John Calvin Commentary Matthew 26:40

"And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?" — Matthew 26:40 (ASV)

And he came to his disciples. Though he was neither delivered from fear nor freed from anxiety, yet he interrupted the fervor of prayer and offered this comfort.

For believers are not required to be so constant in prayer as never to stop conversing with God; on the contrary, following Christ's example, they continue their prayers until they have proceeded as far as their weakness allows, then stop for a short time, and immediately after catching their breath, return to God.

It would have been a significant relief to his grief if his disciples had accompanied him and taken part in it. On the other hand, it was a bitter intensification of his sufferings that even they abandoned him.

For though he did not need anyone's assistance, yet since he had voluntarily taken upon himself our weaknesses, and since it was chiefly in this struggle that he intended to give proof of that emptying of himself, of which Paul speaks (Philippians 2:7), we should not be surprised if the indifference of those he had selected to be his companions added a heavy and distressing burden to his grief.

For his reproach is not feigned; rather, out of the true feeling of his mind, he declares that he is grieved at having been abandoned. And, indeed, he had good grounds for reproaching them with indifference, since, in the midst of the extremity of his anguish, they did not watch at least one hour.