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What did St. Peter do during Jesusā arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane?
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St. Peter the Apostle
St. Peter the Apostle, painting by Gerardus Laurentius Keultjes, 1816; in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.
During the arrest of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, St. Peter initially attempted to defend him. According to the Gospel of John (18:10), Peter used a sword to cut off the ear of Malchus, a servant of the high priest.1
Following this act of resistance, the Gospel accounts indicate that Peter ultimately fled when Jesus was arrested. While he later followed Jesus to the palace of the high priest, he famously denied knowing him when confronted in the courtyard.2