MH page 86

The Feast of Tabernacles had just ended. The priests and rabbis at Jerusalem had been defeated in their plottings against Jesus, and, as evening fell, “every man went unto his own house. Jesus went unto the Mount of Olives.” John 7:53 ; 8:1 .

Following the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus retreated to the Mount of Olives to be alone. This is a historical narrative recounting the movements of Jesus after the Feast of Tabernacles.

From the excitement and confusion of the city, from the eager crowds and the treacherous rabbis, Jesus turned away to the quiet of the olive groves, where He could be alone with God. But in the early morning He returned to the temple; and as the people gathered about Him, He sat down and taught them.

Jesus sought solitude in nature before returning to teach the people in the temple. This text describes a biographical narrative of Jesus moving between the city and the olive groves.