Jesus knew that the hour had come (Jn 13:1)
In the Gospel of John, the concept of the ‘hour’ has a specific significance. At the Wedding at Cana, when the Mother of Jesus draws his attention to the fact that “They have no wine”, Jesus comes up with the very sharp reply, “My hour has not come yet” (Jn 2:4). But the Mother of Jesus continues to act as if the hour has already begun to come. In a sense she ushers in the hour. During the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman, Jesus assures her, “Believe me, woman, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem” (Jn 4:21). Today’s gospel text introduces the last supper with these words: “knowing that his hour had come to pass from this world […]