John 12:27

My soul. An idiomatic expression practically equivalent to “I” (see on Ps. 16:10).

Troubled. Gr. tarasso. The same verb occurs in chs. 11:33; 13:21, with Jesus as the subject. In ch. 14:1, 27 Jesus counsels His disciples not to be “troubled.” The cause of Jesus’ present distress is indicated by His prayer, “Father, save me from this hour.” The visit of the Greeks had called to mind the ingathering of the Gentiles. But between the gospel harvest and the present moment lay the cross and the mental and physical agony that would be associated with it. From this the humanity of Jesus recoiled. A vivid contemplation of the scenes that lay ahead was the cause of the Lord’s sudden mental anguish (cf. on Matt. 26:38).

Save me. This prayer is similar to that offered a few days later in Gethsemane (Matt. 26:39). We may rest assured that if any other means to save man, involving less sacrifice, could have been found, the prayer of Jesus would have been answered. But the infinite sacrifice was necessary to accomplish all that the plan of salvation was designed to accomplish (see PP 68, 69). In view of this Jesus submitted Himself to carry the plan through to completion.