Did Jesus grieve?

Matthew 14:9-13 Then the king regretted what he had said; but because of the vow he had made in front of his guests, he issued the necessary orders. So John was beheaded in the prison, and his head was brought on a tray and given to the girl, who took it to her mother. Later, John’s disciples came for his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus what had happened. As soon as Jesus heard the news, he left in a boat to a remote area to be alone. But the crowds heard where he was headed and followed on foot from many towns.

We have all known someone who has died. Its a sad loss and is often associated with some form of grieving process. For people we know little of it may prompt a moment of thought. We may think of the brevity of life, the good memories of the person or how they will be missed. For those closer to us this may be a significant grieving process that takes a long time to work through. When Jesus heard than John the Baptist had died he appeared to go through some form of grieving process. He withdrew for some solitude.

At first glance this seems perfectly normal. "Jesus the man," feeling human emotions, identifying with our frailties and mourning the loss of a family member and good friend. But when you think about it there may be something different going on here.

Jesus knew how and when John would die. He holds the keys to life and death and is sovereign in all things. Jesus may have missed John but knew with complete confidence that He would see him in glory. Jesus also knew the truth of the words that John said 'he must increase, I must decrease'. Jesus knew John's ministry was to diminish and His was to come to forefront. So why did Jesus seek a solitary place and wish for some time alone?

We can only speculate but nonetheless let's speculate. Perhaps He thought of John's beheading and considered His own suffering that lay ahead of Him. Perhaps He considered the last days of John and what he would have gone through. He may have thought of the fear John may have felt when he knew he would be beheaded. Jesus may have considered the feelings of John's family and his disciples and the pain they would no doubt be going through. Either way I strongly suspect Jesus was not grieving for His own loss but for the thoughts and feelings of others.

What comfort to know that Jesus shared our humanity. Jesus had human emotions. But what greater comfort to know that His thoughts are towards us. He knows our pains and suffering. He suffered too.

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