What is…
“agony” in the Bible

contest; wrestling; severe struggling with pain and suffering

Anguish is the reflection on trouble or pain that is already past, while agony is a struggle with pain in the present. This word is only used in the New Testament by Luke (22:44) to describe our Lord’s fearful struggle in Gethsemane.

The verb from which the noun “agony” is derived is used to denote an earnest endeavour or striving, as “Strive [agonize] to enter” (Luke 13:24); “Then would my servants fight” [agonize] (John 18:36). Compare 1 Corinthians 9:25; Col. 1:29; 4:12; 1 Timothy 6:12; 2 Tim. 4:7, where the words “striveth,” “labor,” “conflict,” “fight,” are the translations of the same Greek verb.

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