Drinking the Cup and Rising from the Dead

How Jesus’ prayer was answered through the resurrection

By Rich Amick

The story of Jesus’ death and resurrection is not a collection of disconnected moments but one unified movement of suffering, surrender, and victory. From the garden to the cross, and from the tomb to resurrection, we see a single, unfolding work of redemption.

When we slow down and hold these moments together — His drinking of the cup, His anguished prayer in Gethsemane, and His bodily resurrection from the dead — we begin to see not only what Christ endured, but how faithfully the Father answered Him by raising Him from the dead and declaring Him to be His Son with power.

Consider the words spoken in the garden:

“My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.”
(Matthew 26:39, NASB 2020)

The Cup He Chose to Drink

When Jesus speaks of “the cup,” He is not referring merely to physical suffering. Throughout Scripture, the cup represents the outpouring of God’s righteous judgment and wrath against sin. To drink it is to fully experience what sin deserves.

This is what made the moment in Gethsemane so weighty. Jesus was not shrinking back from pain alone — He was facing the full reality of divine judgment. Yet even in that dark hour, He chose surrender: “Not as I will, but as You will.” What looked like hesitation was actually perfect, holy obedience.

“In the days of His humanity, He offered up both prayers and pleas with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His devout behavior.”
(Hebrews 5:7, NASB 2020)

A Prayer That Was Heard

Hebrews gives us a deeper look into Jesus’ heart. In the days of His flesh, He offered up prayers and supplications with vehement cries and tears to the One who was able to save Him from death (Hebrews 5:7). Yet we know He was not spared the cross. So what does it mean that He was heard?

It means His prayer reached beyond the cross. Jesus entrusted Himself completely to the Father—not to escape death, but to be brought out of it. His cry was not for avoidance, but for resurrection and vindication on the other side of suffering. The Father answered by raising Him from the dead, declaring Him to be His Son with power.

And Scripture is clear: the Father answered Him.

“For You will not abandon my soul to Hades, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.”
(Acts 2:27, NASB 2020)

From Death to Vindication

Jesus truly entered death. The cross was not symbolic, and the tomb was not empty by illusion. He fully experienced death in all its horror. The cup was not partially consumed — it was completely drained.

But death was not the end. The resurrection is the Father’s resounding answer. Jesus was not abandoned to Hades, nor did His body see decay. God raised Him bodily from the dead — death no longer has mastery over Him.

This is the unity of the gospel: the cup, the prayer in Gethsemane, the cross, and the empty tomb all belong together. Because He drank the cup, judgment is satisfied. Because He rose, death was decisively defeated in the firstfruits.

And that means everything for us. The One who trusted the Father through deepest suffering has secured an unshakable hope for all who are united to Him. His resurrection is not only His vindication (Romans 1:4) — it is the guarantee of ours.

Whatever you are facing today, remember this: God hears the cries of His people, even when the path goes through Gethsemane. And just as the Father answered the Son by raising Him from the dead, He remains faithful to bring life out of what feels like death.

Hold fast to that hope. It is anchored not in changing circumstances, but in a risen Savior — the same victory we remember and celebrate every Lord’s Day at His Table.