When he lets himself be asked for something—by his Mother in Cana, by the Roman centurion in Capernaum and by the Gentile woman in Syria—and thereby “persuaded”, he shows how persevering prayer ultimately wrenches the desired favor from God’s heart (Lk 18:1–7). When he does not hesitate to leave the two beloved women in Bethany without an answer and apparently in the lurch, he demonstrates in advance that on the Cross he will feel forsaken by his Father, although he knew beforehand that “the hour