John MacArthurAuthor and General Editor

New American Standard Bible

Updated Edition

The

MACARTHURStudy BibleM

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THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO

J O H NT I T L E

The title of the fourth gospel continues the pattern of the other gospels, being identified originally as“According to John.” Like the others, “The Gospel” was added later.

A U T H O R A N D D A T E

Although the author’s name does not appear in the gospel, early church tradition strongly and consis-tently identified him as the Apostle John. The early church father Irenaeus (ca. A.D. 130–200) was a dis-

ciple of Polycarp (ca. A.D. 70–160), who was a disciple of the Apostle John, and he testified on Polycarp’sauthority that John wrote the gospel during his residence at Ephesus in Asia Minor when he was advancedin age (Against Heresies 2.22.5; 3.1.1). Subsequent to Irenaeus, all the church fathers assumed John to be thegospel’s author. Clement of Alexandria (ca. A.D. 150–215) wrote that John, aware of the facts set forth inthe other gospels and being moved by the Holy Spirit, composed a “spiritual gospel” (see Eusebius’ Ec-clesiastical History 6.14.7).

Reinforcing early church tradition are significant internal characteristics of the gospel. While the syn-optic gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke) identify the Apostle John by name approximately 20 times (includ-ing parallels), he is not directly mentioned by name in the Gospel of John. Instead, the author prefers toidentify himself as the disciple “whom Jesus loved” (13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7,20). The absence of any men-tion of John’s name directly is remarkable when one considers the important part played by other nameddisciples in this gospel. Yet, the recurring designation of himself as the disciple “whom Jesus loved,” a de-liberate avoidance by John of his personal name, reflects his humility and celebrates his relation to his LordJesus. No mention of his name was necessary since his original readers clearly understood that he was thegospel’s author. Also, through a process of elimination based primarily on analyzing the material in chaps.20,21, this disciple “whom Jesus loved” narrows down to the Apostle John (e.g., 21:24; cf. 21:2). Since thegospel’s author is exacting in mentioning the names of other characters in the book, if the author had beensomeone other than John the apostle, he would not have omitted John’s name.

The gospel’s anonymity strongly reinforces the arguments favoring John’s authorship, for only some-one of his well known and preeminent authority as an apostle would be able to write a gospel that dif-fered so markedly in form and substance from the other gospels and have it receive unanimous acceptancein the early church. In contrast, apocryphal gospels produced from the mid-second century onward werefalsely ascribed to apostles or other famous persons closely associated with Jesus, yet universally rejectedby the church.

John and James, his older brother (Ac 12:2), were known as “the sons of Zebedee” (Mt 10:2-4), andJesus gave them the name “Sons of Thunder” (Mk 3:17). John was an apostle (Lk 6:12-16) and one of the3 most intimate associates of Jesus (along with Peter and James—cf. Mt 17:1; 26:37), being an eyewitnessto and participant in Jesus’ earthly ministry (1Jn 1:1-4). After Christ’s ascension, John became a “pillar” inthe Jerusalem church (Gal 2:9). He ministered with Peter (Ac 3:1; 4:13; 8:14) until he went to Ephesus (tra-dition says before the destruction of Jerusalem), from where he wrote this gospel and from where the Ro-mans exiled him to Patmos (Rev 1:9). Besides the gospel that bears his name, John also authored 1-3 Johnand the Book of Revelation (Rev 1:1).

Because the writings of some church fathers indicate that John was actively writing in his old age andthat he was already aware of the synoptic gospels, many date the gospel sometime after their composi-tion, but prior to John’s writing of 1-3 John or Revelation. John wrote his gospel ca. A.D. 80–90, about 50years after he witnessed Jesus’ earthly ministry.

B A C K G R O U N D A N D S E T T I N G

Strategic to John’s background and setting is the fact that according to tradition John was aware of thesynoptic gospels. Apparently, he wrote his gospel in order to make a unique contribution to the record

of the Lord’s life (“a spiritual gospel”) and, in part, to be supplementary as well as complementary toMatthew, Mark, and Luke.

The gospel’s unique characteristics reinforce this purpose: First, John supplied a large amount ofunique material not recorded in the other gospels. Second, he often supplied information that helps theunderstanding of the events in the synoptics. For example, while the synoptics begin with Jesus’ ministry

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in Galilee, they imply that Jesus had a ministry prior to that (e.g., Mt 4:12; Mk 1:14). John supplies the an-swer with information on Jesus’ prior ministry in Judea (chap. 3) and Samaria (chap. 4). In Mk 6:45, afterthe feeding of the 5,000, Jesus compelled his disciples to cross the Sea of Galilee to Bethsaida. John recordedthe reason. The people were about to make Jesus king because of His miraculous multiplying of food, andHe was avoiding their ill-motivated efforts (6:26). Third, John is the most theological of the gospels, con-taining, for example, a heavily theological prologue (1:1-18), larger amounts of didactic and discourse ma-terial in proportion to narrative (e.g., 3:13-17), and the largest amount of teaching on the Holy Spirit (e.g.,14:16,17,26; 16:7-14). Although John was aware of the synoptics and fashioned his gospel with them inmind, he did not depend upon them for information. Rather, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, heutilized his own memory as an eyewitness in composing the gospel (1:14; 19:35; 21:24).

John’s gospel is the second (cf. Lk 1:1-4) that contains a precise statement regarding the author’s pur-pose (20:30,31). He declares, “these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, theSon of God, and that believing you may have life in His name” (20:31). The primary purposes, therefore,are two-fold: evangelistic and apologetic. Reinforcing the evangelistic purpose is the fact that the word “be-lieve” occurs approximately 100 times in the gospel (the synoptics use the term less than half as much).John composed his gospel to provide reasons for saving faith in his readers and, as a result, to assure themthat they would receive the divine gift of eternal life (1:12).

The apologetic purpose is closely related to the evangelistic purpose. John wrote to convince hisreaders of Jesus’ true identity as the incarnate God-Man whose divine and human natures were perfectlyunited into one person who was the prophesied Christ (“Messiah”) and Savior of the world (e.g., 1:41; 3:16;4:25,26; 8:58). He organized his whole gospel around 8 “signs” or proofs that reinforce Jesus’ true identityleading to faith. The first half of his work centers around 7 miraculous signs selected to reveal Christ’s per-son and engender belief: 1) water made into wine (2:1-11); 2) the healing of the royal official’s son (4:46-54); 3) the healing of the lame man (5:1-18); 4) the feeding of a multitude (6:1-15); 5) walking on water(6:16-21); 6) healing of the blind man (9:1-41); and 7) the raising of Lazarus (11:1-57). The eighth sign is themiraculous catch of fish (21:6-11) after Jesus’ resurrection.

H I S T O R I C A L A N D T H E O L O G I C A L T H E M E S

In accordance with John’s evangelistic and apologetic purposes, the overall message of the gospel isfound in 20:31: “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.” The book, therefore, centers on the person and work

of Christ. Three predominant words (“signs,” “believe,” and “life”) in 20:30,31 receive constant reemphasisthroughout the gospel to enforce the theme of salvation in Him, which is first set forth in the prologue (1:1-18; cf. 1Jn 1:1-4) and re-expressed throughout the gospel in varying ways (e.g., 6:35,48; 8:12; 10:7,9; 10:11-14; 11:25; 14:6; 17:3). In addition, John provides the record of how men responded to Jesus Christ and thesalvation that He offered. Summing up, the gospel focuses on: 1) Jesus as the Word, the Messiah, and Sonof God; 2) who brings the gift of salvation to mankind; 3) who either accept or reject the offer.

John also presents certain contrastive sub-themes that reinforce his main theme. He uses dualism (lifeand death, light and darkness, love and hate, from above and from below) to convey vital informationabout the person and work of Christ and the need to believe in Him (e.g., 1:4,5,12,13; 3:16-21; 12:44-46;15:17-20).

There are also 7 emphatic “I AM” statements which identify Jesus as God and Messiah (6:35; 8:12;10:7,9; 10:11,14; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1,5).

I N T E R P R E T I V E C H A L L E N G E S

Because John composed his record in a clear and simple style, one might tend to underestimate the depthof this gospel. Since John’s gospel is a “spiritual” gospel (see Authorship and Date), the truths he con-

veys are profound. The reader must prayerfully and meticulously explore the book, in order to discoverthe vast richness of the spiritual treasures that the apostle, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit (14:26;16:13), has lovingly deposited in his gospel.

The chronological reckoning between John’s gospel and the synoptics presents a challenge, especiallyin relation to the time of the Last Supper (13:2). While the synoptics portray the disciples and the Lord atthe Last Supper as eating the Passover meal on Thursday evening (Nisan 14) and Jesus being crucified onFriday, John’s gospel states that the Jews did not enter into the Praetorium “so that they would not be de-filed, but might eat the Passover” (18:28). So, the disciples had eaten the Passover on Thursday evening,but the Jews had not. In fact, John (19:14) states that Jesus’ trial and crucifixion were on the day of Prepa-ration for the Passover and not after the eating of the Passover, so that with the trial and crucifixion on Fri-day Christ was actually sacrificed at the same time the Passover lambs were being slain (19:14). Thequestion is, “Why did the disciples eat the Passover meal on Thursday?”

The answer lies in a difference among the Jews in the way they reckoned the beginning and endingof days. From Josephus, the Mishna, and other ancient Jewish sources we learn that the Jews in northernPalestine calculated days from sunrise to sunrise. That area included the region of Galilee, where Jesus and

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all the disciples, except Judas, had grown up. Apparently most, if not all, of the Pharisees used that sys-tem of reckoning. But Jews in the southern part, which centered in Jerusalem, calculated days from sun-set to sunset. Because all the priests necessarily lived in or near Jerusalem, as did most of the Sadducees,those groups followed the southern scheme.

That variation doubtlessly caused confusion at times, but it also had some practical benefits. DuringPassover time, for instance, it allowed for the feast to be celebrated legitimately on two adjoining days,thereby permitting the temple sacrifices to be made over a total period of four hours rather than two. Thatseparation of days may also have had the effect of reducing both regional and religious clashes betweenthe two groups.

On that basis the seeming contradictions in the gospel accounts are easily explained. Being Galileans,Jesus and the disciples considered Passover day to have started at sunrise on Thursday and to end at sun-rise on Friday. The Jewish leaders who arrested and tried Jesus, being mostly priests and Sadducees, con-sidered Passover day to begin at sunset on Thursday and end at sunset on Friday. By that variation,predetermined by God’s sovereign provision, Jesus could thereby legitimately celebrate the last Passovermeal with His disciples and yet still be sacrificed on Passover day.

Once again one can see how God sovereignly and marvelously provides for the precise fulfillment ofHis redemptive plan. Jesus was anything but a victim of men’s wicked schemes, much less of blind cir-cumstance. Every word He spoke and every action He took were divinely directed and secured. Even thewords and actions by others against Him were divinely controlled. See, e.g., 11:49-52; 19:11.

������ O U T L I N E ������I. The Incarnation of the Son of God (1:1-18)

A. His Eternality (1:1,2)B. His Pre-incarnate Work (1:3-5)C. His Forerunner (1:6-8)D. His Rejection (1:9-11)E. His Reception (1:12,13)F. His Deity (1:14-18)

II. The Presentation of the Son of God (1:19–4:54)A. Presentation by John the Baptist (1:19-34)

1. To the religious leaders (1:19-28)2. At Christ’s baptism (1:29-34)

B. Presentation to John’s Disciples (1:35-51)1. Andrew and Peter (1:35-42)2. Philip and Nathanael (1:43-51)

C. Presentation in Galilee (2:1-12)1. First sign: water to wine (2:1-10)2. Disciples believe (2:11,12)

D. Presentation in Judea (2:13–3:36)1. Cleansing the temple (2:13-25)2. Teaching Nicodemus (3:1-21)3. Preaching by John the Baptist (3:22-36)

E. Presentation in Samaria (4:1-42)1. Witness to the Samaritan woman (4:1-26)2. Witness to the disciples (4:27-38)3. Witness to the Samaritans (4:39-42)

F. Presentation in Galilee (4:43-54)1. Reception by the Galileans (4:43-45)2. Second sign: healing the royal official’s son (4:46-54)

III. The Opposition to the Son of God (5:1–12:50)A. Opposition at the Feast in Jerusalem (5:1-47)

1. Third sign: healing the paralytic (5:1-9)2. Rejection by the Jews (5:10-47)

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B. Opposition During Passover (6:1-71)1. Fourth sign: feeding the 5,000 (6:1-14)2. Fifth sign: walking on water (6:15-21)3. Bread of Life discourse (6:22-71)

C. Opposition at the Feast of Booths (7:1–10:21)1. The opposition (7:1–8:59)2. Sixth sign (9:1–10:21)

D. Opposition at the Feast of Dedication (10:22-42)E. Opposition at Bethany (11:1–12:11)

1. Seventh sign: raising of Lazarus (11:1-44)2. Pharisees plot to kill Christ (11:45-57)3. Mary anointing Christ (12:1-11)

F. Opposition in Jerusalem (12:12-50)1. The triumphal entry (12:12-22)2. The discourse on faith and rejection (12:23-50)

IV. The Preparation of the Disciples by the Son of God (13:1–17:26)A. In the Upper Room (13:1–14:31)

1. Washing feet (13:1-20)2. Announcing the betrayal (13:21-30)3. Discourse on Christ’s departure (13:31–14:31)

B. On the Way to the Garden (15:1–17:26)1. Instructing the disciples (15:1–16:33)2. Interceding with the Father (17:1-26)

V. The Execution of the Son of God (18:1–19:37)A. The Rejection of Christ (18:1–19:16)

1. His arrest (18:1-11)2. His trials (18:12–19:16)

B. The Crucifixion of Christ (19:17-37)VI. The Resurrection of the Son of God (19:38–21:23)

A. The Burial of Christ (19:38-42)B. The Resurrection of Christ (20:1-10)C. The Appearances of Christ (20:11–21:23)

1. To Mary Magdalene (20:11-18)2. To the disciples without Thomas (20:19-25)3. To the disciples with Thomas (20:26-29)4. Statement of purpose for the Gospel (20:30,31)5. To the disciples (21:1-14)6. To Peter (21:15-23)

VII. Conclusion (21:24,25)

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CHAPTER 1

1 a Ge 1:1; Col 1:17;1 Jn 1:1 b Jn 1:14; Rev19:13 c Jn 17:5; 1 Jn1:2 d Php 2:6

2 1 Lit This one3 a Jn 1:10; 1Co 8:6;

Col 1:16; Heb 1:24 a Jn 5:26; 11:25; 14:6

b Jn 8:12; 9:5; 12:465 1 Or overpower a Jn

3:19

darkness, and the darkness did not 1 com-prehend it.

The Forerunner of Christ6 There 1 came a man sent from God,

whose name was a John. 7 1 He came 2 a as awitness, to testify about the Light, b so that

The Deity of Christ

1a In the beginning was b the Word, andthe Word was c with God, and d the

Word was God. 2 1 He was in the beginningwith God. 3 a All things came into beingthrough Him, and apart from Him nothingcame into being that has come into being.4 a In Him was life, and the life was b theLight of men. 5 a The Light shines in the

1:1-18 These verses constitute the prologue which introducesmany of the major themes that John will treat, especially the maintheme that “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God” (vv. 12-14,18; cf.20:31). Several key words repeated throughout the gospel (e.g., life,light, witness, glory) appear here. The remainder of the gospel de-velops the theme of the prologue as to how the eternal “Word” ofGod, Jesus the Messiah and Son of God, became flesh and minis-tered among men so that all who believe in Him would be saved.Although John wrote the prologue with the simplest vocabulary inthe NT, the truths which the prologue conveys are the most pro-found. Six basic truths about Christ as the Son of God are featured inthe prologue: 1) the eternal Christ (vv. 1-3); 2) the incarnate Christ(vv. 4,5); 3) the forerunner of Christ (vv. 6-8); 4) the unrecognizedChrist (vv. 9-11); 5) the omnipotent Christ (vv. 12,13); and 6) the glo-rious Christ (vv. 14-18).

1:1 In the beginning. In contrast to 1Jn 1:1 where John used asimilar phrase (“from the beginning”) to refer to the starting point ofJesus’ ministry and gospel preaching, this phrase parallels Ge 1:1where the same phrase is used. John used the phrase in an absolutesense to refer to the beginning of the time-space-material universe.was. The verb highlights the eternal pre-existence of the Word, i.e.,Jesus Christ. Before the universe began, the Second Person of theTrinity always existed; i.e., He always was (cf. 8:58). This word is usedin contrast with the verb “came into being” in v. 3 which indicates abeginning in time. Because of John’s theme that Jesus Christ is theeternal God, the Second Person of the Trinity, he did not include agenealogy as Matthew and Luke did. While in terms of Jesus’ hu-manity, He had a human genealogy; in terms of His deity, He has nogenealogy. the Word. John borrowed the use of the term “Word”not only from the vocabulary of the OT but also from Gr. philosophy,in which the term was essentially impersonal, signifying the rationalprinciple of “divine reason,” “mind,” or even “wisdom.” John, howev-er, imbued the term entirely with OT and Christian meaning (e.g., Ge1:3 where God’s Word brought the world into being; Pss 33:6;107:20; Pr 8:27 where God’s Word is His powerful self-expression increation, wisdom, revelation, and salvation) and made it refer to aperson, i.e., Jesus Christ. Greek philosophical usage, therefore, is notthe exclusive background of John’s thought. Strategically, the term“Word” serves as a bridge-word to reach not only Jews but also theunsaved Greeks. John chose this concept because both Jews andGreeks were familiar with it. the Word was with God. The Word, asthe Second Person of the Trinity, was in intimate fellowship withGod the Father throughout all eternity. Yet, although the Word en-joyed the splendors of heaven and eternity with the Father (Is 6:1-13; cf. 12:41; 17:5), He willingly gave up His heavenly status, takingthe form of a man, and became subject to the death of the cross(see notes on Php 2:6-8). was God. The Gr. construction emphasizesthat the Word had all the essence or attributes of deity, i.e., Jesusthe Messiah was fully God (cf. Col 2:9). Even in His incarnation whenHe emptied Himself, He did not cease to be God but took on a gen-uine human nature/body and voluntarily refrained from the inde-pendent exercise of the attributes of deity.

1:3 All things came into being through Him. Jesus Christ wasGod the Father’s agent involved in creating everything in the uni-verse (Col 1:16,17; Heb 1:2).

1:4,5 life . . . Light . . . darkness. John introduces the reader tocontrastive themes that occur throughout the gospel. “Life” and“light” are qualities of the Word that are shared not only among theGodhead (5:26) but also by those who respond to the gospel mes-sage regarding Jesus Christ (8:12; 9:5; 10:28; 11:25; 14:6). John usesthe word “life” about 36 times in his gospel, far more than any otherNT book. It refers not only in a broad sense to physical and temporallife that the Son imparted to the created world through His involve-ment as the agent of creation (v. 3), but especially to spiritual andeternal life imparted as a gift through belief in Him (3:15; 17:3; Eph2:5). In Scripture “light” and “darkness” are very familiar symbols. In-tellectually, “light” refers to biblical truth while “darkness” refers toerror or falsehood (cf. Ps 119:105; Pr 6:23). Morally, “light” refers toholiness or purity (1Jn 1:5) while “darkness” refers to sin or wrong-doing (3:19; 12:35,46; Ro 13:11-14; 1Th 5:4-7; 1Jn 1:6; 2:8-11). “Dark-ness” has special significance in relationship to Satan (and his de-monic cohorts) who rules the present spiritually dark world (1Jn5:19) as the “prince of the power of the air” promoting spiritualdarkness and rebellion against God (Eph 2:2). John uses the term“darkness” 14 times (8 in the gospel and 6 in 1 John) out of its 17occurrences in the NT, making it almost an exclusive Johannineword. In John, “light” and “life” have their special significance in rela-tionship to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Word (v. 9; 9:5; 1Jn 1:5-7;5:12,20).

1:5 comprehend. The better meaning of this term in context is“overcome.” Darkness is not able to overcome or conquer the light.Just as a single candle can overcome a room filled with darkness, soalso the powers of darkness are overcome by the person and workof the Son through His death on the cross (cf. 19:11a).

1:6 sent from God. As forerunner to Jesus, John was to bear wit-ness to Him as the Messiah and Son of God. With John’s ministry,the “400 silent years” between the end of the OT and the beginningof the NT period, during which God had given no revelation, ended.John. The name “John” always refers to John the Baptist in thisgospel, never to the Apostle John. The writer of this gospel calls himmerely “John” without using the phrase “the Baptist,” unlike theother gospels which use the additional description to identify him(Mt 3:1; Mk 6:14; Lk 7:20). Moreover, John the apostle (or, son ofZebedee) never identified himself directly by name in the gospeleven though he was one of the 3 most intimate associates of Jesus(Mt 17:1). Such silence argues strongly that John the apostle au-thored the gospel and that his readers knew full well that he com-posed the gospel that bears his name. For more on John the Baptist,cf. Mt 3:1-6; Mk 1:2-6; Lk 1:5-25,57-80.

1:7 witness, to testify. The terms “witness” or “to testify” receivespecial attention in this gospel, reflecting the courtroom languageof the OT where the truth of a matter was to be established on thebasis of multiple witnesses (8:17,18; cf. Dt 17:6; 19:15). Not only didJohn the Baptist witness regarding Jesus as Messiah and Son of God(vv. 19-34; 3:27-30; 5:35), but there were other witnesses: 1) theSamaritan woman (4:29); 2) the works of Jesus (10:25); 3) the Father(5:32-37); 4) the OT (5:39,40); 5) the crowd (12:17); and 6) the HolySpirit (15:26,27). that all might believe through Him. “Him” refersnot to Christ but to John as the agent who witnessed to Christ. The

6 1 Or came into being a Mt 3:1 7 1 Lit This one 2 Lit for testimony a Jn1:15, 19, 32; 3:26; 5:33 b Jn 1:12; Ac 19:4; Gal 3:26

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8 1 Lit That one a Jn 1:209 1 Or which enlightens

every person cominginto the world a 1 Jn2:8

10 a 1Co 8:6; Col 1:16;Heb 1:2

11 1 Or own things,possessions, domain

12 a Jn 11:52; Gal 3:26b Jn 1:7; 3:18; 1 Jn3:23; 5:13

13 1 Or begotten 2 Litbloods a Jn 3:5f; Jas1:18; 1Pe 1:23;

them He gave the right to become a chil-dren of God, even b to those who believe inHis name, 13 a who were 1 born, not of2 blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of thewill of man, but of God.

The Incarnation of Christ14 And a the Word b became flesh, and

1 c dwelt among us, and d we saw His glory,

all might believe through him. 8 1 a He wasnot the Light, but he came to testify aboutthe Light.

The Rejection or Acceptance of Christ9 There was a the true Light 1 which, com-

ing into the world, enlightens every man.10 He was in the world, and a the world wasmade through Him, and the world did notknow Him. 11 He came to His 1 own, andthose who were His own did not receiveHim. 12 But as many as received Him, to

purpose of his testimony was to produce faith in Jesus Christ as theSavior of the world.

1:8 He was not the Light. While John the Baptist was the agentof belief, Jesus Christ is the object of belief. Although John’s personand ministry were vitally important (Mt 11:11), he was merely theforerunner who announced the coming of the Messiah. Many yearsafter John’s ministry and death, some still failed to understandJohn’s subordinate role to Jesus (Ac 19:1-3).

1:9 the true Light . . . coming into the world. This phrase high-lights the incarnation of Jesus Christ (v. 14; 3:16). enlightens everyman. Through God’s sovereign power, every man has enough lightto be responsible. God has planted His knowledge in man throughgeneral revelation in creation and conscience. The result of generalrevelation, however, does not produce salvation but either leads tothe complete light of Jesus Christ or produces condemnation inthose who reject such “light” (see notes on Ro 1:19,20; 2:12-16). Thecoming of Jesus Christ was the fulfillment and embodiment of thelight that God had placed inside the heart of man. the world. Thebasic sense of this Gr. word meaning “an ornament” is illustrated bythe word “adornment” (1Pe 3:3). While the NT uses it a total of 185times, John had a particular fondness for this term, using it 78 timesin his gospel, 24 times in 1-3 John and 3 times in Revelation. Johngives it several shades of meaning: 1) the physical created universe(v. 9; cf. v. 3; 21:24,25); 2) humanity in general (3:16; 6:33,51; 12:19);and 3) the invisible spiritual system of evil dominated by Satan andall that it offers in opposition to God, His Word, and His people (3:19;4:42; 7:7; 14:17,22,27,30; 15:18,19; 16:8,20, 33; 17:6,9,14; cf. 1Co 1:21;2Pe 1:4; 1Jn 5:19). The latter concept is the significant new use thatthe term acquires in the NT and that predominates in John. Thus, inthe majority of times that John uses the word, it has decidedly neg-ative overtones.

1:11 His own . . . His own. The first usage of “His own” most like-ly refers to the world of mankind in general, while the second refersto the Jewish nation. As Creator, the world belongs to the Word asHis property but the world did not even recognize Him due to spiri-tual blindness (cf. also v. 10). John used the second occurrence of“His own” in a narrower sense to refer to Jesus’ own physical lin-eage, the Jews. Although they possessed the Scriptures that testifiedof His person and coming, they still did not accept Him (Is 65:2,3; Jer7:25). This theme of Jewish rejection of their promised Messiah re-ceives special attention in John’s gospel (12:37-41).

1:12,13 These verses stand in contrast to vv. 10,11. John softensthe sweeping rejection of Messiah by stressing a believing remnant.This previews the book since the first 12 chapters stress the rejectionof Christ, while chaps. 13–21 focus on the believing remnant whoreceived Him.

1:12 as many as received Him . . . to those who believe in Hisname. The second phrase describes the first. To receive Him who isthe Word of God means to acknowledge His claims, place one’s faithin Him, and thereby yield allegiance to Him. gave. The term empha-sizes the grace of God involved in the gift of salvation (cf. Eph 2:8-

10). the right. Those who receive Jesus, the Word, receive full au-thority to claim the exalted title of “children of God.” His name. De-notes the character of the person himself. See note on 14:13,14.

1:13 of God. The divine side of salvation: ultimately it is not aman’s will that produces salvation but God’s will (cf. 3:6-8; Tit 3:5;1Jn 2:29).

1:14 the Word became flesh. While Christ as God was uncreatedand eternal (see notes on v. 1), the word “became” emphasizesChrist’s taking on humanity (cf. Heb 1:1-3; 2:14-18). This reality issurely the most profound ever because it indicates that the Infinitebecame finite; the Eternal was conformed to time; the Invisible be-came visible; the supernatural One reduced Himself to the natural.In the incarnation, however, the Word did not cease to be God butbecame God in human flesh, i.e., undiminished deity in human formas a man (1Ti 3:16). dwelt. Meaning “to pitch a tabernacle,” or “livein a tent.” The term recalls to mind the OT tabernacle where Godmet with Israel before the temple was constructed (Ex 25:8). It wascalled the “tent of meeting” (Ex 33:7; “tabernacle of witness”—LXX)where “the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a manspeaks to his friend” (Ex 33:11). In the NT, God chose to dwellamong His people in a far more personal way through becoming aman. In the OT, when the tabernacle was completed, God’s Sheki-nah presence filled the entire structure (Ex 40:34; cf. 1Ki 8:10). Whenthe Word became flesh, the glorious presence of deity was embod-ied in Him (cf. Col 2:9). we saw His glory. Although His deity mayhave been veiled in human flesh, glimpses exist in the gospels of Hisdivine majesty. The disciples saw glimpses of His glory on the Mountof Transfiguration (Mt 17:1-8). The reference to Christ’s glory, how-ever, was not only visible but also spiritual. They saw Him displaythe attributes or characteristics of God (grace, goodness, mercy, wis-dom, truth, etc.; cf. Ex 33:18-23). glory as of . . . the Father. Jesus asGod displayed the same essential glory as the Father. They are onein essential nature (cf. 5:17-30; 8:19; 10:30). only begotten. Theterm “only begotten” is a mistranslation of the Gr. word. The worddoes not come from the term meaning “beget” but instead has theidea of “the only beloved one.” It, therefore, has the idea of singularuniqueness, of being beloved like no other. By this word, John em-phasized the exclusive character of the relationship between the Fa-ther and the Son in the Godhead (cf. 3:16,18; 1Jn 4:9). It does notconnote origin but rather unique prominence; e.g., it was used ofIsaac (Heb 11:17) who was Abraham’s second son (Ishmael beingthe first; cf. Ge 16:15 with Ge 21:2,3). full of grace and truth. Johnprobably had Ex 33,34 in mind. On that occasion, Moses requestedthat God display His glory to him. The Lord replied to Moses that Hewould make all His “goodness” pass before him, and then as Hepassed by God declared “The LORD . . . compassionate and gracious,slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth” (Ex33:18,19; 34:5-7). These attributes of God’s glory emphasize thegoodness of God’s character, especially in relationship to salvation.Jesus as Yahweh of the OT (8:58; “I am”) displayed the same divineattributes when He tabernacled among men in the NT era (Col 2:9).

1 Jn 2:29; 3:9 14 1 Or tabernacled; i.e. lived temporarily a Rev 19:13b Ro 1:3; Gal 4:4; Php 2:7f; 1Ti 3:16; Heb 2:14; 1 Jn 1:1f; 4:2; 2 Jn 7 c Rev21:3 d Lk 9:32; Jn 2:11; 17:22, 24; 2Pe 1:16f; 1 Jn 1:1

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14 2 Or unique, onlyone of His kind e Jn1:17; Ro 5:21; 6:14f Jn 8:32; 14:6; 18:37

15 1 Lit has becomebefore me a Jn 1:7b Mt 3:11; Jn 1:27, 30c Jn 1:30

16 1 Lit we all received2 Lit grace for gracea Eph 1:23; 3:19;4:13; Col 1:19; 2:9

17 1 Lit came to be a Jn7:19 b Jn 1:14; Ro5:21; 6:14 c Jn 8:32;14:6; 18:37

18 a Ex 33:20; Jn 6:46;Col 1:15; 1Ti 6:16;1 Jn 4:12 b Jn 3:16,18; 1 Jn 4:9 c Lk16:22; Jn 13:23 d Jn3:11

19 a Jn 1:7 b Jn 2:18,20; 5:10, 15f, 18;6:41, 52; 7:1, 11, 13,15, 35; 8:22, 48, 52,57; 9:18, 22; 10:24,31, 33 c Mt 15:1

20 1 I.e. the Messiaha Lk 3:15f; Jn 3:28

Are you a Elijah?” And he *said, “I am not.”“Are you b the Prophet?” And he answered,“No.” 22 Then they said to him, “Who areyou, so that we may give an answer tothose who sent us? What do you say aboutyourself?” 23 He said, “I am a A VOICE OF ONE

CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, ‘MAKE STRAIGHT

THE WAY OF THE LORD,’ as Isaiah the prophetsaid.”

24 Now they had been sent from thePharisees. 25 They asked him, and said tohim, “Why then are you baptizing, if youare not the 1 Christ, nor Elijah, nor a theProphet?” 26 John answered them saying,“a I baptize 1 in water, but among youstands One whom you do not know. 27 It isa He who comes after me, the b thong ofwhose sandal I am not worthy to untie.”

glory as of 2 the only begotten from the Fa-ther, full of e grace and f truth. 15 John *a tes-tified about Him and cried out, saying,“This was He of whom I said, ‘b He whocomes after me 1 has a higher rank than I,c for He existed before me.’” 16 For of Hisa fullness 1 we have all received, and 2 graceupon grace. 17 For a the Law was giventhrough Moses; b grace and c truth 1 were re-alized through Jesus Christ. 18 a No one hasseen God at any time; b the only begottenGod who is c in the bosom of the Father,d He has explained Him.

John’s Witness to the Priests and LevitesMt 3:1-12; Mk 1:2-8; Lk 3:3-16

19 This is a the testimony of John, whenb the Jews sent to him priests and Levitesc from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who areyou?” 20 And he confessed and did notdeny, but confessed, “a I am not 1 theChrist.” 21 They asked him, “What then?

1:15 John the Baptist’s testimony corroborates John the apostle’sstatement regarding the eternality of the Incarnate Word (cf. v. 14).

1:16 grace upon grace. This phrase emphasizes the superabun-dance of grace that has been displayed by God toward mankind, es-pecially believers (Eph 1:5-8; 2:7).

1:17,18 Corroborating the truth of v. 14, these verses draw aclosing contrast to the prologue. The law, given by Moses, was not adisplay of God’s grace but God’s demand for holiness. God designedthe law as a means to demonstrate the unrighteousness of man inorder to show the need for a Savior, Jesus Christ (Ro 3:19,20; Gal3:10-14,21-26). Furthermore, the law revealed only a part of truthand was preparatory in nature. The reality or full truth toward whichthe law pointed came through the person of Jesus Christ.

1:18 who is in the bosom of the Father. This term denotes the mu-tual intimacy, love and knowledge existing in the Godhead (see 13:23;Lk 16:22,23). explained. Theologians derived the term “exegesis” or“to interpret” from this word. John meant that all that Jesus is anddoes interprets and explains who God is and what He does (14:8-10).

1:19-37 In these verses, John presented the first of many wit-nesses to prove that Jesus is the Messiah and Son of God, thus rein-forcing his main theme (20:30,31). The testimony of John the Baptistwas given on 3 different days to 3 different groups (cf. vv. 29,35,36).Each time, he spoke of Christ in a different way and emphasized dis-tinct aspects regarding Him. The events in these verses took place inA.D. 26/27, just a few months after John’s baptism of Jesus (cf. Mt3:13-17; Lk 3:21,22).

1:19 John. John, born into a priestly family, belonged to the tribeof Levi (Lk 1:5). He began his ministry in the Jordan Valley when hewas approximately 29 or 30 years old and boldly proclaimed theneed for spiritual repentance and preparation for the coming of theMessiah. He was the cousin of Jesus Christ and served as Hisprophetic forerunner (Mt 3:3; Lk 1:5-25,36). the Jews . . . fromJerusalem. This may refer to the Sanhedrin, the main governingbody of the Jewish nation. The Sanhedrin was controlled by thefamily of the High-Priest, and thus the envoys would naturally bepriests and Levites who would be interested in John’s ministry, bothhis message and his baptism.

1:20 I am not the Christ. Some thought that John was the Mes-siah (Lk 3:15-17). Christ. The term “Christ” is the Gr. equivalent ofthe Heb. term for “Messiah.”

1:21 Are you Elijah? Malachi 4:5 (see note there) promises thatthe prophet Elijah will return before Messiah establishes His earthlykingdom. If John was the forerunner of Messiah, was he Elijah, theyasked? The angel announcing John’s birth said that John would gobefore Jesus “in the spirit and power of Elijah” (Lk 1:17), thus indi-cating that someone other than literal Elijah could fulfill the prophe-cy. God sent John who was like Elijah, i.e., one who had the sametype of ministry, the same power and similar personality (2Ki 1:8; cf.Mt 3:4). If they had received Jesus as Messiah, John would have ful-filled that prophecy (see notes on Mt 11:14; Mk 9:13; Lk 1:17; Rev11:5,6). Are you the Prophet? This is a reference to Dt 18:15-18which predicted God would raise up a great prophet like Moses whowould function as His voice. While some in John’s time interpretedthis prophecy as referring to another forerunner of Messiah, the NT(Ac 3:22,23; 7:37) applies the passage to Jesus.

1:23 John quoted and applied Is 40:3 to himself (cf. Mt 3:3; Mk1:3; Lk 3:4). In the original context of Is 40:3, the prophet heard avoice calling for the leveling of a path. This call was a prophetic pic-ture that foreshadowed the final and greatest return of Israel to theirGod from spiritual darkness and alienation through the spiritual re-demption accomplished by the Messiah (cf. Ro 11:25-27). In humili-ty, John compared himself to a voice rather than a person, thus fo-cusing the attention exclusively upon Christ (cf. Lk 17:10).

1:25 baptizing. Since John had identified himself as a mere voice(v. 24), the question arose as to his authority for baptizing. The OTassociated the coming of Messiah with repentance and spiritualcleansing (Eze 36,37; Zec 13:1). John focused attention on his posi-tion as forerunner of Messiah, who used traditional proselyte bap-tism as a symbol of the need to recognize those Jews who were out-side God’s saving covenant like Gentiles. They too needed spiritualcleansing and preparation (repentance—Mt 3:11; Mk 1:4; Lk 3:7,8)for Messiah’s advent. See notes on Mt 3:6,11,16,17 for an explanationof the significance of John’s baptism.

1:27 John the Baptist’s words here continue a theme of the pre-eminence of Messiah in the prologue (vv. 6-8,15) and demonstrateextraordinary humility. Each time John had opportunity to focus onhimself in these encounters, he instead shifted the focus onto Messi-ah. John went so far as to state that he, unlike a slave that was re-quired to remove his master’s shoes, was not even worthy of per-forming this action in relationship to Messiah.

21 a Mt 11:14; 16:14 b Dt 18:15, 18; Mt 21:11; Jn 1:25 23 a Is 40:3; Mt3:3; Mk 1:3; Lk 3:4 25 1 I.e. Messiah a Dt 18:15, 18; Mt 21:11; Jn 1:2126 1 The Gr here can be translated in, with or by a Mt 3:11; Mk 1:8; Lk3:16; Ac 1:5 27 a Mt 3:11; Jn 1:30 b Mt 3:11; Mk 1:7; Lk 3:16

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28 a Jn 3:26; 10:4029 a Is 53:7; Jn 1:36; Ac

8:32; 1Pe 1:19; Rev5:6, 8, 12f; 6:1 b Mt1:21; 1 Jn 3:5

30 1 Lit has becomebefore me a Mt 3:11;Jn 1:27 b Jn 1:15

31 1 I.e. as the Messiah2 The Gr here can betranslated in, with orby

32 a Jn 1:7 b Mt 3:16;Mk 1:10; Lk 3:22

33 1 I.e. as the Messiah2 The Gr here can betranslated in, with orby a Mt 3:11; Mk 1:8;Lk 3:16; Ac 1:5

34 a Mt 4:3; Jn 1:4935 1 Lit and a Jn 1:2936 a Jn 1:2938 a Mt 23:7f; Jn 1:4939 1 Perhaps 10 a.m.

(Roman time)40 a Mt 4:18-22; Mk

1:16-20; Lk 5:2-11; Jn1:40-42

41 1 Gr Anointed Onea Da 9:25; Jn 4:25

and have testified that this is a the Son ofGod.”

Andrew and Peter Follow Christ35 Again a the next day John was stand-

ing 1 with two of his disciples, 36 and helooked at Jesus as He walked, and *said,“Behold, a the Lamb of God!” 37 The twodisciples heard him speak, and they fol-lowed Jesus. 38 And Jesus turned and sawthem following, and *said to them, “Whatdo you seek?” They said to Him, “a Rabbi(which translated means Teacher), whereare You staying?” 39 He *said to them,“Come, and you will see.” So they cameand saw where He was staying; and theystayed with Him that day, for it was aboutthe 1 tenth hour. 40 a One of the two whoheard John speak and followed Him, wasAndrew, Simon Peter’s brother. 41 He*found first his own brother Simon and *said to him, “We have found the a Mes-siah” (which translated means 1 Christ).

28 These things took place in Bethany a be-yond the Jordan, where John was baptiz-ing.

John’s Witness at Christ’s BaptismMt 3:13-17; Mk 1:9-11; Lk 3:21, 22

29 The next day he *saw Jesus coming tohim and *said, “Behold, a the Lamb of Godwho b takes away the sin of the world!30 This is He on behalf of whom I said,‘a After me comes a Man who 1 has a higherrank than I, b for He existed before me.’ 31 Idid not recognize 1 Him, but so that Hemight be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing 2 in water.” 32 John a testified saying, “b I have seen the Spirit descend-ing as a dove out of heaven, and He re-mained upon Him. 33 I did not recognize1 Him, but He who sent me to baptize 2 inwater said to me, ‘He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remainingupon Him, a this is the One who baptizes2 in the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I myself have seen,

1:28 Bethany. Some translations render this word as“Bethabara.” Some feel that John incorrectly identified Bethany asthe place of these events. The solution is that two Bethanys existed,i.e., one near Jerusalem where Mary, Martha, and Lazarus lived (11:1)and one “beyond the Jordan” near the region of Galilee. Since Johntook great pains to identify the other Bethany’s close proximity toJerusalem, he most likely was referring here to that other town withthe same name.

1:29-34 This portion deals with John’s witness to a second groupof Jews on the second day (see vv. 19-28 for the first group and day)regarding Jesus. This section forms something of a bridge. It contin-ues the theme of John the Baptist’s witness but also introduces alengthy list of titles applied to Jesus: Lamb of God (vv. 29,36), Rabbi(vv. 38,49), Messiah/Christ (v. 41), Son of God (vv. 34,49), King of Is-rael (v. 49), Son of Man (v. 51), and “Him of whom Moses in the Law,and also the Prophets wrote” (v. 45).

1:29 The next day. This phrase probably refers to the day afterJohn’s response to the Jerusalem delegation. It also initiates a se-quence of days (v. 43; 2:1) that culminated in the miracle at Cana(2:1-11). the Lamb of God. The use of a lamb for sacrifice was veryfamiliar to Jews. A lamb was used as a sacrifice during Passover (Ex12:1-36); a lamb was led to the slaughter in the prophecies of Isaiah(Is 53:7); a lamb was offered in the daily sacrifices of Israel (Lv 14:12-21; cf. Heb 10:5-7). John the Baptist used this expression as a refer-ence to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus on the cross to atone for thesins of the world, a theme which John the apostle carries through-out his writings (19:36; cf. Rev 5:1-6; 7:17; 17:14) and that appears inother NT writings (e.g., 1Pe 1:19). sin of the world. See note on v. 9;cf. 3:16; 6:33,51. In this context “world” has the connotation of hu-manity in general, not specifically every person. The use of the sin-gular “sin” in conjunction with “of the world” indicates that Jesus’sacrifice for sin potentially reaches all human beings without distinc-tion (cf. 1Jn 2:2). John makes clear, however, that its efficacious ef-fect is only for those who receive Christ (vv. 11,12). For discussion ofthe relation of Christ’s death to the world, see note on 2Co 5:19.

1:31 I did not recognize Him. Although John was Jesus’ cousin,he did not know Jesus as the “Coming One” or “Messiah” (v. 30).

1:32 the Spirit descending. God had previously communicatedto John that this sign was to indicate the promised Messiah (v. 33),

so when John witnessed this act, he was able to identify the Messi-ah as Jesus (cf. Mt 3:16; Mk 1:10; Lk 3:22).

1:34 the Son of God. Although, in a limited sense, believers canbe called “sons of God” (e.g., v. 12; Mt 5:9; Ro 8:14), John uses thisphrase with the full force as a title that points to the unique onenessand intimacy that Jesus sustains to the Father as “Son.” The termcarries the idea of the deity of Jesus as Messiah (v. 49; 5:16-30; cf.2Sa 7:14; Ps 2:7; see notes on Heb 1:1-9).

1:35-51 This portion deals with John’s witness to a third group,i.e., some of John’s disciples, on the third day (see vv. 19-28, 29-34for the first and second groups) regarding Jesus. Consistent withJohn’s humility (v. 27), he focuses the attention of his own disciplesonto Jesus (v. 37).

1:37 they followed Jesus. Although the verb “follow” usuallymeans “to follow as a disciple” in the writing of the apostle (v. 43;8:12; 12:26; 21:19,20,22), it may also have a neutral sense (11:31).The “following” here does not necessarily mean that they becamepermanent disciples at this time. The implication may be that theywent after Jesus to examine Him more closely because of John’s tes-timony. This event constituted a preliminary exposure of John theBaptist’s disciples to Jesus (e.g., Andrew; 1:40). They eventually ded-icated their lives to Him as true disciples and apostles when Jesuscalled them to permanent service after these events (Mt 4:18-22;9:9; Mk 1:16-20). At this point in the narrative, John the Baptist fadesfrom the scene and the attention focuses upon the ministry ofChrist.

