Luke 22:52

And Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains of the temple, and elders, that were come out against him, Are ye come out, as against a robber, with swords and staves? When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched not forth your hand against me: but this is your hour, and the power of darkness.

As Hobbs said, "swords and staves" indicate that "both Roman soldiers and temple police"[34] were used in the arrest. Only Luke, however, spelled out the presence of the chief priests who had come along to make sure the mission succeeded.

Daily in the temple ... This is a reference to the extensive ministry of Christ in Jerusalem in the final weeks following the long "journey" to the Holy City emphasized throughout by Luke. Also, this is another bit of evidence that Wednesday of this final week was not a day of retirement.

The power of darkness ... This is another echo of the great truth so strongly stressed in John, further evidence that the Christ of the synoptics is one with the Christ of John.

It has been frequently observed that if this night arrest of Jesus had truly been the Passover, none of the chief priests, nor the temple guards, would have been permitted to bear arms after sundown of Nisan 14. It was therefore the night before, on Nisan 13 (technically the 14th) that this arrest occurred. Had it been Nisan 14th after sundown, it would have been technically Nisan 15th, the night of the Passover meal. See chronology under Luke 22:2.