A minor objection asks how it is that the authors of the Gospels could possibly have known the content of what Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane. Presumably, Jesus was far away enough from Peter, James, and John that he did not know they were asleep until he came back to find them sleeping.

The main question to ask is, how far, exactly, was Jesus from his three disciples? Matthew and Mark say only "a little farther" (Mark 14:35; Matt. 26:39). Both use the word mikron to describe the distance, and that word speaks for itself. Matthew and Mark see no great distance here.

What then of Luke? He places Jesus "about a stone's throw beyond them" (Luke 22:41). How far is this? Fitzmeyer's commentary suggests it is not out of sight, but out of hearing range. He refers to a parallel phrase in Thucydides, "as far as a stone's or a javelin's throw." Presumably a soldier could throw farther than the average person; but there is also the matter of how loudly the other person is talking. Luke 22:44, albeit questionable in terms of textual criticism, would seem to indicate that Jesus' prayer might have been quite loud.

Either way, what is the distance? We simply don't know. Therefore, that the disciples are recorded as having indeed heard what Jesus said should interpret what the distance is.

There is no implication that Jesus went beyond hearing distance. Nor do any of the Gospels report hearing and observation of anything that the disciples could not have seen and heard before falling asleep. The "one hour" comment certainly allows for a lot of room for listening and watching disciples, and it is unreasonable to assume that in the first moment of that hour after the command of Jesus the disciples went straight to sleep. They would have struggled to stay awake—but would have eventually fallen asleep due to sadness; and in each of the three incidences of prayer, there would have been a period of alertness or attention prior to being yet again overcome with fatigue, allowing time for observation and overhearing.