1:39 the tenth hour. John is reckoning time by the Romanmethod of the day beginning at midnight. See note on Mk 15:25. Thiswould make the time about 10:00 a.m. John mentions the precisetime most likely to emphasize that he was the other disciple of Johnthe Baptist who was with Andrew (v. 40). As an eyewitness to theseevents occurring on 3 successive days, John’s first meeting withJesus was so life-changing that he remembered the exact hourwhen he first met the Lord.

1:41 Messiah. The term “Messiah” is a transliteration of a Heb. orAram. verbal adjective that means “Anointed One.” It comes from averb that means “to anoint” someone as an action involved in con-secrating that person to a particular office or function. While theterm at first applied to the king of Israel (“the LORD’s anointed”—

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42 1 Gr Joannes 2 I.e.Rock or Stone a Mt16:17; Jn 21:15-17b 1Co 1:12; 3:22; 9:5;15:5; Gal 1:18; 2:9,11, 14 c Mt 16:18

43 a Jn 1:29, 35 b Mt 4:12; Jn 1:28;2:11 c Mt 10:3; Jn1:44-48; 6:5, 7;12:21f; 14:8f d Mt8:22

44 a Mt 10:3; Jn 1:44-48; 6:5, 7; 12:21f;14:8f b Mt 11:21

45 a Mt 10:3; Jn 1:44-48; 6:5, 7; 12:21f;14:8f b Jn 1:46-49;21:2 c Lk 24:27 d Mt2:23 e Lk 2:48; 3:23;4:22; Jn 6:42

46 a Jn 7:41, 52 b Mt10:3; Jn 1:44-48; 6:5,7; 12:21f; 14:8f

47 a Ro 9:4

indeed, in whom there is no deceit!”48 Nathanael *said to Him, “How do Youknow me?” Jesus answered and said tohim, “Before a Philip called you, when youwere under the fig tree, I saw you.”49 Nathanael answered Him, “a Rabbi, Youare b the Son of God; You are the c King of Is-rael.” 50 Jesus answered and said to him,“Because I said to you that I saw you underthe fig tree, do you believe? You will seegreater things than these.” 51 And He *saidto him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you willsee a the heavens opened and b the angelsof God ascending and descending on c theSon of Man.”

42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked athim and said, “You are Simon the son of1 a John; you shall be called b Cephas”(which is translated 2 c Peter).

Philip and Nathanael Follow Christ43 a The next day He purposed to go into

b Galilee, and He *found c Philip. And Jesus*said to him, “d Follow Me.” 44 Now a Philipwas from b Bethsaida, of the city of Andrewand Peter. 45 a Philip *found b Nathanael and*said to him, “We have found Him of whomc Moses in the Law and also c the Prophetswrote—Jesus of d Nazareth, e the son ofJoseph.” 46 Nathanael *said to him, “a Canany good thing come out of Nazareth?”b Philip said to him, “Come and see.”47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him,and *said of him, “Behold, an a Israelite

1Sa 16:6), the High-Priest (“the anointed priest,” Lv 4:3) and, in onepassage, the patriarchs (“my anointed ones,” Ps 105:15), the termeventually came to point above all to the prophesied “Coming One”or “Messiah” in His role as prophet, priest, and king. The term“Christ,” a Gr. word (verbal adjective) that comes from a verb mean-ing “to anoint,” is used in translating the Heb. term, so that theterms “Messiah” or “Christ” are titles and not personal names ofJesus.

1:42 Jesus looked at him. Jesus knows hearts thoroughly (vv. 43-51) and not only sees into them (vv. 47,48) but also transforms aperson into what He wants him to become. you shall be calledCephas. Up to this time, Peter had been known as “Simon the sonof John” (“Jonah” in some translations; the name “Jonah” in Aram.means “John”; cf. 21:15-17; Mt 16:17). The term “Cephas” means“rock” in Aram. which is translated “Peter” in Greek. Jesus’ assign-ment of the name “Cephas” or “Peter” to Simon occurred at the out-set of his ministry (cf. Mt 16:18; Mk 3:16). The statement not only ispredictive of what Peter would be called but also declarative of howJesus would transform his character and use him in relationship tothe foundation of the church (cf. 21:18,19; Mt 16:16-18; Ac2:14–4:32).

1:43-51 This section introduces the fourth day since the begin-ning of John the Baptist’s witness (cf. vv. 19,29,35).

1:44 Bethsaida, of the city of Andrew and Peter. While Mk1:21,29 locates Peter’s house in Capernaum, John relates that hewas from Bethsaida. Resolution centers in the fact that Peter (andAndrew) most likely grew up in Bethsaida and later relocated to Ca-pernaum in the same way that Jesus was consistently identifiedwith His hometown of Nazareth, though He lived elsewhere later(Mt 2:23; 4:13; Mk 1:9; Lk 1:26).

1:45 Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the Prophetswrote. This phrase encapsulates the stance of John’s whole gospel:Jesus is the fulfillment of OT Scripture (cf. v. 21; 5:39; Dt 18:15-19; Lk24:44-47; Ac 10:43; 18:28; 26:22,23; Ro 1:2; 1Co 15:3; 1Pe 1:10,11;Rev 19:10).

1:46 Can any good thing come out of Nazareth? Nathanael wasfrom Cana (21:2), another town in Galilee. While Galileans were de-spised by Judeans, Galileans themselves despised people fromNazareth. In light of 7:52, Nathanael’s scorn may have centered inthe fact that Nazareth was an insignificant village without seemingprophetic importance (cf., however, Mt 2:23). Later, some wouldcontemptuously refer to Christians as the “sect of the Nazarenes” (Ac24:5).

1:47 no deceit. Jesus’ point was that Nathanael’s bluntness re-

vealed that he was an Israelite without duplicitous motives who waswilling to examine for himself the claims being made about Jesus.The term reveals an honest, seeking heart. The reference here maybe an allusion to Ge 27:35 where Jacob, in contrast to the sincereNathanael, was known for his trickery. The meaning may be that theemployment of trickery characterized not only Jacob but also his de-scendants. In Jesus’ mind, an honest and sincere Israelite had be-come an exception rather than the rule (cf. 2:23-25).

1:48 I saw you. A brief glimpse of Jesus’ supernatural knowledge.Not only was Jesus’ brief summary of Nathanael accurate (v. 47), butHe also revealed information that could only be known byNathanael himself. Perhaps Nathanael had some significant or out-standing experience of communion with God at the location, and hewas able to recognize Jesus’ allusion to it. At any rate, Jesus hadknowledge of this event not available to men.

1:49 the Son of God . . . the King of Israel. Jesus’ display of su-pernatural knowledge and Philip’s witness removed Nathanael’sdoubts, so John added the witness of Nathanael to this section. Theuse of “the” with “Son of God” most likely indicates that the expres-sion is to be understood as bearing its full significance (cf. v. 34;11:27). For Nathanael, here was One who could not be describedmerely in human terms.

1:51 Truly, truly. Cf. 5:19,24,25. A phrase used frequently for em-phasizing the importance and truth of the coming statement. heav-ens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending.In light of the context of v. 47, this verse most likely refers to Ge28:12 where Jacob dreamed about a ladder from heaven. Jesus’point to Nathanael was that just like Jacob experienced supernatu-ral or heaven-sent revelation, Nathanael and the other discipleswould experience supernatural communication confirming whoJesus was. Moreover, the term “Son of Man” replaced the ladder inJacob’s dream, signifying that Jesus was the means of access be-tween God and man. Son of Man. See note on Mt 8:20. This is Jesus’favorite self-designation, for it was mostly spoken by Jesus whoused it over 80 times. In the NT, it refers only to Jesus and appearsmostly in the gospels (cf. Ac 7:56). In the fourth gospel, the expres-sion occurs 13 times and is most commonly associated with thethemes of crucifixion and suffering (3:14; 8:28) and revelation(6:27,53) but also with eschatological authority (5:27). While theterm at times may refer merely to a human being or as a substitutefor “I” (6:27; cf. 6:20), it especially takes on an eschatological signifi-cance referring to Da 7:13,14 where the “Son of Man” or Messiahcomes in glory to receive the kingdom from the “Ancient of Days”(i.e., the Father).

48 a Mt 10:3; Jn 1:44-48; 6:5, 7; 12:21f; 14:8f 49 a Jn 1:38 b Jn 1:34c Mt 2:2; 27:42; Mk 15:32; Jn 12:13 51 a Eze 1:1; Mt 3:16; Lk 3:21; Ac7:56; 10:11; Rev 19:11 b Ge 28:12 c Mt 8:20

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CHAPTER 2

1 a Jn 1:29, 35, 43 b Jn2:11; 4:46; 21:2 c Mt12:46

2 a Jn 1:40-49; 2:12,17, 22; 3:22; 4:2, 8,27; 6:8, 12, 16, 22,24, 60f, 66; 7:3; 8:31

4 1 Lit what to Me andto you (a Hebrewidiom) a Jn 19:26b Mt 8:29 c Jn 7:6, 8,30; 8:20

5 a Mt 12:466 1 Lit two or three

measures a Mk 7:3f;Jn 3:25

8 1 Or steward9 a Jn 4:46

10 1 Or have becomedrunk a Mt 24:49; Lk12:45; Ac 2:15; 1Co11:21; Eph 5:18; 1Th5:7; Rev 17:2, 6

11 1 Or attestingmiracles; i.e. onewhich points to the

the servants who had drawn the waterknew), the headwaiter *called the bride-groom, 10 and *said to him, “Every manserves the good wine first, and when thepeople a have 1 drunk freely, then he serves thepoorer wine; but you have kept the goodwine until now.” 11 This beginning of His1 a signs Jesus did in Cana of b Galilee, andmanifested His c glory, and His disciples be-lieved in Him.

12 After this He went down to a Caper-naum, He and His b mother and His b broth-ers and His c disciples; and they stayedthere a few days.

Christ Cleanses the Temple13 a The Passover of the Jews was near,

and Jesus b went up to Jerusalem. 14 a And

Christ Changes Water to Wine

2On a the third day there was a weddingin b Cana of Galilee, and the c mother of

Jesus was there; 2 and both Jesus and Hisa disciples were invited to the wedding.3 When the wine ran out, the mother ofJesus *said to Him, “They have no wine.”4 And Jesus *said to her, “a Woman, 1 b whatdoes that have to do with us? c My hour hasnot yet come.” 5 His a mother *said to theservants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”6 Now there were six stone waterpots setthere a for the Jewish custom of purification,containing 1 twenty or thirty gallons each.7 Jesus *said to them, “Fill the waterpotswith water.” So they filled them up to thebrim. 8 And He *said to them, “Draw someout now and take it to the 1 headwaiter.” Sothey took it to him. 9 When the headwaitertasted the water a which had become wine,and did not know where it came from (but

2:1-11 John relates the first great sign performed by Jesus todemonstrate His deity, the turning of water into wine. Only God cancreate from nothing. John identifies 8 miracles in his gospel thatconstitute “signs” or confirmation of who Jesus is. Each of the 8 mir-acles were different; no two were alike (cf. v. 11).

2:1 On the third day. This phrase has reference to the last narrat-ed event, i.e., the calling of Philip and Nathanael (1:43). wedding.Such a wedding celebration in Israel could last for a week. Financialresponsibility lay with the groom (vv. 9,10). To run out of wine forthe guests would have been an embarrassment to the groom andmay have even opened him to a potential lawsuit from the relativesof the bride. Cana of Galilee. Cana was the home of Nathanael(21:2). Its exact location is unknown. A probable location is KhirbetQana, a village now in ruins approximately 9 mi. N of Nazareth.

2:2 both Jesus and His disciples were invited. The fact thatJesus, His mother, and His disciples all attended the wedding sug-gests that the wedding may have been for a relative or close familyfriend. The disciples who accompanied Him are the 5 mentioned inchap. 1: Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip, Nathanael, and the unnameddisciple (1:35) who was surely John, who also witnessed this miracle.

2:3 wine. The wine served was subject to fermentation. In theancient world, however, to quench thirst without inducing drunken-ness, wine was diluted with water to between one-third and one-tenth of its strength. Due to the climate and circumstances, even“new wine,” or “sweet wine,” fermented quickly and had an inebriat-ing effect if not mixed (Ac 2:13). Because of a lack of water purifica-tion process, wine mixed with water was also safer to drink thanwater alone. While the Bible condemns drunkenness, it does notnecessarily condemn the consumption of wine (Ps 104:15; Pr 20:1;see notes on Eph 5:18).

2:4 Woman. The term is not necessarily impolite, but it doeshave the effect of distancing Jesus from His mother and her request.Perhaps it has the equivalent of “ma’am.” what does that have todo with us? The expression, common in Semitic idiom (Jdg 11:12;2Sa 16:10), always distances the two parties, the speaker’s tone con-veying some degree of reproach. Jesus’ tone was not rude, butabrupt. The phrase asks what is shared in common between theparties. The thrust of Jesus’ comment was that He had entered intothe purpose for His mission on earth, so that He subordinated all ac-tivities to the fulfillment of that mission. Mary had to recognize Himnot so much as a son whom she raised but as the promised Messiah

and Son of God. Cf. Mk 3:31-35. My hour has not yet come. Thephrase constantly refers to Jesus’ death and exaltation (7:30; 8:20;12:23,27; 13:1; 17:1). He was on a divine schedule decreed by Godbefore the foundation of the world. Since the prophets character-ized the messianic age as a time when wine would flow liberally (Jer31:12; Hos 14:7; Am 9:13,14), Jesus was likely referring to the factthat the necessity of the cross must come before the blessings ofthe millennial age.

2:6 Jewish custom of purification. The 6 water jars were madeof stone because stone was more impervious than earthenware anddid not contract uncleanness. Also, this made them more suitable toceremonial washing (cf. Mk 7:3,4).

2:11 signs. John used the word “signs” here to refer to significantdisplays of power that pointed beyond themselves to the deeper di-vine realities that could be perceived by the eyes of faith. By thisword, John emphasized that miracles were not merely displays ofpower but had a significance beyond the mere acts themselves.

2:13-25 John used this section where Jesus cleansed the templein righteous indignation to reinforce his main theme that He wasthe promised Messiah and Son of God. In this section, he highlight-ed 3 attributes of Jesus that confirm His deity: 1) His passion for rev-erence (vv. 13-17); 2) His power of resurrection (vv. 18-22); and 3) His perception of reality (vv. 23-25).

2:12 After this. The phrase “after this” (or similar wording suchas “after these things”) is a frequent connective between narrativesin this gospel (e.g., 3:22; 5:1,14; 6:1; 7:1; 11:7,11; 19:28,38). Johnplaced this verse here as a transition to explain Jesus’ movementfrom Cana in Galilee to Capernaum and eventual arrival at Jerusalemfor the Passover celebration. Capernaum was on the NW shore ofGalilee about 16 mi. NE of Cana.

2:13-17 The first way John demonstrated Christ’s deity in thenarrative of the temple cleansing was to show His passion for rever-ence. God alone exercises the right to regulate His worship.

2:13 Passover of the Jews. This is the first of 3 Passovers whichJohn mentions (v. 13; 6:4; 11:55). Jews selected the lamb on thetenth of the month, and celebrated Passover on the 14th day of thelunar month of Nisan (full moon at the end of Mar. or beginning ofApr.). They slaughtered the lamb between 3:00 and 6:00 p.m. on thenight of the feast. Passover commemorates the deliverance of theJews from slavery in Egypt when the angel of death “passed over”Jewish homes in Egypt whose “doorposts” were sprinkled with

supernatural power of God in redeeming grace a Jn 2:23; 3:2; 4:54; 6:2,14, 26, 30; 7:31; 9:16; 10:41; 11:47; 12:18, 37; 20:30 b Jn 1:43 c Jn 1:1412 a Mt 4:13 b Mt 12:46 c Jn 2:2 13 a Dt 16:1-6; Jn 5:1; 6:4; 11:55 b Lk2:41; Jn 2:23 14 a Jn 2:14-16: Mt 21:12ff; Mk 11:15, 17; Lk 19:45f; Mal3:1ff

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16 a Mt 21:12

1 Lit house b Lk 2:4917 a Jn 2:2 b Ps 69:918 1 Lit that You do these

a Jn 1:19 b Mt 12:3819 1 Or sanctuary a Mt

26:61; 27:40; Mk14:58; 15:29; Ac 6:14

“Take these things away; stop making b My Father’s house a 1 place of business.”17 His a disciples remembered that it waswritten, “b ZEAL FOR YOUR HOUSE WILL CON-SUME ME.” 18 a The Jews then said to Him,“b What sign do You show us 1 as yourauthority for doing these things?” 19 Je-sus answered them, “a Destroy this 1 tem-ple, and in three days I will raise it

He found in the temple those who wereselling oxen and sheep and doves, and themoney changers seated at their tables.15 And He made a scourge of cords, anddrove them all out of the temple, with thesheep and the oxen; and He poured out thecoins of the money changers and overturned their tables; 16 and to thosewho were selling a the doves He said,

blood (Ex 12:23-27). Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Jesus’ journeyingto Jerusalem for the Passover was a standard annual procedure forevery devout Jewish male over 12 years old (Ex 23:14-17). Jewishpilgrims crowded into Jerusalem for this greatest of Jewish feasts.

2:14 those who were selling . . . the money changers. Duringthe celebration of Passover, worshipers came from all over Israel andthe Roman Empire to Jerusalem. Because many traveled large dis-tances, it was inconvenient to bring their sacrificial animals withthem. Opportunistic merchants, seeing a chance to provide a serviceand probably eyeing considerable profit during this time, set upareas in the outer courts of the temple in order for travelers to buyanimals. The money changers were needed because the temple tax,paid annually by every conscientious Jewish male 20 years of age orolder (Ex 30:13,14; Mt 17:24-27), had to be in Jewish or Tyriancoinage (because of its high purity of silver). Those coming from for-eign lands would need to exchange their money into the propercoinage for the tax. The money changers charged a high fee for theexchange. With such a large group of travelers and because of theseasonal nature of the celebration, both the animal dealers andmoney exchangers exploited the situation for monetary gain (“rob-bers’ den”; Mt 21:13). Religion had become crass and materialistic.

2:15 As John recorded this cleansing of the temple at the begin-ning of Jesus’ ministry, the synoptic gospels record a temple cleans-ing at the end of Jesus’ ministry during the final Passover week be-fore Jesus’ crucifixion (Mt 21:12-17; Mk 11:15-18; Lk 19:45,46). Thehistorical circumstances and literary contexts of the two templecleansings differ so widely that attempts to equate the two are un-successful. Furthermore, that two cleansings occurred is entirelyconsistent with overall context of Jesus’ ministry, for the Jewish na-tion as a whole never recognized Jesus’ authority as Messiah (Mt23:37-39). Instead, they rejected His message as well as His person,making such repeated cleansing of the temple highly probable (aswell as necessary). drove them all out of the temple. When theholiness of God and His worship was at stake, Jesus took fast and fu-rious action. The “all” indicates that He drove not only men out butalso animals. Yet, although His physical action was forceful, it wasnot cruel. The moderation of His actions is seen in the fact that no ri-

otous uproar occurred; otherwise the specially large contingent ofRoman troops in Jerusalem at that time because of the Passovercrowds, stationed in the Antonia Fortress overlooking the temple,would have swiftly reacted. Although the primary reference is to theactions of the Messiah in the millennial kingdom, Jesus’ actions incleansing the temple were an initial fulfillment of Mal 3:1-3 (and Zec14:20,21) that speak of Messiah’s purifying the religious worship ofHis people.

2:16 stop making. The force of the Gr. imperative indicates thatJesus made a strong demand that they stop their current practice.God’s holiness demands holiness in worship. My Father’s. Johngave a subtle hint of Jesus’ divine Sonship as well as His messiahshipwith the recording of this phrase (see 5:17,18). house a place ofbusiness. Jesus may have intended a play on words. The word“business” pictures a trading house filled with wares.

2:17 Quoted from Ps 69:9 to indicate that Jesus would not toler-ate irreverence toward God. When David wrote this psalm, he wasbeing persecuted because of his zeal toward God’s house and hisdefense of God’s honor. The disciples were afraid that Jesus’ actionswould precipitate the same type of persecution. Paul quotes the lat-ter half of Ps 69:9 in Ro 15:3 (“THE REPROACHES OF THOSE WHO REPROACHED

YOU FELL ON ME”), clearly indicating the messianic nature that thepsalm had for the early church.

2:18-22 The second way John demonstrated Christ’s deity in theaccount of the temple cleansing was to show His power over deaththrough resurrection. Only God has this right.

2:18 The Jews. Most likely the temple authorities or representa-tives of the Sanhedrin (cf. 1:19). sign. The Jews demanded thatJesus show some type of miraculous sign that would indicate Hisauthority for the actions that He had just taken in regulating the ac-tivities of the temple. Their demand of a sign reveals that they hadnot grasped the significance of Jesus’ rebuke that centered in theirneed for proper attitudes and holiness in worship. Such an action it-self constituted a “sign” of Jesus’ person and authority. Moreover,they were requesting from Jesus a crass display of miracles on de-mand, further displaying their unbelief.

2:19 At his trial, the authorities charged Jesus (Mk 14:58; cf. Mk

��� T H E E I G H T S I G N S ���Turns water into wine (Jn 2:1-12) Jesus is the source of life.Heals a royal official’s son (Jn 4:46-54) Jesus is master over distance.Heals a lame man at the pool of Bethesda (Jn 5:1-17) Jesus is master over time.Feeds 5,000 (Jn 6:1-14) Jesus is the bread of life.Walks on water, stills a storm (Jn 6:15-21) Jesus is master over nature.Heals a man blind from birth (Jn 9:1-41) Jesus is the light of the world.Raises Lazarus from the dead (Jn 11:17-45) Jesus has power over death.Causes abundant catch of fish (Jn 21:6) Jesus is master over the animal world.

©1997 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

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20 1 Or sanctuary a Jn1:19 b Ezr 5:16

21 1 Or sanctuarya 1Co 6:19

22 a Jn 2:2 b Lk 24:8; Jn2:17; 12:16; 14:26c Ps 16:10; Lk 24:26f;Jn 20:9; Ac 13:33

23 a Jn 2:13 b Jn 2:11

24 a Ac 1:24; 15:825 a Mt 9:4; Jn 1:42,

47; 6:61, 64; 13:11

CHAPTER 3

1 a Jn 7:50; 19:39 b Lk23:13; Jn 7:26, 48

for a He knew all men, 25 and because Hedid not need anyone to testify concerningman, a for He Himself knew what was inman.

Christ Witnesses to Nicodemus

3Now there was a man of the Pharisees,named a Nicodemus, a b ruler of the Jews;

2 this man came to Jesus by night and saidto Him, “a Rabbi, we know that You havecome from God as a teacher; for no one cando these 1 b signs that You do unless c God is

up.” 20 a The Jews then said, “It took b forty-six years to build this 1 temple, and will You raise it up in three days?”21 But He was speaking of a the 1 temple of His body. 22 So when He was raisedfrom the dead, His a disciples b rememberedthat He said this; and they believed c theScripture and the word which Jesus hadspoken.

23 Now when He was in Jerusalem ata the Passover, during the feast, many be-lieved in His name, b observing His signswhich He was doing. 24 But Jesus, on Hispart, was not entrusting Himself to them,

15:29) with making a threatening statement against the temple, re-vealing that they did not understand Jesus’ response here. Onceagain John’s gospel supplements the other gospels at this point byindicating that Jesus enigmatically referred to His resurrection. Aswith His usage of parables, Jesus’ cryptic statement most likely wasdesigned to reveal the truth to His disciples but conceal its meaningfrom unbelievers who questioned Him (Mt 13:10,11). Only after Hisresurrection, however, did the disciples understand the real signifi-cance of this statement (v. 22; cf. Mt 12:40). Importantly, throughthe death and resurrection of Christ, temple worship in Jerusalemwas destroyed (cf. 4:21) and reinstituted in the hearts of those whowere built into a spiritual temple called the church (Eph 2:19-22).

2:20 forty-six years to build this temple. This was not a refer-ence to the Solomonic temple, since it had been destroyed duringthe Babylonian conquest in 586 B.C. When the captives returnedfrom Babylon, Zerubbabel and Jeshua began rebuilding the temple(Ezr 1–4). Encouraged by the prophets Haggai and Zechariah (Ezr5:1–6:18), the Jews completed the work in 516 B.C. In 20/19 B.C.Herod the Great began a reconstruction and expansion. Workerscompleted the main part of the project in 10 years, but other partswere still being constructed even at the time Jesus cleansed thetemple. Interestingly, the finishing touches on the whole enterprisewere still being made at its destruction by the Romans along withJerusalem in A.D. 70. The famous “Wailing Wall” is built on part of theHerodian temple foundation.

2:23-25 The third way John demonstrated Christ’s deity in theaccount of the temple cleansing was to show His perception of real-ity. Only God truly knows the hearts of men.

2:23,24 many believed in His name . . . . But Jesus . . . was notentrusting Himself to them. John based these two phrases on thesame Gr. verb for “believe.” This verse subtly reveals the true natureof belief from a biblical standpoint. Because of what they knew ofJesus from His miraculous signs, many came to believe in Him. How-ever, Jesus made it His habit not to wholeheartedly “entrust” or“commit” Himself to them because He knew their hearts. Verse 24indicates that Jesus looked for genuine conversion rather than en-thusiasm for the spectacular. The latter verse also leaves a subtledoubt as to the genuineness of the conversion of some (cf. 8:31,32).This emphatic contrast between vv. 23,24 in terms of type of trust,therefore, reveals that, lit., “belief into His name” involved muchmore than intellectual assent. It called for whole-hearted commit-ment of one’s life as Jesus’ disciple (cf. Mt 10:37; 16:24-26).

3:1-21 The story of Jesus and Nicodemus reinforces John’sthemes that Jesus is the Messiah and Son of God (apologetic) andthat He came to offer salvation to men (evangelistic). John 2:23,24actually serves as the introduction to Nicodemus’ story, since chap. 3constitutes tangible evidence of Jesus’ ability to know men’s heartsand thereby also demonstrates Jesus’ deity. Jesus also presentedGod’s plan of salvation to Nicodemus, showing that He was God’s

messenger, whose redemptive work brings about the promised sal-vation to His people (v. 14). The chapter may be divided into twosections: 1) Jesus’ dialogue with Nicodemus (vv. 1-10); and 2) Jesus’discourse on God’s plan of salvation (vv. 11-21).

3:1-10 This section on Jesus’ dialogue with Nicodemus may bedivided into 3 sections: 1) Nicodemus’ inquiry of Jesus (vv. 1-3); 2) Jesus’ insight into Nicodemus (vv. 4-8); and 3) Jesus’ indictmentof Nicodemus (vv. 9,10).

3:1 Pharisees. See note on Mt 3:7. The word “Pharisee” most like-ly comes from a Heb. word meaning “to separate” and thereforeprobably means “separated ones.” They were not separatists in thesense of isolationists but in the puritanical sense, i.e., they werehighly zealous for ritual and religious purity according to the Mosaiclaw as well as their own traditions that they added to the OT legisla-tion. Although their origin is unknown, they seem to have arisen asan offshoot from the “Hasidim” or “pious ones” during the Mac-cabean era. They were generally from the Jewish middle class andmostly consisted of laity (business men) rather than priests orLevites. They represented the orthodox core of Judaism and verystrongly influenced the common people of Israel. According to Jo-sephus, 6,000 existed at the time of Herod the Great. Jesus condemned them for their hyper-concentration on externalizing religion (rules and regulations) rather than inward spiritual transfor-mation (vv. 3,7). Nicodemus. Although Nicodemus was a Pharisee,his name was Gr. in origin and means “victor over the people.” Hewas a prominent Pharisee and member of the Sanhedrin (“a ruler ofthe Jews”). Nothing is known about his family background. He even-tually came to believe in Jesus (7:50-52), risking his own life and rep-utation by helping to give Jesus’ body a decent burial (19:38-42). aruler of the Jews. This is a reference to the Sanhedrin (see note onMt 26:59), the main ruling body of the Jews in Palestine. It was theJewish “supreme court” or ruling council of the time and arose mostlikely during the Persian period. In NT times, the Sanhedrin wascomposed of the High-Priest (president), chief priests, elders (familyheads), and scribes for a total of 71 people. The method of appoint-ment was both hereditary and political. It executed both civil andcriminal jurisdiction according to Jewish law. However, capital pun-ishment cases required the sanction of the Roman procurator(18:30-32). After A.D. 70 and the destruction of Jerusalem, the San-hedrin was abolished and replaced by the Beth Din (court of Judg-ment) that was composed of scribes whose decisions had onlymoral and religious authority.

3:2 came to Jesus by night. While some have thought thatNicodemus’ visit at night was somehow figurative of the spiritualdarkness of his heart (cf. 1:5; 9:4; 11:10; 13:30) or that he decided tocome at this time because he could take more time with Jesus andbe unhurried in conversation, perhaps the most logical explanationlies in the fact that, as a ruler of the Jews, Nicodemus was afraid ofthe implications of associating openly in conversation with Jesus. He

2 1 Or attesting miracles a Mt 23:7; Jn 3:26 b Jn 2:11 c Jn 9:33; 10:38;14:10f; Ac 2:22; 10:38

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3 1 Or from abovea 2Co 5:17; 1Pe 1:23b Mt 19:24; 21:31; Mk9:47; 10:14f; Jn 3:5

5 a Eze 36:25-27; Eph5:26; Tit 3:5 b Mt19:24; 21:31; Mk9:47; 10:14f; Jn 3:3

6 a Jn 1:13; 1Co 15:507 1 Or from above8 a Ps 135:7; Ecc 11:5;

Eze 37:9

10 a Lk 2:46; 5:17; Ac5:34

11 a Jn 1:18; 7:16f;8:26, 28; 12:49; 14:24b Jn 3:32

13 a Dt 30:12; Pr 30:4;Ac 2:34; Ro 10:6; Eph4:9 b Jn 3:31; 6:38, 42c Mt 8:20

14 a Nu 21:9 b Mt 8:20c Jn 8:28; 12:34

9 Nicodemus said to Him, “How canthese things be?” 10 Jesus answered andsaid to him, “Are you a the teacher of Is-rael and do not understand these things?11 Truly, truly, I say to you, a we speak ofwhat we know and b testify of what wehave seen, and b you do not accept ourtestimony. 12 If I told you earthly thingsand you do not believe, how will youbelieve if I tell you heavenly things?13 a No one has ascended into heaven, butb He who descended from heaven: c theSon of Man. 14 As a Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so mustb the Son of Man c be lifted up; 15 so thatwhoever 1 believes will a in Him have eter-nal life.

with him.” 3 Jesus answered and said tohim, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless onea is born 1 again he cannot see b the kingdomof God.”

4 Nicodemus *said to Him, “How can aman be born when he is old? He cannotenter a second time into his mother’swomb and be born, can he?” 5 Jesus an-swered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unlessone is born of a water and the Spirit he can-not enter into b the kingdom of God. 6 a Thatwhich is born of the flesh is flesh, and thatwhich is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do notbe amazed that I said to you, ‘You must beborn 1 again.’ 8 a The wind blows where itwishes and you hear the sound of it, butdo not know where it comes from andwhere it is going; so is everyone who isborn of the Spirit.”

chose night in order to have a clandestine meeting with Jesus ratherthan risk disfavor with his fellow Pharisees among whom Jesus wasgenerally unpopular.

3:3 born again. The phrase lit. means “born from above.” Jesusanswered a question that Nicodemus does not even ask. He readNicodemus’ heart and came to the very core of his problem, i.e., theneed for spiritual transformation or regeneration produced by theHoly Spirit. New birth is an act of God whereby eternal life is impart-ed to the believer (2Co 5:17; Tit 3:5; 1Pe 1:3; 1Jn 2:29; 3:9; 4:7;5:1,4,18). Chapter 1:12,13 indicates that “born again” also carries theidea “to become children of God” through trust in the name of theincarnate Word. cannot see the kingdom of God. In context, this isprimarily a reference to participation in the millennial kingdom atthe end of the age, fervently anticipated by the Pharisees and otherJews. Since the Pharisees were supernaturalists, they naturally andeagerly expected the coming of the prophesied resurrection of thesaints and institution of the messianic kingdom (Is 11:1-16; Da 12:2).Their problem was that they thought that mere physical lineage andkeeping of religious externals qualified them for entrance into thekingdom rather than the needed spiritual transformation whichJesus emphasized (cf. 8:33-39; Gal 6:15). The coming of the kingdomat the end of the age can be described as the “regeneration” of theworld (Mt 19:28) but regeneration of the individual is required be-fore the end of the world in order to enter the kingdom.

3:4 A teacher himself, Nicodemus understood the rabbinicalmethod of using figurative language to teach spiritual truth, and hewas merely picking up Jesus’ symbolism.

3:5 born of water and the Spirit. Jesus referred not to literalwater here but to the need for “cleansing” (e.g., Eze 36:24-27). Whenwater is used figuratively in the OT, it habitually refers to renewal orspiritual cleansing, especially when used in conjunction with “spirit”(Nu 19:17-19; Ps 51:9,10; Is 32:15; 44:3-5; 55:1-3; Jer 2:13; Joel2:28,29). Thus, Jesus made reference to the spiritual washing or pu-rification of the soul, accomplished by the Holy Spirit through theWord of God at the moment of salvation (cf. Eph 5:26; Tit 3:5), re-quired for belonging to His kingdom.

3:8 The wind blows where it wishes. Jesus’ point was that justas the wind cannot be controlled or understood by human beingsbut its effects can be witnessed, so also it is with the Holy Spirit. Hecannot be controlled or understood, but the proof of His work is ap-parent. Where the Spirit works, there is undeniable and unmistak-able evidence.

3:10 the teacher. The use of the definite article “the” indicatesthat Nicodemus was a renowned master-teacher in the nation of Is-

rael, an established religious authority par excellence. He enjoyed ahigh standing among the rabbis or teachers of his day. Jesus’ replyemphasized the spiritual bankruptcy of the nation at that time, sinceeven one of the greatest of Jewish teachers did not recognize thisteaching on spiritual cleansing and transformation based clearly inthe OT (cf. v. 5). The net effect is to show that externals of religionmay have a deadening effect on one’s spiritual perception.

3:11-21 The focus of these verses turns away from Nicodemusand centers on Jesus’ discourse regarding the true meaning of salva-tion. The key word in these verses is “believe,” used 7 times. Thenew birth must be appropriated by an act of faith. While vv. 1-10center on the divine initiative in salvation, vv. 11-21 emphasize thehuman reaction to the work of God in regeneration. In vv. 11-21, thesection may be divided into 3 parts: 1) the problem of unbelief (vv.11,12); 2) the answer to unbelief (vv. 13-17); and 3) the results of un-belief (vv. 18-21).

3:11,12 Jesus focused on the idea that unbelief is the cause of ig-norance. At heart, Nicodemus’ failure to understand Jesus’ wordscentered not so much in his intellect but in his failure to believeJesus’ witness.

3:11 you do not accept our testimony. The plural “you” hererefers back to the “we” of v. 2, where Nicodemus was speaking as arepresentative of his nation Israel (“we know”). Jesus replied in v. 11with “you” indicating that Nicodemus’ unbelief was typical of thenation as a collective whole.

3:13 No one has ascended into heaven. This verse contradictsother religious systems’ claims to special revelation from God.Jesus insisted that no one has ascended to heaven in such a wayas to return and talk about heavenly things (cf. 2Co 12:1-4). OnlyHe had His permanent abode in heaven prior to His incarnationand, therefore, only He has the true knowledge regarding heaven-ly wisdom (cf. Pr 30:4).

3:14 so must the Son of Man be lifted up. Cf. 8:28; 12:32,34;18:31,32. This is a veiled prediction of Jesus’ death on the cross.Jesus referred to the story of Nu 21:5-9 where the Israelite peoplewho looked at the serpent lifted up by Moses were healed. Thepoint of this illustration or analogy is in the “lifted up.” Just as Moseslifted up the snake on the pole so that all who looked upon it mightlive physically, those who look to Christ, who was “lifted up” on thecross, will live spiritually and eternally.

3:15 eternal life. This is the first of 10 references to “eternal life”in John’s gospel. The same Gr. word is translated in some versions as“everlasting life.” The two expressions appear in the NT nearly 50times. Eternal life refers not only to eternal quantity but divine qual-

15 1 Or believes in Him will have eternal life a Jn 20:31; 1 Jn 5:11-13

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16 1 Or unique, onlyone of His kind a Ro5:8; Eph 2:4; 2Th2:16; 1 Jn 4:10; Rev1:5 b Ro 8:32; 1 Jn 4:9c Jn 1:18; 3:18; 1 Jn4:9 d Jn 3:36; 6:40;11:25f

17 a Jn 3:34; 5:36, 38;6:29, 38, 57; 7:29;8:42; 10:36; 11:42;17:3, 8, 18, 21, 23,25; 20:21 b Lk 19:10;Jn 8:15; 12:47; 1 Jn4:14

18 1 Or unique, onlyone of His kind a Mk16:16; Jn 5:24 b Jn1:18; 1 Jn 4:9

19 a Jn 1:4; 8:12; 9:5;12:46 b Jn 7:7

20 a Jn 3:20, 21; Eph5:11, 13

21 a 1 Jn 1:622 a Jn 2:2

b Jn 4:1, 224 a Mt 4:12; 14:3; Mk

6:17; Lk 3:2025 a Jn 2:626 a Mt 23:7; Jn 3:2

b Jn 1:28 c Jn 1:727 a 1Co 4:7; Heb 5:4

b Jas 1:17

b baptizing. 23 John also was baptizing inAenon near Salim, because there was muchwater there; and people were coming andwere being baptized— 24 for a John had notyet been thrown into prison.

25 Therefore there arose a discussion onthe part of John’s disciples with a Jewabout a purification. 26 And they came toJohn and said to him, “a Rabbi, He whowas with you b beyond the Jordan, towhom you c have testified, behold, He isbaptizing and all are coming to Him.”27 John answered and said, “a A man canreceive nothing unless it b has been givenhim from heaven. 28 You yourselves 1 aremy witnesses that I said, ‘a I am not the2 Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent ahead ofHim.’ 29 He who has the bride is a thebridegroom; but the friend of the bride-groom, who stands and hears him, re-joices greatly because of the bridegroom’svoice. So this b joy of mine has been madefull. 30 He must increase, but I must de-crease.

16 “For God so a loved the world, that Heb gave His 1 c only begotten Son, that who-ever d believes in Him shall not perish, buthave eternal life. 17 For God a did not sendthe Son into the world b to judge the world,but that the world might be saved throughHim. 18 a He who believes in Him is notjudged; he who does not believe has beenjudged already, because he has not be-lieved in the name of b the 1 only begottenSon of God. 19 This is the judgment, thata the Light has come into the world, andmen loved the darkness rather than theLight, for b their deeds were evil. 20 a Foreveryone who does evil hates the Light,and does not come to the Light for fear thathis deeds will be exposed. 21 But he whoa practices the truth comes to the Light, sothat his deeds may be manifested as havingbeen wrought in God.”

John the Baptist Witnesses ConcerningChrist

22 After these things Jesus and His a dis-ciples came into the land of Judea, andthere He was spending time with them and

ity of life. It means lit. “life of the age to come” and refers thereforeto resurrection and heavenly existence in perfect glory and holiness.This life for believers in the Lord Jesus is experienced before heavenis reached. This “eternal life” is in essence nothing less than partici-pation in the eternal life of the Living Word, Jesus Christ. It is the lifeof God in every believer, yet not fully manifest until the resurrection(Ro 8:19-23; Php 3:20,21).

3:16 For God so loved the world. The Son’s mission is bound upin the supreme love of God for the evil, sinful “world” of humanity(cf. 6:32,51; 12:47; see notes on 1:9; Mt 5:44,45) that is in rebellionagainst Him. The word “so” emphasizes the intensity or greatness ofHis love. The Father gave His unique and beloved Son to die on be-half of sinful men (see note on 2Co 5:21). eternal life. See note on v.15; cf. 17:3; 1Jn 5:20.

3:18 believed in the name. This phrase (lit. “to believe into thename”) means more than mere intellectual assent to the claims ofthe gospel. It includes trust and commitment to Christ as Lord andSavior which results in receiving a new nature (v. 7) which producesa change in heart and obedience to the Lord (see note on 2:23,24).

3:22-36 This section constitutes John the Baptist’s last testimonyin this gospel regarding Christ. As his ministry faded away, Jesus’ministry moved to the forefront. In spite of the fact that John theBaptist received widespread fame in Israel and was generally ac-cepted by the common people of the land as well as those whowere social outcasts, his testimony regarding Jesus was rejected, es-pecially by the leaders of Israel (cf. Mt 3:5-10; Lk 7:29).

3:22 into the land of Judea. While the previous episode withNicodemus took place in Jerusalem (2:23), which was part of Judea,the phrase here means that Jesus went out into the rural areas ofthat region. baptizing. Chapter 4:2 specifically says that Jesus didnot personally baptize but that His disciples carried on this work.

3:23 Aenon near Salim. The exact location of this reference isdisputed. The phrase may refer to either Salim near Shechem orSalim that is 6 mi. S of Beth-shean. Both are in the region of Samaria.Aenon is a transliterated Heb. word meaning “springs,” and both ofthese possible sites have plenty of water (“much water there”).

3:24 John had not yet been thrown into prison. This providesanother indication that John supplemented the synoptic gospels byproviding additional information that helps further understanding ofthe movements of John the Baptist and Jesus (see Introduction). InMatthew and Mark, Christ’s temptation is followed by John’s impris-onment. With this phrase, John the apostle fills in the slot betweenJesus’ baptism and temptation and the Baptist’s imprisonment.

3:25 there arose a discussion. The discussion probably con-cerned the relation of the baptismal ministries of John and Jesus tothe Jews’ purification practices alluded to in 2:6. The real underlyingimpetus, however, centered in the concern of John’s disciples thatJesus was in competition with him.

3:25-36 This section may be divided into 3 parts which highlightthe significance of what was occurring in relationship to John’s andJesus’ ministry: 1) John the Baptist constituted the end of the oldage (vv. 25-29); 2) the transition to Jesus’ ministry (v. 30); and 3) Jesus’ ministry as constituting the beginning of the new age (vv.31-36). Instead of jealousy, John exhibited humble faithfulness tothe superiority of Jesus’ person and ministry.

3:26 all are coming to Him. The potential conflict between Johnand Jesus was heightened by the fact that both were engaged inministry in close proximity to one another. Because baptism is men-tioned in v. 22, Jesus may have been close to Jericho near the fordsof the Jordan, while John was a short distance N baptizing at Aenon.John’s followers were especially disturbed by the fact that so manywere flocking to Jesus whereas formerly they had come to John.

3:27 given him from heaven. This verse emphasizes God’s sov-ereign authority in granting ministry opportunity (cf. 1Co 4:7; 15:10).

3:29 bridegroom . . . friend of the bridegroom. John conveyed hisunderstanding of his own role through the use of a parable. The“friend of the bridegroom” was the ancient equivalent of the bestman who organized the details and presided over the Judean wed-ding (Galilean weddings were somewhat different). This friend foundhis greatest joy in watching the ceremony proceed without problems.Most likely, John was also alluding to OT passages where faithful Israelis depicted as the bride of the Lord (Is 62:4,5; Jer 2:2; Hos 2:16-20).

28 1 Lit testify for me 2 I.e. Messiah a Jn 1:20, 23 29 a Mt 9:15; 25:1 b Jn15:11; 16:24; 17:13; Php 2:2; 1 Jn 1:4; 2 Jn 12

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31 a Mt 28:18; Jn 3:13;8:23 b 1Co 15:47; 1 Jn4:5

32 a Jn 3:1133 a Jn 6:27; Ro 4:11;

15:28; 1Co 9:2; 2Co1:22; Eph 1:13; 4:30;2Ti 2:19; Rev 7:3-8

34 1 Lit because Hedoes not give theSpirit by measure a Jn3:17 b Mt 12:18; Lk4:18; Ac 1:2; 10:38

35 a Mt 28:18; Jn 5:20;17:2 b Mt 11:27; Lk10:22

36 1 Or believe a Jn 3:16b Ac 14:2; Heb 3:18

CHAPTER 4

1 a Lk 7:13 b Jn 3:22,26; 1Co 1:17

Christ Witnesses to the Woman at the Well

4Therefore when a the Lord knew that thePharisees had heard that Jesus was mak-

ing and b baptizing more disciples than John2 (although a Jesus Himself was not baptiz-ing, but His b disciples were), 3 He lefta Judea and went away b again into Galilee.4 And He had to pass through a Samaria.5 So He *came to a city of a Samaria calledSychar, near b the parcel of ground that c Ja-cob gave to his son Joseph; 6 and Jacob’swell was there. So Jesus, being weariedfrom His journey, was sitting thus by thewell. It was about 1 the sixth hour.

31 “a He who comes from above is aboveall, b he who is of the earth is from theearth and speaks of the earth. a He whocomes from heaven is above all. 32 WhatHe has seen and heard, of that He a testi-fies; and a no one receives His testimony.33 He who has received His testimony a hasset his seal to this, that God is true. 34 ForHe whom God has a sent speaks the wordsof God; 1 b for He gives the Spirit withoutmeasure. 35 a The Father loves the Son andb has given all things into His hand. 36 Hewho a believes in the Son has eternal life;but he who b does not 1 obey the Son willnot see life, but the wrath of God abides onhim.”

3:31-36 In these verses, John the Baptist gave 5 reasons forChrist’s superiority to him: 1) Christ had a heavenly origin (v. 31);2) Christ knew what was true by firsthand experience (v. 32); 3) Christ’stestimony always agreed with God (v. 33); 4) Christ experienced theHoly Spirit in an unlimited manner (v. 34); and 5) Christ was supremebecause the Father sovereignly had granted that status to Him (v. 35).

3:31,32 above all. These verses bring together several of thethemes from the entire chapter. From the immediate context, Johnexplained why Jesus the incarnate word must become greater, i.e.,He alone is “from above” (heavenly origin) and therefore “above all.”The Gr. term “above all” recalls v. 3 (see marginal note) where thenew birth “from above” can only be experienced by faith in the Onewho is “from above.” In contrast, all others are “of the earth” signify-ing finitude and limitation. In the immediate context, John the Bap-tist had to become less (v. 30) because he was “from the earth” andbelonged to the earth. Although he called for repentance and bap-tism, John could not reveal heaven’s counsel like Jesus, the God-Man.

3:34 the Spirit without measure. God gave the Spirit to the Sonwithout limits (1:32,33; Is 11:2; 42:1; 61:1).

3:36 This constitutes a fitting climax to the chapter. John theBaptist laid out two alternatives, genuine faith and defiant disobedi-ence, thereby bringing to the forefront the threat of looming judg-ment. As John faded from the forefront, he offered an invitation tofaith in the Son and clearly expressed the ultimate consequence offailure to believe, i.e., “the wrath of God.”

4:1-26 The story of the Samaritan woman reinforces John’s maintheme that Jesus is the Messiah and Son of God. The thrust of theseverses is not so much her conversion but that Jesus is Messiah (v.26). While her conversion is clearly implied, the apostle’s focus cen-ters on Jesus’ declaration foretold in the Scriptures (v. 25). Importantalso is the fact that this chapter demonstrates Jesus’ love and under-standing of people. His love for mankind involved no boundaries, forHe lovingly and compassionately reached out to a woman who wasa social outcast. In contrast to the limitations of human love, Christexhibits the character of divine love that is indiscriminate and all-encompassing (3:16).

4:3 He left Judea. John the Baptist and Jesus had official scrutinyfocused on them because of their distinctive message regarding re-pentance and the kingdom. Most likely, Jesus wanted to avoid anypossible trouble with John’s disciples who were troubled with Hisgrowing popularity and, since the Pharisees were also focusing onHis growing influence, Jesus decided to leave Judea and travel N inorder to avoid any conflict.

4:4 He had to pass through. Several roads led from Judea toGalilee: one near the seacoast; another through the region of Perea;and one through the heart of Samaria. Even with the strong antipathy

between Jews and Samaritans, the Jewish historian Josephus relatesthat the custom of Judeans at the time of the great festivals was totravel through the country of the Samaritans because it was the short-er route. Although the verb “had to” may possibly refer to the fact thatJesus wanted to save time and needless steps, because of the gospel’semphasis on the Lord’s consciousness of fulfilling His Father’s plan(2:4; 7:30; 8:20; 12:23; 13:1; 14:31), the apostle may have been high-lighting divine, spiritual necessity, i.e., Jesus had an appointment withdivine destiny in meeting the Samaritan woman, to whom He wouldreveal His messiahship. Samaria. When the nation of Israel split polit-ically after Solomon’s rule, King Omri named the capital of the north-ern kingdom of Israel “Samaria” (1Ki 16:24). The name eventually re-ferred to the entire district and sometimes to the entire northernkingdom, which had been taken captive (capital, Samaria) by Assyriain 722 B.C. (2Ki 17:1-6). While Assyria led most of the populace of the10 northern tribes away (into the region which today is northern Iraq),it left a sizable population of Jews in the northern Samaritan regionand transported many non-Jews into Samaria. These groups intermin-gled to form a mixed race through intermarriage. Eventually tensiondeveloped between the Jews who returned from captivity and theSamaritans. The Samaritans withdrew from the worship of Yahweh atJerusalem and established their worship at Mt. Gerizim in Samaria (vv.20-22). Samaritans regarded only the Pentateuch as authoritative. Asa result of this history, Jews repudiated Samaritans and consideredthem heretical. Intense ethnic and cultural tensions raged historicallybetween the two groups so that both avoided contact as much aspossible (v. 9; Ezr 4:1-24; Ne 4:1-6; Lk 10:25-37). See note on 2Ki 17:24.

4:5,6 These verses refer back to Ge 48:22 where Jacob be-queathed a section of land to Joseph which he had purchased fromthe “sons of Hamor” (cf. Ge 33:19). When the Jews returned fromEgypt, they buried Joseph’s bones in that land at Shechem. This areabecame the inheritance of Joseph’s descendants. The precise loca-tion of “Jacob’s well” has been set by a firm tradition among Jews,Samaritans, Muslims, and Christians and lies today in the shadow ofthe crypt of an unfinished Orthodox church. The term used here for“well” denotes a running spring, while in vv. 11,12 John used anoth-er term for “well” that means “cistern” or “dug-out-well” indicatingthat the well was both dug out and fed by an underground spring.This spring is still active today.

4:5 Sychar. This town is probably identified with the modern vil-lage of Askar on the shoulder of Mt. Ebal, opposite Mt. Gerizim. Acontinuous line of tradition identifies Jacob’s well as lying about ahalf mile S of Askar.

4:6 wearied from His journey. Since the Word became flesh(1:14), He also suffered from physical limitations in His human-ity (Heb 2:10-14). the sixth hour. John used Roman time, which

2 a Jn 3:22, 26; 1Co 1:17 b Jn 2:2 3 a Jn 3:22 b Jn 2:11f 4 a Lk 9:525 a Lk 9:52 b Ge 33:19; Jos 24:32 c Ge 48:22; Jn 4:12 6 1 Perhaps 6p.m. Roman time or noon Jewish time

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8 a Jn 2:2 b Jn 4:5, 399 a Lk 9:52 b Ezr 4:3-6,

11ff; Mt 10:5; Jn 8:48;Ac 10:28

10 a Jer 2:13; Jn 4:14;7:37f; Rev 7:17; 21:6;22:1, 17

11 1 Or Lord a Jer 2:13;Jn 4:14; 7:37f; Rev7:17; 21:6; 22:1, 17

12 a Jn 4:614 a Jn 6:35; 7:38 b Mt

25:46; Jn 6:27

15 1 Or Lord a Jn 6:3519 1 Or Lord a Mt

21:11; Lk 7:16, 39;24:19; Jn 6:14; 7:40;9:17

20 a Ge 33:20; Jn 4:12b Dt 11:29; Jos 8:33c Lk 9:53

21 a Jn 4:23; 5:25, 28;16:2, 32 b Mal 1:11;1Ti 2:8

22 a 2Ki 17:28-41 b Is2:3; Ro 3:1f; 9:4f

23 a Jn 4:21; 5:25, 28;16:2, 32 b Php 3:3

15 The woman *said to Him, “1 Sir, a giveme this water, so I will not be thirsty norcome all the way here to draw.” 16 He*said to her, “Go, call your husband andcome here.” 17 The woman answered and*said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said toher, “You have correctly said, ‘I have nohusband’; 18 for you have had five hus-bands, and the one whom you now haveis not your husband; this you have saidtruly.” 19 The woman *said to Him, “1 Sir, Iperceive that You are a a prophet. 20 a Ourfathers worshiped in b this mountain, andyou people say that c in Jerusalem is theplace where men ought to worship.”21 Jesus *said to her, “Woman, believeMe, a an hour is coming when b neitherin this mountain nor in Jerusalem willyou worship the Father. 22 a You wor-ship what you do not know; we worshipwhat we know, for b salvation is fromthe Jews. 23 But a an hour is coming,and now is, when the true worshiperswill worship the Father b in spirit andtruth; for such people the Father seeks to

7 There *came a woman of Samaria todraw water. Jesus *said to her, “Give Me adrink.” 8 For His a disciples had gone awayinto b the city to buy food. 9 Therefore thea Samaritan woman *said to Him, “How isit that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drinksince I am a Samaritan woman?” (Forb Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If youknew the gift of God, and who it is whosays to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you wouldhave asked Him, and He would have givenyou a living water.” 11 She *said to Him,“1 Sir, You have nothing to draw with andthe well is deep; where then do You getthat a living water? 12 You are not greaterthan our father Jacob, are You, who a gaveus the well, and drank of it himself and hissons and his cattle?” 13 Jesus answered andsaid to her, “Everyone who drinks of thiswater will thirst again; 14 but whoeverdrinks of the water that I will give hima shall never thirst; but the water that I willgive him will become in him a well ofwater springing up to b eternal life.”

started reckoning from 12:00 p.m., so the time would be about 6:00 p.m.

4:7 came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Women general-ly came in groups to collect water, either earlier or later in the dayto avoid the sun’s heat. If the Samaritan woman alone came at12:00 p.m. (see note on v. 6), this may indicate that her publicshame (vv. 16-19) caused her to be isolated from other women.Give Me a drink. For a Jewish man to speak to a woman in public,let alone to ask from her, a Samaritan, a drink was a definite breachof rigid social custom as well as a marked departure from the socialanimosity that existed between the two groups. Further, a “rabbi”and religious leader did not hold conversations with women of ill-repute (v. 18).

4:8 to buy food. This verse indicates that since Jesus and His dis-ciples were willing to purchase food from Samaritans, they did notfollow some of the self-imposed regulations of stricter Jews, whowould have been unwilling to eat food handled by outcast Samari-tans.

4:10 living water. The OT is the background for this term, whichhas important metaphorical significance. In Jer 2:13, Yahweh decriesthe disobedient Jews for rejecting Him, the “fountain of living wa-ters.” The OT prophets looked forward to a time when “living waterswill flow out of Jerusalem” (Zec 14:8; Eze 47:9). The OT metaphorspoke of the knowledge of God and His grace which providescleansing, spiritual life, and the transforming power of the Holy Spir-it (cf. Is 1:16-18; 12:3; 44:3; Eze 36:25-27). John applies these themesto Jesus Christ as the living water which is symbolic of eternal lifemediated by the Holy Spirit from Him (cf. v. 14; 6:35; 7:37-39). Jesusused the woman’s need for physical water to sustain life in this aridregion in order to serve as an object lesson for her need for spiritualtransformation.

4:15 The woman, like Nicodemus (3:4), did not realize that Jesuswas talking about her spiritual needs. Instead, in her mind, shewanted such water in order to avoid her frequent trips to Jacob’swell.

4:16 call your husband. Since the woman failed to understandthe nature of the living water He offered (v. 15), Jesus abruptly

turned the dialogue to focus sharply on her real spiritual need forconversion and cleansing from sin. His intimate knowledge of hermorally depraved life not only indicated His supernatural ability, butalso focused on her spiritual condition.

4:18 not your husband. She was living conjugally with a manwho Jesus said was not her husband. By such an explicit statement,our Lord rejected the notion that when two people live together itconstitutes marriage. Biblically, marriage is always restricted to apublic, formal, official, and recognized covenant.

4:19 You are a prophet. His knowledge of her life indicated Hehad supernatural inspiration.

4:20 in this mountain. Both Jews and Samaritans recognizedthat God had commanded their forefathers to identify a specialplace for worshiping Him (Dt 12:5). The Jews, recognizing the entireHebrew canon, chose Jerusalem (2Sa 7:5-13; 2Ch 6:6). The Samari-tans, recognizing only the Pentateuch, noted that the first placeAbraham built an altar to God was at Shechem (Ge 12:6,7), whichwas overlooked by Mt. Gerizim, where the Israelites had shouted theblessings promised by God before they entered the Promised Land(Dt 11:29,30). As a result, they chose Mt. Gerizim for the place oftheir temple.

4:21 neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem. There was noreason to debate locations, since both places would be obsoletesoon and neither would have any role to play in the lives of thosewho genuinely worship God. Jerusalem would even be destroyedwith its temple (A.D. 70).

4:22 you do not know. The Samaritans did not know God. Theydid not have the full revelation of Him, and thus could not worshipin truth. The Jews did have the full revelation of God in the OT; thusthey knew the God they worshiped, because salvation’s truth camefirst to them (see note on Lk 19:9) and through them to the world (cf.Ro 3:2; 9:4,5).

4:23 hour. This refers to Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascensionto God, having completed redemption. true worshipers. Jesus’point is that in light of His coming as Messiah and Savior, worshiperswill be identified, not by a particular shrine or location, but by theirworship of the Father through the Son. With Christ’s coming, previ-

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24 1 Or Spirit a Php 3:325 a Da 9:25; Jn 1:41

b Mt 1:16; 27:17, 22;Lk 2:11

26 a Jn 8:24, 28, 58;9:37; 13:19

27 a Jn 4:829 1 I.e. the Messiah

a Jn 4:17f b Mt 12:23;Jn 7:26, 31

31 a Mt 23:7; 26:25,49; Mk 9:5; 11:21;14:45; Jn 1:38, 49;3:2, 26; 6:25; 9:2;11:8

33 a Lk 6:13-16; Jn1:40-49; 2:2

34 a Jn 5:30; 6:38 b Jn5:36; 17:4; 19:28, 30

35 a Mt 9:37, 38; Lk10:2

36 a Pr 11:18; 1Co9:17f b Ro 1:13 c Mt19:29; Jn 3:36; 4:14;5:24; Ro 2:7; 6:23

37 a Job 31:8; Mic 6:1539 a Jn 4:5, 30

to them, “I have food to eat that you do notknow about.” 33 So the a disciples were say-ing to one another, “No one brought Himanything to eat, did he?” 34 Jesus *said tothem, “My food is to a do the will of Himwho sent Me and to b accomplish His work.35 Do you not say, ‘There are yet fourmonths, and then comes the harvest’? Be-hold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and lookon the fields, that they are white a for har-vest. 36 Already he who reaps is receivinga wages and is gathering b fruit for c life eter-nal; so that he who sows and he who reapsmay rejoice together. 37 For in this case thesaying is true, ‘a One sows and anotherreaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for whichyou have not labored; others have laboredand you have entered into their labor.”

Christ Witnesses to the Samaritans39 From a that city many of the Samari-

tans believed in Him because of the word

be His worshipers. 24 God is 1 spirit, andthose who worship Him must worship a inspirit and truth.” 25 The woman *said toHim, “I know that a Messiah is coming(b He who is called Christ); when that Onecomes, He will declare all things to us.”26 Jesus *said to her, “a I who speak to youam He.”

Christ Witnesses to the Disciples27 At this point His a disciples came, and

they were amazed that He had been speak-ing with a woman, yet no one said, “Whatdo You seek?” or, “Why do You speak withher?” 28 So the woman left her waterpot,and went into the city and *said to the men,29 “Come, see a man a who told me all thethings that I have done; b this is not 1 theChrist, is it?” 30 They went out of the city,and were coming to Him.

31 Meanwhile the disciples were urgingHim, saying, “a Rabbi, eat.” 32 But He said

ous distinctions between true and false worshipers based on loca-tions disappeared. True worshipers are all those everywhere whoworship God through the Son, from the heart (cf. Php 3:3).

4:24 God is spirit. This verse represents the classical statementon the nature of God as Spirit. The phrase means that God is invis-ible (Col 1:15; 1Ti 1:17; Heb 11:27) as opposed to the physical ormaterial nature of man (1:18; 3:6). The word order of this phraseputs an emphasis on “spirit,” and the statement is essentially em-phatic. Man could never comprehend the invisible God unless Herevealed Himself, as He did in Scripture and the Incarnation. mustworship. Jesus is not speaking of a desirable element in worshipbut that which is absolutely necessary. in spirit and truth. Theword “spirit” does not refer to the Holy Spirit but to the humanspirit. Jesus’ point here is that a person must worship not simplyby external conformity to religious rituals and places (outwardly)but inwardly (“in spirit”) with the proper heart attitude. The refer-ence to “truth” refers to worship of God consistent with the re-vealed Scripture and centered on the “Word made flesh” who ulti-mately revealed His Father (14:6).

4:25 Messiah. The Samaritans also anticipated Messiah’s coming.4:26 I who speak to you am He. Jesus forthrightly declared Him-

self to be Messiah, though His habit was to avoid such declarationsto His own Jewish people who had such crassly political and mili-taristic views regarding Messiah (cf. 10:24; Mk 9:41). The “He” in thistranslation is not in the original Gr. for Jesus lit. said “I who speak toyou am.” The usage of “I am” is reminiscent of 8:58 (see notes there).This claim constitutes the main point of the story regarding theSamaritan woman.

4:27-42 These verses reinforce Jesus’ acknowledgment that Hewas Messiah by offering proof for His claim. John gave 5 genuine,but subtle, proofs that Jesus was truly Messiah and Son of Godwhich reinforced his main theme of 20:31: 1) proof from His im-mediate control of everything (v. 27); 2) proof from His impact onthe woman (vv. 28-30); 3) proof from His intimacy with the Fa-ther (vv. 31-34); 4) proof from His insight into men’s souls (vv.35-38); and 5) proof from His impression on the Samaritans (vv.39-42).

4:27 At this point. Had the disciples arrived earlier, they wouldhave interrupted and destroyed the conversation, and if they had ar-rived any later, she would have gone and they would not have

heard His declaration of messiahship. This feature subtly revealsJesus’ divine control over the situation that was occurring.

4:28-31 to the men. Jesus had such an impact on the womanthat she was eager to share the news among the townspeoplewhom she had previously avoided because of her reputation. Herwitness and candor regarding her own life so impressed them thatthey came to see Jesus for themselves.

4:32,33 I have food. Just like the Samaritan woman’s misunder-standing of Jesus words regarding literal water (v. 15), Jesus’ owndisciples thought only of literal food. John commonly used suchmisunderstanding to advance the argument of his gospel (e.g.,2:20; 3:3).

4:34 My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me. Most likelyJesus echoed Dt 8:3 where Moses stated, “man does not live bybread alone; but man lives by everything that proceeds out of themouth of the LORD” (cf. Mt 4:4; Lk 4:4). When He talked with theSamaritan woman, Jesus was performing the will of the Father andthereby received greater sustenance and satisfaction than any merephysical food could offer Him (5:23,24; 8:29; 17:4). Obedience to anddependence upon God’s will summed up Jesus’ whole life (Eph 5:17).God’s will for Him to finish is explained in 6:38-40 (see note on 6:40).

4:35 four months, and then comes the harvest. The eventprobably happened in Dec. or Jan. which was 4 months before thenormal spring harvest (mid-Apr.). Crops were planted in Nov., andby Dec. or Jan. the grain would be sprouting up in vibrant greencolor. Jesus used the fact that they were surrounded by cropsgrowing in the field and waiting to be harvested as an object les-son to illustrate His urgency about reaching the lost which the “har-vest” symbolized. Jesus points out the Samaritan woman and peo-ple of Sychar (“lift up your eyes”) who were at that moment comingupon the scene (v. 30) looking like a ripened “harvest” that urgent-ly needed “gathering,” i.e., evangelizing. white for harvest. Theirwhite clothing seen above the growing grain may have looked likewhite heads on the stalks, an indication of readiness for harvest.Jesus knew the hearts of all (2:24), so was able to state their readi-ness for salvation (cf. vv. 39-41).

4:36-38 The Lord’s call to His disciples to do the work of evange-lism contains promises of reward (“wages”), fruit that brings eternaljoy (v. 36), and the mutual partnership of shared privilege (vv.37,38).

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39 b Jn 4:2942 a Mt 1:21; Lk 2:11;

Jn 1:29; Ac 5:31;13:23; 1Ti 4:10; 1 Jn4:14

43 a Jn 4:4044 a Mt 13:57; Mk 6:4;

Lk 4:2445 a Jn 2:2346 a Jn 2:1 b Jn 2:9 c Lk

4:23; Jn 2:12

47 a Jn 4:3, 5448 1 Or attesting

miracles a Da 4:2f;6:27; Mt 24:24; Mk13:22; Ac 2:19, 22,43; 4:30; 5:12; 6:8;7:36; 14:3; 15:12; Ro15:19; 1Co 1:22; 2Co12:12; 2Th 2:9; Heb2:4

49 1 Or Lord50 a Mt 8:1351 1 Or boy52 1 Perhaps 7 p.m.

Roman time or 1p.m. Jewish time

53 a Ac 11:1454 1 Or attesting

miracle a Jn 2:11 b Jn4:45f

CHAPTER 5

1 a Dt 16:1; Jn 2:13

heard that Jesus had come a out of Judeainto Galilee, he went to Him and was im-ploring Him to come down and heal hisson; for he was at the point of death. 48 SoJesus said to him, “Unless you people see1 a signs and a wonders, you simply will notbelieve.” 49 The royal official *said to Him,“1 Sir, come down before my child dies.”50 Jesus *said to him, “a Go; your son lives.”The man believed the word that Jesusspoke to him and started off. 51 As he wasnow going down, his slaves met him, say-ing that his 1 son was living. 52 So he in-quired of them the hour when he began toget better. Then they said to him, “Yester-day at the 1 seventh hour the fever lefthim.” 53 So the father knew that it was atthat hour in which Jesus said to him, “Yourson lives”; and he himself believed anda his whole household. 54 This is again aa second 1 sign that Jesus performed whenHe had b come out of Judea into Galilee.

Christ Heals the Paralytic Man

5After these things there was a a feast ofthe Jews, and Jesus went up to Jeru-

salem.

of the woman who testified, “b He told meall the things that I have done.” 40 So whenthe Samaritans came to Jesus, they wereasking Him to stay with them; and Hestayed there two days. 41 Many more be-lieved because of His word; 42 and theywere saying to the woman, “It is no longerbecause of what you said that we believe,for we have heard for ourselves and knowthat this One is indeed a the Savior of theworld.”

Christ Is Received by the Galileans43 After a the two days He went forth

from there into Galilee. 44 For Jesus Him-self testified that a a prophet has no honorin his own country. 45 So when He came toGalilee, the Galileans received Him, a hav-ing seen all the things that He did inJerusalem at the feast; for they themselvesalso went to the feast.

Christ Heals the Nobleman’s Son46 Therefore He came again to a Cana of

Galilee b where He had made the waterwine. And there was a royal official whoseson was sick at c Capernaum. 47 When he

4:42 Savior of the world. This phrase occurs also in 1Jn 4:14. Theverse constitutes the climax to the story of the woman of Samaria.The Samaritans themselves became another in a series of witnessesin John’s gospel that demonstrated the identity of Jesus as the Mes-siah and Son of God. This episode represents the first instance ofcross-cultural evangelism (Ac 1:8).

4:43-54 The episode of Jesus’ healing of the official’s son consti-tutes the second major “sign” of 8 which John used to reinforceJesus’ true identity for producing belief in his readers (v. 54). In thisepisode, Jesus chided the official’s unbelief in needing a miraculoussign in order to trust in Christ (v. 48). While some believe that thisstory is the same as the healing of the centurion’s son (Mt 8:5-13; Lk7:2-10), sufficient differences exist to demonstrate that it is differentfrom the synoptic account; e.g., 1) no evidence exists that the offi-cial’s son was a Gentile; 2) the official’s son, not his servant, washealed; and 3) Jesus was far more negative regarding the official’sfaith (v. 48) than the centurion’s (Mt 8:10). One may divide this sec-tion into 3 parts: 1) Jesus contemplating unbelief (vv. 43-45); 2) Jesus confronting unbelief (vv. 46-49); and 3) Jesus conqueringunbelief (vv. 50-54).

4:43 went . . . into Galilee. After two days in Samaria, Jesus trav-eled to Galilee, resuming the trip that began in v. 3.

4:44 a prophet has no honor in his own country. This proverb(also in Mt 13:57; Mk 6:4) contrasts the believing response of theSamaritans (v. 39) with the characteristic unbelief of Jesus’ own peo-ple in Galilee (and Judea) whose reticent faith depended so muchon Jesus’ performance of miracles (v. 48). While in Samaria, Jesushad enjoyed His first unqualified and unopposed success. His ownpeople’s hearts were not open to Him, but exhibited reluctance andhardness.

4:45 the Galileans received Him. The apostle may have meantthese words as irony especially in light of the surrounding context ofvv. 44,48. The reception was likely that of curiosity seekers whoseappetite centered more on seeing miracles than believing in Jesusas Messiah—as it had been at “the feast” (see notes on 2:23-25).

4:46 Cana of Galilee. The deep irony of the statement in v. 45 in-creases with the fact that Jesus had only recently performed a mira-cle in Cana at the wedding. Instead of responding in belief, the peo-ple wanted more (see note on v. 48). The basis of their welcome wasextremely crass. royal official. This term most likely designatedsomeone officially attached to the service of King Herod Antipas,tetrarch of Galilee from 4 B.C. to A.D. 39. sick at Capernaum. Caper-naum was approximately 16 mi. NE of Cana.

4:47 imploring Him. The language here indicates that he repeat-edly begged Jesus to heal his son. His approach to Jesus was out ofdesperation, but he had little appreciation of who Jesus was. In lightof v. 46, apparently the nobleman’s motivation centered in Jesus’reputation as a miracle worker rather than as Messiah.

4:48 Unless you people see signs and wonders. The “you” isplural. Jesus addresses these words to the Galileans as a whole andnot just to the royal official (see notes on vv. 45,46). The response ofthe Galileans was fundamentally flawed because it disregarded theperson of Christ and centered in the need for a constant display ofmiraculous signs. Such an attitude represents the deepest state ofunbelief.

4:50 your son lives. Jesus met the demands of Galilean unbeliefby healing the official’s son, revealing not only His sympathy, but Hismarvelous graciousness in spite of such a faithless demand for mira-cles.

4:52 the seventh hour. About 7:00 p.m., reckoning from noon,using the Roman system. See note on v. 6.

4:53 at that hour. The time when the official’s son improved cor-responded precisely with the time that he had spoken with Jesus.This served to strengthen the official’s faith and, as a result, the“whole household” believed.

5:1–7:52 This section evidences the shift from reservation andhesitation about Jesus as Messiah (3:26; 4:1-3) to outright rejection(7:52). The opposition started with controversy regarding Jesus’healing on the Sabbath (vv. 1-18), intensified in chap. 6 with manyof His disciples abandoning Him (6:66), and finally hardened in chap.

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2 1 I.e. Jewish Aramaic2 Some early mssread Bethsaida orBethzatha a Ne 3:1,32; 12:39 b Jn 19:13,17, 20; 20:16; Ac21:40; Rev 9:11;16:16

3 1 Early mss do notcontain theremainder of v 3, norv 4

5 1 Lit in his sickness7 a Jn 5:48 a Mt 9:6; Mk 2:11; Lk

5:24

9 a Jn 9:1410 a Jn 1:19; 5:15, 16,

18 b Ne 13:19; Jer17:21f; Mt 12:2; Lk6:2; Jn 7:23; 9:16

14 a Mk 2:5; Jn 8:11b Ezr 9:14

15 a Jn 1:19; 5:16, 1816 a Jn 1:19; 5:10, 15,

18

Christ Heals on the Sabbatha Now it was the Sabbath on that day.

10 So a the Jews were saying to the manwho was cured, “It is the Sabbath, andb it is not permissible for you to carryyour pallet.” 11 But he answered them,“He who made me well was the one whosaid to me, ‘Pick up your pallet andwalk.’” 12 They asked him, “Who is theman who said to you, ‘Pick up your pal-let and walk’?” 13 But the man who washealed did not know who it was, forJesus had slipped away while there wasa crowd in that place. 14 Afterward Jesus*found him in the temple and said tohim, “Behold, you have become well; donot a sin anymore, b so that nothing worsehappens to you.” 15 The man went away,and told a the Jews that it was Jesus whohad made him well. 16 For this reasona the Jews were persecuting Jesus, be-cause He was doing these things on theSabbath. 17 But He answered them, “My

2 Now there is in Jerusalem by a the sheepgate a pool, which is called b in 1 Hebrew2 Bethesda, having five porticoes. 3 In theselay a multitude of those who were sick,blind, lame, and withered, [1 waiting for themoving of the waters; 4 for an angel of theLord went down at certain seasons intothe pool and stirred up the water; whoeverthen first, after the stirring up of the water,stepped in was made well from whateverdisease with which he was afflicted.] 5 Aman was there who had been 1 ill for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lyingthere, and knew that he had already been along time in that condition, He *said to him,“Do you wish to get well?” 7 The sick mananswered Him, “Sir, I have no man to putme into the pool when a the water is stirredup, but while I am coming, another stepsdown before me.” 8 Jesus *said to him,“a Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.”9 Immediately the man became well, andpicked up his pallet and began to walk.

7 into official opposition against Him with the religious authorities’unsuccessful attempt to arrest Him (7:20-52). Accordingly, thetheme of this section is the rejection of Jesus as Messiah.

5:1-18 Although opposition to Jesus smoldered beneath the sur-face (e.g., 2:13-20), the story of Jesus’ healing at the Pool of Bethes-da highlights the beginning of open hostility toward Him inJerusalem in the southern parts of Palestine. The passage may be di-vided into 3 parts: 1) the miracle performed (vv. 1-9); 2) the Masterpersecuted (vv. 10-16); and 3) the murder planned (vv. 16-18).

5:1 a feast of the Jews. John repeatedly tied his narrative to var-ious Jewish feasts, (2:13—Passover; 6:4—Passover; 7:2—Booths, orTabernacles; 10:22—Hanukkah or Feast of Dedication; and 11:55—Passover), but this reference is the only instance when he did notidentify the particular feast occurring at the time.

5:2 sheep gate. is a reference to the gate identified in Ne 3:1,32;12:39. It was a small opening in the N wall of the city, just W of theNE corner. there is . . . a pool. Some have suggested that Johnwrote his gospel before the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, be-cause his usage of “is” here implies that the pool still existed. How-ever, John frequently used what is known as a “historical present” torefer to past events, so this argument carries little weight. For moreon the date of writing, see Introduction: Author and Date. Bethes-da. “Bethesda” is the Gr. transliteration of a Heb. (or Aram.) namemeaning “house of outpouring.”

5:3a lay. It was a custom at that time for people with infirmitiesto gather at this pool. Intermittent springs may have fed the pooland caused the disturbance of the water (v. 7). Some ancient wit-nesses indicate that the waters of the pool were red with minerals,and thus thought to have medicinal value.

5:3b,4 The statement in the latter half of v. 3, “waiting for themoving of the waters,” along with v. 4 are not original to the gospel.The earliest and best Gr. manuscripts, as well as the early versions,exclude the reading. The presence of words or expressions unfamil-iar to John’s writings also militate against its inclusion.

5:5 thirty-eight years. John included this figure to emphasizethe gravity of the debilitating disease that afflicted the individual.Since his sickness had been witnessed by many people for almost 4decades, when Jesus cured him everyone knew the genuineness ofthe healing (cf. v. 9).

5:6 knew. The word implies supernatural knowledge of theman’s situation (1:47,48; 4:17). Jesus picked the man out fromamong many sick people. The sovereign initiative was His, and noreason is given as to His choice.

5:8 Get up, pick up . . . walk. In the same way that He spoke theworld into being at creation, (Ge 1:3), Jesus’ spoken words had thepower to cure (cf. 1:3; 8:58; Ge 1:1; Col 1:16; Heb 1:2). pallet. The“pallet” or “mat” was normally made of straw and was light enoughso that it could be carried on the shoulder of a well person who as-sisted the infirm (cf. Mk 2:3).

5:9 picked up his pallet and began to walk. This phrase empha-sizes the completeness of the cure (cf. v. 5).

5:10,11 The OT had forbidden work on the Sabbath but did notstipulate what “work” was specifically indicated (Ex 20:8-11). The as-sumption in Scripture seems to be that “work” was one’s customaryemployment, but rabbinical opinion had developed oral traditionbeyond the OT which stipulated 39 activities forbidden (MishnahShabbath 7:2; 10:5), including carrying anything from one domain toanother. Thus, the man had broken oral tradition, not OT law (seenotes on v. 16).

5:10 it is not permissible. The phrase reveals that the Judaismduring Jesus’ time had degenerated into pious hypocrisy. Suchhypocrisy especially enraged the Lord Jesus (cf. Mt 22,23), who usedthis incident to set up a confrontation with Jewish hyper-legalismand identified the need for national repentance.

5:14 do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens toyou. The basic thrust of Jesus’ comments here indicates that sin hasits inevitable consequences (cf. Gal 6:7,8). Although Scripture makesclear that not all disease is a consequence of sin (cf. 9:1-3; Lk 13:1-5),illness at times may be directly tied into one’s moral turpitude (cf.1Co 11:29,30; Jas 5:15). Jesus may specifically have chosen this manin order to highlight this point.

5:16 persecuting. The verb tense means that the Jews repeated-ly persecuted Jesus, i.e., continued hostile activity. This was not anisolated incident of their hatred toward Him because of His healingson the Sabbath (cf. Mk 3:1-6). on the Sabbath. Jesus did not breakGod’s law since in it there was no prohibition of doing good on thatday (Mk 2:27). However, Jesus disregarded the oral law of the Jewsthat had developed, i.e., “the tradition of the elders” (cf. also Mt

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18 a Jn 1:19; 5:15, 16b Jn 5:16; 7:1 c Jn10:33; 19:7

19 1 Lit that One a Mt26:39; Jn 5:30; 6:38;8:28; 12:49; 14:10

20 a Mt 3:17; Jn 3:35;2Pe 1:17 b Jn 14:12

21 a Ro 4:17; 8:11

b Jn 11:2522 a Jn 5:27; 9:39; Ac

10:42; 17:3123 a Lk 10:16; 1 Jn 2:2324 a Jn 3:18; 12:44;

20:31; 1 Jn 5:13 b Jn3:18 c 1 Jn 3:14

25 a Jn 4:21, 23; 5:28b Lk 15:24 c Jn 6:60;8:43, 47; 9:27

26 a Jn 1:4; 6:5727 1 Or a son of man

a Jn 9:39; Ac 10:42;17:31

28 a Jn 4:21 b Jn 11:24;1Co 15:52

29 a Da 12:2; Mt 25:46;Ac 24:15

life, even so b the Son also gives life towhom He wishes. 22 For not even the Fa-ther judges anyone, but a He has given alljudgment to the Son, 23 so that all willhonor the Son even as they honor the Fa-ther. a He who does not honor the Son doesnot honor the Father who sent Him.

24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he whohears My word, and a believes Him whosent Me, has eternal life, and b does notcome into judgment, but has c passed outof death into life. 25 Truly, truly, I say toyou, a an hour is coming and now is, whenb the dead will hear the voice of the Son ofGod, and those who c hear will live. 26 Forjust as the Father has life in Himself, evenso He a gave to the Son also to have life inHimself; 27 and He gave Him authority toa execute judgment, because He is 1 the Sonof Man. 28 Do not marvel at this; for a anhour is coming, in which b all who are inthe tombs will hear His voice, 29 and willcome forth; a those who did the good deedsto a resurrection of life, those who commit-

Father is working until now, and I Myselfam working.”

Equality with God in Nature18 For this reason therefore a the Jews b were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, c making Himself equal withGod.

Equality with God in Power andAuthority

19 Therefore Jesus answered and wassaying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you,a the Son can do nothing of Himself, unlessit is something He sees the Father doing;for whatever 1 the Father does, these thingsthe Son also does in like manner. 20 a For theFather loves the Son, and shows Him allthings that He Himself is doing; and the Fa-ther will show Him b greater works thanthese, so that you will marvel. 21 For just asthe Father raises the dead and a gives them

15:1-9). Most likely, Jesus deliberately practiced such healing on theSabbath to provoke a confrontation with their religious hypocrisythat blinded them to the true worship of God (see vv. 17-47 for themain reason for Jesus’ confrontation; see notes on vv. 10,11).

5:17-47 These verses reveal the ultimate reason Jesus confrontedthe Jews’ religious hypocrisy, i.e., the opportunity to declare who Hewas. This section is Christ’s own personal statement of His deity. Assuch, it is one of the greatest Christological discourses in Scripture.Herein Jesus makes 5 claims to equality with God: 1) He is equalwith God in His person (vv. 17,18); 2) He is equal with God in Hisworks (vv. 19,20); 3) He is equal with God in His power and sover-eignty (v. 21); 4) He is equal with God in His judgment (v. 22); and 5) He is equal with God in His honor (v. 23).

5:17 Jesus’ point is that whether He broke the Sabbath or not,God was working continuously and, since Jesus Himself worked con-tinuously, He also must be God. Furthermore, God does not need aday of rest for He never wearies (Is 40:28). For Jesus’ self-defense tobe valid, the same factors that apply to God must also apply to Him.Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath (Mt 12:8)! Interestingly, even the rabbisadmitted that God’s work had not ceased after the Sabbath becauseHe sustains the universe.

5:18 This verse confirms that the Jews instantly grasped the im-plications of His remarks that He was God (see notes on v. 17).

5:19 Truly, truly. Cf. vv. 24,25; 1:51. This is an emphatic way of say-ing “I’m telling you the truth.” In response to Jewish hostility at theimplications of His assertions of equality with God, Jesus became evenmore fearless, forceful, and emphatic. Jesus essentially tied His activi-ties of healing on the Sabbath directly to the Father. The Son nevertook independent action that set Him against the Father because theSon only did those things that were coincident with and co-extensivewith all that the Father does. Jesus thus implied that the only Onewho could do what the Father does must be as great as the Father.

5:20 greater works. This refers to the powerful work of raisingthe dead. God has that power (cf. 1Ki 17:17-24; 2Ki 4:32-37; 5:7) andso does the Lord Jesus (vv. 21-29; 11:25-44; 14:19; 20:1-18).

5:23 honor the Son. This verse gives the reason that God en-trusted all judgment to the Son (v. 22), i.e., so that all men shouldhonor the Son just as they honor the Father. This verse goes far be-

yond making Jesus a mere ambassador who is acting in the name ofa monarch, but gives Him full and complete equality with the Father(cf. Php 2:9-11). honor the Father. Jesus turned the tables on theJewish accusation against Him of blasphemy. Instead, Jesus affirmedthat the only way anyone can honor the Father is through receivingthe Son. Therefore, the Jews were the ones who actually blas-phemed the Father by rejection of His Son.

5:24 passed out of death into life. This develops the truth of v.21, that Jesus gives life to whomever He desires. The people who re-ceive that life are here identified as those who hear the Word andbelieve in the Father and the Son. They are the people who haveeternal life and never will be condemned (Ro 8:1; Col 1:13).

5:25-29 The theme of these verses is resurrection. Jesus relatedthat all men, saved and unsaved, will be literally and physically res-urrected from the dead. However, only the saved experience a spiri-tual (“born again”), as well as physical, resurrection unto eternal life.The unsaved will be resurrected unto judgment and eternal punish-ment through separation from God (i.e., the second death; cf. Rev20:6,14; 21:8). These verses also constitute proof of the deity of JesusChrist since the Son has resurrection power (vv. 25,26), and the Fa-ther has granted Him the status of Judge of all mankind (v. 27). Inthe light of other Scripture, it is clear that Jesus speaks generallyabout resurrection, but not about one, general resurrection (seenotes on Da 12:2; 1Co 15:23; 1Th 4:16).

5:25 hour is coming and now is. Cf. 4:23. This phrase reveals analready/not yet tension regarding the resurrection. Those who areborn again are already “spiritually” resurrected (“now is”; Eph 2:1; Col2:13), and yet a future physical resurrection still awaits them (“houris coming”; 1Co 15:35-54; Php 3:20,21).

5:26 He gave to the Son. The Son from all eternity had the right togrant life (1:4). The distinction involves Jesus’ deity versus His incarna-tion. In becoming a man, Jesus voluntarily set aside the independentexercise of His divine attributes and prerogatives (Php 2:6-11). Jesushere affirmed that even in His humanity, the Father granted Him “life-giving” power, i.e., the power of resurrection (see note on v. 20).

5:27 authority. Cf. 17:2; see note on Mt 28:18.5:29 those who did the good . . . evil deeds. Jesus was not

teaching justification by works (see 6:29). In the context, the “good”

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30 a Jn 5:19 b Jn 8:16c Jn 4:34; 6:38

31 1 I.e. admissible aslegal evidence a Jn8:14

32 a Jn 5:3733 a Jn 1:7, 15, 19, 32;

3:26-3034 a Jn 5:32; 1 Jn 5:935 1 Lit an hour a 2Sa

21:17; 2Pe 1:19 b Mk1:5

36 a Mt 11:4; Jn 2:23; 10:25, 38; 14:11; 15:24b Jn 4:34 c Jn 3:17

37 a Mt 3:17; Mk 1:11;Lk 3:22; 24:27; Jn8:18; 1 Jn 5:9

38 a 1 Jn 2:14 b Jn 3:1739 1 Or (a command)

Search the Scriptures!a Jn 7:52; Ro 2:17ff b Lk24:25, 27; Ac 13:27

41 a Jn 5:44; 7:18; 1Th2:6

43 a Mt 24:544 1 Or honor or fame

a Jn 5:41 b Ro 2:29c Jn 17:3; 1Ti 1:17

45 a Jn 9:28; Ro 2:17ff46 a Lk 24:2747 a Lk 16:29, 31

CHAPTER 6

1 a Jn 6:1-13: Mt 14:13-21; Mk 6:32-44; Lk9:10-17 b Mt 4:18; Lk5:1

voice at any time nor seen His form. 38 Youdo not have a His word abiding in you, foryou do not believe Him whom He b sent.

Witness of the Scriptures 39 1 a You search the Scriptures because youthink that in them you have eternal life; it isb these that testify about Me; 40 and you areunwilling to come to Me so that you mayhave life. 41 a I do not receive glory frommen; 42 but I know you, that you do nothave the love of God in yourselves. 43 Ihave come in My Father’s name, and youdo not receive Me; a if another comes in hisown name, you will receive him. 44 Howcan you believe, when you a receive 1 gloryfrom one another and you do not seek b the1 glory that is from c the one and only God?45 Do not think that I will accuse you be-fore the Father; the one who accuses you isa Moses, in whom you have set your hope.46 For if you believed Moses, you wouldbelieve Me, for a he wrote about Me. 47 Buta if you do not believe his writings, howwill you believe My words?”

Christ Feeds 5,000Mt 14:13-21; Mk 6:31-44; Lk 9:11-17

6After these things a Jesus went away tothe other side of b the Sea of Galilee (or

ted the evil deeds to a resurrection of judg-ment.

30 “a I can do nothing on My own initia-tive. As I hear, I judge; and b My judgmentis just, because I do not seek My own will,but c the will of Him who sent Me.

Witness of John the Baptist31 “a If I alone testify about Myself, My

testimony is not 1 true. 32 There is a anotherwho testifies of Me, and I know that thetestimony which He gives about Me is true.33 You have sent to John, and he a has testi-fied to the truth. 34 But a the testimonywhich I receive is not from man, but I saythese things so that you may be saved.35 He was a the lamp that was burning andwas shining and you b were willing to re-joice for 1 a while in his light.

Witness of the Works of Christ36 But the testimony which I have is greaterthan the testimony of John; for a the workswhich the Father has given Me b to accom-plish—the very works that I do—testifyabout Me, that the Father c has sent Me.

Witness of the Father 37 And the Father who sent Me, a He hastestified of Me. You have neither heard His

is believing on the Son so as to receive a new nature that producesgood works (3:21; Jas 2:14-20), while the “evil” done is to reject theSon (the unsaved) and hate the light, which has the result of evildeeds (3:18,19). In essence, works merely evidence one’s nature assaved or unsaved (see notes on Ro 2:5-10), but human works neverdetermine one’s salvation.

5:30 the will of Him who sent Me. In summarizing all He hassaid from v. 19 on about His equality with God, Jesus claimed thatthe judgment He exercised was because everything He did was de-pendent upon the Father’s word and will (cf. vv. 19,20).

5:32-47 The background of these verses is Dt 17:6; 19:15 wherewitnesses were to establish the truthfulness of a matter (see note on1:7). Jesus Himself emphasized the familiar theme of witnesses whotestify to the identity of the Son: 1) John the Baptist (vv. 32-35); 2) Jesus’ works (vv. 35,36); 3) the Father (vv. 37,38); and 4) the OT Scriptures (vv. 39-47).

5:36 the very works that I do. Cf. 10:25. The miracles of Jesuswere witness to His deity and messiahship. Such miracles are themajor signs recorded by John in this gospel, so as to fulfill His purposein 20:30,31 (see Introduction: Historical and Theological Themes).

5:37 Father . . . has testified. Cf. Mt 3:17; Mk 1:11; Lk 3:22.

5:39 You search. Although the verb “search” could also be un-derstood as a command (i.e., “Search the Scriptures!”), most preferthis translation as an indicative. The verb implies diligent scrutiny ininvestigating the Scriptures to find “eternal life.” However, Jesuspoints out that with all their fastidious effort, they miserably failed intheir understanding of the true way to eternal life through the Sonof God (see notes on Mt 19:16-25; cf. 14:6; 2Ti 3:15). testify aboutMe. Cf. v. 45. Christ is the main theme of Scripture. See note on 1:45.

5:40 unwilling. They searched for eternal life, but were not will-ing to trust its only source (cf. v. 24; 1:11; 3:19).

5:41 glory from men. If Jesus agreed to be the kind of Messiahthe Jews wanted, providing miracles and food along with politicaland military power, He would receive honor and glory from them.But He sought only to please God (vv. 19ff.).

5:43 you will receive him. The Jewish historian, Josephus,records that a string of messianic pretenders arose in the years be-fore A.D. 70. This verse contrasts the Jewish rejection of their trueMessiah because they did not love or know God (v. 42), with theirwilling acceptance of charlatans.

5:46 Moses . . . for he wrote about Me. Jesus does not mentionany specific passage in the 5 books of Moses although there aremany (e.g., Dt 18:15; cf. 1:21; 4:19; 6:14; 7:40,52).

6:1-14 The story of the feeding of the 5,000 is the fourth signJohn employed to demonstrate that Jesus is the Messiah and Son ofGod. It is the only miracle recorded in all 4 gospels (Mt 14:13-23; Mk6:30-46; Lk 9:10-17). Since John most likely wrote to supplementand provide additional information not recorded in the synoptics(see Introduction: Background and Setting), his recording of thismiracle emphasized its strategic importance in two ways: 1) itdemonstrated the creative power of Christ more clearly than anyother miracle, and 2) it decisively supported John’s purposes ofdemonstrating the deity of Jesus Christ while also serving to set thestage for Jesus’ discourse on the “bread of life” (vv. 22-40). Interest-ingly, both creative miracles of Jesus, the water into wine (2:1-10)and the multiplying of bread (vv. 1-14) speak of the main elementsin the Lord’s supper or communion (v. 53).

6:1 After these things. A large gap of time may exist betweenchaps. 5 and 6. If the feast in 5:1 is Booths, or Tabernacles, then atleast 6 months passed (Oct. to Apr.). If the feast of 5:1 is Passover,then a year passed between these chapters. the Sea of Galilee.Chapter 6 is very close to the same structure as chap. 5 since bothoccur around a Jewish feast and both lead to a discourse of Jesus’

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1 c Jn 6:23; 21:12 1 Or attesting

miracles a Jn 2:11, 23;3:2; 6:14, 30; 11:47;12:18, 37; 20:30

3 a Mt 5:1; Mk 3:13; Lk6:12; 9:28; Jn 6:15

4 a Dt 16:1; Jn 2:135 a Jn 1:436 a 2Co 13:5; Rev 2:27 1 The denarius was

equivalent to a day’swages a Jn 1:43 b Mk6:37

8 a Jn 2:2 b Jn 1:409 a Jn 6:11; 21:9, 10, 1310 1 Lit recline(d) a Mk

6:39 b Mt 14:2111 a Mt 15:36; Jn 6:23

b Jn 6:9; 21:9, 10, 1312 a Jn 2:213 a Mt 14:20

14 1 Or attestingmiracle a Mt 11:3;21:11; Jn 1:21

15 1 Or about a Jn18:36f b Jn 6:15-21:Mt 14:22-33; Mk 6:45-51 c Jn 6:3

16 a Jn 2:217 a Mk 6:45; Jn 6:24,

5919 1 Lit 25 or 30 stadia20 1 Or stop being

afraid a Mt 14:2722 a Jn 6:2

who had eaten. 14 Therefore when the peo-ple saw the 1 sign which He had performed,they said, “This is truly the a Prophet who isto come into the world.”

Christ Walks on the WaterMt 14:22-33; Mk 6:45-52

15 So Jesus, perceiving that they were1 intending to come and take Him by forcea to make Him king, b withdrew again toc the mountain by Himself alone.

16 Now when evening came, His a disci-ples went down to the sea, 17 and after get-ting into a boat, they started to cross the seaa to Capernaum. It had already becomedark, and Jesus had not yet come to them.18 The sea began to be stirred up because astrong wind was blowing. 19 Then, whenthey had rowed about 1 three or four miles,they *saw Jesus walking on the sea anddrawing near to the boat; and they werefrightened. 20 But He *said to them, “It is I;1 a do not be afraid.” 21 So they were will-ing to receive Him into the boat, and im-mediately the boat was at the land to whichthey were going.

“I Am the Bread of Life”22 The next day a the crowd that stood on

the other side of the sea saw that there wasno other small boat there, except one, and

c Tiberias). 2 A large crowd followed Him,because they saw the 1 a signs which He wasperforming on those who were sick. 3 Thena Jesus went up on the mountain, and thereHe sat down with His disciples. 4 Now a thePassover, the feast of the Jews, was near.5 Therefore Jesus, lifting up His eyes andseeing that a large crowd was coming toHim, *said to a Philip, “Where are we to buybread, so that these may eat?” 6 This Hewas saying to a test him, for He Himselfknew what He was intending to do.7 a Philip answered Him, “b Two hundred1 denarii worth of bread is not sufficient forthem, for everyone to receive a little.” 8 Oneof His a disciples, b Andrew, Simon Peter’sbrother, *said to Him, 9 “There is a lad herewho has five barley loaves and two a fish,but what are these for so many people?”10 Jesus said, “Have the people 1 sit down.”Now there was a much grass in the place.So the men 1 sat down, in number aboutb five thousand. 11 Jesus then took theloaves, and a having given thanks, He dis-tributed to those who were seated; likewisealso of the b fish as much as they wanted.12 When they were filled, He *said to Hisa disciples, “Gather up the leftover frag-ments so that nothing will be lost.” 13 Sothey gathered them up, and filled twelvea baskets with fragments from the five bar-ley loaves which were left over by those

deity. While chap. 5 takes place in the S around Judea andJerusalem, chap. 6 takes place in the N around Galilee. The result ofboth chapters is the same: He is rejected not only in the southernbut also in the northern regions. See note on 21:1.

6:2 they saw the signs. The crowds followed not out of belief butout of curiosity concerning the miracles that He performed (v. 26).However, in spite of the crowd’s crass motivations, Jesus, having com-passion on them, healed their sick and fed them (cf. Mt 13:14; Mk 6:34).

6:7 Two hundred denarii. Since one denarius was a day’s pay fora common laborer, 200 denarii would be approximately 8 months’wages. The crowd, however, was so large that such a significantamount was still inadequate to feed them.

6:10 five thousand. The number of men was 5,000, not includ-ing women and children, who probably brought the total up to20,000.

6:14 the Prophet. The crowd referred to “the Prophet” of Dt18:15. Sadly, these comments, coming right after Jesus healed andfed them, indicate that the people desired a Messiah who met theirphysical, rather than spiritual, needs. Apparently, no recognition ex-isted for the need of spiritual repentance and preparation for thekingdom (Mt 4:17). They wanted an earthly, political Messiah tomeet all their needs and to deliver them from Roman oppression.Their reaction typifies many who want a “Christ” that makes no de-mands of them (cf. Mt 10:34-39; 16:24-26), but of whom they canmake their selfish personal requests.

6:15 take Him by force to make Him king. John supplemented theinformation in Matthew and Mark by indicating that the reason Jesusdismissed the disciples and withdrew from the crowd into a mountainalone was because of His supernatural knowledge of their intention tomake Him king in light of His healing and feeding of them. The crowd,

incited by mob enthusiasm, was ready to proceed with crassly politicalintentions that would have jeopardized God’s will.

6:16-21 The story of Jesus’ walking on the water constituted thefifth sign in John’s gospel designed to demonstrate the writer’s pur-pose that Jesus is the Messiah and Son of God (20:30,31). The miracledemonstrates Jesus’ deity by His sovereignty over the laws of nature.

6:17 to Capernaum. Matthew 14:22 and Mark 6:45 indicate thatas soon as Jesus had fed the multitudes, He immediately dismissedHis disciples to travel W toward Capernaum (vv. 16,17).

6:18 a strong wind was blowing. The Sea of Galilee is almost700 ft. below sea level. Cooler air from the northern mountains andsoutheastern tablelands rushes down into the lake and displaces thewarm moist air, causing violent churning of the water.

6:19,20 Jesus walking on the sea. The synoptics reveal that infear and the darkness, they thought He was a ghost (Mt 14:26; Mk6:49). The Son of God, who made the world, was in control of itsforces and, in this case, He suspended the law of gravity. The actwas not frivolous on Jesus’ part, for it constituted a dramatic objectlesson to the disciples of Jesus’ true identity as the sovereign Lord ofall creation (cf. 1:3).

6:21 immediately the boat was at the land. This wording indi-cates that another miracle occurred besides walking on the water,i.e., the boat miraculously and instantly arrived at its precise destina-tion as soon as Jesus stepped into the boat.

6:22-58 Jesus’ famous discourse on the bread of life. The keytheme is v. 35, i.e., “I am the bread of life,” which is the first of 7 em-phatic “I AM” statements of Jesus in this gospel (8:12; 10:7,9;10:11,14; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1,5). This analogy of Jesus as “the bread” oflife reinforces John’s theme of Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God(20:30,31). Although John records Jesus’ miracles to establish His

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22 b Jn 6:15ff23 a Jn 6:1 b Lk 7:13

c Jn 6:1124 a Mt 14:34; Mk

6:53; Jn 6:17, 5925 a Mt 23:726 a Jn 6:24 b Jn 6:2,

14, 3027 a Is 55:2 b Jn 3:15f;

4:14; 6:40, 47, 54;10:28; 17:2f c Mt8:20; Jn 6:53, 62 d Jn3:33

29 a 1Th 1:3; Jas 2:22;1 Jn 3:23; Rev 2:26b Jn 3:17

30 a Mt 12:38 b Jn 6:2,14, 26

31 a Ex 16:4, 15, 21; Nu11:8; Jn 6:49, 58 b Ps78:24; Ex 16:4, 15; Ne9:15; Ps 105:40

33 1 Or He who comesa Jn 6:41, 50

34 a Jn 4:1535 a Jn 6:48, 51 b Jn

4:1436 a Jn 6:26

God?” 29 Jesus answered and said to them,“This is a the work of God, that you believein Him whom He b has sent.” 30 So theysaid to Him, “a What then do You do for ab sign, so that we may see, and believe You?What work do You perform? 31 a Our fa-thers ate the manna in the wilderness; as itis written, ‘b HE GAVE THEM BREAD OUT OFHEAVEN TO EAT.’” 32 Jesus then said to them,“Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moseswho has given you the bread out ofheaven, but it is My Father who gives youthe true bread out of heaven. 33 For thebread of God is 1 that which a comes downout of heaven, and gives life to the world.”34 Then they said to Him, “Lord, alwaysa give us this bread.”

35 Jesus said to them, “a I am the breadof life; he who comes to Me will nothunger, and he who believes in Me b willnever thirst. 36 But a I said to you that youhave seen Me, and yet do not believe.

that Jesus b had not entered with His disci-ples into the boat, but that His disciples hadgone away alone. 23 There came othersmall boats from a Tiberias near to the placewhere they ate the bread after the b Lordc had given thanks. 24 So when the crowdsaw that Jesus was not there, nor His disci-ples, they themselves got into the smallboats, and a came to Capernaum seekingJesus. 25 When they found Him on theother side of the sea, they said to Him,“a Rabbi, when did You get here?”

26 Jesus answered them and said, “Truly,truly, I say to you, you a seek Me, not be-cause you saw b signs, but because you ateof the loaves and were filled. 27 Do nota work for the food which perishes, but forthe food which endures to b eternal life,which c the Son of Man will give to you, foron Him the Father, God, d has set His seal.”28 Therefore they said to Him, “What shallwe do, so that we may work the works of

deity, he moves quickly to Jesus’ discourse on the spiritual realitiesof His person in order to define correctly who Jesus Christ was, i.e.,not merely a wonder-worker but the Son of God who came to savemankind from sin (3:16). This discourse took place in the synagogueat Capernaum (v. 59).

6:22,23 These verses indicate that the crowds who witnessedJesus’ healings and His feeding of the multitudes were still at theoriginal site of these miracles (E of the lake) and, out of heightenedcuriosity, desired to find Jesus once again. Other boats loaded withpeople from Tiberias (on the NW shore of the lake) also heard of themiracles and sought Him out.

6:26 because you ate. This phrase emphasizes Jesus’ point thatthe crowds which followed Him were motivated by superficial desirefor food rather than any understanding of the true spiritual signifi-cance of Jesus’ person and mission (8:14-21; Mk 6:52).

6:27 food which perishes. Jesus rebuked the crowd for purelymaterialistic notions of the messianic kingdom (cf. v. 26; 4:15). Al-though Messiah’s kingdom would be literal and physical someday,the people failed to see the overriding spiritual character and bless-ing of “eternal life” given immediately to those who believe the wit-ness of God to His Son. food which endures to eternal life. Thecontinuing discourse indicates that this was a reference to JesusHimself (v. 35).

6:28 works of God. They thought Jesus was saying that God re-quired them to do some works to earn everlasting life, which theythought they would be able to do.

6:29 the work of God, that you believe. The crowd misunder-stood Jesus’ prohibition in v. 27 (“Do not work”) which promptedJesus to remind them that an exclusive focus on material blessings iswrong. The only work God desired was faith or trust in Jesus as Mes-siah and Son of God (cf. Mal 3:1). The “work” that God requires is tobelieve in His Son (cf. 5:24).

6:30 What work do You perform? The question demonstratedthe obtuseness, the spiritual blindness of the crowd, and their shal-low, selfish curiosity. The feeding of 20,000 (v. 10) was a sufficientenough sign to demonstrate Christ’s deity (cf. Lk 16:31).

6:31 Our fathers ate the manna. The crowd’s logic appeared tobe that Jesus’ miraculous feeding was a small miracle compared towhat Moses did. In order for them to believe in Him, they wouldneed to see Him feed the nation of Israel on the same scale that God

did when He sent manna and fed the entire nation of Israel duringtheir wilderness wanderings for 40 years (Ex 16:11-36). They weredemanding that Jesus outdo Moses if they were to believe in Him.They quoted from Ps 78:24.

6:32 true bread out of heaven. The manna God gave was tem-porary and perished and was only a meager shadow of what Godoffered them in the true bread, Jesus Christ, who gives spiritual andeternal life to mankind (“world”).

6:33 bread of God. This phrase is synonymous with the phrase“bread out of heaven” (v. 32).

6:34 Lord, always give us this bread. This statement once againdemonstrated the blindness of the crowd, for they were thinking ofsome physical bread and failed to understand the spiritual implica-tion that Jesus was that “bread” (cf. 4:15).

6:35 I am the bread of life. The obtuseness in v. 34 promptedJesus to speak very plainly that He was referring to Himself.

T H E “ I A M ” S TAT E M E N T S

Twenty-three times in all we find our Lord’s meaningful“IAM”(ego eimi, Gr.) in the Greek text of this gospel (Jn 4:26;

6:20,35,41,48,51; 8:12,18,24,28,58; 10:7,9,11,14; 11:25;13:19; 14:6; 15:1,5; 18:5,6,8). In several of these, He joins

His“I AM”with seven tremendous metaphors which areexpressive of His saving relationship toward the world.

“I AM the Bread of life” (Jn 6:35,41,48,51).“I AM the Light of the world” (Jn 8:12).

“I AM the Door of the sheep” (Jn 10:7,9).“I AM the Good Shepherd” (Jn 10:11,14).

“I AM the Resurrection and the Life” (Jn 11:25).“I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life” (Jn 14:6).

“I AM the true Vine” (Jn 15:1,5).©1997 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

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37 a Jn 6:39; 17:2, 2438 a Jn 3:13 b Mt 26:39

c Jn 4:34; 5:30 d Jn6:29

39 a Jn 6:37; 17:2, 24b Jn 17:12; 18:9 c Mt10:15; Jn 6:40, 44, 54;11:24

40 a Jn 12:45; 14:17,19 b Jn 3:16 c Mt10:15; Jn 6:39, 44, 54;11:24

41 a Jn 1:19; 6:52 b Jn6:33, 51, 58

42 a Lk 4:22 b Jn 7:27fc Jn 6:38, 62

44 a Jer 31:3; Hos 11:4;Jn 6:65; 12:32 b Jn 6:39

45 a Ac 7:42; 13:40;Heb 8:11 b Is 54:13;Jer 31:34 c Php 3:15;1Th 4:9; 1 Jn 2:27

46 a Jn 1:1847 a Jn 3:36; 5:24;

6:51, 58; 11:2648 a Jn 6:35, 5149 a Jn 6:31, 58

Me unless the Father who sent Me a drawshim; and I will b raise him up on the last day.45 It is written a in the prophets, ‘b AND THEYSHALL ALL BE c TAUGHT OF GOD.’ Everyonewho has heard and learned from the Father,comes to Me. 46 a Not that anyone has seenthe Father, except the One who is from God;He has seen the Father. 47 Truly, truly, I sayto you, he who believes a has eternal life.48 a I am the bread of life. 49 a Your fathersate the manna in the wilderness, and theydied. 50 This is the bread which a comesdown out of heaven, so that one may eat ofit and b not die. 51 a I am the living bread thatb came down out of heaven; if anyone eatsof this bread, c he will live forever; and thebread also which I will give d for the life ofthe world is e My flesh.”

37 a All that the Father gives Me will cometo Me, and the one who comes to Me I willcertainly not cast out. 38 For a I have comedown from heaven, b not to do My ownwill, but c the will of Him who d sent Me.39 This is the will of Him who sent Me, thatof a all that He has given Me I b lose nothing,but c raise it up on the last day. 40 For this isthe will of My Father, that everyone whoa beholds the Son and b believes in Him willhave eternal life, and I Myself will c raisehim up on the last day.”

41 a Therefore the Jews were grumblingabout Him, because He said, “I am thebread that b came down out of heaven.”42 They were saying, “a Is not this Jesus, theson of Joseph, whose father and motherb we know? How does He now say, ‘c I havecome down out of heaven’?” 43 Jesus an-swered and said to them, “Do not grumbleamong yourselves. 44 No one can come to

6:37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me. This verseemphasizes the sovereign will of God in the selection of those whocome to Him for salvation (cf. vv. 44,65; 17:6,12,24). The Father haspredestined those who would be saved (see notes on Ro 8:29,30; Eph1:3-6; 1Pe 1:2). The absolute sovereignty of God is the basis of Jesus’confidence in the success of His mission (see note on v. 40; cf. Php1:6). The security of salvation rests in the sovereignty of God, for Godis the guarantee that “all” He has chosen will come to Him for salva-tion. The idea of “gives Me” is that every person chosen by God anddrawn by God (v. 44) must be seen as a gift of the Father’s love tothe Son. The Son receives each “love gift” (v. 37), holds on to each(v. 39), and will raise each to eternal glory (vv. 39,40). No one chosenwill be lost (see notes on Ro 8:31-39). This saving purpose is the Fa-ther’s will which the Son will not fail to do perfectly (v. 38; cf. 4:34;10:28,29; 17:6,12,24).

6:40 everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him. Thisverse emphasizes human responsibility in salvation. Although God issovereign, He works through faith, so that a person must believe inJesus as the Messiah and Son of God who alone offers the only wayof salvation (cf. 14:6). However, even faith is a gift of God (Ro 12:3;Eph 2:8,9). Intellectually harmonizing the sovereignty of God andthe responsibility of man is impossible humanly, but perfectly re-solved in the infinite mind of God.

6:41-50 This section constitutes the beginning of the crowd’s re-action to Jesus’ discourse on the bread of life and may be dividedinto 3 sections: 1) the murmuring reaction of the crowd (vv. 41,42);2) Jesus’ rebuke of the crowd for their reaction (vv. 43-46); and 3) Jesus’ reiteration of His message to the crowd (vv. 47-51).

6:41 the Jews. In this gospel, the term “Jews” is often associatedwith hostility toward Christ. It is used ironically to indicate the incon-gruity of their rising hostility toward their Messiah. Since they hard-ened their hearts, God judicially hardened their hearts also (cf. 12:37-40; Is 6:10; 53:1; Mt 13:10-15). In the tribulation, Israel will turn toJesus as their true Messiah and be saved (Ro 11:25-27; Rev 1:7; 7:1-8;cf. Zec 12:10-14). grumbling. The reaction of the synagogue crowdsto Jesus’ statements was the same as the Jews in the wilderness whogrumbled against God both before and after the manna was given tothem (Ex 16:2,8,9; Nu 11:4-6). because He said, “I am the bread . . .out of heaven.” The Jews’ anger centered in two things: 1) thatJesus said He was the bread and 2) that He came down from heaven.Both the Jews in Jerusalem (5:18) and the Galileans reacted negative-ly when Jesus placed Himself equal with God.

6:42 whose father and mother we know? On the human level,they knew Jesus as a fellow Galilean. These words are reminiscentof Jesus’ words in 4:44, “a prophet has no honor in his own coun-try.” Their hostility sprang from the root of unbelief. Jesus’ deathwas impending because hostility had resulted everywhere Hewent.

6:44 draws him. Cf. v. 65. The combination of v. 37a and v. 44indicate that the divine drawing activity which Jesus referred tocannot be reduced to what theologians call “prevenient grace,”i.e., that somehow the power to come to Christ is allegedly dis-pensed to all of mankind, thus enabling everyone to accept or re-ject the gospel according to their own will alone. Scripture indi-cates that no “free will” exists in man’s nature, for man is enslavedto sin (total depravity) and unable to believe apart from God’sempowerment (Ro 3:1-19; Eph 2:1-3; 2Co 4:4; 2Ti 1:9). While“whosoever will” may come to the Father, only those whom theFather gives the ability to will toward Him will actually come toHim. The drawing here is selective and efficacious (producing thedesired effect) upon those whom God has sovereignly chosen forsalvation, i.e., those whom God has chosen will believe becauseGod has sovereignly determined that result from eternity past(Eph 1:9-11).

6:45 Jesus paraphrased Is 54:13 to support the point that ifsomeone comes to faith and repentance to God, it is because theyhave been taught, and hence drawn, by God. The “drawing” and“learning” are just different aspects of God’s sovereign direction inthe person’s life. Those taught by God to grasp the truth are alsodrawn by God the Father to embrace the Son.

6:49,50 Jesus contrasted the earthly and heavenly bread. Themanna that was given in the wilderness, although sent from heavento help sustain the Israelites for their physical needs, could not im-part eternal life nor meet their spiritual needs as could the “bread oflife” (v. 48) that came down from heaven in the person of Jesus theMessiah. The proof of this contrast centers in the irrefutable fact thatall the fathers died who ate the wilderness manna.

6:51-59 This section may be divided into 3 divisions: 1) Jesus’pronouncement (v. 51); 2) the crowd’s perplexity (v. 52); and 3) Jesus’ promises (vv. 53-59).

6:51 This pronouncement exactly reiterates vv. 33,35,47,48.bread . . . is My flesh. Jesus refers here prophetically to His im-pending sacrifice upon the cross (cf. 2Co 5:21; 1Pe 2:24). Jesus vol-untarily laid down His life for evil, sinful mankind (10:18; 1Jn 2:2).

50 a Jn 6:33 b Jn 3:36; 5:24; 6:47, 51, 58; 11:26 51 a Jn 6:35, 48 b Jn6:41, 58 c Jn 3:36; 5:24; 6:47, 58; 11:26 d Jn 1:29; 3:14f; Heb 10:10; 1 Jn4:10 e Jn 6:53-56

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53 a Mt 8:20; Jn 6:27, 6254 a Jn 6:3956 a Jn 15:4f; 17:23;

1 Jn 2:24; 3:24; 4:15f57 a Mt 16:16; Jn 5:26

b Jn 3:17; 6:29, 3858 a Jn 6:33, 41, 51 b Jn

6:31, 49 c Jn 3:36;5:24; 6:47, 51; 11:26

59 a Mt 4:23 b Jn 6:2460 a Jn 2:2; 6:66; 7:3

b Jn 6:5261 a Jn 6:64 b Mt 11:662 a Mt 8:20; Jn 6:27,

53 b Mk 16:19; Jn 3:13

63 a 2Co 3:6 b Jn 6:6864 1 Or hand Him over

a Jn 6:60, 66 b Jn 2:25c Mt 10:4; Jn 6:71;13:11

65 a Jn 6:37, 44 b Mt13:11; Jn 3:27

66 a Jn 2:2; 7:3 b Jn6:60, 64

67 a Mt 10:2; Jn 2:2;6:70f; 20:24

68 a Mt 16:16 b Jn6:63; 12:49f; 17:8

69 a Mk 1:24; 8:29; Lk9:20

70 a Jn 15:16, 19 b Mt10:2; Jn 2:2; 6:71;20:24 c Jn 8:44; 13:2,27; 17:12

71 1 Or was intendingto a Jn 12:4; 13:2, 26

was before? 63 a It is the Spirit who giveslife; the flesh profits nothing; b the wordsthat I have spoken to you are spirit and arelife. 64 But there are a some of you who donot believe.” For Jesus b knew from the be-ginning who they were who did not be-lieve, and c who it was that would 1 betrayHim. 65 And He was saying, “For this rea-son I have a said to you, that no one cancome to Me unless b it has been grantedhim from the Father.”

Confession by Peter66 As a result of this many of His a disci-

ples b withdrew and were not walking withHim anymore. 67 So Jesus said to a thetwelve, “You do not want to go away also,do you?” 68 a Simon Peter answered Him,“Lord, to whom shall we go? You haveb words of eternal life. 69 We have believedand have come to know that You are a theHoly One of God.” 70 Jesus answered them,“a Did I Myself not choose you, b the twelve,and yet one of you is c a devil?” 71 Now Hemeant Judas a the son of Simon Iscariot, forhe, b one of c the twelve, 1 was going to be-tray Him.

52 a Then the Jews b began to argue withone another, saying, “How can this mangive us His flesh to eat?” 53 So Jesus said tothem, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless youeat the flesh of a the Son of Man and drinkHis blood, you have no life in yourselves.54 He who eats My flesh and drinks Myblood has eternal life, and I will a raise himup on the last day. 55 For My flesh is truefood, and My blood is true drink. 56 Hewho eats My flesh and drinks My blooda abides in Me, and I in him. 57 As the a liv-ing Father b sent Me, and I live because ofthe Father, so he who eats Me, he also willlive because of Me. 58 This is the breadwhich a came down out of heaven; not asb the fathers ate and died; he who eats thisbread c will live forever.” 59 These thingsHe said a in the synagogue as He taught b inCapernaum.

Rejection by Many Followers60 Therefore many of His a disciples,

when they heard this said, “b This is a diffi-cult statement; who can listen to it?” 61 ButJesus, a conscious that His disciples grum-bled at this, said to them, “Does this b causeyou to stumble? 62 What then if you seea the Son of Man b ascending to where He

6:52 argue. Once again the perplexity of the Jews indicates thatthey failed to understand the spiritual truth behind Jesus’ illustra-tion. Every time Jesus had given them a veiled saying or physical il-lustration, the Jews failed to see its spiritual significance (e.g., 3:4;4:15). The Mosaic law prohibited the drinking of blood or the eatingof meat with blood still in it (Lv 17:10-14; Dt 12:16; Ac 15:29). TheJews, unable to go beyond the mere physical perspective, were per-plexed and angered.

6:53-58 eat . . . drink. Jesus’ point was an analogy that has spiritu-al, rather than literal, significance: just as eating and drinking are nec-essary for physical life, so also is belief in His sacrificial death on thecross necessary for eternal life. The eating of His flesh and drinking ofHis blood metaphorically symbolize the need for accepting Jesus’cross work. For the Jews, however, a crucified Messiah was unthink-able (cf. Ac 17:1-3). Once again, the Jews, in their willful and judicialblindness, could not see the real spiritual significance and truth be-hind Jesus’ statements. Moreover, Jesus’ reference here to eating anddrinking was not referring to the ordinance of communion for two sig-nificant reasons: 1) communion had not been instituted yet, and 2) ifJesus was referring to communion, then the passage would teachthat anyone partaking of communion would receive eternal life.

6:60-71 These verses constitute the reaction of Jesus’ disciples toHis sermon on the “bread of life.” As with the crowds’ response inJerusalem (chap. 5) and in Galilee (chap. 6), the response of many ofHis disciples was unbelief and rejection of Him. John lists twogroups and their reactions: 1) the false disciples’ reaction of unbelief(vv. 60-66), and 2) the true disciples’ reaction of belief (vv. 67-71).After this sermon, only a small nucleus of disciples remained (v. 67).

6:61 His disciples grumbled. Many of Jesus’ disciples had thesame reaction as the Jews in v. 41 and of the first generation of Is-raelites to manna, i.e., they grumbled (Ex 16:2).

6:64 Jesus knew. Reminiscent of Jesus’ words in 2:23-25, Jesusknew the hearts of men, including those disciples who followed

Him. He supernaturally knew that many did not believe in Him asMessiah and Son of God so He did not entrust Himself to them.These false disciples were simply attracted to the physical phenom-ena (e.g., miracles and food), and failed to understand the true sig-nificance of Jesus’ teaching (v. 61).

6:65 I have said. See notes on vv. 37,44. Although men andwomen are commanded to believe and will be held accountable forunbelief, genuine faith is never exclusively a matter of human deci-sion. Once again, in the face of unbelief, Jesus reiterated God’s sov-ereignty involved in selection for salvation.

6:66 disciples . . . were not walking with Him anymore. The lan-guage indicates that the abandonment was decisive and final (cf.1Pe 2:6-8; 1Jn 2:19).

6:69 We have believed. Peter’s words were somewhat preten-tious in that he implied that the true disciples somehow had superi-or insight and, as a result, came to belief through that insight.

6:70 Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve. In response toPeter’s words that the disciples had come to believe in Jesus, He re-minds them that He sovereignly chose them (vv. 37,44,65). Jesuswould not allow even a whisper of human pretension in God’s sover-eign selection. a devil. The word “devil” means “slanderer” or “falseaccuser.” The idea perhaps is better rendered “one of you is the devil.”This meaning is clear from 13:2,27; Mk 8:33; Lk 22:3. The supreme ad-versary of God so operates behind failing human beings that his mal-ice becomes theirs (cf. Mt 16:23). Jesus supernaturally knew the sourceand identified it precisely. This clearly fixes the character of Judas, notas a well intentioned but misguided man trying to force Jesus to exertHis power and set up His kingdom (as some suggest), but as a tool ofSatan doing unmitigated wickedness (see notes on 13:21-30).

6:71 Iscariot. The word most likely is from a Heb. word meaning“man of Kerioth,” the name of a village in Judah. As with the other 3gospels, as soon as he was named, he became identified as the be-trayer.

b Mk 14:10 c Mt 10:2; Jn 2:2; 6:70; 20:24

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1 a Jn 4:3; 6:1; 11:54b Jn 1:19; 7:11, 13,15, 35 c Jn 5:18; 7:19;8:37, 40; 11:53

2 a Lv 23:34; Dt 16:13,16; Zec 14:16-19

3 a Mt 12:46; Mk 3:21;Jn 7:5, 10 b Jn 6:60

4 1 Lit and5 a Mt 12:46; Mk 3:21;

Jn 7:3, 106 a Mt 26:18; Jn 2:4;

7:8, 307 a Jn 15:18f

b Jn 3:19f8 a Jn 7:610 a Mt 12:46; Mk

3:21; Jn 7:3, 5

hate you, but it hates Me because I testify ofit, that b its deeds are evil. 8 Go up to thefeast yourselves; I do not go up to this feastbecause a My time has not yet fully come.”9 Having said these things to them, Hestayed in Galilee.

Christ Secretly Goes to the Feast10 But when His a brothers had gone up

to the feast, then He Himself also went up,not publicly, but as if, in secret. 11 a So theJews b were seeking Him at the feast andwere saying, “Where is He?” 12 There wasmuch grumbling among the crowds con-cerning Him; a some were saying, “He is a

Christ’s Brothers Do Not Believe

7After these things Jesus a was walking inGalilee, for He was unwilling to walk in

Judea because b the Jews c were seeking tokill Him. 2 Now the feast of the Jews, a theFeast of Booths, was near. 3 Therefore Hisa brothers said to Him, “Leave here and gointo Judea, so that Your b disciples also maysee Your works which You are doing. 4 Forno one does anything in secret 1 when hehimself seeks to be known publicly. If Youdo these things, show Yourself to theworld.” 5 For not even His a brothers werebelieving in Him. 6 So Jesus *said to them,“a My time is not yet here, but your time isalways opportune. 7 a The world cannot

7:1–8:59 The main thrust of this section can be summarized as“high intensity hatred” since the smoldering dislike of Jesus inchaps. 5,6 erupted into a blazing inferno. The culmination of this ha-tred occurs in 11:45-57 where the Jewish authorities plot to kill theSon of God, culminating ultimately in His crucifixion. Both chaptersdeal with Jesus at the Feast of Booths, or Tabernacles, in Jerusalem.Especially noteworthy is the fact that two major themes associatedwith Tabernacles, i.e., water and light, come to prominence in thesetwo chapters (vv. 37-39; 8:12). At the next Passover following thiscelebration of Tabernacles, Jesus was crucified. The central truththat dominates this whole passage is that Jesus was on a divinetimetable. His life was not random, but operated according to God’ssovereign and perfect timing and direction.

7:1-13 This section has two parts: 1) Jesus’ avoidance of thewrong time in God’s sovereign plan (vv. 1-9), and 2) Jesus’ perfectobedience to the right time in God’s sovereign plan (vv. 10-13).

7:1 After these things. A 6 month gap most likely took place be-tween chaps. 6 and 7. While chap. 6 occurred around Passover (6:4—Apr.), chap. 7 occurs at the Feast of Booths, or Tabernacles (Oct.).John wrote nothing about those months since his purpose was notto present an exhaustive chronology of Christ’s life but to portrayHim as the Messiah and Son of God and show how men reacted toHim. walking in Galilee. Chapter 6 indicates Jesus spent two dayswith the multitude of 20,000 people (6:22), but He spent 7 monthsteaching His 12 disciples who believed in Him. This phrase subtlyhighlights the great importance of discipleship, for Jesus concentrat-ed great lengths of time upon training His future spiritual leaders.

7:2 Feast of Booths. See note on 5:1. The Feast of Booths, orTabernacles, was associated in the OT with the ingathering of theharvest of grapes and olives (Ex 23:16; Lv 23:33-36,39-43; Dt 16:13-15), while grain was reaped between Apr. and June. The feast oc-curred for 7 days from the 15th to the 21st of Tishri (Sep.-Oct.). Ac-cording to Josephus, this feast was the most popular of the 3principal Jewish feasts (Passover, Pentecost, and Booths, or Taberna-cles). People living in rural areas built makeshift structures of lightbranches and leaves to live in for the week (hence, “booths” or“tabernacles”; cf. Lv 23:42) while town dwellers put up similar struc-tures on their flat roofs or in their courtyards. The feast was knownfor water-drawing and lamp-lighting rites to which Jesus makes ref-erence (“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink”—vv.37,38 and “I am the Light of the world”—8:12).

7:3 His brothers. Matthew 13:55 lists Jesus’ brothers as “James andJoseph and Simon and Judas.” James authored the NT epistle thatbears his name and became the leader of the Jerusalem church andJudas (or Jude) wrote the epistle that also bears his name. Because ofJesus’ virgin birth, they were only the half-brothers of Jesus since Mary,not Joseph, was Jesus’ only human parent (cf. Mt 1:16,18,23; Lk 1:35).

7:4 to be known publicly . . . .show Yourself to the world. Jesus’brothers wanted Him to put on a display of His miracles. Althoughthe text does not clearly state their motivation, perhaps they madethe request for two reasons: 1) they wanted to see the miracles forthemselves to determine their genuineness, and 2) they may havehad similar crass political motives as did the people, namely that Hewould become their social and political Messiah. Jerusalem’s accep-tance of Him was to be the acid test for them as to whether His ownfamily would believe in Him as Messiah.

7:5 As with the crowds in Jerusalem and Galilee, even His ownbrothers did not believe in Jesus at first. They did not become Hisfollowers until after the resurrection (Ac 1:14; 1Co 15:7).

7:6 My time is not yet here. This recalls the response to Jesus’mother at the wedding in Cana (see 2:4). It also reveals the first reasonwhy Jesus would not go to the feast: it was not in God’s perfect timing.The sentence reveals Jesus’ complete dependence on and commit-ment to the Father’s sovereign timetable for His life (cf. 8:20; Ac 1:7;17:26). Furthermore, Jesus never committed Himself to being motivat-ed by unbelief, even that of His own half-brothers. your time is alwaysopportune. Because Jesus’ brothers did not believe in Him, they wereof the world and therefore, knew nothing of God or His purposes. Be-cause of unbelief, they did not listen to His word, did not recognizeGod’s schedule, and could not perceive the incarnate Word beforethem. As a result, any time would do for them, preferably that moment.

7:7 The world cannot hate you. The world cannot hate Jesus’brothers because they belonged to the world and the world loves itsown (cf. 15:18,19). The evil world system and all who reject theWord and Son of God lie in the control of the evil one himself (1Jn5:19). I testify of it, that its deeds are evil. A true born-again be-liever who is living a life for God’s glory should experience the ha-tred and antagonism of the world (cf. 15:18-25; 16:1-3; 2Ti 3:12).

7:8 My time has not yet fully come. This reveals the second rea-son why Jesus would not go to the feast in Jerusalem. The Jewscould not kill Him before God’s perfect timing and plan was ready(cf. Gal 4:4). Jesus’ commitment to God’s timetable would not per-mit any deviance from what God had decreed.

7:10 in secret. The assumption is that the Father had directedJesus to permit Him to go to Jerusalem. The secrecy of His journeyindicates His maximum discretion which was the complete oppositeof what His brothers had demanded of Him (cf. v. 4).

7:11 the Jews were seeking Him. The contrast between thephrase “the Jews” in this verse and “the crowds” in v. 12 indicatesthat the term “Jews” designates the hostile Jewish authorities inJudea who were headquartered in Jerusalem. The search for Jesuswas certainly hostile in intent.

7:12,13 grumbling among the crowds. The crowds, made up of

11 a Jn 7:13, 15, 35 b Jn 11:56 12 a Jn 7:40-43

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13 a Jn 9:22; 12:42;19:38; 20:19

14 a Mt 26:55; Jn 7:2815 a Jn 1:19; 7:11, 13,

35 b Ac 26:2416 a Jn 3:1117 a Ps 25:9, 14; Pr

3:32; Da 12:10; Jn3:21; 8:43f

18 a Jn 5:41; 8:50, 54;12:43

19 a Jn 1:17 b Mk11:18; Jn 7:1

20 a Mt 11:18; Jn 8:48f,52; 10:20

21 1 Or work a Jn 5:2-9,16; 7:23

22 a Lv 12:3 b Ge17:10ff; 21:4; Ac 7:8

23 a Mt 12:2; Jn 5:9, 1024 1 Lit judge the

righteous judgmenta Lv 19:15; Is 11:3;Zec 7:9; Jn 8:15

19 “a Did not Moses give you the Law,and yet none of you carries out the Law?Why do you b seek to kill Me?” 20 Thecrowd answered, “a You have a demon!Who seeks to kill You?” 21 Jesus an-swered them, “I did a one 1 deed, and youall marvel. 22 For this reason a Moses hasgiven you circumcision (not because it isfrom Moses, but from b the fathers), andon the Sabbath you circumcise a man.23 a If a man receives circumcision on theSabbath so that the Law of Moses willnot be broken, are you angry with Mebecause I made an entire man well on theSabbath? 24 Do not a judge according toappearance, but 1 judge with righteousjudgment.”

Christ’s Origin from the Father25 So some of the people of Jerusalem

were saying, “Is this not the man whom

good man”; others were saying, “No, onthe contrary, He leads the people astray.”13 Yet no one was speaking openly of Himfor a fear of the Jews.

Christ’s Authority from the Father14 But when it was now the midst of the

feast Jesus went up into the temple, andbegan to a teach. 15 a The Jews then were as-tonished, saying, “How has this man b be-come learned, having never beeneducated?” 16 So Jesus answered them andsaid, “a My teaching is not Mine, but Hiswho sent Me. 17 a If anyone is willing to doHis will, he will know of the teaching,whether it is of God or whether I speak fromMyself. 18 He who speaks from himselfa seeks his own glory; but He who is seek-ing the glory of the One who sent Him, Heis true, and there is no unrighteousness inHim.

Judeans, Galileans, and Diaspora (scattered) Jews, expressed variousopinions regarding Christ. The spectrum ranged from superficial ac-ceptance (“He is a good man”) to cynical rejection (“He leads thepeople astray”). The Jewish Talmud reveals that the latter view ofdeception became the predominant opinion of many Jews (Bab-ylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 43a).

7:14-24 The increasing hostility to Jesus did not prevent Histeaching ministry. Instead, Jesus relentlessly set forth His claims re-garding His identity and mission. In the midst of the Feast of Taber-nacles, when Jews from all over Israel had migrated into Jerusalem,Jesus once again began to teach. In this section, Jesus set forth thejustification of His ministry and taught with authority as God’s Son.In this passage, 5 reasons are set forth as to why Jesus’ claims re-garding Himself are true: 1) His supernatural knowledge originatedfrom the Father Himself (vv. 15,16); 2) His teaching and knowledgecould be confirmed by testing (v. 17); 3) His actions demonstratedHis selflessness (v. 18); 4) His impact on the world was startling (vv.19,20); and 5) His deeds demonstrated His identity as the Son ofGod (vv. 21-24).

7:14 midst of the feast. Jesus may have waited until the middleof the feast in order to prevent a premature “triumphal entry” thatsome may have forced upon Him for political motivations. into thetemple, and began to teach. Jesus taught according to the customof the teachers or rabbis of His day. Prominent rabbis would enterthe temple environs and expound on the OT to crowds who sataround them.

7:15 astonished. Jesus’ knowledge of Scripture was supernatur-al. The people were amazed that someone who had never studiedat any great rabbinical centers or under any great rabbis could dis-play such profound mastery of Scripture. Both the content and man-ner of Jesus’ teachings were qualitatively different than any otherteacher.

7:16 His who sent Me. The qualitative difference of Jesus’ teach-ing was found in its source, i.e., the Father gave it to Him(8:26,40,46,47; 12:49,50). It originated from God the Father Himself,in contrast to rabbis who received it from man (Gal 1:12). While rab-bis relied on the authority of others (a long chain of human tradi-tion), Jesus’ authority centered in Himself (cf. Mt 7:28,29; Ac 4:13).

7:17 If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know. Those whoare fundamentally committed to doing the will of God will be guid-ed by Him in the affirmation of His truth. God’s truth is self-

authenticating through the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit (cf.16:13; 1Jn 2:20,27).

7:18 He who is seeking the glory of the One who sent Him.While other saviors and messiahs acted for their own selfish inter-ests, thereby revealing their falseness, Jesus Christ as God’s Soncame solely to glorify the Father and accomplish the Father’s will(2Co 2:17; Php 2:5-11; Heb 10:7).

7:19,20 kill Me. If Jesus were another religious fake, the worldnever would have reacted in such hatred. Since the evil world sys-tem loves its own, its hatred toward Him demonstrates that Hecame from God (15:18,19).

7:21 one deed. The context makes clear (vv. 22,23) that Jesushad reference to the healing of the paralytic that evoked the begin-ning of persecution against Him by the Jewish authorities because ittook place on the Sabbath (see 5:1-16).

7:22 but from the fathers. The patriarchal period during thetime of Abraham when God instituted the sign of circumcision (Ge17:10-12), which was later included as part of the Mosaic covenantat Sinai (Ex 4:26; 12:44,45). This observation not only depreciatedthe Jewish esteem for Moses, but even more importantly showedthat this rite was antecedent to the Mosaic law and took precedenceover it (Gal 3:17). Furthermore, circumcision antedates the Sabbathlaw also.

7:23 on the Sabbath. The law required that circumcision occuron the eighth day (Lv 12:1-3). If a child was born on the Sabbath,then the eighth day would fall again on the subsequent Sabbath,when the Jews would circumcise the child. Jesus’ point was that theJews broke their own Sabbath law with the circumcision of thechild. Their hypocrisy is evident. I made an entire man well. Jesusused an argument of the lesser to the greater. If ceremonial cleans-ing of one part of the body is permitted on the Sabbath through theact of circumcision (the less), how much more so should the actualhealing of the entire body be permitted on the Sabbath (thegreater).

7:24 with righteous judgment. While Jesus forbade harsh, cen-sorious judgment that self-righteous legalism promotes (Mt 7:1), Hedemanded the exercise of moral and theological discernment.

7:25-36 In this section, John once again reiterated the claims ofJesus to His identity as the Messiah and Son of God. He focused onHis divine origin and citizenship. While some believed in Him at thistime (v. 31), the religious leaders became even more angry at Him

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26 1 I.e. the Messiaha Lk 23:13; Jn 3:1

27 a Jn 6:42; 7:41f; 9:2928 a Jn 7:14 b Jn 6:42;

7:14f; 9:29 c Jn 8:4229 a Mt 11:27; Jn 8:55;

17:25 b Jn 6:46 c Jn3:17

30 a Mt 21:46; Jn 7:32,44; 10:39 b Jn 7:6; 8:20

31 1 I.e. the Messiah2 Or attesting miraclesa Jn 2:23; 8:30; 10:42;11:45; 12:11, 42 b Jn7:26 c Jn 2:11

32 a Mt 26:58; Jn 7:45fb Mt 12:14

33 a Jn 12:35; 13:33;14:19; 16:16-19 b Jn14:12, 28; 16:5, 10,17, 28; 20:17

34 a Jn 7:36; 8:21; 13:3335 a Jn 7:1 b Jn 8:22

c Ps 147:2; Is 11:12;56:8; Zep 3:10; Jas1:1; 1Pe 1:1 d Jn12:20; Ac 14:1; 17:4;18:4; Ro 1:16

36 a Jn 7:34; 8:21; 13:33

chief priests and the Pharisees sent a offi-cers to b seize Him. 33 Therefore Jesus said,“a For a little while longer I am with you,then b I go to Him who sent Me. 34 a Youwill seek Me, and will not find Me; andwhere I am, you cannot come.” 35 a TheJews then said to one another, “b Wheredoes this man intend to go that we will notfind Him? He is not intending to go to c theDispersion among d the Greeks, and teachthe Greeks, is He? 36 What is this statementthat He said, ‘a You will seek Me, and willnot find Me; and where I am, you cannotcome’?”

Christ Reveals the “Living Water”37 Now on a the last day, the great day of

the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying,“1 b If anyone is thirsty, 2 let him come to Me

they are seeking to kill? 26 Look, He is speak-ing publicly, and they are saying nothing toHim. a The rulers do not really know thatthis is 1 the Christ, do they? 27 However, a weknow where this man is from; but wheneverthe Christ may come, no one knows whereHe is from.” 28 Then Jesus cried out in thetemple, a teaching and saying, “b You bothknow Me and know where I am from; and c Ihave not come of Myself, but He who sentMe is true, whom you do not know. 29 a Iknow Him, because b I am from Him, andc He sent Me.” 30 So they a were seeking toseize Him; and no man laid his hand onHim, because His b hour had not yet come.31 But a many of the crowd believed in Him;and they were saying, “b When 1 the Christcomes, He will not perform more 2 c signsthan those which this man has, will He?”

Christ’s Departure to the Father32 The Pharisees heard the crowd mut-

tering these things about Him, and the

and nefariously planned to seize Him (v. 32). Jesus confronted thepeople with 3 dilemmas recorded in these verses: 1) the problem ofdense confusion (vv. 25-29); 2) the problem of divided conviction(vv. 30-32); and 3) the problem of delayed conversion (vv. 33-36).These 3 problems left Jerusalem in a state of utter despair.

7:26 He is speaking publicly. What surprised the masses wasthat in spite of the ominous threat from the religious authorities (vv.20,32), Jesus boldly proclaimed His identity. The rulers do not real-ly know. The question indicates the crowds and the rulers were ingreat confusion and uncertainty as to who Jesus was and what todo about Him. They did not really have any firm convictions regard-ing Jesus’ identity, for their question reveals their doubt and unbe-lief. They were also perplexed at the religious leaders’ failure to ar-rest and silence Him if He really were a fraud. Such dense confusioncaused the crowd to wonder if the religious authorities in privateconcluded that He was indeed the Christ. Mass confusion among allgroups reigned regarding Jesus. Christ. See notes on 1:20,41.

7:27 no one knows where He is from. Only information regard-ing Messiah’s birthplace was revealed in Scripture (Mic 5:2; Mt 2:5,6).Beyond that, a tradition had developed in Jewish circles that Messi-ah would appear suddenly to the people, based on a misinterpreta-tion of Is 53:8 and Mal 3:1. In light of this, the meaning of this phrasemost likely is that the identity of the Messiah would be wholly un-known until He suddenly appeared in Israel and accomplished Is-rael’s redemption. In contrast, Jesus had lived His life in Nazarethand was known (at least superficially) to the people (v. 28).

7:28 cried out. Jesus gave the greatest publicity to this importantteaching by voicing it loudly (cf. v. 37; 1:15; 12:44). You both knowMe and know where I am from. These words stand in antithesiswith 8:19 where Jesus told His enemies that they neither knew Himnor the Father, thus indicating a deep irony and sarcasm on Jesus’part here. Jesus’ point is that contrary to what they thought, they real-ly had no true understanding of who He was. They knew Him in theearthly sense, but not in the spiritual sense, because they didn’t knowGod either. whom you do not know. Although they thought thatthey were acutely perceptive and spiritually oriented, their rejection ofJesus revealed their spiritual bankruptcy (Ro 2:17-19).

7:30 His hour had not yet come. This reveals the reason whythey could not seize Him, i.e., God’s sovereign timetable and plan forJesus would not allow it.

7:31 many . . . believed. Divided conviction existed among thepeople regarding Jesus. While some wanted to seize Him, a smallremnant of genuine believers existed among the crowds. The ques-tion here anticipates a negative answer, i.e., the Messiah could dono greater kinds of miracles than those Jesus had done.

7:32 the chief priests and the Pharisees. See note on 3:1. ThePharisees and chief priests historically did not have harmonious rela-tionships with each other. Most of the chief priests were Sadducees,who were political and religious opponents to the Pharisees. John re-peatedly links these two groups in his gospel (see also v. 45; 11:47,57;18:3) in order to emphasize that their cooperation stemmed fromtheir mutual hatred of Jesus. Both were alarmed at the faith of thoseindicated in v. 31 and, in order to avoid any veneration of Jesus asMessiah, attempted unsuccessfully to arrest Him (v. 30). officers.Temple guards who functioned as a kind of police force composed ofLevites who were in charge of maintaining order in the temple envi-rons. They could also be used by the Sanhedrin in areas outside thetemple environs in religious disputes that did not affect Roman policy.

7:34 where I am, you cannot come. Jesus referred here to His re-turn to His heavenly origin with His Father after His crucifixion andresurrection (see 17:15).

7:35,36 John again highlights the ignorance of the Jews regard-ing Jesus’ words. The words were spoken to mock Jesus.

7:35 teach the Greeks. The phrase “teach the Greeks” probablyhad reference to Jewish proselytes, i.e., Gentiles. John may havebeen citing this phrase with ironic force since the gospel eventuallywent to the Gentiles because of Jewish blindness and rejection oftheir Messiah. See notes on Ro 11:7-11.

7:37-52 This section catalogues the different reactions of people toJesus’ claims. These reactions have become universal patterns for re-actions to Him through the ages. This section may be divided into theclaim of Christ (vv. 37-39) and the reactions to Christ (vv. 40-52). Thereactions may be subdivided into 5 sections: 1) the reaction of theconvinced (vv. 40-41a); 2) the reaction of the contrary (vv. 41b-42); 3)the reaction of the hostile (vv. 43,44); 4) the reaction of the confused(vv. 45,46); and 5) the reaction of the religious authorities (vv. 47-52).

7:37 on the last day. This suggests that this occasion occurredon a different day than the controversy in vv. 11-36. If anyone isthirsty. A tradition grew up in the few centuries before Jesus thaton the 7 days of the Feast of Booths, or Tabernacles, a golden con-

37 1 Vv 37-38 may also be read: If anyone is thirsty,...let him come..., hewho believes in me as... 2 Or let him keep coming to Me and let him keepdrinking a Lv 23:36; Nu 29:35; Ne 8:18 b Jn 4:10, 14; 6:35

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38 1 Lit out of his bellya Is 44:3; 55:1; 58:11b Jn 4:10

39 a Joel 2:28; Jn 1:33b Jn 20:22; Ac 1:4f;2:4, 33; 19:2 c Jn12:16, 23; 13:31f;16:14; 17:1

40 a Mt 21:11; Jn 1:21

41 1 I.e. the Messiaha Jn 1:46; 7:52

42 a Ps 89:4; Mic 5:2;Mt 1:1; 2:5f; Lk 2:4ff

43 a Jn 9:16; 10:1944 a Jn 7:30

45 a Jn 7:3246 a Jn 7:32 b Mt

7:2847 a Jn 7:1248 a Jn 12:42 b Lk

23:13; Jn 7:2650 a Jn 3:1; 19:3951 a Ex 23:1; Dt 17:6;

19:15; Pr 18:13; Ac23:3

52 a Jn 1:46; 7:41

The Sanhedrin Is Confused over Christ45 The a officers then came to the chief

priests and Pharisees, and they said tothem, “Why did you not bring Him?”46 The a officers answered, “b Never has aman spoken the way this man speaks.”47 The Pharisees then answered them,“a You have not also been led astray, haveyou? 48 a No one of b the rulers or Phariseeshas believed in Him, has he? 49 But thiscrowd which does not know the Law is ac-cursed.” 50 a Nicodemus (he who came toHim before, being one of them) *said tothem, 51 “a Our Law does not judge a manunless it first hears from him and knowswhat he is doing, does it?” 52 They an-swered him, “a You are not also fromGalilee, are you? Search, and see that noprophet arises out of Galilee.” 53 [1 Every-one went to his home.

and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, a asthe Scripture said, ‘From 1 his innermostbeing will flow rivers of b living water.’”39 But this He spoke a of the Spirit, whomthose who believed in Him were to receive;for b the Spirit was not yet given, becauseJesus was not yet c glorified.

Israel Is Divided over Christ40 Some of the people therefore, when

they heard these words, were saying,“This certainly is a the Prophet.” 41 Otherswere saying, “This is 1 the Christ.” Still oth-ers were saying, “a Surely 1 the Christ is notgoing to come from Galilee, is He? 42 Hasnot the Scripture said that the Christcomes from a the descendants of David,and from Bethlehem, the village whereDavid was?” 43 So a a division occurred inthe crowd because of Him. 44 a Some ofthem wanted to seize Him, but no one laidhands on Him.

tainer filled with water from the pool of Siloam was carried in pro-cession by the High-Priest back to the temple. As the processioncame to the Watergate on the S side of the inner temple court, 3trumpet blasts were made to mark the joy of the occasion and thepeople recited Is 12:3, “you will joyously draw water from thesprings of salvation.” At the temple, while onlookers watched, thepriests would march around the altar with the water container whilethe temple choir sang the Hallel (Pss 113–118). The water was of-fered in sacrifice to God at the time of the morning sacrifice. The useof the water symbolized the blessing of adequate rainfall for crops.Jesus used this event as an object lesson and opportunity to make avery public invitation on the last day of the feast for His people toaccept Him as the living water. His words recall Is 55:1. thirsty . . .come . . . drink. These 3 words summarize the gospel invitation. Arecognition of need leads to an approach to the source of provision,followed by receiving what is needed. The thirsty, needy soul feelsthe craving to come to the Savior and drink, i.e., receive the salva-tion that He offers.

7:38 living water. The water-pouring rite was also associatedwithin Jewish tradition as a foreshadowing of the eschatologicalrivers of living water foreseen in Eze 47:1-9 and Zec 13:1. The signif-icance of Jesus’ invitation centers in the fact that He was the fulfill-ment of all the Feast of Booths, or Tabernacles, anticipated, i.e., Hewas the One who provided the living water that gives eternal life toman (cf. 4:10,11).

7:39 He spoke of the Spirit. The impartation of the Holy Spirit isthe source of spiritual and eternal life. See note on 16:7.

7:41 from Galilee. This betrays the people’s great ignorance, be-cause Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea not Galilee (Mic 5:2 cf.Mt 2:6; Lk 2:4). They did not even bother to investigate His truebirthplace, showing their lack of interest in messianic credentials.

7:43 division. See Mt 10:34-36; Lk 12:51-53.7:44 See notes on vv. 8,30.7:45 The officers. The officers failed in their attempt to arrest

Jesus when they were confronted with His person and powerfulteaching. Since they were religiously trained, Jesus’ words struck attheir very heart. For their identity, see notes on v. 32.

7:47,48 The Pharisees mocked the officers, not on professional(as police officers) but religious grounds (as Levites). In essence, theyaccused them of being seduced by a deceiver (i.e., Jesus) in contrast

to the Pharisees themselves who arrogantly and self-righteously feltthat in their wisdom and knowledge no one could ever deceivethem.

7:49 crowd. The Pharisees condescendingly labeled the peopleas a “crowd.” The rabbis viewed the common people (or, people ofthe land) as ignorant and impious in contrast to themselves. This ig-norance was not only because of their ignorance of Scripture, butespecially the common people’s failure to follow the Pharisees’ oraltraditions. accursed. The people were considered damned becausethey did not belong to the elite group or follow their beliefs regard-ing the law.

7:50-52 Nicodemus’ (see 3:10) mind had not closed regardingChrist’s claims, so that while not defending Jesus directly, he didraise a procedural point in Jesus’ favor.

7:51 Our Law does not judge. No explicit OT text can be citedthat makes Nicodemus’ point. Most likely he referred to rabbinicaltraditions contained in their oral law.

7:52 no prophet arises out of Galilee. The real ignorance laywith the arrogant Pharisees who did not carefully search out thefacts as to where Jesus was actually born. While they accused thecrowds of ignorance, they too were really as ignorant (v. 42). Fur-thermore, the prophet Jonah did come from Galilee.

7:53–8:11 This section dealing with the adulteress most likelywas not a part of the original contents of John. It has been incorpo-rated into various manuscripts at different places in the gospel (e.g.,after vv. 36,44,52, or 21:25), while one manuscript places it after Lk21:38. External manuscript evidence representing a great variety oftextual traditions is decidedly against its inclusion, for the earliestand best manuscripts exclude it. Many manuscripts mark the pas-sage to indicate doubt as to its inclusion. Significant early versionsexclude it. No Gr. church father comments on the passage until thetwelfth century. The vocabulary and style of the section also are dif-ferent from the rest of the gospel, and the section interrupts the se-quence of v. 52 with 8:12ff. Many, however, do think that it has allthe earmarks of historical veracity, perhaps being a piece of oral tra-dition that circulated in parts of the western church, so that a fewcomments are in order. In spite of all these considerations of thelikely unreliability of this section, it is possible to be wrong on theissue, and thus it is good to consider the meaning of this passageand leave it in the text, just as with Mk 16:9-20.

53 1 Later mss add the story of the adulterous woman, numbering itas Jn 7:53-8:11

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1 a Mt 21:12 a Mt 26:55; Jn 8:205 a Lv 20:10; Dt 22:22f6 a Mt 16:1; 19:3;

22:18, 35; Mk 8:11;10:2; 12:15; Lk 10:25;11:16 b Mk 3:2

7 a Jn 8:10 b Mt 7:1; Ro2:1 c Dt 17:7

10 a Jn 8:711 1 Or Sir a Jn 3:17

b Jn 5:14

12 a Jn 1:4; 9:5; 12:35b Mt 5:14

13 1 Or valid a Jn 5:3114 1 Or valid a Jn

18:37; Rev 1:5; 3:14b Jn 8:42; 13:3; 16:28c Jn 7:28; 9:29

15 1 I.e. by a carnalstandard a 1Sa 16:7;Jn 7:24 b Jn 3:17

16 a Jn 5:3017 1 I.e. valid or

admissible a Dt 17:6;19:15 b Mt 18:16

18 a Jn 5:37; 1 Jn 5:919 a Jn 7:28; 8:55;

14:7, 9; 16:320 a Mk 12:41, 43; Lk

21:1 b Jn 7:14; 8:2c Jn 7:30

21 a Jn 7:34 b Jn 8:24

“I Am the Light of the World”12 Then Jesus again spoke to them, say-

ing, “a I am the Light of the world; b he whofollows Me will not walk in the darkness,but will have the Light of life.” 13 So thePharisees said to Him, “a You are testifyingabout Yourself; Your testimony is not1 true.” 14 Jesus answered and said to them,“a Even if I testify about Myself, My testi-mony is 1 true, for I know b where I camefrom and where I am going; but c you donot know where I come from or where I amgoing. 15 a You judge 1 according to theflesh; b I am not judging anyone. 16 Buteven a if I do judge, My judgment is true;for I am not alone in it, but I and the Fatherwho sent Me. 17 Even in a your law it hasbeen written that the testimony of b twomen is 1 true. 18 I am He who testifies aboutMyself, and a the Father who sent Me testi-fies about Me.” 19 So they were saying toHim, “Where is Your Father?” Jesus an-swered, “You know neither Me nor My Fa-ther; a if you knew Me, you would knowMy Father also.” 20 These words He spokein a the treasury, as b He taught in the tem-ple; and no one seized Him, because c Hishour had not yet come.

21 Then He said again to them, “I goaway, and a you will seek Me, and b will diein your sin; where I am going, you cannot

A Woman Is Caught in Adultery

8But Jesus went to a the Mount of Olives.2 Early in the morning He came again

into the temple, and all the people werecoming to Him; and a He sat down andbegan to teach them. 3 The scribes and thePharisees *brought a woman caught inadultery, and having set her in the center ofthe court, 4 they *said to Him, “Teacher, thiswoman has been caught in adultery, in thevery act. 5 Now in the Law a Moses com-manded us to stone such women; whatthen do You say?” 6 They were saying this,a testing Him, b so that they might havegrounds for accusing Him. But Jesusstooped down and with His finger wroteon the ground. 7 But when they persistedin asking Him, a He straightened up, andsaid to them, “b He who is without sinamong you, let him be the c first to throw astone at her.” 8 Again He stooped downand wrote on the ground. 9 When theyheard it, they began to go out one by one, be-ginning with the older ones, and He wasleft alone, and the woman, where she was,in the center of the court. 10 a Straighteningup, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where arethey? Did no one condemn you?” 11 Shesaid, “No one, 1 Lord.” And Jesus said, “a Ido not condemn you, either. Go. From nowon b sin no more.”]

8:6 testing Him . . . accusing Him. If Jesus rejected the law ofMoses (Lv 20:10; Dt 22:22), His credibility would be gone. If He heldto Mosaic law, His reputation for compassion and forgiveness wouldhave been questioned.

8:7 He who is without sin. This directly refers to Dt 13:9; 17:7,where the witnesses of a crime are to start the execution. Only thosewho were not guilty of the same sin could participate.

8:8 Cf. v. 6. This seems to have been a delaying device, givingthem time to think.

8:11 sin no more. Actually, “Leave your life of sin” (cf. 3:17; 12:47;Mt 9:1-8; Mk 2:13-17).

8:12-21 Excluding the story of the adulterous woman in7:53–8:11, this verse attaches itself well to 7:52. The word “again” in-dicates that Jesus spoke once more to the people at this same Feastof Booths, or Tabernacles (see 7:2,10). While Jesus first used thewater-drawing rite (7:37-39) as a metaphor to portray the ultimatespiritual truth of Himself as Messiah who fulfills all that the feast an-ticipated, He then turned to another rite that traditionally occurredat the feast: the lighting ceremony. During Tabernacles, 4 largelamps in the temple’s court of women were lit and an exuberantnightly celebration took place under their light with people dancingthrough the night and holding burning torches in their hands whilesinging songs and praises. The levitical orchestras also played. Jesustook this opportunity of the lighting celebration to portray anotherspiritual analogy for the people: “I am the Light of the world.”

8:12 I am the Light of the world. This is the second “I am” state-ment (see 6:35). John has already used the “light” metaphor forJesus (1:4). Jesus’ metaphor here is steeped in OT allusions (Ex13:21,22; 14:19-25; Pss 27:1; 119:105; Pr 6:23; Eze 1:4,13,26-28; Hab3:3,4). The phrase highlights Jesus’ role as Messiah and Son of God(Ps 27:1; Mal 4:2). The OT indicates that the coming age of Messiah

would be a time when the Lord would be a light for His people (Is60:19-22; cf. Rev 21:23,24) as well as for the whole earth (Is 42:6;49:6). Zechariah 14:5b-8 has an emphasis on God as the light of theworld who gives living waters to His people. This latter passageprobably formed the liturgical readings for the Feast of Tabernacles.For further significance of Jesus as the “light,” see notes on 1:4,5; 1Jn1:5. he who follows Me. The word “follows” conveys the idea ofsomeone who gives himself completely to the person followed. Nohalf-hearted followers exist in Jesus’ mind (cf. Mt 8:18-22; 10:38,39).A veiled reference exists here to the Jews, following the pillar ofcloud and fire that led them during the Exodus (Ex 13:21).

8:13 You are testifying about Yourself. The Jews mockinglybrought up Jesus’ own words from 5:31. However, Jesus’ wordsthere and here are reconciled by the fact that OT law required notone but multiple witnesses to establish the truth of a matter (Dt17:6). Jesus was not alone in His witness that pointed to Him asMessiah, for many had already testified concerning this truth (seenote on 1:7).

8:14-18 These verses give 3 reasons why Jesus’ witness was true:1) Jesus knew His origin and destiny while the Jews were ignoranteven of basic spiritual truths, making their judgment limited and su-perficial (vv. 14,15); 2) the intimate union of the Son with the Fatherguaranteed the truth of the Son’s witness (v. 16); and 3) the Fatherand Son witnessed harmoniously together regarding the identity ofthe Son (vv. 17,18).

8:17 in your law it has been written. Cf. Dt 17:6; 19:15. See noteson 1:7.

8:19 Where is your Father? The Jews, as was their habit (e.g., 3:4;4:11; 6:52), once again thought merely on human terms in askingabout Jesus’ paternity.

8:21-30 Jesus revealed the consequence of the rejection of Him

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22 a Jn 1:19; 8:48, 52,57 b Jn 7:35

23 a Jn 3:31 b 1 Jn 4:5c Jn 17:14, 16

24 1 Most authoritiesassociate this withEx 3:14, I AM WHO IAM a Jn 8:21 b Mt24:5; Mk 13:6; Lk21:8; Jn 4:26; 8:28,58; 13:19

25 1 Or That which Ihave been saying toyou from thebeginning

26 a Jn 3:33; 7:28 b Jn8:40; 12:49; 15:15

28 1 Lit I AM (v 24 note)a Jn 3:14; 12:32 b Mt24:5; Mk 13:6; Lk21:8; Jn 4:26; 8:24, 58;13:19 c Jn 3:11; 5:19

29 1 Or did not leavea Jn 8:16; 16:32 b Jn4:34

nothing on My own initiative, but I speakthese things as the Father taught Me. 29 AndHe who sent Me is with Me; a He 1 has notleft Me alone, for b I always do the thingsthat are pleasing to Him.” 30 As He spokethese things, a many came to believe in Him.

31 So Jesus was saying to those Jews whohad believed Him, “a If you continue in Myword, then you are truly b disciples of Mine;32 and a you will know the truth, and b thetruth will make you free.” 33 They an-swered Him, “a We are Abraham’s descen-dants and have never yet been enslaved toanyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will be-come free’?”

34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, Isay to you, a everyone who commits sin is

come.” 22 So a the Jews were saying, “SurelyHe will not kill Himself, will He, since Hesays, ‘b Where I am going, you cannotcome’?” 23 And He was saying to them,“a You are from below, I am from above;b you are of this world, c I am not of thisworld. 24 Therefore I said to you that youa will die in your sins; for unless you believethat 1 b I am He, a you will die in your sins.”25 So they were saying to Him, “Who areYou?” Jesus said to them, “1 What have Ibeen saying to you from the beginning? 26 Ihave many things to speak and to judgeconcerning you, but a He who sent Me istrue; and b the things which I heard fromHim, these I speak to the world.” 27 Theydid not realize that He had been speaking tothem about the Father. 28 So Jesus said,“When you a lift up the Son of Man, thenyou will know that 1 b I am He, and c I do

as Messiah and Son of God, i.e., spiritual death (v. 24; cf. Heb 10:26-31). These verses reveal 4 ways that ensure people will die in theirsins and, as a result, experience spiritual death: 1) being self-righteous (vv. 20-22); 2) being earthbound (vv. 23,24); 3) being un-believing (v. 24); and 4) being willfully ignorant (vv. 25-29). The Jewswho rejected Jesus displayed all 4 of these characteristics.

8:21 Jesus repeated His message of 7:33,34 but with more omi-nous overtones regarding the consequences of rejecting Him. I goaway. By means of His impending death, resurrection, and ascen-sion to the Father.

8:22 Surely He will not kill Himself. The Jews spoke either inconfusion (see notes on 7:34,35) or, perhaps more likely, in mockeryof Christ. Jewish tradition condemned suicide as a particularlyheinous sin that resulted in permanent banishment to the worstpart of Hades (Josephus, Jewish Wars iii.viii.5 [iii.375]). God did deliv-er Him to be killed (Ac 2:23); thus, as God, He gave up His own life(10:18).

8:23 You are from below. The contrast here is between therealm of God and that of the fallen, sinful world (i.e., “from below”).The world in this context is the invisible spiritual system of evil dom-inated by Satan and all that it offers in opposition to God, His Word,and His people (see notes on 1:9; 1Jn 5:19). Jesus declared that Hisopponents’ true kinship was with Satan and his realm. By this domi-nation, they were spiritually blinded (see 2Co 4:4; Eph 2:1-3).

8:24 unless you believe. Jesus emphasized that the fatal, unfor-givable, and eternal sin is failure to believe in Him as Messiah andSon of God. In truth, all other sins can be forgiven if this one is re-pented of. See notes on 16:8,9. I am He. The word “He” is not part ofthe original statement. Jesus’ words were not constructed normallybut were influenced by OT Heb. usage. It is an absolute usage mean-ing “I AM” and has immense theological significance. The referencemay be to both Ex 3:14 where the Lord declared His name as “I AM”and to Is 40–55 where the phrase “I am” occurs repeatedly (espe-cially 43:10,13,25; 46:4; 48:12). In this, Jesus referred to Himself asthe God (Yahweh—the Lord) of the OT, and directly claimed fulldeity for Himself, prompting the Jews’ question of v. 25. See note onv. 58.

8:25 Who are You? The Jews were willfully ignorant becausechaps. 1–8 demonstrate that multiple witnesses testified to Jesus’identity, and Jesus Himself in words and actions persistently provedthroughout His ministry on earth that He was the Son of God andMessiah. from the beginning. The start of Jesus’ ministry amongthe Jews.

8:28 When you lift up the Son of Man. Jesus’ impending cruci-fixion. you will know that I am He. Having refused to accept Himby faith and having nailed Him to the cross, they would one dayawaken to the terrifying realization that this One whom they de-spised was the One whom they should have worshiped (cf. Php 2:9-11; Rev 1:7). Many Jews believed on Christ after His death and as-cension, realizing that the One whom they rejected was truly theMessiah (Ac 2:36,37,41).

8:31-36 These verses are a pivotal passage in understandinggenuine salvation and true discipleship. John emphasized these re-alities by stressing truth and freedom. The focus in the passage isupon those who were exercising the beginnings of faith in Jesus asMessiah and Son of God. Jesus desired them to move on in theirfaith. Saving faith is not fickle but firm and settled. Such maturity ex-presses itself in full commitment to the truth in Jesus Christ resultingin genuine freedom. The passage has 3 features: 1) the progress offreedom (vv. 31,32); 2) the pretense of freedom (vv. 33,34); and 3) the promise of freedom (vv. 35,36).

8:31 who had believed Him. The first step in the progress to-ward true discipleship is belief in Jesus Christ as Messiah and Son ofGod. If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples ofMine. This reveals the second step in the progress toward true disci-pleship. Perseverance in obedience to Scripture (cf. Mt 28:19,20) isthe fruit or evidence of genuine faith (see Eph 2:10). The word “con-tinue” means to habitually abide in Jesus’ words. A genuine believerholds fast, obeys, and practices Jesus’ teaching. The one who contin-ues in His teaching has both the Father and the Son (2Jn 9; cf. Heb3:14; Rev 2:26). Real disciples are both learners (the basic meaningof the word) and faithful followers.

8:32 the truth. “Truth” here has reference not only to the factssurrounding Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God but also to theteaching that He brought. A genuinely saved and obedient followerof the Lord Jesus will know divine truth and both freedom from sin(v. 34) and the search for reality. This divine truth comes not merelyby intellectual assent (1Co 2:14) but saving commitment to Christ(cf. Tit 1:1,2).

8:33 never yet been enslaved to anyone. Because the Jews hadoften been in political subjection to many nations (Egypt, Assyria,Babylon, Greece, Syria, and Rome), they must have been referring totheir inward sense of freedom.

8:34 Truly, truly. See note on 1:51. everyone who commits sin.The kind of slavery that Jesus had in mind was not physical slaverybut slavery to sin (cf. Ro 6:17,18). The idea of “commits sin” means

30 a Jn 7:31 31 a Jn 15:7; 2 Jn 9 b Jn 2:2 32 a Jn 1:14, 17 b Jn 8:36;Ro 8:2; 2Co 3:17; Gal 5:1, 13; Jas 2:12; 1Pe 2:16 33 a Mt 3:9; Lk 3:8;Jn 8:37, 39 34 a Ro 6:16; 2Pe 2:19

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35 a Ge 21:10; Gal 4:30b Lk 15:31

36 a Jn 8:3237 1 Or makes no

progress a Mt 3:9; Jn8:39 b Jn 7:1; 8:40

38 1 Or in the presenceof a Jn 8:41, 44

39 a Mt 3:9; Jn 8:37b Ro 9:7; Gal 3:7

40 a Jn 7:1; 8:37 b Jn8:26

41 a Jn 8:38, 44 b Dt32:6; Is 63:16; 64:8

42 1 Lit that One a 1 Jn5:1 b Jn 13:3; 16:28,30; 17:8 c Jn 7:28 d Jn3:17

43 1 Or My way ofspeaking a Jn 8:33,39, 41 b Jn 5:25

44 a 1 Jn 3:8 b Jn 8:38,41 c Jn 7:17

1 Lit the lie 2 Lit it d Ge3:4; 1 Jn 3:8, 15 e 1 Jn2:4 f Mt 12:34

45 a Jn 18:3746 a Jn 18:3747 a 1 Jn 4:648 a Jn 1:19 b Mt 10:5;

Jn 4:9 c Jn 7:2049 a Jn 7:2050 a Jn 5:41; 8:5451 a Jn 8:55; 14:23;

15:20; 17:6 b Mt16:28; Lk 2:26; Jn8:52; Heb 2:9; 11:5

ther. d He was a murderer from the begin-ning, and does not stand in the truth be-cause e there is no truth in him. Wheneverhe speaks 1 a lie, he f speaks from his ownnature, for he is a liar and the father of 2 lies.45 But because a I speak the truth, you donot believe Me. 46 Which one of you con-victs Me of sin? If a I speak truth, why doyou not believe Me? 47 a He who is of Godhears the words of God; for this reason youdo not hear them, because you are not ofGod.”

48 a The Jews answered and said to Him,“Do we not say rightly that You are ab Samaritan and c have a demon?” 49 Jesusanswered, “I do not a have a demon; but Ihonor My Father, and you dishonor Me.50 But a I do not seek My glory; there is Onewho seeks and judges. 51 Truly, truly, I sayto you, if anyone a keeps My word he willnever b see death.” 52 a The Jews said toHim, “Now we know that You b have ademon. Abraham died, and the prophetsalso; and You say, ‘If anyone c keeps Myword, he will never d taste of death.’53 Surely You a are not greater than our

the slave of sin. 35 a The slave does not re-main in the house forever; b the son does re-main forever. 36 So if the Son a makes youfree, you will be free indeed. 37 I know thatyou are a Abraham’s descendants; yet b youseek to kill Me, because My word 1 has noplace in you. 38 I speak the things which Ihave seen 1 with My Father; therefore youalso do the things which you heard froma your father.”

39 They answered and *said to Him,“Abraham is a our father.” Jesus said tothem, “b If you are Abraham’s children, dothe deeds of Abraham. 40 But as it is, a youare seeking to kill Me, a man who has b toldyou the truth, which I heard from God; thisAbraham did not do. 41 You are doing thedeeds of a your father.” They said to Him,“We were not born of fornication; b we haveone Father: God.” 42 Jesus said to them, “IfGod were your Father, a you would loveMe, b for I proceeded forth and have comefrom God, for I have c not even come on Myown initiative, but 1 d He sent Me. 43 Whydo you not understand 1 a what I am say-ing? It is because you cannot b hear Myword. 44 a You are of b your father the devil,and c you want to do the desires of your fa-

to practice sin habitually (1Jn 3:4,8,9). The ultimate bondage is notpolitical or economic enslavement but spiritual bondage to sin andrebellion against God. Thus, this also explains why Jesus would notlet Himself be reduced to merely a political Messiah (6:14,15).

8:35,36 The notion of slavery in v. 34 moves to the status ofslaves. While the Jews thought of themselves only as free sons ofAbraham, in reality, they were slaves of sin. The genuine son in thecontext is Christ Himself, who sets the slaves free from sin. Thosewhom Jesus Christ liberates from the tyranny of sin and thebondage of legalism are really free (Ro 8:2; Gal 5:1).

8:39 If you are Abraham’s children. The construction of thisphrase indicates that Jesus was denying that mere physical lineagewas sufficient for salvation (see Php 3:4-9). The sense would be “ifyou are Abraham’s children, but you are not, then you would act likeAbraham did.” Just as children inherit genetic characteristics fromtheir parents, so also those who are truly Abraham’s offspring willact like Abraham, i.e., imitate Abraham’s faith and obedience (see Ro4:16; Gal 3:6-9; Heb 11:8-19; Jas 2:21-24). deeds of Abraham. Abra-ham’s faith was demonstrated through his obedience to God (Jas2:21-24). Jesus’ point was that the conduct of the unbelieving Jewswas diametrically opposed by the conduct of Abraham, who lived alife of obedience to all that God had commanded. Their conduct to-ward Jesus demonstrated that their real father was Satan (vv. 41,44).

8:41 We were not born of fornication. The Jews may well havebeen referring to the controversy surrounding Jesus’ birth. The Jewsknew the story about Mary’s betrothal and that Joseph was notJesus’ real father; thus they implied that Jesus’ birth was illegitimate(see Mt 1:18-25; Lk 1:26-38).

8:42 If God were your Father, you would love Me. The con-struction here (as in v. 39) denies that God is truly their Father. Al-though the OT calls Israel His “firstborn son” (Ex 4:22) and affirmsthat God is Israel’s father by creation and separation (Jer 31:9), theunbelief of the Jews toward Jesus demonstrated that God was nottheir Father spiritually. Jesus stressed that the explicit criterion ver-

ifying the claim to be a child of God is love for His Son, Jesus. SinceGod is love, those who love His Son also demonstrate His nature(1Jn 4:7-11; 5:1).

8:44 your father the devil. Sonship is predicated on conduct. Ason will manifest his father’s characteristics (cf. Eph 5:1,2). Sincethe Jews exhibited the patterns of Satan in their hostility towardJesus and their failure to believe in Him as Messiah, their paternitywas the exact opposite of their claims, i.e., they belonged to Satan.He was a murderer from the beginning. Jesus’ words refer tothe fall when Satan tempted Adam and Eve and successfully killedtheir spiritual life (Ge 2:17; 3:17-24; Ro 5:12; Heb 2:14). Some thinkthat the reference may also refer to Cain’s murder of Abel (Ge 4:1-9; 1Jn 3:12).

8:46 convicts Me of sin. Although the Jews argued that Jesuswas guilty of sin (5:18), the sense here is that the perfect holiness ofChrist was demonstrated, not by the Jews’ silence at Jesus’ questionhere, but by the assurance of His direct consciousness of the purityof His whole life. Only a perfectly holy One who has the closest andmost intimate communion with the Father could speak such words.The Jews could martial no convincing evidence that could convictHim of sin in the heavenly court.

8:48 You are a Samaritan. Since the Jews could not attack Jesus’personal life and conduct (v. 46), they tried an ad hominem attack ofpersonal abuse toward Him. The reference to Jesus as a “Samaritan”probably centers in the fact that the Samaritans, like Jesus, ques-tioned the Jews’ exclusive right to be called Abraham’s children (seevv. 33,39).

8:51 never see death. Heeding Jesus’ teaching and followingHim results in eternal life (6:63,68). Physical death cannot extinguishsuch life (see 5:24; 6:40,47; 11:25,26).

8:52 Abraham died. Jesus’ assertion that anyone who keeps Hisword will never die (v. 51) prompted the Jews to offer a retort thatonce again revealed their thinking on strictly a literal and earthlylevel (see 3:4; 4:15).

52 a Jn 1:19 b Jn 7:20 c Jn 8:55; 14:23; 15:20; 17:6 d Jn 8:51 53 a Jn4:12

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54 a Jn 8:50 b Jn 7:3955 a Jn 8:19; 15:21 b Jn

7:29 c Jn 8:44 d Jn8:51; 15:10

56 1 Lit in order that hemight see a Jn 8:37,39 b Mt 13:17; Heb11:13

57 a Jn 1:1958 1 Lit came into

being a Ex 3:14; Jn1:1; 17:5, 24

59 1 Lit was hiddena Mt 12:14; Jn 10:31;11:8 b Jn 12:36

CHAPTER 9

2 a Mt 23:7 b Lk 13:2;Jn 9:34; Ac 28:4 c Ex20:5

3 a Jn 11:44 a Jn 7:33; 11:9; 12:35;

Gal 6:105 a Mt 5:14; Jn 1:4;

8:12; 12:466 a Mk 7:33; 8:237 a Ne 3:15; Is 8:6; Lk

13:4; Jn 9:11 b 2Ki 5:13f c Is 29:18; 35:5;42:7; Mt 11:5; Jn 11:37

8 a Ac 3:2, 109 1 Lit That one11 a Jn 9:714 a Jn 5:9

a that the works of God might be displayedin him. 4 We must work the works of Himwho sent Me a as long as it is day; night iscoming when no one can work. 5 While Iam in the world, I am a the Light of theworld.” 6 When He had said this, He a spaton the ground, and made clay of the spittle,and applied the clay to his eyes, 7 and saidto him, “Go, wash in a the pool of Siloam”(which is translated, Sent). So he went awayand b washed, and c came back seeing.8 Therefore the neighbors, and those whopreviously saw him as a beggar, were say-ing, “Is not this the one who used to a sitand beg?” 9 Others were saying, “This ishe,” still others were saying, “No, but he islike him.” 1 He kept saying, “I am the one.”10 So they were saying to him, “How thenwere your eyes opened?” 11 He answered,“The man who is called Jesus made clay,and anointed my eyes, and said to me, ‘Goto a Siloam and wash’; so I went away andwashed, and I received sight.” 12 They *saidto him, “Where is He?” He said, “I do notknow.”

13 They *brought to the Pharisees theman who was formerly blind. 14 a Now it

father Abraham, who died? The prophetsdied too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?” 54 Jesus answered, “a If I glorifyMyself, My glory is nothing; b it is My Fa-ther who glorifies Me, of whom you say,‘He is our God’; 55 and a you have not cometo know Him, b but I know Him; and if Isay that I do not know Him, I will be c a liarlike you, b but I do know Him and d keepHis word. 56 a Your father Abraham b re-joiced 1 to see My day, and he saw it andwas glad.” 57 a So the Jews said to Him,“You are not yet fifty years old, and haveYou seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them,“Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham1 was born, a I am.” 59 Therefore theya picked up stones to throw at Him, butJesus 1 b hid Himself and went out of thetemple.

Christ Heals the Blind Man

9As He passed by, He saw a man blindfrom birth. 2 And His disciples asked

Him, “a Rabbi, who sinned, b this man or hisc parents, that he would be born blind?”3 Jesus answered, “It was neither that thisman sinned, nor his parents; but it was so

8:56 Hebrews 11:13 indicates that Abraham saw Christ’s day(“having seen them . . . from a distance”; see note there). Abrahamparticularly saw in the continuing seed of Isaac the beginning ofGod’s fulfilling the covenant (Ge 12:1-3; 15:1-21; 17:1-8; cf. 22:8) thatwould culminate in Christ.

8:58 Truly, truly. See note on 1:51. I am. See note on 6:22-58. HereJesus declared Himself to be Yahweh, i.e., the Lord of the OT. Basic tothe expression are such passages as Ex 3:14; Dt 32:39; Is 41:4; 43:10where God declared Himself to be the eternally pre-existent God whorevealed Himself in the OT to the Jews. See also notes on vv. 24,28.

8:59 they picked up stones. The Jews understood Jesus’ claimand followed Lv 24:16, which indicates that any man who falselyclaims to be God should be stoned. hid Himself and went out ofthe temple. Jesus repeatedly escaped arrest and death because Hishour had not yet come (see notes on 7:8,30). The verse most likely in-dicates escape by miraculous means.

9:1-13 Jesus performed a miracle by recreating the eyes of a manwho was born with congenital blindness (v. 1). Four features high-light this healing: 1) the problem that precipitated the healing (v. 1);2) the purpose for the man’s being born blind (vv. 2-5); 3) the powerthat healed him (vv. 6,7); and 4) the perplexity of the people whosaw the healing (vv. 8-13).

9:2 who sinned. While sin may be a cause of suffering, as clearlyindicated in Scripture (see 5:14; Nu 12; 1Co 11:30; Jas 5:15), it is notalways the case necessarily (see Job; 2Co 12:7; Gal 4:13). The disci-ples assumed, like most Jews of their day, that sin was the primary,if not exclusive, cause of all suffering. In this instance, however,Jesus made it clear that personal sin was not the reason for theblindness (see v. 3).

9:3 Jesus did not deny the general connection between sin andsuffering, but refuted the idea that personal acts of sin were the di-rect cause. God’s sovereignty and purposes play a part in such mat-ters, as is clear from Job 1,2.

9:4 as long as it is day. Jesus meant as long as He was still onearth with His disciples. The phrase does not mean that Jesus some-

how stopped being the light of the world once He ascended butthat the light shone most brightly among men when He was on theearth doing the Father’s will (cf. 8:12). night is coming. See notes on1:4,5; 1Jn 1:5-7. The darkness has special reference to the periodwhen Jesus was taken from His disciples during His crucifixion (v. 5).

9:5 I am the Light of the world. See note on 8:12; cf. 1:5,9; 3:19;12:35,46. Not only was Jesus spiritually the light of the world, but Hewould also provide the means of physical light for this blind man.

9:6 made clay of the spittle. As He had done when He originallymade human beings out of the dust of the ground (Ge 2:7), Jesusmay have used the clay to fashion a new pair of eyes.

9:7 wash in the pool of Siloam. The term “Siloam” is Heb. for“Sent.” The pool of Siloam was SE of the original City of David. Itswater source was through a channel (Hezekiah’s tunnel) that carriedwater to it from the spring of Gihon in the Kidron Valley. It may beidentified with the “lower pool” or “old pool” mentioned in Is22:9,11. Water for the water-pouring rites at the Feast of Booths, orTabernacles was drawn from this pool (see notes on 7:37-39).

9:8,9 In ancient times, such severe physical deformities as congen-ital blindness sentenced a person to begging as the only means ofsupport (see Ac 3:1-7). The drastic change in the healed man causedmany to faithlessly believe that he was not the person born blind.

9:13-34 This section in the story of the healing of the blind man re-veals some key characteristics of willful unbelief: 1) unbelief sets falsestandards; 2) unbelief always wants more evidence but never hasenough; 3) unbelief does biased research on a purely subjective basis;4) unbelief rejects the facts; and 5) unbelief is self-centered. John in-cluded this section on the dialogue of the Pharisees with the blindman most likely for two reasons: 1) the dialogue carefully demon-strates the character of willful and fixed unbelief, and 2) the story con-firms the first great schism between the synagogue and Christ’s newfollowers. The blind man was the first known person thrown out ofthe synagogue because he chose to follow Christ (see 16:1-3).

9:13 They. This has reference to the blind man’s “neighbors, andthose who previously saw him as a beggar” (v. 8). to the Pharisees.

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15 a Jn 9:1016 1 Or attesting

miracles a Mt 12:2; Lk13:14; Jn 5:10; 7:23b Jn 2:11 c Jn 6:52;7:12, 43; 10:19

17 a Jn 9:15 b Dt 18:15;Mt 21:11

18 a Jn 1:19; 9:2222 1 I.e. the Messiah

a Jn 7:13 b Jn 7:45-52c Lk 6:22; Jn 12:42;16:2

23 a Jn 9:21

24 a Jos 7:19; Ezr10:11; Rev 11:13 b Jn9:16

27 a Jn 9:15 b Jn 5:2528 a Jn 5:45; Ro 2:1729 a Jn 8:1431 a Job 27:8f; 35:13;

Ps 34:15f; 66:18;145:19; Pr 15:29;28:9; Is 1:15; Jas5:16ff

32 1 Lit From the age itwas not heard

33 a Jn 3:2; 9:1634 a Jn 9:2 b Jn 9:22,

35; 3 Jn 1035 a Jn 9:22, 34; 3 Jn

10

24 So a second time they called the manwho had been blind, and said to him,“a Give glory to God; we know that b thisman is a sinner.” 25 He then answered,“Whether He is a sinner, I do not know;one thing I do know, that though I wasblind, now I see.” 26 So they said to him,“What did He do to you? How did Heopen your eyes?” 27 He answered them,“a I told you already and you did not b lis-ten; why do you want to hear it again?You do not want to become His disciplestoo, do you?” 28 They reviled him andsaid, “You are His disciple, but a we aredisciples of Moses. 29 We know that Godhas spoken to Moses, but as for this man,a we do not know where He is from.”30 The man answered and said to them,“Well, here is an amazing thing, that youdo not know where He is from, and yetHe opened my eyes. 31 We know thata God does not hear sinners; but if any-one is God-fearing and does His will, Hehears him. 32 1 Since the beginning of timeit has never been heard that anyoneopened the eyes of a person born blind.33 a If this man were not from God, Hecould do nothing.” 34 They answeredhim, “a You were born entirely in sins,and are you teaching us?” So they b puthim out.

35 Jesus heard that they had a put himout, and finding him, He said, “Do you be-

was a Sabbath on the day when Jesus madethe clay and opened his eyes. 15 a Then thePharisees also were asking him again howhe received his sight. And he said to them,“He applied clay to my eyes, and I washed,and I see.” 16 Therefore some of the Phar-isees were saying, “This man is not fromGod, because He a does not keep the Sab-bath.” But others were saying, “How can aman who is a sinner perform such1 b signs?” And c there was a division amongthem. 17 So they *said to the blind man a again, “What do you say about Him, sinceHe opened your eyes?” And he said, “He isa b prophet.”

18 a The Jews then did not believe it ofhim, that he had been blind and had re-ceived sight, until they called the parents ofthe very one who had received his sight,19 and questioned them, saying, “Is thisyour son, who you say was born blind?Then how does he now see?” 20 His parentsanswered them and said, “We know thatthis is our son, and that he was born blind;21 but how he now sees, we do not know;or who opened his eyes, we do not know.Ask him; he is of age, he will speak for him-self.” 22 His parents said this because theya were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews b hadalready agreed that if anyone confessedHim to be 1 Christ, c he was to be put out ofthe synagogue. 23 For this reason his par-ents said, “a He is of age; ask him.”

The people brought the blind man to the Pharisees most likely be-cause the miracle had happened on the Sabbath (v. 14), and theywere aware that the Pharisees reacted negatively to those who vio-lated the Sabbath (cf. 5:1-15). The people also wanted advice fromtheir local synagogue and religious leaders.

9:16 not from God. The reasoning may have been that sinceJesus violated their interpretation of the Sabbath law, He could notbe the promised Prophet of God (Dt 13:1-5). a division. Earlier thecrowds were divided in opinion regarding Jesus (7:40-43); here theauthorities also became divided.

9:17 He is a prophet. While the blind man saw clearly that Jesuswas more than a mere man, the sighted but obstinate Phariseeswere spiritually blind to that truth (see v. 39). Blindness in the Bibleis a metaphor for spiritual darkness, i.e., inability to discern God orHis truth (2Co 4:3-6; Col 1:12-14).

9:18 called the parents. While neighbors may have been mistak-en about the man’s identity, the parents would know if this wastheir own son. The authorities considered the witness of the healedman worthless.

9:24 Give glory to God. This means that the authorities wanted theman to own up and admit the truth that Jesus was a sinner becauseHe violated their traditions and threatened their influence (cf. Jos7:19). we know that this man is a sinner. Enough unanimity existedamong the religious authorities to conclude that Jesus was a sinner(cf. 8:46). Because of this already predetermined opinion, they refusedto accept any of the testimony that a miracle had actually taken place.

9:27 In order to forcefully emphasize their hypocrisy, the healedman resorted to biting sarcasm when he suggested they desired tobe Jesus’ disciples.

9:28 You are His disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. At thispoint, the meeting degenerated into a shouting match of insults.The healed man’s wit had exposed the bias of his inquisitors. As faras the authorities were concerned, the conflict between Jesus andMoses was irreconcilable. If the healed man defended Jesus, thensuch defense could only mean that he was Jesus’ disciple.

9:30 The healed man demonstrated more spiritual insight andcommon sense than all of the religious authorities combined whosat in judgment of Jesus and him. His penetrating wit focused in ontheir intractable unbelief. His logic was that such an extraordinarymiracle could only indicate that Jesus was from God, for the Jewsbelieved that God responds in proportion to the righteousness ofthe one praying (see Job 27:9; 35:13; Pss 66:18; 109:7; Pr 15:29; Is1:15; cf. 14:13,14; 16:23-27; 1Jn 3:21,22). The greatness of the mira-cle could only indicate that Jesus was actually from God.

9:34 are you teaching us? The Pharisees were incensed with theman, and their anger prevented them from seeing the penetrating in-sight that the uneducated, healed man had demonstrated. Thephrase also revealed their ignorance of Scripture, for the OT indicatedthat the coming messianic age would be evidenced by restoration ofsight to the blind (Is 29:18; 35:5; 42:7; cf. Mt 11:4,5; Lk 4:18,19).

9:35-41 While vv. 1-34 dealt with Jesus’ restoration of physicalsight in the blind man, vv. 35-41 featured Jesus bringing spiritual“sight” to him.

9:35 Do you believe . . . ? Jesus invited the man to put his trust inHim as the One who revealed God to man. Jesus placed great em-phasis on public acknowledgment of who He was and confession offaith in Him (Mt 10:32; Lk 12:8). Son of Man. Cf. 1:51; 3:13,14; 5:27;6:27,53,62; 8:28.

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35 b Mt 4:336 1 Or Sir a Ro 10:1437 a Jn 4:2638 a Mt 8:239 a Jn 3:19; 5:22, 27

b Lk 4:18 c Mt 13:13;15:14

40 a Ro 2:1941 1 Lit now a Jn 15:22,

24 b Pr 26:12

CHAPTER 10

1 a Jn 10:82 a Jn 10:11f

3 a Jn 10:4f, 16, 27 b Jn10:9

4 a Jn 10:5, 16, 275 a Jn 10:4, 16, 276 a Jn 16:25, 29; 2Pe

2:227 a Jn 10:1f, 98 a Jer 23:1f; Eze

34:2ff; Jn 10:19 a Jn 10:1f, 910 1 Or have

abundance a Jn 5:40

the sheep. 3 To him the doorkeeper opens,and the sheep hear a his voice, and he callshis own sheep by name and b leads themout. 4 When he puts forth all his own, hegoes ahead of them, and the sheep followhim because they know a his voice. 5 Astranger they simply will not follow, butwill flee from him, because they do notknow a the voice of strangers.” 6 This a fig-ure of speech Jesus spoke to them, but theydid not understand what those things werewhich He had been saying to them.

7 So Jesus said to them again, “Truly,truly, I say to you, I am a the door of thesheep. 8 All who came before Me area thieves and robbers, but the sheep did nothear them. 9 a I am the door; if anyone en-ters through Me, he will be saved, and willgo in and out and find pasture. 10 The thiefcomes only to steal and kill and destroy; Icame that they a may have life, and 1 have itabundantly.

lieve in the b Son of Man?” 36 He answered,“a Who is He, 1 Lord, that I may believe inHim?” 37 Jesus said to him, “You have bothseen Him, and a He is the one who is talk-ing with you.” 38 And he said, “Lord, I be-lieve.” And he a worshiped Him. 39 AndJesus said, “a For judgment I came into thisworld, so that b those who do not see maysee, and that c those who see may becomeblind.” 40 Those of the Pharisees who werewith Him heard these things and said toHim, “a We are not blind too, are we?”41 Jesus said to them, “a If you were blind,you would have no sin; but 1 since you say,‘b We see,’ your sin remains.

“I Am the Good Shepherd”

10“Truly, truly, I say to you, he whodoes not enter by the door into the

fold of the sheep, but climbs up some otherway, he is a a thief and a robber. 2 But hewho enters by the door is a a shepherd of

9:36 Lord. The word here should be understood not as an indica-tion that he understood Jesus’ deity but as meaning “sir.” See also v.38. Since the blind man had never seen Jesus (v. 7) nor met Himsince he went to wash in the pool, he did not recognize Jesus at firstas the One who healed him.

9:39 For judgment. Not that His purpose was to condemn, butrather to save (12:47; Lk 19:10); saving some, nevertheless, involvescondemning others (see notes on 3:16-18). The last part of this verseis taken from Is 6:10; 42:19 (cf. Mk 4:12). those who do not see.Those people who know they are in spiritual darkness. those whosee. Refers in an ironic way to those who think they are in the light,but are not (cf. Mk 2:17; Lk 5:31).

9:40 not blind too, are we? Apparently Jesus found (v. 35) theman in a public place, where the Pharisees were present listening.

9:41 your sin remains. Jesus had particular reference to the sinof unbelief and rejection of Him as Messiah and Son of God. If theyknew their lostness and darkness and cried out for spiritual light,they would no longer be guilty of the sin of unbelief in Christ. Butsatisfied that their darkness was light, and continuing in rejection ofChrist, their sin remained. See note on Mt 6:22,23.

10:1-39 Jesus’ discourse on Himself as the “Good Shepherd”flowed directly from chap. 9, as Jesus continued to talk to the verysame people. The problem of chap. 9 was that Israel was led by falseshepherds who drew them astray from the true knowledge andkingdom of Messiah (9:39-41). In chap. 10, Jesus declared Himself tobe the “Good Shepherd” who was appointed by His Father as Saviorand King, in contrast to the false shepherds of Israel who were self-appointed and self-righteous (Ps 23:1; Is 40:11; Jer 3:15; cf. Is 56:9-12; Jer 23:1-4; 25:32-38; Eze 34:1-31; Zec 11:16).

10:1 fold of the sheep. Jesus spoke in vv. 1-30 using a sustainedmetaphor based on first century sheep ranching. The sheep werekept in a pen, which had a gate through which the sheep enteredand left. The shepherd engaged a “doorkeeper” (v. 3) or “hiredhand” (v. 12) as an undershepherd to guard the gate. The shepherdentered through that gate. He whose interest was stealing orwounding the sheep would choose another way to attempt en-trance. The words of Eze 34 most likely form the background toJesus’ teaching since God decried the false shepherds of Israel (i.e.,the spiritual leaders of the nation) for not caring properly for theflock of Israel (i.e., the nation). The gospels themselves contain ex-

tensive sheep/shepherd imagery (see Mt 9:36; Mk 6:34; 14:27; Lk15:1-7).

10:3 the doorkeeper. The doorkeeper was a hired undershep-herd who recognized the true shepherd of the flock, opened thegate for Him, assisted the shepherd in caring for the flock, and espe-cially guarded them at night. the sheep hear his voice. Near East-ern shepherds stand at different locations outside the sheep pen,sounding out their own unique calls which their sheep recognize. Asa result, the sheep gather around the shepherd. he calls his ownsheep by name. This shepherd goes even further by calling eachsheep by its own special name. Jesus’ point is that He comes to thefold of Israel and calls out His own sheep individually to come intoHis own messianic fold. The assumption is that they are already insome way His sheep even before He calls them by name (see vv. 25-27; 6:37,39,44,64,65; 17:6,9,24; 18:9).

10:4,5 Unlike Western shepherds who drive the sheep from theside or behind, often using sheep dogs, Near Eastern shepherds leadtheir flocks, their voice calling them to move on. This draws a re-markable picture of the master/disciple relationship. NT spiritualleadership is always by example, i.e., a call to imitate conduct (cf. 1Ti4:12; 1Pe 5:1-3).

10:6 figure of speech. This phrase conveys the idea that some-thing cryptic or enigmatic is intended in it. It occurs again in16:25,29 but not in the synoptics. Having given the illustration (vv.1-5), Jesus then began to draw salient spiritual truth from it.

10:7-10 I am the door. This is the third of 7 “I am” statements ofJesus (see 6:35; 8:12). Here, He changes the metaphor slightly. Whilein vv. 1-5 He was the shepherd, here He is the gate. While in vv. 1-5,the shepherd led the sheep out of the sheep fold, here He is the en-trance to the fold (v. 9) that leads to proper pasture. This sectionechoes Jesus’ words in 14:6 that He is the only way to the Father. Hispoint is that He serves as the sole means to approach the Father andpartake of God’s promised salvation. As some Near Eastern shep-herds slept in the gateway to guard the sheep, Jesus here picturesHimself as the gate.

10:9,10 These two verses are a proverbial way of insisting thatbelief in Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God is the only way ofbeing “saved” from sin and hell and receiving eternal life. Only JesusChrist is the one true source for the knowledge of God and the onebasis for spiritual security.

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11 a Is 40:11; Eze34:11-16, 23; Jn10:14; Heb 13:20;1Pe 5:4; Rev 7:17 b Jn10:15, 17, 18; 15:13;1 Jn 3:16

12 a Jn 10:214 a Jn 10:11 b Jn 10:2715 a Mt 11:27; Lk 10:22

b Jn 10:11, 17, 1816 a Is 56:8 b Jn 11:52;

17:20f; Eph 2:13-18;1Pe 2:25 c Eze 34:23;37:24

17 a Jn 10:11, 15, 1818 a Mt 26:53; Jn 2:19;

5:26 b Jn 10:11, 15,17 c Jn 14:31; 15:10;Php 2:8; Heb 5:8

19 a Jn 7:43; 9:1620 a Jn 7:20 b Mk 3:21

21 a Mt 4:24 b Ex 4:11;Jn 9:32f

23 a Ac 3:11; 5:1224 1 Lit do You lift up

our soul 2 I.e. theMessiah a Jn 1:19;10:31, 33 b Lk 22:67;Jn 16:25

25 a Jn 8:56, 58 b Jn5:36; 10:38

26 a Jn 8:4727 a Jn 10:4, 16 b Jn

10:1428 a Jn 17:2f; 1 Jn 2:25;

5:11 b Jn 6:37, 39

sayings of one a demon-possessed. b Ademon cannot open the eyes of the blind,can he?”

The Opposition at the Feast of Dedicationin Jerusalem

22 At that time the Feast of the Dedica-tion took place at Jerusalem; 23 it was win-ter, and Jesus was walking in the temple inthe portico of a Solomon. 24 a The Jews thengathered around Him, and were saying toHim, “How long 1 will You keep us in sus-pense? If You are 2 the Christ, tell usb plainly.” 25 Jesus answered them, “a I toldyou, and you do not believe; b the worksthat I do in My Father’s name, these testifyof Me. 26 But you do not believe becausea you are not of My sheep. 27 My sheepa hear My voice, and b I know them, andthey follow Me; 28 and I give a eternal life tothem, and they will never perish; and b noone will snatch them out of My hand.29 1 My Father, who has given them to Me, isgreater than all; and no one is able tosnatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 a Iand the Father are 1 one.”

11 “a I am the good shepherd; the goodshepherd b lays down His life for the sheep.12 He who is a hired hand, and not a a shep-herd, who is not the owner of the sheep,sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheepand flees, and the wolf snatches them andscatters them. 13 He flees because he is ahired hand and is not concerned about thesheep. 14 a I am the good shepherd, and b Iknow My own and My own know Me,15 even as a the Father knows Me and Iknow the Father; and b I lay down My lifefor the sheep. 16 I have a other sheep, whichare not of this fold; I must bring them also,and they will hear My voice; and they willbecome b one flock with c one shepherd.17 For this reason the Father loves Me, be-cause I a lay down My life so that I maytake it again. 18 a No one has taken it awayfrom Me, but I b lay it down on My own ini-tiative. I have authority to lay it down, andI have authority to take it up again. c Thiscommandment I received from My Father.”

19 a A division occurred again among theJews because of these words. 20 Many ofthem were saying, “He a has a demon andb is insane. Why do you listen to Him?”21 Others were saying, “These are not the

10:11-18 Jesus picked up another expression from vv. 1-5, i.e.,He is the “good shepherd” in contrast to the present evil leader-ship of Israel (9:40,41). This is the fourth of 7 “I am” statements ofJesus (see vv. 7,9; 6:35; 8:12). The term “good” has the idea of“noble” and stands in contrast to the “hired hand” who cares onlyfor self-interest.

10:11 lays down His life for the sheep. This is a reference toJesus’ substitutionary death for sinners on the cross. Cf. v. 15; 6:51;11:50,51; 17:19; 18:14.

10:12 sees the wolf coming . . . flees. The hired hand likely rep-resents religious leaders who perform their duty in good times butwho never display sacrificial care for the sheep in times of danger.They stand in contrast to Jesus, who laid down His life for His flock(see 15:13).

10:16 not of this fold. This refers to Gentiles who will respond toHis voice and become a part of the church (cf. Ro 1:16). Jesus’ deathwas not only for Jews (see notes on vv. 1,3), but also for non-Jewswhom He will make into one new body, the church (see notes on11:51,52; cf. Eph 2:11-22).

10:17,18 take it again. Jesus repeated this phrase twice in thesetwo verses indicating that His sacrificial death was not the end. Hisresurrection followed in demonstration of His messiahship and deity(Ro 1:4). His death and resurrection resulted in His ultimate glorifica-tion (12:23; 17:5) and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit (7:37-39; cf.Ac 2:16-39).

10:19-21 The Jews once again had a mixed reaction to Jesus’words (see 7:12,13). While some charged Him with demon posses-sion (see 7:20; 8:48; cf. Mt 12:22-32), others concluded His worksand words were a demonstration of God’s sanction upon Him.

10:22,23 Feast of the Dedication. The Jewish celebration ofHanukkah, which celebrates the Israelite victory over the Syrianleader Antiochus Epiphanes, who persecuted Israel. In ca. 170 B.C.he conquered Jerusalem and desecrated the Jewish temple by set-ting up a pagan altar to displace the altar of God. Under the lead-

ership of an old priest named Mattathias (his family name wascalled the Hasmoneans), the Jews fought guerrilla warfare (knownas the Maccabean Revolt—166–142 B.C.) against Syria and freedthe temple and the land from Syrian dominance until 63 B.C. whenRome (Pompey) took control of Palestine. It was in 164 B.C. on 25Chislev (Dec. approximately), that the Jews liberated the templeand rededicated it. The celebration is also known as the “Feast ofLights” because of the lighting of lamps and candles in Jewishhomes to commemorate the event. it was winter. John indicatedby this phrase that the cold weather drove Jesus to walk on theeastern side of the temple in the sheltered area of Solomon’sporch, which after the resurrection became the regular gatheringplace of Christians where they would proclaim the gospel (see Ac3:11; 5:12).

10:24 tell us plainly. In light of the context of vv. 31-39, the Jewswere not seeking merely for clarity and understanding regardingwho Jesus was, but rather wanted Him to declare openly that Hewas Messiah in order to justify attacking Him.

10:26,27 This clearly indicates that God has chosen His sheepand it is they who believe and follow (see notes on vv. 3,16; cf. 6:37-40,44,65).

10:28,29 The security of Jesus’ sheep rests with Him as the goodshepherd, who has the power to keep them safe. Neither thievesand robbers (vv. 1,8) nor the wolf (v. 12) can harm them. Verse 29makes clear that the Father ultimately stands behind the sheep’s se-curity, for no one is able to steal from God, who is in sovereign con-trol of all things (Col 3:3). See notes on Ro 8:31-39. No stronger pas-sage in the OT or NT exists for the absolute, eternal security of everytrue Christian.

10:30 I and the Father are one. Both Father and Son are com-mitted to the perfect protection and preservation of Jesus’ sheep.The sentence, stressing the united purpose and action of both in thesecurity and safety of the flock, presupposes unity of nature andessence (see 5:17-23; 17:22).

29 1 One early ms reads What My Father has given Me is greater thanall 30 1 Or a unity; or one essence a Jn 17:21ff

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31 a Jn 8:5933 a Lv 24:16 b Jn 5:1834 a Jn 8:17 b Jn 12:34;

15:25; Ro 3:19; 1Co14:21 c Ps 82:6

36 a Jer 1:5; Jn 6:69 b Jn3:17 c Jn 5:17f; 10:30

37 a Jn 10:25; 15:2438 1 Lit know and

continue knowinga Jn 10:25; 14:11 b Jn14:10f, 20; 17:21, 23

39 a Jn 7:30 b Lk 4:30;Jn 8:59

40 a Jn 1:2841 a Jn 2:11 b Jn 1:27,

30, 34; 3:27-3042 a Jn 7:31

CHAPTER 11

1 a Mt 21:17; Jn 11:18b Lk 10:38; Jn 11:5, 19ff

2 a Lk 7:38; Jn 12:3 b Lk7:13; Jn 11:3, 21, 32;13:13f

3 a Lk 7:13; Jn 11:2, 21,32; 13:13f b Jn 11:5,11, 36

4 a Jn 9:3; 10:38; 11:40

fore a they were seeking again to seize Him,and b He eluded their grasp.

40 And He went away a again beyond theJordan to the place where John was firstbaptizing, and He was staying there.41 Many came to Him and were saying,“While John performed no a sign, yet b ev-erything John said about this man wastrue.” 42 a Many believed in Him there.

Christ Raises Lazarus

11Now a certain man was sick, Lazarusof a Bethany, the village of Mary and

her sister b Martha. 2 It was the Mary whoa anointed b the Lord with ointment, andwiped His feet with her hair, whose brotherLazarus was sick. 3 So the sisters sent wordto Him, saying, “a Lord, behold, b he whomYou love is sick.” 4 But when Jesus heardthis, He said, “This sickness is not to end in death, but for a the glory of God, so thatthe Son of God may be glorified by it.”

31 The Jews a picked up stones again tostone Him. 32 Jesus answered them, “Ishowed you many good works from theFather; for which of them are you stoningMe?” 33 The Jews answered Him, “For agood work we do not stone You, but fora blasphemy; and because You, being aman, b make Yourself out to be God.”34 Jesus answered them, “Has it not beenwritten in a your b Law, ‘c I SAID, YOU ARE

GODS’? 35 If he called them gods, to whomthe word of God came (and the Scripturecannot be broken), 36 do you say of Him,whom the Father a sanctified and b sent intothe world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ becauseI said, ‘c I am the Son of God’? 37 a If I do notdo the works of My Father, do not believeMe; 38 but if I do them, though you do notbelieve Me, believe a the works, so that youmay 1 know and understand that b the Fa-ther is in Me, and I in the Father.” 39 There-

10:31 For the third time John records that the Jews attempted tostone Jesus (see 5:18; 8:59). Jesus’ assertion (v. 30) that He was Onewith the Father affirmed His claim to deity and caused the Jews toseek His execution (v. 33). Although the OT permitted stoning in cer-tain instances (e.g., Lv 24:16), the Romans reserved the right of capitalpunishment for themselves (18:31). Nevertheless, out-of-control Jewsattempted a mob action in lieu of legal proceedings (see Ac 7:54-60).

10:33 make Yourself out to be God. There was no doubt in theminds of those Jews that Jesus was claiming to be God (cf. 5:18).

10:34-36 Quoted from Ps 82:6 where God calls some unjustjudges “gods” and pronounces calamity against them. Jesus’ argu-ment is that this psalm proves that the word “god” can be legiti-mately used to refer to others than God Himself. His reasoning isthat if there are others whom God can address as “god” or “sons ofthe Most High,” why then should the Jews object to Jesus’ state-ment that He is “the Son of God” (v. 36)?

10:35 Scripture cannot be broken. An affirmation of the ab-solute accuracy and authority of Scripture (see notes on Mt 5:17-19).

10:38 believe the works. Jesus did not expect to be believedmerely on His own assertions. Since He did the same things that theFather does (see notes on 5:19), His enemies should consider this intheir evaluation of Him. The implication is, however, that they wereso ignorant of God that they could not recognize the works of theFather or the One whom the Father sent (see also 14:10,11).

10:40 He went away again beyond the Jordan. Because of theincreasing hostility (see v. 39), Jesus went from the region of Judeainto the unpopulated area across the Jordan. to the place whereJohn was first baptizing. Cf. Mt 3:1-6; Mk 1:2-6; Lk 3:3-6. This isprobably a reference to either Perea or Batanea, the general area inthe tetrarchy of Philip in the E and NE of the Sea of Galilee. Thestatement is ironic, since the area where John first began becamethe last area in which Jesus stayed before He left for Jerusalem andcrucifixion. The people remembered John’s testimony to Christ andaffirmed their faith in Him (vv. 41,42).

11:1–12:50 The previous passage (10:40-42) marked the end ofJohn’s treatment of Jesus’ public ministry. At that point, He began tomove into seclusion and minister to His own disciples and thosewho loved Him as He prepared to face death. Israel had her day ofopportunity; the sun was setting and the night was coming. Thesetwo chapters form the transition to chaps. 13–21 which record thepassion of Christ, i.e., the events surrounding the cross.

11:1-57 As chap. 11 begins, Jesus stands in the shadow of facingthe cross. The little time that He had in the area beyond the Jordancame to an end. John picked up the story after He moved back intothe area of Jerusalem, and His death on the cross was only a fewdays away. In those last few days before His death, the scene inJohn’s gospel changes from hatred and rejection (10:39) to an un-mistakable and blessed witness of the glory of Christ. All the rejec-tion and hatred could not dim His glory as displayed through theresurrection of Lazarus. That miracle evidences His glory in 3 ways:1) it pointed to His deity; 2) it strengthened the faith of the disciples;and 3) it led directly to the cross (12:23). The chapter can be dividedas follows: 1) the preparation for the miracle (vv. 1-16); 2) the arrivalof Jesus (vv. 17-37); 3) the miracle itself (vv. 38-44); and 4) the re-sults of the miracle (vv. 45-57).

11:1 Lazarus. The resurrection of Lazarus is the climactic andmost dramatic sign in this gospel and the capstone of His public min-istry. Six miracles have already been presented (water into wine [2:1-11], healing of the nobleman’s son [4:46-54], restoring the impotentman [5:1-15], multiplying the loaves and fishes [6:1-14], walking onthe water [6:15-21], and curing the man born blind [9:1-12]). Lazarus’resurrection is more potent than all those and even more monumen-tal than the raising of the widow’s son in Nain (Lk 7:11-16) or Jairus’daughter (Lk 8:40-56) because those two resurrections occurred im-mediately after death. Lazarus was raised after 4 days of being in thegrave with the process of decomposition already having started (v.39). Bethany. This Bethany is different from the other “Bethany be-yond the Jordan” in 1:28 (see note there). It lies on the E side of theMt. of Olives about two mi. from Jerusalem (v. 18) along the roadleading toward Jericho. Mary . . . Martha. This is the first mention ofthis family in John. John related the story of Mary’s anointing of Jesusin 12:1-8, but this reference may indicate that the original readerswere already familiar with the event. Cf. Lk 10:38-42.

11:3 sent word to Him. Since Jesus was in the Transjordan andLazarus was near Jerusalem, the message to Jesus would most likelyhave taken one whole day to reach Him. Surely by omniscience,Jesus already knew of Lazarus’ condition (see v. 6; 1:47). He mayhave died before the messenger reached Jesus, since he was dead 4days (v. 17) when Jesus arrived, after a two day delay (v. 6) and aone day journey. he whom You love. This phrase is a touching hintat the close friendship that Jesus had with Lazarus. Cf. 13:1.

11:4 the Son of God may be glorified. This phrase reveals the

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5 a Jn 11:17 a Jn 10:408 a Mt 23:7 b Jn 8:59;

10:319 a Lk 13:33; Jn 9:4;

12:3511 a Jn 11:3 b Mt

27:52; Mk 5:39; Jn11:13; Ac 7:60

12 1 Lit be saved13 1 Lit the slumber of

sleep a Mt 9:24; Lk8:52

16 1 I.e. the Twin a Mt10:3; Mk 3:18; Lk6:15; Jn 14:5; 20:26-28; Ac 1:13 b Jn20:24; 21:2

17 a Jn 11:3918 1 Lit 15 stadia

(9,090 ft) a Jn 11:119 a Jn 1:19; 11:8 b Jn

11:1 c 1Sa 31:13; 1Ch10:12; Job 2:11; Jn11:31

20 1 Lit was sitting a Lk10:38-42

21 a Jn 11:2 b Jn 11:32,37

22 a Jn 9:31; 11:41f24 a Da 12:2; Jn 5:28f;

Ac 24:1525 a Jn 1:4; 5:26; 6:39f;

Rev 1:1826 a Jn 6:47, 50, 51;

8:5127 1 I.e. the Messiah

2 The Coming One

had already been in the tomb a four days.18 Now a Bethany was near Jerusalem,about 1 two miles off; 19 and many of a theJews had come to b Martha and Mary, c toconsole them concerning their brother.20 a Martha therefore, when she heard thatJesus was coming, went to meet Him, buta Mary 1 stayed at the house. 21 Martha thensaid to Jesus, “a Lord, b if You had been here,my brother would not have died. 22 Evennow I know that a whatever You ask ofGod, God will give You.” 23 Jesus *said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”24 Martha *said to Him, “a I know that hewill rise again in the resurrection on thelast day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “a I am theresurrection and the life; he who believes inMe will live even if he dies, 26 and every-one who lives and believes in Me a willnever die. Do you believe this?” 27 She*said to Him, “Yes, Lord; I have believedthat You are 1 a the Christ, the Son of God,even 2 b He who comes into the world.”

28 When she had said this, she a wentaway and called Mary her sister, saying se-cretly, “b The Teacher is here and is calling

5 Now Jesus loved a Martha and her sisterand Lazarus. 6 So when He heard that hewas sick, He then stayed two days longer inthe place where He was. 7 Then after thisHe *said to the disciples, “a Let us go toJudea again.” 8 The disciples *said to Him,“a Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking b tostone You, and are You going there again?”9 Jesus answered, “a Are there not twelvehours in the day? If anyone walks in theday, he does not stumble, because he seesthe light of this world. 10 But if anyonewalks in the night, he stumbles, because thelight is not in him.” 11 This He *said, andafter that He said to them, “Our a friendLazarus b has fallen asleep; but I go, so thatI may awaken him out of sleep.” 12 The dis-ciples then said to Him, “Lord, if he hasfallen asleep, he will 1 recover.” 13 Now a Je-sus had spoken of his death, but theythought that He was speaking of 1 literalsleep. 14 So Jesus then said to them plainly,“Lazarus is dead, 15 and I am glad for yoursakes that I was not there, so that you maybelieve; but let us go to him.” 16 a ThereforeThomas, who is called 1 b Didymus, said tohis fellow disciples, “Let us also go, so thatwe may die with Him.”

17 So when Jesus came, He found that he

real purpose behind Lazarus’ sickness, i.e., not death, but that theSon of God might be glorified through his resurrection (cf. v. 4; seenote on 9:3).

11:6 He . . . stayed two days longer. The decision to delay com-ing did not bring about Lazarus’ death, since Jesus already super-naturally knew his plight. Most likely by the time the messenger ar-rived to inform Jesus, Lazarus was already dead. The delay wasbecause He loved the family (v. 5) and that love would be clear asHe greatly strengthened their faith by raising Lazarus from thedead. The delay also ensured that Lazarus had been dead longenough that no one could misinterpret the miracle as a fraud ormere resuscitation.

11:7,8 The disciples realized that the animosity toward Jesus wasso great that His return could result in His death because of the mur-derous Jews (cf. 8:59; 10:31).

11:9,10 During the light of the sun, most people did their worksafely. When darkness came, they stopped. The proverbial saying,however, had a deeper meaning. As long as the Son performed HisFather’s will (i.e., during the daylight period of His ministry when Heis able to work), He was safe. The time would soon come (nighttime)when, by God’s design, His earthly work would end and He would“stumble” in death. Jesus was stressing that as long as He was onearth doing God’s will, even at this late time in His ministry, Hewould safely complete God’s purposes.

11:11-13 fallen asleep. A euphemistic term used in the NT torefer to death, particularly with reference to believers who will bephysically raised to eternal life (cf. 1Co 11:30; 15:51; 1Th 4:13).

11:14,15 The resurrection of Lazarus was designed to strengthenHis disciples’ faith in Him as the Messiah and Son of God in the faceof the strong Jewish rejection of Him.

11:16 Thomas’ words reflect loyal devotion and, at the sametime, pessimism over the fact that they would probably all die. Hisfears were not unrealistic in the face of bitter hostility toward Jesus,

and had not the Lord protected them in the garden (18:1-11), theymay also have been arrested and executed. Cf. 20:24-29.

11:17 in the tomb. The term “tomb” means a stone sepulcher. Infirst-century Israel such a grave was common. Either a cave or rockarea would be hewn out, the floor inside leveled and graded tomake a shallow descent. Shelves were cut out or constructed insidethe area in order to bury additional family members. A rock wasrolled in front to prevent wild animals or grave robbers from enter-ing (see also v. 38). The evangelist made special mention of thefourth day (see note on v. 3) in order to stress the magnitude of themiracle, for the Jews did not embalm and by then the body wouldhave been in a state of rapid decomposition.

11:18,19 The implication of these verses is that the family wasrather prominent. The mention of the Jews also heightens the read-er’s awareness of the great risk that Jesus took in coming so close toJerusalem, which was seething with the leaders’ hatred for Him.

11:21 if You had been here. Cf. v. 32. Not a rebuke of Jesus but atestimony of her trust in His healing power.

11:22 whatever You ask of God. Based on her statement in v. 39,Martha was not saying she believed Jesus could raise Lazarus fromthe dead, but that she knew He had a special relationship to God sothat His prayers could bring some good from this sad event.

11:25,26 This is the fifth in a series of 7 great “I am” statementsof Jesus (see 6:35; 8:12; 10:7,9; 10:11,14). With this statement, Jesusmoved Martha from an abstract belief in the resurrection that willtake place “on the last day” (cf. 5:28,29) to a personalized trust inHim who alone can raise the dead. No resurrection or eternal life ex-ists outside of the Son of God. Time (“on the last day”) is no barrierto the One who has the power of resurrection and life (1:4) for Hecan give life at any time.

11:27 She said to Him. Martha’s confession is representative ofthe very reason John wrote this inspired gospel (cf. 20:30,31). SeePeter’s confession in Mt 16:16.

was the Messianic title a Mt 16:16; Lk 2:11 b Jn 6:14 28 a Jn 11:30b Mt 26:18; Mk 14:14; Lk 22:11; Jn 13:13

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30 a Jn 11:2031 a Jn 11:19, 33 b Jn

11:1932 a Jn 11:2 b Jn 11:2133 1 Lit troubled

Himself a Jn 11:19b Jn 11:38 c Jn 12:27;13:21

35 a Lk 19:41; Jn 11:3336 a Jn 11:19 b Jn 11:337 1 Lit have caused

that this man also notdie a Jn 9:7

38 a Mt 27:60; Mk15:46; Lk 24:2; Jn20:1

39 1 Lit he stinks a Jn11:17

40 a Jn 11:4, 23ff41 a Mt 27:60; Mk

15:46; Lk 24:2; Jn20:1 b Jn 17:1; Ac7:55 c Mt 11:25

42 1 Lit crowd a Jn12:30; 17:21 b Jn 3:17

44 a Jn 19:40 b Jn 20:745 a Jn 7:31 b Jn 11:19;

12:17f c Jn 2:2346 a Jn 7:32, 45; 11:5747 1 Or attesting

miracles a Jn 7:32, 45;11:57 b Mt 26:3 c Mt5:22 d Jn 2:11

48 a Mt 24:1549 a Mt 26:3 b Jn

11:51; 18:13

*said to her, “a Did I not say to you that ifyou believe, you will see the glory ofGod?” 41 So they removed the a stone. ThenJesus b raised His eyes, and said, “c Father, Ithank You that You have heard Me. 42 Iknew that You always hear Me; buta because of the 1 people standing around Isaid it, so that they may believe that b Yousent Me.” 43 When He had said thesethings, He cried out with a loud voice,“Lazarus, come forth.” 44 The man whohad died came forth, a bound hand and footwith wrappings, and b his face waswrapped around with a cloth. Jesus *saidto them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

The Pharisees Plan to Kill Christ45 a Therefore many of the Jews b who

came to Mary, and c saw what He had done,believed in Him. 46 But some of them wentto the a Pharisees and told them the thingswhich Jesus had done.

47 Therefore a the chief priests and thePharisees b convened a c council, and weresaying, “What are we doing? For this manis performing many 1 d signs. 48 If we letHim go on like this, all men will believe inHim, and the Romans will come and takeaway both our a place and our nation.”49 But one of them, a Caiaphas, b who washigh priest that year, said to them, “You

for you.” 29 And when she heard it, she*got up quickly and was coming to Him.

30 Now Jesus had not yet come into thevillage, but a was still in the place whereMartha met Him. 31 a Then the Jews whowere with her in the house, and b consolingher, when they saw that Mary got upquickly and went out, they followed her,supposing that she was going to the tombto weep there. 32 Therefore, when Marycame where Jesus was, she saw Him, andfell at His feet, saying to Him, “a Lord, b ifYou had been here, my brother would nothave died.” 33 When Jesus therefore sawher weeping, and a the Jews who came withher also weeping, He b was deeply movedin spirit and 1 c was troubled, 34 and *said,“Where have you laid him?” They said toHim, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus a wept.36 So a the Jews were saying, “See how Heb loved him!” 37 But some of them said,“Could not this man, who a opened theeyes of the blind man, 1 have kept this manalso from dying?”

38 So Jesus, again being deeply movedwithin, *came to the tomb. Now it was aa cave, and a stone was lying against it.39 Jesus *said, “Remove the stone.” Martha,the sister of the deceased, *said to Him,“Lord, by this time 1 there will be a stench,for he has been dead a four days.” 40 Jesus

11:32 See note on v. 21.

11:33 saw . . . the Jews . . . weeping. According to Jewish oraltradition, the funeral custom indicated that even a poor family musthire at least two flute players and a professional wailing woman tomourn the dead. Because the family may have been well-to-do, arather large group appears present. He was deeply moved in spiritand was troubled. The phrase here does not mean merely thatJesus was deeply touched or moved with sympathy at the sight. TheGr. term “deeply moved” always suggests anger, outrage, or emo-tional indignation (see v. 38; cf. Mt 9:30; Mk 1:43; 14:5). Most likelyJesus was angered at the emotional grief of the people because itimplicitly revealed unbelief in the resurrection and the temporarynature of death. The group was acting like pagans who had no hope(1Th 4:13). While grief is understandable, the group was acting indespair, thus indicating a tacit denial of the resurrection and theScripture that promised it. Jesus may also have been angered be-cause He was indignant at the pain and sorrow in death that sinbrought into the human condition.

11:35 Jesus wept. The Gr. word here has the connotation ofsilently bursting into tears in contrast to the loud lament of thegroup (see v. 33). His tears here were not generated out of mourn-ing, since He was to raise Lazarus, but out of grief for a fallen worldentangled in sin-caused sorrow and death. He was “a man of sor-rows and acquainted with grief” (Is 53:3).

11:39 stench. Although Jews used aromatic spices, their customwas not to embalm the body but to use the spices to counteract therepulsive odors from decomposition. They would wrap the body inlinen cloth, adding spice in the layers and folds. The Jews did notwrap the body tightly like Egyptian mummies, but rather looselywith the head wrapped separately. This is indicated by the fact that

Lazarus could move out of the tomb before he was unwrapped (v.44; cf. 20:7).

11:41,42 Jesus’ prayer was not really a petition, but thanksgivingto the Father. The reason for the miracle was to authenticate Hisclaims to be the Messiah and Son of God.

11:43 This was a preview of the power to be fully displayed inthe final resurrection when all the dead hear the voice of the Son ofGod and live (5:25,28,29).

11:45,46 Jesus’ teaching and actions often divided the Jews (e.g.,6:14,15; 7:10-13, 45-52). While some believed (cf. v. 40), others, ap-parently with malicious intent, informed the Pharisees of Jesus’ ac-tion.

11:47 convened a council. Alerted by the Pharisees, a Sanhedrincommittee consisting of chief priests (former High-Priests and mem-bers of High-Priestly families) and Pharisees, called the Sanhedrin tosession. The Pharisees could not by themselves take any judicial ac-tion against Jesus. Though subject to Roman control, the Sanhedrinwas the highest judicial body in Israel and exercised judicial, legisla-tive, and executive powers at that time. In Jesus’ day, the 70 mem-bers of the Sanhedrin were dominated by the chief priests, and vir-tually all the priests were Sadducees. The Pharisees constituted aninfluential minority. While the Pharisees and Sadducees were oftenin conflict, their mutual hatred of Jesus united them into action.

11:48 the Romans will come. The Jews were not willing to believein Jesus as the Son of God even though Lazarus had been raised. Theyfeared that escalating messianic expectations could start a movementagainst Roman oppression and occupation that would cause the Ro-mans to come and take away all their rights and freedoms.

11:49 Caiaphas. Caiaphas became High-Priest ca. A.D. 18, beingappointed by the Roman prefect, Valerius Gratus. His father-in-law

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50 a Jn 18:1451 1 Lit from himself

a Jn 18:1352 a Jn 10:1653 a Mt 26:454 a Jn 7:1 b 2Ch 13:19

mg55 a Mt 26:1f; Mk 14:1;

Lk 22:1; Jn 2:13; 12:1;13:1 b Nu 9:10; 2Ch30:17f; Jn 18:28

56 a Jn 7:1157 a Jn 11:47

CHAPTER 12

1 a Jn 12:1-8: Mt 26:6-13; Mk 14:3-9; Lk7:37-39 b Jn 11:55;12:20 c Mt 21:17; Jn11:43f

2 a Lk 10:383 1 I.e. a Roman

pound, equaling 12oz a Lk 7:37f; Jn 11:2b Mk 14:3

4 1 Or hand Him overa Jn 6:71

5 1 Equivalent to 11months’ wages

6 a Jn 13:29 b Lk 8:37 1 I.e. the custom of

preparing the bodyfor burial a Jn 19:40

knew where He was, he was to report it, sothat they might seize Him.

Mary Anoints ChristMt 26:6-12; Mk 14:3-9

12a Jesus, therefore, six days before b thePassover, came to c Bethany where

Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised fromthe dead. 2 So they made Him a supperthere, and a Martha was serving; butLazarus was one of those reclining at thetable with Him. 3 a Mary then took a 1 poundof very costly b perfume of pure nard, andanointed the feet of Jesus and wiped Hisfeet with her hair; and the house was filledwith the fragrance of the perfume. 4 Buta Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, whowas intending to 1 betray Him, *said, 5 “Whywas this perfume not sold for 1 three hun-dred denarii and given to poor people?”6 Now he said this, not because he was con-cerned about the poor, but because he wasa thief, and as he a had the money box, heused to pilfer b what was put into it. 7 There-fore Jesus said, “Let her alone, so that shemay keep 1 it for a the day of My burial.

know nothing at all, 50 nor do you take intoaccount that a it is expedient for you thatone man die for the people, and that thewhole nation not perish.” 51 Now he didnot say this 1 on his own initiative, buta being high priest that year, he prophesiedthat Jesus was going to die for the nation,52 and not for the nation only, but in orderthat He might also a gather together intoone the children of God who are scatteredabroad. 53 So from that day on theya planned together to kill Him.

54 Therefore Jesus a no longer continuedto walk publicly among the Jews, but wentaway from there to the country near thewilderness, into a city called b Ephraim;and there He stayed with the disciples.

55 Now a the Passover of the Jews wasnear, and many went up to Jerusalem outof the country before the Passover b to pu-rify themselves. 56 So they a were seekingfor Jesus, and were saying to one anotheras they stood in the temple, “What do youthink; that He will not come to the feast atall?” 57 Now a the chief priests and thePharisees had given orders that if anyone

was Annas, who had previously functioned in that same positionfrom ca. A.D. 7–14 and who exercised great influence over the officeeven after his tenure (see 18:12-14). Caiaphas remained in officeuntil A.D. 36 when, along with Pontius Pilate, he was removed by theRomans. He took a leading part in the trial and condemnation ofJesus. In his court or palace, the chief priests (Sadducees) and Phar-isees assembled “and plotted together to seize Jesus by stealth andkill Him” (see Mt 26:3,4).

11:50 one man die for the people. He only meant that Jesusshould be executed in order to spare their own positions and nationfrom Roman reprisals, but Caiaphas unwittingly used sacrificial, sub-stitutionary language and prophesied the death of Christ for sinners.Cf. 2Co 5:21; 1Pe 2:24.

11:51 he prophesied. Caiaphas did not realize the implicationsof what he spoke. While he uttered blasphemy against Christ, Godparodied his statement into truth (cf. Ps 76:10). The responsibilityfor the wicked meaning of his words belonged to Caiaphas, butGod’s providence directed the choice of words so as to express theheart of God’s glorious plan of salvation (Ac 4:27,28). He actuallywas used by God as a prophet because he was the High-Priest andoriginally the High-Priest was the means of God’s will being re-vealed (2Sa 15:27).

11:52 gather together into one the children of God. In context,this had reference to believing Jews of the dispersion who would begathered together in the Promised Land to share the kingdom ofGod (Is 43:5; Eze 34:12). In a wider sense, this also anticipated theGentile mission (see 12:32). As a result of Christ’s sacrificial deathand resurrection, both Jew and Gentile have been made into onegroup, the church (Eph 2:11-18).

11:53 from that day on. The phrase indicates that their course ofaction toward Jesus was then fixed. It remained only to accomplishit. Notice that Jesus was not arrested to be tried. He had alreadybeen judged guilty of blasphemy. The trial was a mere formality fora sentence already passed (Mk 14:1,2).

11:54 Ephraim. This probably refers to the OT city of Ephron(see 2Ch 13:19). Its modern village name is Et-Taiyibeh, and it is lo-

cated 4 mi. NE of Bethel and about 12 mi. from Jerusalem. The lo-cation was far enough away for temporary safety until the time ofPassover (v. 55).

11:55 Passover. This is the third Passover mentioned in John (see2:13; 6:4) and the last in Jesus’ earthly ministry at which His sacrifi-cial death occurred. For the chronology of the Passover Week, seeIntroduction to Luke: Outline.

11:56 they were seeking for Jesus. The Jews who filled Jeru-salem for Passover were wondering if Jesus would show Himself atthis time and were actively seeking to find Him. The plot of the chiefpriests and Pharisees (see v. 47; 7:12) was known widely enough topique their curiosity as to whether Jesus would dare show Himself inJerusalem.

11:57 if anyone knew. The plotters ensured that the whole citywas filled with potential informants.

12:1-50 This chapter focuses on the reactions of love and hate,belief and rejection toward Christ, leading to the cross.

12:1 six days before the Passover. This most likely was the previ-ous Saturday with Passover coming 6 days later on Thursdayevening through sunset Friday. See Introduction: Interpretive Chal-lenges.

12:3 a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard. The termused for “pound” actually indicates a weight around three-fourths ofa pound (approximately 12 ounces). “Nard” was an oil extractedfrom the root of a plant grown in India. anointed the feet of Jesus.Since those who were eating reclined at the table, their feet extend-ed away from it, making it possible for Mary to anoint the feet ofJesus. The act symbolized Mary’s humble devotion and love for Him.

12:5 three hundred denarii. Since one denarius was a day’swage given to common laborers, 300 was equivalent to a year’swages (no money was earned on the Sabbath or other holy days).

12:6 a thief. Judas’ altruism was really a front for his own per-sonal avarice. Because he was the apostolic band’s treasurer, he wasable to secretly pilfer the group treasury for his own desires.

12:7 keep it for the day of My burial. Mary performed this act to

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8 a Dt 15:11; Mt 26:11;Mk 14:7

9 a Mk 12:37; Jn 12:12mg b Jn 11:43f; 12:1,17f

11 a Jn 11:45f; 12:18b Jn 7:31; 11:42

12 a Jn 12:12-15: Mt21:4-9; Mk 11:7-10; Lk19:35-38 b Jn 12:1

13 a Ps 118:26 b Jn1:49

15 a Zec 9:916 a Mk 9:32; Jn 2:22;

14:26 b Jn 7:39; 12:23

17 1 Lit crowd a Jn11:42

18 1 Lit crowd 2 Orattesting miracle a Lk19:37; Jn 12:12 b Jn12:11

20 a Jn 7:35 b Jn 12:121 a Jn 1:44 b Mt 11:2122 a Jn 1:4423 a Mt 26:45; Mk

14:35, 41; Jn 13:1;17:1 b Jn 7:39; 12:16;13:32

24 a Ro 14:9; 1Co15:36

25 1 Lit soul a Mt10:39; 16:25; Mk8:35; Lk 9:24; 17:33b Lk 14:26

were written of Him, and that they haddone these things to Him. 17 So a the 1 peo-ple, who were with Him when He calledLazarus out of the tomb and raised himfrom the dead, continued to testify aboutHim. 18 a For this reason also the 1 peoplewent and met Him, b because they heardthat He had performed this 2 sign. 19 So thePharisees said to one another, “You see thatyou are not doing any good; look, theworld has gone after Him.”

The Messiah Teaches20 Now there were some a Greeks among

those who were going up to worship atb the feast; 21 these then came to a Philip,who was from b Bethsaida of Galilee, andbegan to ask him, saying, “Sir, we wish tosee Jesus.” 22 Philip *came and *told a An-drew; Andrew and Philip *came and *toldJesus. 23 And Jesus *answered them, saying,“a The hour has come for the Son of Man tob be glorified. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you,a unless a grain of wheat falls into the earthand dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, itbears much fruit. 25 a He who loves his 1 lifeloses it, and he who b hates his 1 life in this

8 a For you always have the poor with you,but you do not always have Me.”

9 The a large crowd of the Jews thenlearned that He was there; and they came,not for Jesus’ sake only, but that they mightalso see Lazarus, b whom He raised fromthe dead. 10 But the chief priests plannedto put Lazarus to death also; 11 because a onaccount of him b many of the Jews weregoing away and were believing in Jesus.

The Triumphal EntryMt 21:1-9; Mk 11:1-10; Lk 19:29-38

12 On the next day a the large crowd whohad come to b the feast, when they heardthat Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, 13 tookthe branches of the palm trees and wentout to meet Him, and began to shout,“a Hosanna! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES INTHE NAME OF THE LORD, even the b King of Is-rael.” 14 Jesus, finding a young donkey, saton it; as it is written, 15 “a FEAR NOT, DAUGH-TER OF ZION; BEHOLD, YOUR KING IS COMING,SEATED ON A DONKEY’S COLT.” 16 a Thesethings His disciples did not understand atthe first; but when Jesus b was glorified,then they remembered that these things

signal her devotion but, as in the case of Caiaphas (11:49-52), heract revealed more than she realized at the time. During the first cen-tury, lavish sums were spent on funerals, which included costly per-fumes to cover the smell of decay (see note on 11:39).

12:8 This does not mean that alms should not be distributed tothe poor (Dt 15:11) but was a reminder that, while the poor wouldremain, Jesus would not always be with them. See Mt 26:11; Mk 14:7.

12:11 going away . . . believing. This phrase signaled both aconscious, deliberate move away from the religion of the authoritiesand a move toward genuine faith in Jesus as Messiah and Son ofGod.

12:12-19 This section marks Jesus’ triumphal entry intoJerusalem referred to as Palm Sunday. It is one of the few incidentsin Jesus’ life reported in all 4 gospels (Mt 21:1-11; Mk 11:1-11; Lk19:29-38). By this action, He presented Himself officially to the na-tion as the Messiah and Son of God. The Sanhedrin and other Jew-ish leaders wanted Him dead but did not want Him killed duringthe Passover time because they feared stirring up the multitudeswith whom He was popular (Mt 26:5; Mk 14:2; Lk 22:2). Jesus en-tered the city, however, on His own time and forced the wholeissue in order that it might happen exactly on the Passover daywhen the lambs were being sacrificed. As the Scripture says,“Christ, our Passover, also has been sacrificed” (1Co 5:7). In God’sperfect timing (see 7:30; 8:20), at the precise time foreordainedfrom eternity, He presented Himself to die (v. 23; 10:17,18; 17:1;19:10,11; cf. Ac 2:23; 4:27,28; Gal 4:4).

12:12 the next day. Sunday, the day after Jesus’ visit to Bethany(see note on v. 1).

12:13 took the branches of the palm trees. The supply of datepalms was plentiful; they still grow in Jerusalem today. From abouttwo centuries earlier, the waving of palm branches had become anational, if not nationalistic, symbol, which signaled the ferventhope that a messianic liberator was arriving on the scene (6:14,15).Hosanna! The term “hosanna” is a transliteration of a Heb. wordthat means “give salvation now.” It was a term of acclamation or

praise occurring in Ps 118:25 which was familiar to every Jew, sincethat psalm was part of the Hallel (Pss 113–118) sung each morningby the temple choir during the Feast of Tabernacles (7:37) and asso-ciated with the Feast of Dedication (10:22) and especially thePassover. After shouting out the “Hosanna,” the crowds shouted Ps118:26; significantly, the original context of Ps 118 may well havebeen the pronouncement of blessing upon a Davidic king. Jewishcommentaries on the psalm have understood the verse to bear mes-sianic implications. “HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD” refers toMessiah, especially in context with the phrase, “the King of Israel,”though that messianic title is not from Ps 118.

12:14,15 The synoptic gospels give more information here re-garding Jesus’ selection of a young donkey (see Mt 21:1-9; Mk 11:1-10; Lk 19:29-38). They convey the fact that Jesus deliberatelyplanned to present Himself to the nation in this manner as a con-scious fulfillment of the messianic prophecy of Zec 9:9 (quotedhere). The words, “FEAR NOT,” are not found in the Zechariah passagebut were added from Is 40:9. Only after His ascension did the disci-ples grasp the meaning of the triumphal entry (cf. 14:26).

12:19 the world has gone after Him. “The world” means thepeople in general, as opposed to everyone in particular. Clearly,most people in the world did not even know of Jesus at that time,and many in Israel did not believe in Him. Often, “world” is used inthis general sense (v. 47; 1:29; 3:17; 4:42; 14:22; 17:9,21).

12:20,21 Most likely Gentile proselytes to Judaism who hadcome up for the Passover and who, in their desire to see Jesus,stood in direct antithesis to the attitude of the national leaders whodesired to kill Him. At the very moment when the Jewish authoritiesplotted virulently to kill Him, Gentiles began to desire His attention.

12:23 hour. Refers to the time of Jesus’ death, resurrection, andexaltation (v. 27; 13:1; 17:1). Up to this point, Jesus’ hour had alwaysbeen future (2:4; 4:21,23; 7:30; 8:20). Son of Man. See note on 1:51.

12:24 As the sown kernel dies to bring forth a rich harvest, soalso the death of the Son of God will result in the salvation of many.

12:25,26 Not only is the principle of death applicable to Jesus

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26 1 Or is serving a Jn14:3; 17:24; 2Co 5:8;Php 1:23; 1Th 4:17b 1Sa 2:30; Ps 91:15;Lk 12:37

27 a Mt 26:38; Mk14:34; Jn 11:33 b Mt11:25 c Jn 12:23

28 a Mt 11:25 b Mt3:17; 17:5; Mk 1:11;9:7; Lk 3:22; 9:35

29 a Ac 23:930 a Jn 11:4231 a Jn 3:19; 9:39; 16:11

b Jn 14:30; 16:11; 2Co4:4; Eph 2:2; 6:12; 1 Jn4:4; 5:19

32 a Jn 3:14; 8:28;12:34 b Jn 6:44

33 a Jn 18:32; 21:1934 1 I.e. the Messiah

a Jn 10:34 b Ps 110:4;Is 9:7; Eze 37:25; Da7:14 c Mt 8:20 d Jn3:14; 8:28; 12:32

35 a Jn 7:33; 9:4 b Jn12:46; 1 Jn 2:10 c Gal6:10; Eph 5:8 d 1 Jn1:6; 2:11

36 1 Lit was hiddena Jn 12:46 b Lk 16:8;Jn 8:12 c Jn 8:59

37 1 Or attesting signs38 a Is 53:1; Ro 10:1640 1 Lit be turned; i.e.

turn about a Is 6:10;Mt 13:14f b Mk 6:52

41 a Is 6:1ff b Lk 24:2742 1 I.e.

excommunicateda Jn 7:48; 12:11 b Lk23:13 c Jn 7:13 d Jn9:22

43 1 Or glory a Jn 5:41,44

44 a Mt 10:40; Jn 5:2445 a Jn 14:9

though He had performed so many 1 signsbefore them, yet they were not believing inHim. 38 This was to fulfill the word of Isaiahthe prophet which he spoke: “a LORD, WHOHAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT? AND TO WHOMHAS THE ARM OF THE LORD BEEN REVEALED?”39 For this reason they could not believe,for Isaiah said again, 40 “a HE HAS BLINDEDTHEIR EYES AND HE b HARDENED THEIR HEART,SO THAT THEY WOULD NOT SEE WITH THEIR EYESAND PERCEIVE WITH THEIR HEART, AND 1 BECONVERTED AND I HEAL THEM.” 41 Thesethings Isaiah said because a he saw Hisglory, and b he spoke of Him. 42 Neverthe-less a many even of b the rulers believed inHim, but c because of the Pharisees theywere not confessing Him, for fear that theywould be 1 d put out of the synagogue;43 a for they loved the 1 approval of menrather than the 1 approval of God.

44 And Jesus cried out and said, “a Hewho believes in Me, does not believe in Mebut in Him who sent Me. 45 a He who seesMe sees the One who sent Me. 46 a I havecome as Light into the world, so that every-one who believes in Me will not remain indarkness. 47 If anyone hears My sayingsand does not keep them, I do not judgehim; for a I did not come to judge the world,but to save the world. 48 a He who rejectsMe and does not receive My sayings, hasone who judges him; b the word I spoke iswhat will judge him at c the last day. 49 a For

world will keep it to life eternal. 26 If any-one 1 serves Me, he must follow Me; anda where I am, there My servant will be also;if anyone 1 serves Me, the Father willb honor him.

27 “a Now My soul has become troubled;and what shall I say, ‘b Father, save Me fromc this hour’? But for this purpose I came tothis hour. 28 a Father, glorify Your name.”Then a b voice came out of heaven: “I haveboth glorified it, and will glorify it again.”29 So the crowd of people who stood by andheard it were saying that it had thundered;others were saying, “a An angel has spokento Him.” 30 Jesus answered and said,“a This voice has not come for My sake, butfor your sakes. 31 a Now judgment is uponthis world; now b the ruler of this worldwill be cast out. 32 And I, if I a am lifted upfrom the earth, will b draw all men to My-self.” 33 But He was saying this a to indicatethe kind of death by which He was to die.34 The crowd then answered Him, “Wehave heard out of a the Law that 1 b theChrist is to remain forever; and how canYou say, ‘The c Son of Man must be d liftedup’? Who is this c Son of Man?” 35 So Jesussaid to them, “a For a little while longer b theLight is among you. c Walk while you havethe Light, so that darkness will not over-take you; he who d walks in the darknessdoes not know where he goes. 36 While youhave the Light, a believe in the Light, so thatyou may become b sons of Light.”

These things Jesus spoke, and He wentaway and 1 c hid Himself from them. 37 But

(see v. 24) but it is also applicable to His followers. They, too, as Hisdisciples may have to lose their life in service and witness for Him(see Mt 10:37-39; 16:24,25).

12:27 My soul has become troubled. The term used here isstrong and signifies horror, anxiety, and agitation. Jesus’ contempla-tion of taking on the wrath of God for the sins of the world causedrevulsion in the sinless Savior (cf. 2Co 5:21).

12:28 glorify Your name. This request embodied the principlethat Jesus lived by and would die by. See 7:18; 8:29,50. I have . . .and will glorify. The Father answered the Son in an audible voice.This is only one of 3 instances during Jesus’ ministry when this tookplace (cf. Mt 3:17—His baptism; 17:5—His transfiguration).

12:31 the ruler of this world. A reference to Satan (see 14:30;16:11; cf. Mt 4:8,9; Lk 4:6,7; 2Co 4:4; Eph 2:2; 6:12). Although thecross might have appeared to signal Satan’s victory over God, in re-ality it marked Satan’s defeat (cf. Ro 16:20; Heb 2:14).

12:32 lifted up from the earth. This refers to His crucifixion (v.33; 18:32). See note on 3:14.

12:34 remain forever. The term “Law” was used broadly enoughto include not only the 5 books of Moses but also the whole of theOT (see Ro 10:4). Perhaps they had in mind Is 9:7 which promisedthat Messiah’s kingdom would last forever, or Eze 37:25 where Godpromised that the final David would be Israel’s prince forever (seealso Ps 89:35-37).

12:35,36 Jesus said to them. A final invitation from Jesus was

recorded by John to focus on his theme of believing in the Messiahand Son of God (see 20:30,31).

12:37-40 In these verses, John gave the scriptural explanation forsuch large-scale, catastrophic unbelief on the part of the Jewish na-tion. The explanation was that the unbelief was not only foreseen inScripture but necessitated by it. In v. 38, John quotes Is 53:1 and inv. 40 he quotes Is 6:10 (see Ro 10:16), both of which stress the sov-ereign plan of God in His judicial hardening of Israel (cf. Paul’s argu-ment in Ro 9–11). Although God predestined such judgment, it wasnot apart from human responsibility and culpability (see 8:24).

12:41 Isaiah . . . saw His glory, and . . . spoke of Him. This is areference to Isaiah 6:1 (see notes there). John unambiguously tiesJesus to God or Yahweh of the OT (see note on 8:58). Therefore, sincev. 41 refers to Jesus, it makes Him the author of the judicial harden-ing of Israel. That fits His role as Judge (see 5:22,23,27,30; 9:39).

12:42,43 The indictment of vv. 37-41 is followed by the excep-tions of vv. 42,43 (see 1:10,11 vs. 1:12,13). While the people seemedto trust Jesus with much more candor and fervency, the leaders ofIsrael who believed in Him demonstrated inadequate, irresolute,even spurious faith (see note on 2:23-25). The faith of the latter wasso weak that they refused to take any position that would threatentheir position in the synagogue. This is one of the saddest state-ments about spiritual leadership, for they preferred the praises ofmen above the praises of God in their refusal to publicly acknowl-edge Jesus as Messiah and Son of God.

46 a Jn 1:4; 3:19; 8:12; 9:5; 12:35f 47 a Jn 3:17; 8:15f 48 a Lk 10:16b Dt 18:18f; Jn 5:45ff; 8:47 c Mt 10:15; Jn 6:39; Ac 17:31; 1Pe 1:5; 2Pe3:3, 7; Heb 10:25 49 a Jn 3:11; 7:16; 8:26, 28, 38; 14:10, 24

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49 1 Lit of Myself b Jn14:31; 17:8

50 a Jn 6:68 b Jn 5:19;8:28

CHAPTER 13

1 1 Or to the uttermost;or eternally a Jn 2:13;11:55 b Jn 12:23 c Jn13:3; 16:28

2 a Jn 6:70; 13:27 b Jn6:71

3 a Jn 3:35 b Jn 8:424 a Lk 12:37; 17:85 a Ge 18:4; 19:2;

43:24; Jdg 19:21; Lk7:44; 1Ti 5:10

7 a Jn 13:12ff

8 a Ps 51:2, 7; Eze36:25; Ac 22:16; 1Co6:11; Heb 10:22 b Dt12:12; 2Sa 20:1; 1Ki12:16

10 a Jn 15:3; Eph 5:2611 a Jn 6:64; 13:212 a Jn 13:413 1 Lit you say well

a Jn 11:28 b Jn 11:2;1Co 12:3; Php 2:11

14 a Jn 11:2; 1Co 12:3;Php 2:11

15 a 1Pe 5:316 a Mt 10:24; Lk 6:40;

Jn 15:20 b 2Co 8:23;Php 2:25

17 a Mt 7:24ff; Lk11:28; Jas 1:25

18 a Jn 13:10f b Jn6:70; 15:16, 19

shall You wash my feet!” Jesus answeredhim, “a If I do not wash you, b you have nopart with Me.” 9 Simon Peter *said to Him,“Lord, then wash not only my feet, but alsomy hands and my head.” 10 Jesus *said tohim, “He who has bathed needs only towash his feet, but is completely clean; anda you are clean, but not all of you.” 11 Fora He knew the one who was betraying Him;for this reason He said, “Not all of you areclean.”

12 So when He had washed their feet,and a taken His garments and reclined at the table again, He said to them, “Do youknow what I have done to you? 13 You call Me a Teacher and b Lord; and 1 you are right, for so I am. 14 If I then, a the Lordand the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.15 For I gave you a an example that you also should do as I did to you. 16 Truly,truly, I say to you, a a slave is not greaterthan his master, nor is b one who is sentgreater than the one who sent him. 17 If you know these things, you are a blessed ifyou do them. 18 a I do not speak of all ofyou. I know the ones I have b chosen; but itis c that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘d HE

I did not speak 1 on My own initiative, butthe Father Himself who sent Me b has givenMe a commandment as to what to say andwhat to speak. 50 I know that a His com-mandment is eternal life; therefore thethings I speak, I speak b just as the Fatherhas told Me.”

Christ Washes the Disciples’ Feet

13Now before the Feast of a thePassover, Jesus knowing that b His

hour had come that He would depart out ofthis world c to the Father, having loved Hisown who were in the world, He loved them1 to the end. 2 During supper, a the devilhaving already put into the heart of b JudasIscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him,3 Jesus, a knowing that the Father had givenall things into His hands, and that b He hadcome forth from God and was going backto God, 4 *got up from supper, and *laidaside His garments; and taking a towel, Hea girded Himself. 5 Then He *poured waterinto the basin, and began to a wash the dis-ciples’ feet and to wipe them with thetowel with which He was girded. 6 So He*came to Simon Peter. He *said to Him,“Lord, do You wash my feet?” 7 Jesus an-swered and said to him, “What I do you donot realize now, but you will understanda hereafter.” 8 Peter *said to Him, “Never

13:1–17:16 In these remaining chapters before His crucifixion, therecord looks at Jesus’ devoting Himself to His own disciples. Whilechaps. 1–12 center on the rejection of Jesus by the nation (cf. 1:11),chaps. 13–17 center on those who did receive Him (see 1:12). Begin-ning in chap. 13, Jesus moved completely away from public ministryto private ministry with those who had received Him. Chapters 13–17were spoken by Jesus as a farewell on the night of His betrayal and ar-rest to communicate His coming legacy to His followers (chaps.13–16) and pray for them (chap. 17). The cross was only one day away.

13:1 to the end. Meaning “to perfection” with perfect love. Godloves the world (3:16), and sinners (3:16; Mt 5:44,45; Tit 3:4) withcompassion and common grace, but loves His own with perfect,saving, eternal love.

13:2 supper. Passover on Thursday night after sunset. See Intro-duction: Interpretive Challenges. the devil . . . the heart of Judas.This does not exonerate Judas, because his wicked heart desired ex-actly what the devil desired, the death of Jesus. The devil and Judaswere in accord.

13:3 going back to God. Jesus faced the betrayal, agony, anddeath because He knew He would be exalted to the Father after-ward, where He would receive the glory and fellowship He had eter-nally enjoyed within the Trinity (see 17:4,5). This was the “joy set be-fore Him” that enabled Him to “endure the cross” (Heb 12:2).

13:4,5 The dusty and dirty conditions of the region necessitatedthe need for footwashing. Although the disciples most likely wouldhave been happy to wash Jesus’ feet, they could not conceive ofwashing one another’s feet. This was because in the society of thetime footwashing was reserved for the lowliest of menial servants.Peers did not wash one another’s feet, except very rarely and as amark of great love. Luke points out (22:24) that they were arguingabout who was the greatest of them, so that none was willing to

stoop to wash feet. When Jesus moved to wash their feet, they wereshocked. His actions serve also as symbolic of spiritual cleansing (vv.6-9) and a model of Christian humility (vv. 12-17). Through this ac-tion Jesus taught the lesson of selfless service that was supremelyexemplified by His death on the cross.

13:6-10 These proceedings embarrassed all of the disciples.While others remained silent, Peter, perhaps on behalf of others (seeMt 16:13-23), spoke up in indignation that Jesus would stoop so lowas to wash his feet. He failed to see beyond the humble service itselfto the symbolism of spiritual cleansing involved (v. 7; cf. 1Jn 1:7-9).Jesus’ response made the real point of His actions clear: Unless theLamb of God cleanses a person’s sin (i.e., as portrayed in the sym-bolism of washing), one can have no part with Him.

13:10 needs only to wash his feet. The cleansing that Christdoes at salvation never needs to be repeated—atonement is com-plete at that point. But all who have been cleansed by God’s gra-cious justification need constant washing in the experiential senseas they battle sin in the flesh. Believers are justified and granted im-puted righteousness (Php 3:8,9), but still need sanctification andpersonal righteousness (Php 3:12-14).

13:11,12 Not all of you are clean. This verse refers to Judas(6:70), who was soon to lead the mob to capture Jesus (18:3).

13:15 an example. The word used here suggests both “example”and “pattern” (Heb 4:11; 8:5; 9:25; Jas 5:10; 2Pe 2:6). Jesus’ purposein this action was to establish the model of loving humility.

13:17 you are blessed if you do them. Joy is always tied to obe-dience to God’s revealed Word (see 15:14).

13:18 the ones I have chosen. A reference to the 12 discipleswhom the Lord had selected (see 15:16), whom the Lord knew per-fectly, including Judas, who was chosen that the prophecy of Ps 41:9would be fulfilled.

c Jn 15:25; 17:12; 18:32; 19:24, 36 d Ps 41:9; Mt 26:21ff; Mk 14:18f; Lk22:21ff; Jn 13:21, 22, 26

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19 a Jn 14:29; 16:4 b Jn8:24

20 a Mt 10:40; Mk9:37; Lk 9:48; 10:16;Gal 4:14

21 1 Or hand Me overa Jn 11:33 b Mt 26:21f;Mk 14:18ff; Lk 22:21ff;Jn 13:18, 22, 26

22 a Mt 26:21ff; Mk14:18ff; Lk 22:21ff; Jn13:18, 21, 26

23 a Jn 1:18 b Jn 19:26;20:2; 21:7, 20

25 a Jn 21:2026 a Jn 6:7127 a Mt 4:10 b Lk 22:3;

Jn 13:229 a Jn 12:6 b Jn 13:1

c Jn 12:530 a Lk 22:5331 1 Or was a Mt 8:20

b Jn 7:39 c Jn 14:13;17:4; 1Pe 4:11

32 1 Most early mss donot contain thisphrase a Jn 17:1

33 a 1 Jn 2:1 b Jn 7:33c Jn 7:34

34 a Jn 15:12, 17; 1 Jn2:7f; 3:11, 23; 2 Jn 5b Lv 19:18; Mt 5:44;Gal 5:14; 1Th 4:9;Heb 13:1; 1Pe 1:22;1 Jn 4:7 c Eph 5:2;1 Jn 4:10f

35 a 1 Jn 3:14; 4:2036 a Jn 13:33; 14:2; 16:5

b Jn 21:18f; 2Pe 1:1437 a Jn 13:37, 38: Mt

26:33-35; Mk 14:29-31; Lk 22:33-34

38 a Mk 14:30; Jn 18:27

CHAPTER 14

1 1 Or you believe inGod a Jn 14:27;16:22, 24

should c give something to the poor. 30 Soafter receiving the morsel he went out im-mediately; and a it was night.

Christ Announces His Departure31 Therefore when he had gone out, Jesus

*said, “Now 1 is a the Son of Man b glorified,and c God 1 is glorified in Him; 32 1 if God isglorified in Him, a God will also glorify Himin Himself, and will glorify Him immedi-ately. 33 a Little children, I am with you b alittle while longer. c You will seek Me; andas I said to the Jews, now I also say to you,‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’ 34 Aa new commandment I give to you, b thatyou love one another, c even as I have lovedyou, that you also love one another. 35 a Bythis all men will know that you are My dis-ciples, if you have love for one another.”

Christ Foretells Peter’s DenialMt 26:34, 35; Mk 14:30, 31; Lk 22:33, 34

36 Simon Peter *said to Him, “Lord,where are You going?” Jesus answered,“a Where I go, you cannot follow Me now;but b you will follow later.” 37 Peter *said toHim, “Lord, why can I not follow You rightnow? a I will lay down my life for You.”38 Jesus *answered, “Will you lay downyour life for Me? Truly, truly, I say to you,a a rooster will not crow until you deny Methree times.

Christ Comforts His Disciples

14“a Do not let your heart be troubled;1 believe in God, believe also in Me.

WHO EATS MY BREAD HAS LIFTED UP HIS HEELAGAINST ME.’ 19 From now on a I am tell-ing you before it comes to pass, so thatwhen it does occur, you may believe that b I am He. 20 Truly, truly, I say to you, a hewho receives whomever I send receivesMe; and he who receives Me receives Himwho sent Me.”

Christ Announces Judas, the BetrayerMt 26:21, 22; Mk 14:18, 19; Lk 22:21-23

21 When Jesus had said this, He a becametroubled in spirit, and testified and said,“Truly, truly, I say to you, that b one of youwill 1 betray Me.” 22 The disciples beganlooking at one another, a at a loss to know ofwhich one He was speaking. 23 There wasreclining on a Jesus’ bosom one of His dis-ciples, b whom Jesus loved. 24 So SimonPeter *gestured to him, and *said to him,“Tell us who it is of whom He is speaking.”25 He, a leaning back thus on Jesus’ bosom,*said to Him, “Lord, who is it?” 26 Jesusthen *answered, “That is the one for whomI shall dip the morsel and give it to him.”So when He had dipped the morsel, He*took and *gave it to Judas, a the son ofSimon Iscariot. 27 After the morsel, a Satanthen b entered into him. Therefore Jesus*said to him, “What you do, do quickly.”28 Now no one of those reclining at the tableknew for what purpose He had said this tohim. 29 For some were supposing, becauseJudas a had the money box, that Jesus wassaying to him, “Buy the things we haveneed of b for the feast”; or else, that he

13:21 troubled. For the meaning of this word, see note on 12:27.13:23 one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved. This is the first

reference to John the apostle, the author of the gospel (see Intro-duction: Author and Date). He specifically mentioned himself at thecross (19:26,27), at the empty tomb (20:2-9), by the Sea of Tiberias(21:1,20-23), and in the next to last verse where he is referenced asthe author of the gospel (21:24).

13:26 He . . . gave it to Judas. The host at a feast (whose role wasfilled by Jesus) would dip into a common bowl and pull out a partic-ularly tasty bit and pass it to a guest as a special mark of honor orfriendship. Because Jesus passed it so easily to Judas, it has beensuggested that he was seated near the Lord in a place of honor.Jesus was demonstrating a final gesture of His love for Judas eventhough he would betray Him.

13:27 Satan then entered into him. Judas was personally pos-sessed by Satan himself in his betrayal of Jesus. See note on v. 2.

13:30 it was night. Although this was a historical reminiscenceof John, the phrase may also be imbued with profound theologicalimplications. It was the hour for Judas to be handed over complete-ly to the power of darkness (Satan; cf. Lk 22:53).

13:31-33 glorified. With Judas gone, the final events were set inmotion. Rather than looking at the agony of the cross, Jesus lookedpast the cross, anticipating the glory that He would have with theFather when it was over (see 17:4,5; Heb 12:2).

13:33 as I said to the Jews. That statement is recorded in 8:21.

13:34,35 Having announced His departure and having insistedthat His disciples could not come with Him, Jesus began to lay outwhat He expected of them after His leaving. Love is to serve as thedistinguishing characteristic of discipleship (v. 35; cf. 1Jn 2:7-11;3:10-12; 4:7-10,20,21).

13:34 A new commandment . . . as I have loved you. The com-mandment to love was not new. Deuteronomy 6:5 commandedlove for God, and Lv 19:18 commanded loving one’s neighbor asoneself (cf. Mt 22:34-40; Ro 13:8-10; Gal 5:14; Jas 2:8). However,Jesus’ command regarding love presented a distinctly new standardfor two reasons: 1) it was sacrificial love modeled after His love (“as Ihave loved you”; cf. 15:13), and 2) it is produced through the NewCovenant by the transforming power of the Holy Spirit (cf. Jer 31:29-34; Eze 36:24-26; Gal 5:22).

13:36 you cannot follow. His work was nearly finished, theirswas just beginning (Mt 28:16-20; Mk 16:15; Lk 24:47). Particularly,Peter had a work to do (see notes on 21:15-19). Only Jesus, as the sin-less sacrifice for the trespasses of the world, could go to the crossand die (1Pe 2:22-24). Also, only He could be glorified in the pres-ence of the Father with the glory that He possessed before His incar-nation (see 12:41; 17:1-5).

13:38 See 18:25-27; cf. Mt 26:71-75; Mk 16:69-72; Lk 22:54-62.14:1-31 This whole chapter centers in the promise that Christ is

the One who gives the believer comfort, not only in His future returnbut also in the present with the ministry of the Holy Spirit (v. 26).

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2 a Jn 13:33, 363 a Jn 14:18, 28 b Jn

12:265 a Jn 11:166 a Jn 10:9; Ro 5:2; Eph

2:18; Heb 10:20 b Jn1:14 c Jn 1:4; 11:25;1 Jn 5:20

7 a Jn 8:19 b 1 Jn 2:13c Jn 6:46

8 a Jn 1:43

9 a Jn 1:14; 12:45; Col1:15; Heb 1:3

10 a Jn 10:38; 14:11,20 b Jn 5:19; 14:24

11 a Jn 10:38; 14:10,20 b Jn 5:36

12 a Jn 4:37f; 5:20 b Jn7:33; 14:28

13 a Mt 7:7 b Jn 13:3114 a Jn 15:16; 16:23f15 a Jn 14:21, 23;

15:10; 1 Jn 5:3; 2 Jn 616 1 Gr Paracletos, one

called alongside tohelp; or Comforter,Advocate, Intercessora Jn 7:39; 14:26;

a He who has seen Me has seen the Father;how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?10 Do you not believe that a I am in the Fa-ther, and the Father is in Me? b The wordsthat I say to you I do not speak on My owninitiative, but the Father abiding in Me doesHis works. 11 Believe Me that a I am in theFather and the Father is in Me; otherwiseb believe because of the works themselves.12 Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believesin Me, the works that I do, he will do also;and a greater works than these he will do; be-cause b I go to the Father. 13 a Whatever youask in My name, that will I do, so that b theFather may be glorified in the Son. 14 If youask Me anything a in My name, I will do it.

15 “a If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. 16 I will ask the Fa-ther, and He will give you another1 a Helper, that He may be with you forever;

2 In My Father’s house are many dwellingplaces; if it were not so, I would have toldyou; for a I go to prepare a place for you. 3 IfI go and prepare a place for you, a I willcome again and receive you to Myself, thatb where I am, there you may be also. 4 Andyou know the way where I am going.”5 a Thomas *said to Him, “Lord, we do notknow where You are going, how do weknow the way?” 6 Jesus *said to him, “I ama the way, and b the truth, and c the life; noone comes to the Father but through Me.7 a If you had known Me, you would haveknown My Father also; from now on youb know Him, and have c seen Him.”

Christ Answers Philip8 a Philip *said to Him, “Lord, show us the

Father, and it is enough for us.” 9 Jesus *saidto him, “Have I been so long with you, andyet you have not come to know Me, Philip?

The scene continues to be the upper room where the disciples hadgathered with Jesus before He was arrested. Judas had been dis-missed (13:30) and Jesus had begun His valedictory address to theremaining 11. The world of the disciples was about to be shattered;they would be bewildered, confused, and ridden with anxiety be-cause of the events that would soon transpire. Anticipating theirdevastation, Jesus spoke to comfort their hearts.

14:1 Instead of the disciples lending support to Jesus in thehours before His cross, He had to support them spiritually as well asemotionally. This reveals His heart of serving love (cf. Mt 20:26-28).troubled. Faith in Him can stop the heart from being agitated. Seenote on 12:27.

14:2 dwelling places. Lit. rooms, or even apartments (in modernterms). All are in the large “Father’s house.”

14:2,3 I go to prepare. His departure would be for their advan-tage since He was going away to prepare a heavenly home for themand will return to take them so that they may be with Him. This isone of the passages that refers to the rapture of the saints at theend of the age when Christ returns. The features in this descriptiondo not describe Christ coming to earth with His saints to establishHis kingdom (Rev 19:11-15), but taking believers from earth to livein heaven. Since no judgment on the unsaved is described here, thisis not the event of His return in glory and power to destroy thewicked (cf. Mt 13:36-43,47-50). Rather, this describes His coming togather His own who are alive and raise the bodies of those whohave died to take them all to heaven. This rapture event is also de-scribed in 1Co 15:51-54; 1Th 4:13-18. After being raptured, thechurch will celebrate the marriage supper (Rev 19:7-10), be reward-ed (1Co 3:10-15; 4:5; 2Co 5:9,10), and later return to earth withChrist when He comes again to set up His kingdom (Rev 19:11–20:6).

14:6 This is the sixth “I am” statement of Jesus in John (see 6:35;8:12; 10:7,9; 10:11,14; 11:25; 15:1,5). In response to Thomas’ query(v. 4), Jesus declared that He is the way to God because He is thetruth of God (1:14) and the life of God (1:4; 3:15; 11:25). In this verse,the exclusiveness of Jesus as the only approach to the Father is em-phatic. Only one way, not many ways, exist to God, i.e., Jesus Christ(10:7-9; cf. Mt 7:13,14; Lk 13:24; Ac 4:12).

14:7-11 from now on you know Him. They know God becausethey had come to know Christ in His ministry and soon in His deathand resurrection. To know Him is to know God. This constant em-

phasis on Jesus as God incarnate is unmistakably clear in this gospel(v. 11; 1:1-3,14,17,18; 5:10-23,26; 8:58; 9:35; 10:30,38; 12:41; 17:1-5;20:28).

14:12 greater works than these he will do. Jesus did not meangreater works in power, but in extent. They would become witness-es to all the world through the power of the indwelling and infillingof the Holy Spirit (Ac 1:8) and would bring many to salvation be-cause of the Comforter dwelling in them. The focus is on spiritualrather than physical miracles. The book of Acts constitutes the be-ginning historical record of the impact that the Spirit-empowereddisciples had on the world (cf. Ac 17:6). because I go to the Father.The only way Jesus’ disciples would be able to be used to do thosegreater works was through the power of the Holy Spirit and Hecould not be sent as the Comforter until Jesus returned to the Father(v. 26; 7:39).

14:13,14 In their hour of loss at the departure of Jesus, He com-forted them with the means that would provide them with the nec-essary resources to accomplish their task without His immediatepresence which they had come to depend upon. To ask in Jesus’“name” does not mean to tack such an expression on the end of aprayer as a mere formula. It means: 1) the believer’s prayer shouldbe for His purposes and kingdom and not selfish reasons; 2) the be-liever’s prayer should be on the basis of His merits and not any per-sonal merit or worthiness; and 3) the believer’s prayer should be inpursuit of His glory alone. See note on 16:26-28; on the disciples’prayer, see notes on Mt 6:9,10.

14:15-31 In these verses, Jesus promises believers comfort from5 supernatural blessings that the world does not enjoy: 1) a super-natural Helper (vv. 15-17); 2) a supernatural life (vv. 18,19); 3) a su-pernatural union (vv. 20-25), 4) a supernatural teacher (v. 26); and 5) a supernatural peace (vv. 27-31). The key to all of this is v. 15which relates that these supernatural promises are for those wholove Jesus Christ, whose love is evidenced by obedience.

14:15 If you love Me . . . keep My commandments. Cf. vv. 21-24.Love for Christ is inseparable from obedience (see Lk 6:46; 1Jn 5:2,3).“My commandments” are not only Jesus’ ethical commandments incontext (vv. 23,24), but the entire revelation from the Father (see3:31,32; 12:47-49; 17:6).

14:16 ask the Father. The priestly and intercessory work of Christbegan with the request that the Father send the Holy Spirit to in-dwell in the people of faith (7:39; 15:26; 16:7; see note on 20:22; cf. Ac

15:26; 16:7; Ro 8:26; 1 Jn 2:1

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17 a Jn 15:26; 16:13; 1 Jn 4:6; 5:7 b 1Co 2:14

18 a Jn 14:3, 2819 1 Lit Yet a little and

the world a Jn 7:33b Jn 16:16, 22 c Jn6:57

20 a Jn 16:23, 26 b Jn10:38; 14:11

21 a Jn 14:15, 23;15:10; 1 Jn 5:3; 2 Jn 6b Jn 14:23; 16:27 c Ex33:18f; Pr 8:17

22 a Lk 6:16; Ac 1:13b Ac 10:40, 41

23 a Jn 14:15, 21;15:10; 1 Jn 5:3; 2 Jn 6b Jn 8:51; 1 Jn 2:5 c Jn14:21 d 2Co 6:16; Eph3:17; 1 Jn 2:24; Rev3:20; 21:3

24 a Jn 14:23

b Jn 7:16; 14:1026 a Jn 14:16 b Lk

24:49; Jn 1:33; 15:26;16:7; Ac 2:33 c Jn16:13f; 1 Jn 2:20, 27d Jn 2:22

27 a Jn 16:33; 20:19;Php 4:7; Col 3:15 b Jn14:1

28 a Jn 14:2-4 b Jn14:3, 18 c Jn 14:12d Jn 10:29; Php 2:6

keep My words; and b the word which youhear is not Mine, but the Father’s who sentMe.

