowship.

### CONTEXT
* **Literary Context:** This verse is strategically placed at the beginning of Luke's account of the Last Supper, immediately following the preparations for the Passover meal and preceding the institution of the Lord's Supper (Luke 22:19-20) and Jesus' discourse on servant leadership and the New Covenant. It sets a deeply personal and anticipatory tone for the events that follow, highlighting Jesus' emotional state and the significance He attaches to this final communal meal. The narrative then moves swiftly into the betrayal by Judas (Luke 22:21-23), Peter's denial (Luke 22:31-34), and the agony in Gethsemane (Luke 22:39-46), underscoring the stark contrast between Jesus' loving desire for fellowship and the imminent betrayal and suffering He is about to endure.
* **Historical & Cultural Context:** The Passover was one of the most significant annual festivals in Judaism, commemorating God's miraculous deliverance of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt (as detailed in [Exodus 12](/exodus/12 "Exodus 12 - The First Passover")). It involved a ritual meal with specific foods (lamb, unleavened bread, bitter herbs) and a retelling of the Exodus story. By Jesus' time, it was deeply ingrained in Jewish identity, symbolizing liberation and covenant. Jesus' celebration of this Passover with His disciples was thus a traditional act, yet He was about to imbue it with radically new meaning. The meal took place in an "upper room" (Luke 22:12), a common practice for such gatherings, providing a private setting for this intimate and momentous occasion before the public events of His arrest and trial.
* **Key Themes:** Luke 22:15 introduces several critical themes that permeate the Passion narrative. First, it emphasizes Jesus' **sovereign intentionality** in His suffering; He is not a victim of circumstance but willingly embraces His path. Second, it highlights the **transformative nature of the Passover**, as Jesus redefines its symbolism from the exodus from Egypt to the ultimate redemption through His blood, establishing the [New Covenant](/jeremiah/31-31-34 "Jeremiah 31:31-34 - Prophecy of the New Covenant"). Third, the verse underscores the **deep bond of fellowship** Jesus shares with His disciples, even in the shadow of His impending suffering, laying the groundwork for the communal meal of the [Lord's Supper](/1_corinthians/11-23-26 "1 Corinthians 11:23-26 - Institution of the Lord's Supper") as a central act of Christian worship and remembrance.

### EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS

#### Key Word Analysis
* **Desire (Greek, _epithymía'_):** From G1939, this noun denotes a strong longing or yearning. While it can sometimes carry negative connotations of illicit craving (as in "lust"), here, in conjunction with the verb, it unequivocally expresses Jesus' earnest, profound, and legitimate desire. It signifies a deep-seated emotional intensity and purposefulness on Jesus' part regarding this meal.
* **Desired (Greek, _epithyméō'_):** From G1937, this verb means "to set the heart upon" or "to long for." When used in conjunction with its cognate noun, as it is here ("With desire I have desired"), it forms a Semitic idiom known as a cognate accusative. This construction powerfully intensifies the action, conveying "I have intensely desired" or "I have longed with great longing," emphasizing the extraordinary depth of Jesus' yearning for this specific Passover.
* **Suffer (Greek, _páschō'_):** From G3958, this verb means "to experience a sensation or impression, usually painful." In this context, it refers to the physical and spiritual agony Jesus is about to endure, including His betrayal, arrest, trial, scourging, and crucifixion. The explicit mention of suffering highlights Jesus' full awareness of His impending passion and His willingness to face it for the sake of humanity.

#### Verse Breakdown
* **"And he said unto them,"**: This simple introductory phrase grounds the statement within the narrative of the Last Supper, indicating Jesus' direct address to His disciples. It sets the stage for a deeply personal and significant revelation from Jesus to His closest followers.
* **"With desire I have desired"**: This is the powerful Semitic idiom, a cognate accusative (Greek: *epithymia epithymēsa*), which emphasizes the extraordinary intensity of Jesus' longing. It's not a casual wish but a profound, earnest yearning that underscores the immense significance Jesus placed on this particular meal. It conveys a sense of divine intentionality and deep personal emotion.
* **"to eat this passover with you"**: This clause clarifies the object of Jesus' intense desire: to share *this specific* Passover meal with *these specific* individuals—His disciples. The "this" highlights the uniqueness and climactic nature of this particular Passover, which would be transformed into the Lord's Supper. It speaks to the intimate fellowship Jesus sought with them before His departure.
* **"before I suffer:"**: This concluding phrase introduces the stark reality of Jesus' impending passion. It reveals His full foreknowledge of the pain, humiliation, and death awaiting Him. The "before I suffer" acts as a profound temporal marker, indicating that this meal is a final, cherished moment of communion and teaching before He enters the crucible of His atoning work.

#### Literary Devices
The most prominent literary device in Luke 22:15 is the **Cognate Accusative**, found in the phrase "With desire I have desired" (Greek: *epithymia epithymēsa*). This Semitic idiom, where a verb is paired with its noun form, serves to intensify the meaning of the verb, conveying an extraordinary degree of earnestness and longing. It underscores the profound emotional and spiritual weight Jesus placed on this final meal. Additionally, the verse employs **Foreshadowing** by explicitly mentioning "before I suffer," which points directly to the crucifixion and the suffering that is about to unfold, creating a sense of dramatic tension and solemn anticipation. There is also a subtle **Irony** present, as the Passover meal, traditionally a celebration of deliverance from suffering, becomes the prelude to Jesus' ultimate suffering for the deliverance of humanity.

### THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Luke 22:15 is rich in theological significance, revealing Jesus' divine intentionality in His suffering and His profound love for humanity. His intense desire to share this meal underscores that His sacrifice was not a forced act but a willing, purposeful offering. This verse bridges the Old Covenant's shadows with the New Covenant's reality, as the traditional Passover lamb, which symbolized deliverance from physical bondage, is reinterpreted by Jesus as a symbol of His own body and blood, shed for spiritual liberation from sin. It highlights the deeply personal nature of redemption, initiated by Christ's earnest yearning for communion with His own, even in the face of immense suffering.

* [Exodus 12:1-14](/exodus/12-1-14 "Exodus 12:1-14 - Institution of the Passover")
* [Jeremiah 31:31-34](/jeremiah/31-31-34 "Jeremiah 31:31-34 - Prophecy of the New Covenant")
* [1 Corinthians 11:23-26](/1_corinthians/11-23-26 "1 Corinthians 11:23-26 - The Lord's Supper")

### REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Luke 22:15 invites us into the very heart of Jesus' passion, revealing His deep, personal desire to commune with His disciples before His ultimate sacrifice. This is not merely a historical account but a window into the intentionality of our Savior. When we partake in the Lord's Supper, or engage in any act of Christian worship and fellowship, we are participating in a divine desire, a longing that originated in the heart of Christ. This verse challenges us to approach these sacred moments not as mere rituals or obligations, but with an earnestness that mirrors Jesus' own. It calls us to remember the immense cost of our redemption and to cherish the fellowship we have in Him, recognizing that every gathering of believers is a continuation of that longed-for communion, sustained by His enduring love and the promise of His return.

#### Questions for Reflection
* **How does Jesus' "desire" to eat the Passover before His suffering impact your understanding of His sacrifice?**
* **In what ways can we cultivate a deeper sense of intentionality and desire for fellowship and worship, mirroring Christ's example?**
* **How does this verse deepen your appreciation for the Lord's Supper as a remembrance of Christ's love and suffering?**

### FAQ
**What is the significance of the phrase "With desire I have desired"?**

Answer: The phrase "With desire I have desired" is a Semitic idiom (a cognate accusative) that strongly emphasizes the intensity of Jesus' longing. It's not a casual wish but a profound, earnest yearning. In Greek, it's *epithymia epithymēsa*, which literally means "desire I desired." This construction is used to convey an extraordinary depth of emotion and purpose, highlighting how deeply Jesus wanted to share this specific Passover meal with His disciples before enduring His passion. It underscores the intentionality and significance He placed on this final intimate gathering.

**Why was this specific Passover meal so important to Jesus?**

Answer: This Passover meal was supremely important to Jesus for several reasons. First, it was His last opportunity for intimate fellowship and teaching with His disciples before His crucifixion. Second, it was the moment He chose to transform the traditional Passover, which commemorated Israel's deliverance from Egypt, into the institution of the [Lord's Supper](/luke/22-19-20 "Luke 22:19-20 - The Institution of the Lord's Supper"). By doing so, He reinterpreted the symbols of the bread and wine to represent His own body and blood, establishing the [New Covenant](/jeremiah/31-31-34 "Jeremiah 31:31-34 - Prophecy of the New Covenant") through His impending sacrifice. This meal was the bridge between the old covenant and the new, a pivotal moment of transition and revelation of His redemptive purpose.

### CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Luke 22:15 finds its profound Christ-centered fulfillment in Jesus Himself, who is revealed as the ultimate Passover Lamb. The ancient Passover meal, which commemorated the deliverance of Israel from Egyptian bondage through the blood of a lamb (as described in [Exodus 12](/exodus/12 "Exodus 12 - The First Passover")), pointed forward to Christ. Jesus' intense desire to eat this specific Passover before His suffering underscores His willing embrace of His role as the Lamb of God "who takes away the sin of the world!" ([John 1:29](/john/1-29 "John 1:29 - Jesus, the Lamb of God")). His suffering, which He explicitly mentions, is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies concerning the suffering servant (e.g., [Isaiah 53:5](/isaiah/53-5 "Isaiah 53:5 - The Suffering Servant")), whose stripes bring healing. Through His broken body and shed blood, represented by the bread and wine of the [Lord's Supper](/1_corinthians/11-23-26 "1 Corinthians 11:23-26 - The Lord's Supper"), Jesus inaugurates the New Covenant, offering a definitive and eternal deliverance from the bondage of sin and death. Thus, the Passover meal, desired by Christ, becomes the foundational act for the new community of faith, forever looking back to His finished work on the cross and forward to His glorious return ([Revelation 19:9](/rev/19-9 "Revelation 19:9 - The Marriage Supper of the Lamb")).

Note: Commentary is generated by AI with a directive for Biblical fidelity. Always rely on the Holy Spirit for discernment. The Scripture text and cross-references are from verified, non-AI sources.

Cross-References

Luke 12:50

But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished!

John 4:34

Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.

John 13:1

¶ Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.

John 17:1

¶ These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: