"And in the evening Jesus cometh with the twelve, and when the hour was come, he sat down, and the twelve Apostles with him." Then He told them plainly that this was the last Passover He should eat on earth; saying, "With desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God." Then when Jesus, as Master of the family, had given the first cup to the disciples, "He gave thanks and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: for I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God shall come." Jesus being the true Lamb of God, now about to be sacrificed for the deliverance of His people, would not Himself partake of things, only appointed as _signs_ or _types_ of what He was to accomplish by the sacrifice of Himself. When the supper, or some part of it, was ended, there arose some strife or dispute amongst the disciples, as to "which of them should be accounted the greatest." For this Jesus gently rebuked them; and then, wishing to set them an example of humbleness and kindness, "He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel and girded himself:" that is, He took off His robe or upper garment, and then bound His other garments round him with a towel, as was usually done by those who served, or waited upon others. "After that he poureth water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded. Then cometh he to Simon Peter;" but he, believing that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, could not bear the idea of His acting a servant's part, and objected, saying "Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter." These words should have overcome all doubts and scruples; but in his anxiety and zeal for what he considered to be the glory of the Lord, Peter quite lost sight of his own duty, which was to be obedient in all things, and hastily exclaimed, "Thou shalt never wash my feet." Peter was quickly recalled to a sense of his fault, for "Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me." Such a declaration might well alarm Peter, who really loved his Lord, and wished to serve Him; and in his zeal he rushed into the opposite extreme, and cried out, "Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head." But true and perfect obedience is _doing exactly_, as _we are told_, neither more nor less; and of this Peter was reminded by Jesus, who "saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit."