John 18:3-11 Verse 3 – "Therefore Judas took the soldier band and officers of the chief priests and of the Pharisees and came there with torches and lamps and weapons. Verse 4 – Jesus, therefore, knowing all the things coming upon him, went forth and said to them: "Whom are you looking for?" Verse 5 – They answered him: "Jesus the Nazarene." He said to them: "I am he." Now Judas, his betrayer, was also standing with them. Verse 6 – However, when he said to them: "I am he," they drew back and fell to the ground. Verse 7 – Therefore he asked them again: "Whom are you looking for?" They said: "Jesus the Nazarene." Verse 8 – Jesus answered: "I told you I am he. If, therefore, it is I you are looking for, let these go."; Verse 9 – in order that the word might be fulfilled which he said: "Of those whom you have given me I have not lost a single one." Verse 10 – Then Simon Peter, as he had a sword, drew it and struck the slave of the high priest and cut his right ear off. The name of the slave was Malchus. Verse 11 – Jesus, however, said to Peter: "Put the sword into its sheath. The cup that the Father has given me, should I not by all means drink it?" In stepping forward and readily identifying himself, Jesus was protecting the welfare of the disciples. He wasn't hiding behind one of the disciples and fearfully asking "Are you after me?" In verse 4, it says that Jesus approached them – he "went forth" – and asked: "Whom are you looking for?" When the soldiers reply that they are looking for Jesus, he responds that he's the one they're looking for. Looks as if the soliders weren't expecting this courageous and assertive behaviour, as verse 6 says "they drew back and fell to the ground." In verse 10, Peter draws his sword and cuts off the slave's right ear. The Bible writer, Luke, in his account adds the detail that Jesus "touched the ear and healed him." (Luke 22:51) I guess Luke, being a physician, would have paid attention to this extra detail. The soldiers appear to be unmoved by the fact that Jesus had performed again another miracle, right there before them. Wallflower