The name “Gethsemane” comes from the Hebrew words gat (press) and shemen (oil), meaning “the garden of the olive press.” The Garden of Gethsemane lies at the foot of the Mount of Olives, a place where the process of producing olive oil carried deep symbolic meaning.
First, the olives with their hard pits were crushed beneath a massive stone wheel, a millstone, until they were reduced to a thick pulp. This pulp was then packed into large woven bags, stacked one upon another. A heavy wooden beam was laid across the top, and large stones were added to weigh it down, pressing the oil from the crushed olives. The oil that flowed out was collected in a container and had a dark, reddish-brown hue, reminiscent of blood.
There were three pressings:
The first produced virgin oil—the finest and purest—used for anointing and cooking.
The second pressing, with an additional large stone hung from the beam, yielded oil used for lamps and light, and it was also blended with other ingredients for medicinal purposes.
The third and final pressing, with a third stone added to the beam, produced a much coarser oil used as a cleansing agent, commonly made into soap.
On the night before His crucifixion, Jesus went with His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane. Three times, He withdrew from them to pray alone. As olives were pressed three times in that garden, so too was the Lord.
“And being in agony, He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground” (Luke 22: 44).
The first oil symbolizes Jesus as the King of Kings—the anointed Messiah and the one who nourishes and sustains us.
The second oil symbolizes Jesus as the Light of the world, the one who heals, restores, and brings wholeness.
The third oil symbolizes Jesus’ death on the Cross, through which He washed away our sins and redeemed us.
