Did Jesus know as a child that He would die one day on the cross? — Rachel Boitnott, Roanoke, VA

Dear Rachel:

I love to read about Jesus. I especially love to read of the wonderful miracles He performed. One of the abilities Jesus had that we do not have was the ability to know about things before they would happen. One time Jesus predicted Peter would find a piece of money in the mouth of a fish (Matthew 17:24-27). Another time, as Jesus ate with His apostles, He predicted Judas would betray Him (John 13:18-26). He then predicted that Peter would deny Him three times before the rooster crowed (John 13:36-38). All of these things happened just as Jesus said they would. Jesus could foretell many things.

Was there anything Jesus did not know? The Bible tells us that when Jesus was on Earth He did not know when the time of His Second Coming would be. He said Himself, “Of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32). This was a piece of information that the Father had not revealed to Jesus in His human state.

When Jesus was older, He knew that He was going to die on the cross. In John 12:27-36, Jesus predicted His death. But, we cannot be certain when Jesus first knew that He would die on the cross. The Bible simply does not tell us.