25 “These things I have spoken to youwhile abiding with you. 26 But the a Helper,the Holy Spirit, b whom the Father willsend in My name, c He will teach you allthings, and d bring to your remembrance allthat I said to you. 27 a Peace I leave withyou; My peace I give to you; not as theworld gives do I give to you. b Do not letyour heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.28 a You heard that I said to you, ‘I go away,and b I will come to you.’ If you loved Me,you would have rejoiced because c I go tothe Father, for d the Father is greater than I.29 Now a I have told you before it happens,so that when it happens, you may believe.30 I will not speak much more with you, fora the ruler of the world is coming, and hehas nothing in Me; 31 but so that the worldmay know that I love the Father, 1 I do ex-actly as a the Father commanded Me. Getup, b let us go from here.

17 that is a the Spirit of truth, b whom theworld cannot receive, because it does notsee Him or know Him, but you know Himbecause He abides with you and will be inyou.

Christ Answers Judas18 “I will not leave you as orphans; a I

will come to you. 19 1 a After a little whileb the world will no longer see Me, but youwill see Me; c because I live, you will livealso. 20 a In that day you will know that b Iam in My Father, and you in Me, and I inyou. 21 a He who has My commandmentsand keeps them is the one who loves Me;and b he who loves Me will be loved by MyFather, and I will love him and will c dis-close Myself to him.” 22 a Judas (not Iscar-iot) *said to Him, “Lord, what then hashappened b that You are going to discloseYourself to us and not to the world?”23 Jesus answered and said to him, “a Ifanyone loves Me, he will b keep My word;and c My Father will love him, and We d willcome to him and make Our abode withhim. 24 He who does not love Me a does not

1:8; 2:4,33). another. The Gr. word specifically means another of thesame kind, i.e., someone like Jesus Himself who will take His placeand do His work. The Spirit of Christ is the Third Person of the Trinity,having the same essence of deity as Jesus and as perfectly one withHim as He is with the Father. Helper. The Gr. term here lit. means“one called alongside to help” and has the idea of someone who en-courages and exhorts (see note on 16:7). “Be with you” has to do withHis permanent residence in believers (Ro 8:9; 1Co 6:19,20; 12:13).

14:17 Spirit of truth. He is the Spirit of truth in that He is thesource of truth and communicates the truth to His own (v. 26; 16:12-15). Apart from Him, people cannot know God’s truth (1Co 2:12-16;1Jn 2:20,27). abides with you and will be in you. This indicatessome distinction between the ministry of the Holy Spirit to believersbefore and after Pentecost. While clearly the Holy Spirit has beenwith all who have ever believed throughout redemptive history asthe source of truth, faith, and life, Jesus is saying something new iscoming in His ministry. John 7:37-39 indicates this unique ministrywould be like “rivers of living water.” Acts 19:1-7 introduces someOld Covenant believers who had not received the Holy Spirit in thisunique fullness and intimacy. Cf. Ac 1:8; 2:1-4; 1Co 12:11-13.

14:18 orphans. In this veiled reference to His death, Jesuspromised not to leave them alone (Ro 8:9).

14:18,19 I will come to you . . . you will see Me. First, He was re-ferring to His resurrection, after which they would see Him (20:19-29). There is no record that any unbelievers saw Him after He rose(see 1Co 15:1-9). In another sense, this has reference to the mysteryof the Trinity. Through the coming and indwelling of the Holy Spiritat Pentecost, Jesus would be back with His children (16:16; cf. Mt28:20; Ro 8:9; 1Jn 4:13).

14:19 you will live also. Because of His resurrection and by theindwelling life of the Spirit of Christ, believers possess eternal life(see Ro 6:1-11; Col 3:1-4).

14:20 In that day. This refers to His resurrection when He returnsto them alive.

14:21-24 Once again, Jesus emphasized the need for the habitu-al practice of obedience to His commands as evidence of the believ-

er’s love for Him and the Father (see note on v. 15). This is consistentwith the teaching of Jas 2:14-26 that true saving faith is manifest byworks produced by God in the transforming, regenerating power ofthe Spirit. Those works are expressions of the love which the Spiritpours into the believer’s heart (Ro 5:5; Gal 5:22).

14:26 will teach you all things. The Holy Spirit energized thehearts and minds of the apostles in their ministry, helping them toproduce the NT Scripture. The disciples had failed to understandmany things about Jesus and what He taught; but because of thissupernatural work, they came to an inerrant and accurate under-standing of the Lord and His work, and recorded it in the gospelsand the rest of the NT Scriptures (2Ti 3:16; 2Pe 1:20,21). See noteon 16:7.

14:27 Peace I leave . . . not as the world gives. The word“peace” reflects the Heb. “Shalom,” which became a greeting to Hisdisciples after the resurrection (20:19-26). At the individual level thispeace, unknown to the unsaved, secures composure in difficult trou-ble (cf. v. 1), dissolves fear (Php 4:7), and rules in the hearts of God’speople to maintain harmony (Col 3:15). The greatest reality of thispeace will be in the messianic kingdom (Nu 6:26; Ps 29:11; Is 9:6,7;52:7; 54:13; 57:19; Eze 37:26; Hag 2:9; cf. Ac 10:36; Ro 1:7; 5:1; 14:17).

14:28 greater than I. Jesus was not admitting inferiority to theFather (after claiming equality repeatedly, see note on vv. 7-11), butwas saying that if the disciples loved Him, they would not be reluc-tant to let Him go to the Father because He was returning to therealm where He belonged and to the full glory He gave up (17:5). Hewas going back to share equal glory with the Father which would begreater than what He had experienced in His incarnation. He will inno way be inferior in that glory, because His humiliation was over.

14:30 the ruler of the world. Judas was only a tool of the“prince” who rules the system of darkness—Satan (6:70; 13:21,27).nothing in Me. The Heb. idiom means that Satan had nothing onJesus, could make no claim on Him, nor charge Him with any sin.Therefore, Satan could not hold Him in death. Christ would triumphand destroy Satan (Heb 2:14). His death was no sign that Satan won,but that God’s will was being done. (v. 31).

29 a Jn 13:19 30 a Jn 12:31 31 1 Lit and as the Father...so I do a Jn10:18; 12:49 b Jn 13:1; 18:1

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CHAPTER 15

1 a Ps 80:8ff; Is 5:1ff;Eze 19:10ff; Mt21:33ff b Mt 15:13;Ro 11:17; 1Co 3:9

2 1 Lit cleans; used todescribe pruning

3 1 I.e. pruned like abranch a Jn 13:10;17:17; Eph 5:26

4 1 Lit from a Jn 6:56;15:4-7; 1 Jn 2:6

5 a Jn 15:166 a Jn 15:27 a Mt 7:7; Jn 15:168 1 Or become My

disciples a Mt 5:16b Jn 8:31

9 a Jn 3:35; 17:23, 24,26

10 a Jn 14:15 b Jn 8:2911 a Jn 17:13 b Jn 3:2912 a Jn 13:34; 15:17;

1 Jn 3:23; 2 Jn 513 a Ro 5:7f b Jn 10:1114 a Lk 12:4 b Mt 12:5015 a Jn 8:26; 16:1216 a Jn 6:70; 13:18;

15:19 b Jn 15:5 c Jn14:13; 15:7; 16:23

My love. 10 a If you keep My command-ments, you will abide in My love; just as b Ihave kept My Father’s commandments andabide in His love. 11 a These things I havespoken to you so that My joy may be inyou, and that your b joy may be made full.

The Relationship of Believers to EachOther

12 “This is a My commandment, that youlove one another, just as I have loved you.13 a Greater love has no one than this, thatone b lay down his life for his friends.14 You are My a friends if b you do what Icommand you. 15 No longer do I call youslaves, for the slave does not know whathis master is doing; but I have called youfriends, for a all things that I have heardfrom My Father I have made known toyou. 16 a You did not choose Me but I choseyou, and appointed you that you would goand b bear fruit, and that your fruit wouldremain, so that c whatever you ask of theFather in My name He may give to you.

The Relationship of Believers to Christ

15“a I am the true vine, and My Fatheris the b vinedresser. 2 Every branch in

Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away;and every branch that bears fruit, He1 prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.3 a You are already 1 clean because of theword which I have spoken to you. 4 a Abidein Me, and I in you. As the branch cannotbear fruit 1 of itself unless it abides in thevine, so neither can you unless you abide inMe. 5 I am the vine, you are the branches; hewho abides in Me and I in him, he a bearsmuch fruit, for apart from Me you can donothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me,he is a thrown away as a branch and driesup; and they gather them, and cast theminto the fire and they are burned. 7 If youabide in Me, and My words abide in you,a ask whatever you wish, and it will be donefor you. 8 My a Father is glorified by this,that you bear much fruit, and so 1 b prove tobe My disciples. 9 Just as a the Father hasloved Me, I have also loved you; abide in

15:1-17 Through this extended metaphor of the vine andbranches, Jesus set forth the basis of Christian living. Jesus used theimagery of agricultural life at the time; i.e., vines and vine crops (seealso Mt 20:1-16; 21:23-41; Mk 12:1-9; Lk 13:6-9; 20:9-16). In the OT,the vine is used commonly as a symbol for Israel, (Ps 80:9-16; Is 5:1-7; 27:2-6; Jer 2:21;12:10; Eze 15:1-8; 17:1-21; 19:10-14; Hos 10:1,2).He specifically identified Himself as the “true vine” and the Father asthe “vinedresser” or caretaker of the vine. The vine has two types ofbranches: 1) branches that bear fruit (vv. 2,8), and 2) branches thatdo not (vv. 2,6). The branches that bear fruit are genuine believers.Though in immediate context the focus is upon the 11 faithful disci-ples, the imagery also encompasses all believers down through theages. The branches that do not bear fruit are those who profess tobelieve, but their lack of fruit indicates genuine salvation has nevertaken place and they have no life from the vine. Especially in the im-mediate context, Judas was in view, but the imagery extends fromhim to all those who make a profession of faith in Christ but do notactually possess salvation. The image of non-fruit-bearing branchesbeing burned pictures eschatological judgment and eternal rejec-tion (see Eze 15:6-8).

15:1 I am the true vine. This is the last of 7 claims to deity in theform of “I am” statements by Jesus in the gospel of John (see 6:35;8:12; 10:7,9; 10:11,14; 11:25; 14:6).

15:2 He takes away. The picture is of the vinedresser (i.e., the Fa-ther) getting rid of dead wood so that the living, fruit bearingbranches may be sharply distinguished. This is a picture of apostateChristians who never genuinely believed and will be taken away injudgment (v. 6; Mt 7:16; Eph 2:10); the transforming life of Christ hasnever pulsated within them (8:31,32; cf. Mt 13:18-23; 24:12; Heb3:14-19; 6:4-8; 10:27-31; 1Jn 2:19; 2Jn 9). He prunes. God removesall things in the believer’s life that would hinder fruit-bearing, i.e., Hechastises to cut away sin and hindrances that would drain spirituallife just as the farmer removes anything on the branches that keepthem from bearing maximum fruit (Heb 12:3-11).

15:4-6 Abide in Me. The word “abide” means to remain or stayaround. The “remaining” is evidence that salvation has already takenplace (1Jn 2:19) and not vice versa. The fruit or evidence of salvationis continuance in service to Him and in His teaching (8:31; Col 1:23;

1Jn 2:24). The abiding believer is the only legitimate believer. Abid-ing and believing actually are addressing the same issue of genuinesalvation (Heb 3:6-19). For a discussion of the perseverance of thesaints, see note on Mt 24:13.

15:6 The imagery here is one of destruction (cf. Mt 3:10-12; 5:22;13:40-42,50; 25:41; Mk 9:43-49; Lk 3:17; 2Th 1:7-9; Rev 20:10-15). Itpictures the judgment awaiting all those who were never saved.

15:7-10 True believers obey the Lord’s commands, submitting toHis Word (14:21,23). Because of their commitment to God’s Word,they are devoted to His will, thus their prayers are fruitful (14:13,14),which puts God’s glory on display as He answers.

15:9,10 abide in My love. Cf. Jude 21. This is not emotional ormystical, but defined in v. 10 as obedience. Jesus set the model byHis perfect obedience to the Father, which we are to use as the pat-tern for our obedience to Him.

15:11 your joy may be made full. Just as Jesus maintained thatHis obedience to the Father was the basis of His joy, so also the be-lievers who are obedient to His commandments will experience thesame joy (17:13; cf. 16:24).

15:12 Cf. 13:34,35. See note on 1Jn 2:7-11.15:13 This is a reference to the supreme evidence and expression

of Jesus’ love (v. 12), His sacrificial death upon the cross. Christiansare called to exemplify the same kind of sacrificial giving toward oneanother, even if such sacrifice involves the laying down of one’s ownlife in imitation of Christ’s example (cf. 1Jn 3:16).

15:14,15 friends. Just as Abraham was called the “friend of God”(2Ch 20:7; Jas 2:23) because he enjoyed extraordinary access to themind of God through God’s revelation to him which he believed, soalso those who follow Christ are privileged with extraordinary reve-lation through the Messiah and Son of God and, believing, become“friends” of God also. It was for His “friends” that the Lord laid downHis life (v. 13; 10:11,15,17).

15:16 I chose you. Cf. v. 19. In case any pretense might existamong the disciples in terms of spiritual pride because of the privi-leges they enjoyed, Jesus made it clear that such privilege rested notin their own merit, but on His sovereign choice of them. God choseIsrael (Is 45:4; Am 3:2), but not for any merit (Dt 7:7; 9:4-6). Godelected angels to be forever holy (1Ti 5:21). He elected believers to

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17 a Jn 15:1218 1 Or (imperative)

know that a Jn 7:7;1 Jn 3:13

19 a Jn 15:16 b Mt10:22; 24:9; Jn 17:14

20 a Mt 10:24; Jn 13:16b 1Co 4:12; 2Co 4:9;2Ti 3:12 c Jn 8:51

21 a Mt 10:22; 24:9;Mk 13:13; Lk 21:12,17; Ac 4:17; 5:41;9:14; 26:9; 1Pe 4:14;Rev 2:3 b Jn 8:19, 55;16:3; 17:25; Ac 3:17;1 Jn 3:1

22 1 I.e. guilt a Jn 9:41;15:24

24 1 I.e. guilt a Jn 9:41;15:21 b Jn 5:36; 10:37

25 a Jn 10:34 b Ps35:19; 69:4

26 1 Gr Paracletos, onecalled alongside tohelp; or Comforter,Advocate, Intercessora Jn 14:16 b Jn 14:26c Jn 14:17 d 1 Jn 5:7

27 1 Or (imperative)and bear witness a Lk24:48; Jn 19:35;21:24; 1 Jn 1:2; 4:14b Lk 1:2

CHAPTER 16

1 a Jn 15:18-27 b Mt11:6

The Promise of the Holy Spirit26 “When the 1 a Helper comes, b whom

I will send to you from the Father, thatis c the Spirit of truth who proceeds fromthe Father, d He will testify aboutMe, 27 1 and a you will testify also, becauseyou have been with Me b from the begin-ning.

16“a These things I have spoken to youso that you may be kept from

b stumbling. 2 1 They will a make you out-casts from the synagogue, but b an hour iscoming for everyone c who kills you tothink that he is offering service to God.3 These things they will do a because theyhave not known the Father or Me. 4 Butthese things I have spoken to you, a so thatwhen their hour comes, you 1 may remem-ber that I told you of them. These things Idid not say to you b at the beginning, be-cause I was with you.

5 “But now a I am going to Him who sentMe; and none of you asks Me, ‘b Where areYou going?’ 6 But because I have said thesethings to you, a sorrow has filled your

17 This a I command you, that you love oneanother.

The Relationship of Believers to the World

18 “a If the world hates you, 1 you knowthat it has hated Me before it hated you. 19 Ifyou were of the world, the world wouldlove its own; but because you are not of theworld, but a I chose you out of the world,b because of this the world hates you.20 Remember the word that I said to you,‘a A slave is not greater than his master.’ Ifthey persecuted Me, b they will also perse-cute you; if they c kept My word, they willkeep yours also. 21 But all these things theywill do to you a for My name’s sake, b be-cause they do not know the One who sentMe. 22 a If I had not come and spoken tothem, they would not have 1 sin, but nowthey have no excuse for their sin. 23 Hewho hates Me hates My Father also. 24 a If Ihad not done among them b the workswhich no one else did, they would nothave 1 sin; but now they have both seenand hated Me and My Father as well. 25 Butthey have done this to fulfill the word that iswritten in their a Law, ‘b THEY HATED MEWITHOUT A CAUSE.’

salvation apart from any merit (Mt 24:24,31; see notes on Ro 8:29-33;Eph 1:3-6; Col 3:12; Tit 1:1; 1Pe 1:2). bear fruit. One purpose of God’ssovereign election is that the disciples who have been blessed withsuch revelation and understanding should produce spiritual fruit.The NT describes fruit as godly attitudes (Gal 5:22,23), righteous be-havior (Php 1:11), praise (Heb 13:15), and especially leading othersto faith in Jesus as Messiah and Son of God (Ro 1:13-16).

15:18,19 Since Satan is the one who dominates the evil world sys-tem in rebellion against God (14:30), the result is that the world hatesnot only Jesus, but those who follow Him (2Ti 3:12). Hatred towardJesus means also hatred toward the Father who sent Him (v. 23).

15:20 slave . . . master. That axiom, spoken also in 13:16, re-flects the obvious truth that led Jesus to inform His disciples. Theycould expect to be treated like He was treated because those whohated Him don’t know God (v. 21) and would hate them also; andconversely, those who listened with faith to Him, would hear themalso.

15:22-24 they would not have sin. Jesus did not mean that if Hehad not come, they would have been sinless. But His coming incitedthe severest and most deadly sin, that of rejecting and rebellingagainst God and His truth. It was the decisive sin of rejection, the de-liberate and fatal choice of darkness over light and death over life ofwhich He spoke. He had done so many miracles and spoken innu-merable words to prove He was Messiah and Son of God, but theywere belligerent in their love of sin and rejection of the Savior. SeeHeb 4:2-5; 6:4-6; 10:29-31.

15:25 Jesus quotes Pss 35:19; 69:4. The logic here is that if David,a mere man, could have been hated in such a terrible manner by theenemies of God, how much more would the wicked hate David’sperfect, divine Son who was the promised king that would confrontsin and reign forever over His kingdom of righteousness (see 2 Sam7:16).

15:26,27 When the Helper comes. Again, Jesus promised to

send the Holy Spirit (7:39; 14:16,17,26; 16:7,13,14). This time He em-phasized the Spirit’s help for witnessing—proclaiming the gospel.See note on 16:7.

16:1-15 Jesus continued the thoughts of 15:18-25 regarding theworld’s hatred of His disciples and its opposition to the testimony ofthe Holy Spirit regarding Him as Messiah and Son of God. In this sec-tion, He specified in greater detail how the Spirit confronts theworld, i.e., not only does He testify about Jesus but He convicts menof sin. Through conviction of sin and testimony of the gospel, theSpirit turns the hostile hearts of men away from rebellion againstGod into belief regarding Jesus as Savior and Lord. This section maybe divided into 4 parts: 1) the killing of the disciples by the world(vv. 1-4); 2) the comforting of the disciples by the Lord (vv. 5-7); 3) the conviction of men by the Holy Spirit (vv. 8-12); and 4) theguidance of the believer into all truth by the Holy Spirit (vv. 13-15).

16:1 These things. This is what He had just said in 15:18-25.stumbling. The connotation of this word has the idea of setting atrap. The hatred of the world was such that it would seek to trapand destroy the disciples in an effort to prevent their witness toJesus as Messiah and Son of God. Jesus did not want them to becaught unaware (v. 4).

16:2 he is offering service to God. Paul, before he was saved,personified this attitude as he persecuted the church thinking thathe was doing service for God (Ac 22:4,5; 26:9-11; Gal 1:13-17; Php3:6; 1Ti 1:12-17). After Paul’s conversion, the persecutor became thepersecuted because of the hatred of the world (2Co 11:22-27; cf.Stephen in Ac 7:54–8:3).

16:4 I was with you. Jesus didn’t need to warn them because Hewas there to protect them.

16:5 none of you asks. Earlier they had done so (13:36; 14:5), butthey were then so absorbed in their own sorrow and confusion thatthey lost interest in where He was going. They were apparently con-sumed with what would happen to them (v. 6).

2 1 Or They will have you excommunicated a Jn 9:22 b Jn 4:21; 16:25 c Is66:5; Ac 26:9-11; Rev 6:9 3 a Jn 8:19, 55; 15:21; 17:25; Ac 3:17; 1 Jn3:1 4 1 Or will remember them, that I told you a Jn 13:19 b Lk 1:25 a Jn 7:33; 16:10, 17, 28 b Jn 13:36; 14:5 6 a Jn 14:1; 16:22

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7 1 Gr Paracletos, onecalled alongside tohelp; or Comforter,Advocate, Intercessora Jn 14:16 b Jn 14:26

9 a Jn 15:22, 2410 a Ac 3:14; 7:52;

17:31; 1Pe 3:18 b Jn16:5

11 a Jn 12:3113 a Jn 14:17 b Jn

14:2614 a Jn 7:3915 a Jn 17:1016 a Jn 7:33 b Jn 14:18-

24; 16:16-24

c Jn 16:2217 a Jn 16:16 b Jn 16:519 a Mk 9:32; Jn 6:6120 a Mk 16:10; Lk

23:27 b Jn 20:2021 1 Lit grief 2 Lit

human being a Is13:8; 21:3; 26:17;66:7; Hos 13:13; Mic4:9; 1Th 5:3

22 a Jn 16:6 b Jn 16:1623 a Jn 14:20; 16:26

b Jn 16:19, 30 c Jn15:16

c you will see Me.” 17 Some of His disciplesthen said to one another, “What is thisthing He is telling us, ‘a A little while, andyou will not see Me; and again a littlewhile, and you will see Me’; and, ‘becauseb I go to the Father’?” 18 So they were say-ing, “What is this that He says, ‘A littlewhile’? We do not know what He is talkingabout.” 19 a Jesus knew that they wished toquestion Him, and He said to them, “Areyou deliberating together about this, that Isaid, ‘A little while, and you will not seeMe, and again a little while, and you willsee Me’? 20 Truly, truly, I say to you, thata you will weep and lament, but the worldwill rejoice; you will grieve, but b your griefwill be turned into joy. 21 a Whenever awoman is in labor she has 1 pain, becauseher hour has come; but when she givesbirth to the child, she no longer remembersthe anguish because of the joy that a 2 childhas been born into the world. 22 Thereforea you too have grief now; but b I will see youagain, and your heart will rejoice, and noone will take your joy away from you.23 a In that day b you will not question Meabout anything. Truly, truly, I say to you,c if you ask the Father for anything in My

heart. 7 But I tell you the truth, it is to youradvantage that I go away; for if I do not goaway, the 1 a Helper will not come to you;but if I go, b I will send Him to you. 8 AndHe, when He comes, will convict the worldconcerning sin and righteousness andjudgment; 9 concerning sin, a because theydo not believe in Me; 10 and concerninga righteousness, because b I go to the Fatherand you no longer see Me; 11 a and con-cerning judgment, because the ruler of thisworld has been judged.

12 “I have many more things to say toyou, but you cannot bear them now. 13 Butwhen He, a the Spirit of truth, comes, Hewill b guide you into all the truth; for He willnot speak on His own initiative, but what-ever He hears, He will speak; and He willdisclose to you what is to come. 14 He willa glorify Me, for He will take of Mine andwill disclose it to you. 15 a All things that theFather has are Mine; therefore I said that Hetakes of Mine and will disclose it to you.

The Prediction of Christ’s Death andResurrection

16 “a A little while, and b you will nolonger see Me; and again a little while, and

16:7 the Helper will not come. Again, the promise of the HolySpirit being sent is given to comfort the disciples. See note on15:26,27. The first emphasis was on His life-giving power (7:37-39).The next featured His indwelling presence (14:16,17). The nextmarked His teaching ministry (14:26). His ministry of empoweringfor witness is marked in 15:26.

16:8 when He comes. The coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecostwas approximately 40 or more days away at this point (see Ac 2:1-13). convict. This word has two meanings: 1) the judicial act of con-viction with a view toward sentencing (i.e., a courtroom term—con-viction of sin) or 2) the act of convincing. Here the second idea isbest, since the purpose of the Holy Spirit is not condemnation butconviction of the need for the Savior. The Son does the judgment,with the Father (5:22,27,30). In v. 14, it is said that He will reveal theglories of Christ to His people. He will also inspire the writing of theNT, guiding the apostles to write it (v. 13), and He will reveal “whatis to come,” through the NT prophecies (v. 13).

16:9 sin. The singular indicates that a specific sin is in view; i.e.,that of not believing in Jesus as Messiah and Son of God. This is theonly sin, ultimately, that damns people to hell (see note on 8:24).Though all men are depraved, cursed by their violation of God’s lawand sinful by nature, what ultimately damns them to hell is their un-willingness to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior (cf. 8:24).

16:10 righteousness. The Holy Spirit’s purpose here is to shatterthe pretensions of self-righteousness (hypocrisy), exposing the dark-ness of the heart (3:19-21; 7:7; 15:22,24). While Jesus was on theearth, He performed this task especially toward the shallowness andemptiness of Judaism that had degenerated into legalistic modeswithout life-giving reality (e.g., 2:13-22; 5:10-16; 7:24; Is 64:5,6). WithJesus gone to the Father, the Holy Spirit continues His convicting role.

16:11 judgment. The judgment here in context is that of the worldunder Satan’s control. Its judgments are blind, faulty, and evil as evi-denced in their verdict on Christ. The world can’t make righteous judg-ments (7:24), but the Spirit of Christ does (8:16). All Satan’s adjudica-

tions are lies (8:44-47), so the Spirit convicts men of their false judg-ment of Christ. Satan, the ruler of the world (14:30; Eph 2:1-3) who, asthe god of this world, has perverted the world’s judgment and turnedpeople from believing in Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God (2Co4:4), was defeated at the cross. While Christ’s death looked like Satan’sgreatest victory, it actually was Satan’s destruction (cf. Col 2:15; Heb2:14,15; Rev 20:10). The Spirit will lead sinners to true judgment.

16:13 all the truth. This verse, like 14:26, points to the supernat-ural revelation of all truth by which God has revealed Himself inChrist (vv. 14,15), particularly. This is the subject of the inspired NTwritings. See note on v. 7.

16:14 He will glorify Me. This is really the same as v. 13, in thatall NT truth revealed by God centers in Christ (Heb 1:1,2). Christ wasthe theme of the OT, as the NT claims (1:45; 5:37; Lk 24:27,44; Ac10:43; 18:28; Ro 1:1,2; 1Co 15:3; 1Pe 1:10,11; Rev 19:10).

16:16-19 Jesus was referring to His ascension (“you will nolonger see Me”) and the coming of the Holy Spirit (“you will seeMe”), emphatically claiming that the Spirit and He are one (Ro 8:9;Php 1:19; 1Pe 1:11; Rev 19:10). Christ dwells in believers through theHoly Spirit—in that sense they see Him. See notes on 14:16-18.

16:20 grief will be turned into joy. The very event that madethe hateful realm of mankind (“world”) rejoice and cause grief toJesus’ disciples, will be the same event that will lead to the world’ssorrow and the believer’s joy. The disciples would soon realize themarvelous nature of God’s gift of salvation and the Spirit throughwhat He accomplished, and the blessing of answered prayer (v. 24).Acts records the coming of the Holy Spirit and the power and joy(Ac 2:4-47; 13:52) of the early church.

16:22 I will see you. After the resurrection, Jesus did see His dis-ciples (20:19-29; 21:1-23; cf. 1Co 15:1-8). Beyond that brief time ofpersonal fellowship (Ac 1:1-3), He would be with them permanentlyin His Spirit (see notes on vv. 16-19; 14:16-19).

16:23 In that day. This is a reference to Pentecost when the HolySpirit came (Ac 2:1-13) and sorrow turned to joy. This is a reference

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24 a Jn 14:14 b Jn 3:29;15:11

25 1 Lit proverbs; orfigures of speech a Mt13:34; Jn 10:6; 16:29b Jn 16:2

26 a Jn 14:20; 16:23b Jn 16:19, 30

27 a Jn 14:21, 23 b Jn2:11; 16:30 c Jn 8:42

28 a Jn 8:42; 16:30 b Jn13:1, 3; 16:5, 10, 17

29 1 Lit saying aproverb a Mt 13:34;Jn 10:6; 16:25

30 a Jn 2:11; 16:27 b Jn8:42; 16:28

32 a Jn 4:23; 16:2, 25

b Zec 13:7; Mt 26:31c Jn 19:27 d Jn 8:29

33 a Jn 14:27 b Jn15:18ff c Mt 9:2 d Ro8:37; 2Co 2:14; 4:7ff;6:4ff; Rev 3:21; 12:11

CHAPTER 17

1 a Jn 11:41 b Jn 7:39;13:31f

2 1 Lit everything thatYou have given Him,to them He maya Jn 3:35 b Jn 10:28

come, for b you to be scattered, each to c hisown home, and to leave Me alone; and yet d Iam not alone, because the Father is withMe. 33 These things I have spoken to you,so that a in Me you may have peace. b In theworld you have tribulation, but c takecourage; d I have overcome the world.”

Christ Prays for Himself

17Jesus spoke these things; and a liftingup His eyes to heaven, He said, “Fa-

ther, the hour has come; b glorify Your Son,that the Son may glorify You, 2 even as a Yougave Him authority over all flesh, that b to1 all whom You have given Him, c He maygive eternal life. 3 This is eternal life, thatthey may know You, a the only true God,and Jesus Christ whom b You have sent. 4 a Iglorified You on the earth, 1 b having accom-plished the work which You have given Meto do. 5 Now, Father, a glorify Me togetherwith Yourself, with the glory which I hadb with You before the world was.

name, He will give it to you. 24 a Until nowyou have asked for nothing in My name;ask and you will receive, so that your b joymay be made full.

25 “These things I have spoken to you in1 a figurative language; b an hour is comingwhen I will no longer speak to you in 1 fig-urative language, but will tell you plainlyof the Father. 26 a In that day b you will askin My name, and I do not say to you that Iwill request of the Father on your behalf;27 for a the Father Himself loves you, be-cause you have loved Me and b have be-lieved that c I came forth from the Father.28 a I came forth from the Father and havecome into the world; I am leaving theworld again and b going to the Father.”

29 His disciples *said, “Lo, now You arespeaking plainly and are not 1 using a a fig-ure of speech. 30 Now we know that Youknow all things, and have no need for any-one to question You; by this we a believethat You b came from God.” 31 Jesus an-swered them, “Do you now believe? 32 Be-hold, a an hour is coming, and has already

also to the “last days” which were inaugurated after His resurrectionand the Spirit’s coming (Ac 2:17; 2Ti 3:1; Heb 1:2; Jas 5:3; 2Pe 3:3;1Jn 2:18). not question Me. After His departure and sending of theSpirit, believers will no longer ask Him since He is not present. In-stead, they will ask the Father in His name (see notes on vv. 26-28;14:13,14).

16:24 joy may be made full. In this case, the believer’s joy willbe related to answered prayer and a full supply of heavenly blessingfor everything consistent with the purpose of the Lord in one’s life.See note on 15:11.

16:25 in figurative language. The word means “veiled, pointedstatement” that is pregnant with meaning, i.e., something that isobscure. What seemed hard to understand for the disciples duringthe life of Jesus would become clear after His death, resurrection,and the coming of the Holy Spirit (see vv. 13,14; 14:26; 15:26,27).They would actually understand the ministry of Christ better thanthey had while they were with Him, as the Spirit inspired them towrite the gospels and epistles and ministered in and through them.

16:26-28 I do not say. Christ was clarifying what He meant bypraying in His name. He did not mean asking Him to ask the Father, asif the Father was indifferent to believers, but not to His Son. On thecontrary, the Father loves Christ’s own. In fact, the Father sent the Sonto redeem them and then return. Asking in Jesus’ name means simplyasking on the basis of His merit, His righteousness, and for whateverwould honor and glorify Him so as to build His kingdom.

16:33 in Me you may have peace. See note on 14:27. tribulation.This word often refers to eschatological woes (Mk 13:9; Ro 2:9) andto persecution of believers because of their testimony for Christ (cf.15:18–16:4; Ac 11:19; Eph 3:13). overcome. The fundamentalground for endurance in persecution is the victory of Jesus over theworld (12:31; 1Co 15:57). Through His impending death, He ren-dered the world’s opposition null and void. While the world contin-ues to attack His people, such attacks fall harmlessly, for Christ’s vic-tory has already accomplished a smashing defeat of the whole evilrebellious system. See notes on Ro 8:35-39.

17:1-26 Although Mt 6:9-13 and Lk 11:2-4 have become knownpopularly as the “Lord’s Prayer,” that prayer was actually a prayer

taught to the disciples by Jesus as a pattern for their prayers. Theprayer recorded here is truly the Lord’s Prayer, exhibiting the face toface communion the Son had with the Father. Very little is recordedof the content of Jesus’ frequent prayers to the Father (Mt 14:23; Lk5:16), so this prayer reveals some of the precious content of theSon’s communion and intercession with Him. This chapter is a tran-sitional chapter, marking the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry and thebeginning of His intercessory ministry for believers (Heb 7:25). Inmany respects, the prayer is a summary of John’s entire gospel. Itsprincipal themes include: 1) Jesus’ obedience to His Father; 2) theglorification of His Father through His death and exaltation; 3) therevelation of God in Jesus Christ; 4) the choosing of the disciples outof the world; 5) their mission to the world; 6) their unity modeled onthe unity of the Father and Son; and 7) the believer’s final destiny inthe presence of the Father and Son. The chapter divides into threeparts: 1) Jesus’ prayer for Himself (vv. 1-5); 2) Jesus’ prayer for theapostles (vv. 6-19); and 3) Jesus’ prayer for all NT believers who willform the church (vv. 20-26).

17:1 the hour has come. The time of His death. See note on12:23. glorify Your Son. The very event that would glorify the Sonwas His death. By it, He has received the adoration, worship, andlove of millions whose sins He bore. He accepted this path to glory,knowing that by it He would be exalted to the Father. The goal isthat the Father may be glorified for His redemptive plan in the Son.So He sought by His own glory the glory of His Father (13:31,32).

17:2 authority over all flesh. Cf. 5:27; see note on Mt 28:18. to allwhom You have given Him. A reference to God’s choosing of thosewho will come to Christ (see notes on 6:37,44). The biblical doctrineof election or predestination is presented throughout the NT(15:16,19; Ac 13:48; Ro 8:29-33; Eph 1:3-6; 2Th 2:13; Tit 1:1; 1Pe 1:2).

17:3 eternal life. See notes on 3:15,16; 5:24; cf. 1Jn 5:20.17:5 glorify Me together with Yourself. Having completed His

work (v. 4), Jesus looked past the cross and asked to be returned tothe glory that He shared with the Father before the world began(see notes on 1:1; 8:58; 12:41). The actual completion of bearing judg-ment wrath for sinners was declared by Christ in the cry, “It is fin-ished” (19:30).

c Jn 6:37, 39; 17:6, 9, 24 3 a Jn 5:44 b Jn 3:17; 17:8, 21, 23, 25 4 1 Orby accomplishing a Jn 13:31 b Lk 22:37; Jn 4:34 5 a Jn 17:1 b Jn 1:1;8:58; 17:24; Php 2:6

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6 a Jn 17:26 b Jn 6:37,39; 17:2, 9, 24 c Jn17:9 d Jn 8:51

8 a Jn 6:68; 12:49 b Jn15:15; 17:14, 26 c Jn8:42; 16:27, 30 d Jn3:17; 17:18, 21, 23, 25

9 a Lk 22:32; Jn 14:16b Lk 23:34; Jn 17:20fc Jn 6:37, 39; 17:2, 6,24 d Jn 17:6

10 a Jn 16:1511 a Jn 13:1 b Jn 7:33;

17:13 c Jn 17:25 d Jn17:6; Php 2:9; Rev19:12 e Jn 17:21f; Ro12:5; Gal 3:28

12 1 Heb idiom for onedestined to perisha Jn 17:6; Php 2:9;Rev 19:12 b Jn 6:39;18:9 c Jn 6:70 d Ps41:9; Jn 13:18

13 a Jn 7:33; 17:11 b Jn15:11 c Jn 3:29

14 a Jn 15:19 b Jn 8:23;17:16

15 1 Or out of thepower of 2 Or evila Mt 5:37

16 a Jn 17:1417 a Jn 15:318 a Jn 3:17; 17:3, 8,

21, 23, 25 b Mt 10:5;Jn 4:38; 20:21

19 a Jn 15:13 b Jn 15:3c 2Co 7:14; Col 1:6;1 Jn 3:18

and a the world has hated them, becauseb they are not of the world, even as I am notof the world. 15 I do not ask You to takethem out of the world, but to keep them1 from 2 a the evil one. 16 a They are not of theworld, even as I am not of the world.17 a Sanctify them in the truth; Your word istruth. 18 As a You sent Me into the world, b Ialso have sent them into the world. 19 Fortheir sakes I a sanctify Myself, that theythemselves also may be b sanctified c intruth.

Christ Prays for All Believers20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone,

but for those also who believe in Methrough their word; 21 that they may all beone; a even as You, Father, are in Me and I inYou, that they also may be in Us, b so thatthe world may 1 believe that c You sent Me.22 The a glory which You have given Me Ihave given to them, that they may be one,just as We are one; 23 a I in them and You inMe, that they may be perfected 1 in unity, sothat the world may 2 know that b You sentMe, and c loved them, even as You have

Christ Prays for His Disciples6 “a I have manifested Your name to the

men whom b You gave Me out of the world;they were c Yours and You gave them toMe, and they have d kept Your word. 7 Nowthey have come to know that everythingYou have given Me is from You; 8 for a thewords which You gave Me b I have given tothem; and they received them and truly un-derstood that c I came forth from You, andthey believed that d You sent Me. 9 a I ask ontheir behalf; b I do not ask on behalf of theworld, but of those whom c You have givenMe; for d they are Yours; 10 and a all thingsthat are Mine are Yours, and Yours areMine; and I have been glorified in them.11 I am no longer in the world; and yeta they themselves are in the world, and b Icome to You. c Holy Father, keep them inYour name, the name d which You havegiven Me, that e they may be one even asWe are. 12 While I was with them, I waskeeping them in Your name a which Youhave given Me; and I guarded them andb not one of them perished but c the 1 son ofperdition, so that the d Scripture would befulfilled. 13 But now a I come to You; andb these things I speak in the world so thatthey may have My c joy made full in them-selves. 14 I have given them Your word;

17:6-10 they were Yours. This phrase sums up all of Jesus’ min-istry, including the cross that was just hours away. Again, the Sonemphasized that those who believed in Him were given by the Fa-ther (see note on v. 2). “They were Yours” (cf. v. 9) is a potent asser-tion that before conversion, they belonged to God (cf. 6:37). That istrue because of God’s election. They were chosen before the foun-dation of the world (Eph 1:4), when their names were written in theLamb’s book of life (Rev 17:8). Cf. Ac 18:10, where God says He hasmany people in Corinth who belong to Him but are not yet saved.See notes on 10:1-5,16.

17:8 they believed. The Son of God affirmed the genuine savingfaith of His disciples.

17:11 I am no longer in the world. So sure was His death anddeparture back to the Father that Jesus treated His departure as analready accomplished fact. He prayed here for His disciples becausethey would have to face the world’s temptation and hatred withoutHis immediate presence and protection (15:18–16:4). Based on theeternal nature of immutable God (“name”), He prayed for the eternalsecurity of those who believed. He prayed that as the Trinity experi-ences eternal unity, so may believers. See Ro 8:31-39.

17:12 I was keeping them in Your name. Jesus protected themand kept them safe from the world as He said in 6:37-40,44. One il-lustration of that can be seen in 18:1-11. Believers are secure foreverbecause they are held by Christ and by God. See note on 10:28,29.son of perdition. This identifies Judas by pointing to his destiny,i.e., eternal damnation (Mt 7:13; Ac 8:20; Ro 9:22; Php 1:28; 3:19; 1Ti6:9; Heb 10:39; 2Pe 2:1; 3:7; Rev 17:8,11). The defection of Judas wasnot a failure on Jesus’ part, but was foreseen and foreordained inScripture (Pss 41:9; 109:8; cf. 13:18).

17:15 keep them from the evil one. The reference here refers toprotection from Satan and all the wicked forces following him (Mt6:13; 1Jn 2:13,14; 3:12; 5:18,19). Though Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross

was the defeat of Satan, he is still loose and orchestrating his evil sys-tem against believers. He seeks to destroy believers (1Pe 5:8), as withJob and Peter (Lk 22:31,32), and in general (Eph 6:12), but God is theirstrong protector (12:31; 16:11; cf. Ps 27:1-3; 2Co 4:4; Jude 24,25).

17:17 Sanctify. This verb also occurs in John’s gospel at v. 19;10:36. The idea of sanctification is the setting apart of something fora particular use. Accordingly, believers are set apart for God and Hispurposes alone so that the believer does only what God wants andhates all that God hates (Lv 11:44,45; 1 Peter 1:16). Sanctification isaccomplished by means of the truth, which is the revelation that theSon gave regarding all that the Father commanded Him to commu-nicate and is now contained in the Scriptures left by the apostles. Cf.Eph 5:26; 2Th 2:13; Jas 1:21; 1Pe 1:22,23.

17:19 I sanctify Myself. Meaning only that He was totally setapart for the Father’s will (cf. 4:34; 5:19; 6:38; 7:16; 9:4). He did thatin order that believers might be set apart to God by the truth Hebrought.

17:21 they may all be one. The basis of this unity centers in ad-herence to the revelation the Father mediated to His first disciplesthrough His Son. Believers are also to be united in the common be-lief of the truth that was received in the Word of God (Php 2:2). Thisis not still a wish, but it became a reality when the Spirit came (cf. Ac2:4; 1Co 12:13). It is not experiential unity, but the unity of commoneternal life shared by all who believe the truth, and it results in theone body of Christ all sharing His life. See notes on Eph 4:4-6.

17:22 The glory which You have given Me. This refers to the be-liever’s participation in all of the attributes and essence of Godthrough the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit (v. 10; cf. Col 1:27;2Pe 1:4), as v. 23 makes clear (“I in them”).

17:23 perfected in unity. The idea here is that they may bebrought together in the same spiritual life around the truth that saves.That prayer was answered by the reality of 1Co 12:12,13; Eph 2:14-22.

21 1 Gr tense indicates continually believe a Jn 10:38; 17:11, 23 b Jn17:8 c Jn 3:17; 17:3, 8, 18, 23, 25 22 a Jn 1:14; 17:24 23 1 Lit into one2 Gr tense indicates continually know a Jn 10:38; 17:11, 21 b Jn 3:17;17:3, 8, 18, 21, 25 c Jn 16:27

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24 a Jn 17:2 b Jn 12:26c Jn 1:14; 17:22 d Mt25:34; Jn 17:5

25 1 Lit even the worlda Jn 17:11; 1 Jn 1:9b Jn 7:29; 15:21 c Jn3:17; 17:3, 8, 18, 21,23

26 a Jn 17:6 b Jn 15:9

CHAPTER 18

1 1 Lit winter-torrent2 Lit and a Mt 26:30,36; Mk 14:26, 32; Lk22:39 b 2Sa 15:23;1Ki 2:37; 15:13; 2Ki23:4, 6, 12; 2Ch15:16; 29:16; 30:14;Jer 31:40 c Mt 26:36;Mk 14:32; Jn 18:26

2 1 Or handing Himover a Lk 21:37; 22:39

3 1 Normally 600 men;a battalion a Jn 18:3-11: Mt 26:47-56; Mk14:43-50; Lk 22:47-53b Jn 18:12; Ac 10:1c Jn 7:32; 18:12, 18d Mt 25:1

4 a Jn 6:64; 13:1, 11

b Jn 18:77 a Jn 18:49 a Jn 17:1210 a Mt 26:51; Mk 14:4711 a Mt 20:22; 26:39;

coming upon Him, went forth and *said tothem, “b Whom do you seek?” 5 They an-swered Him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He*said to them, “I am He.” And Judas also,who was betraying Him, was standing withthem. 6 So when He said to them, “I amHe,” they drew back and fell to the ground.7 Therefore He again asked them, “a Whomdo you seek?” And they said, “Jesus theNazarene.” 8 Jesus answered, “I told youthat I am He; so if you seek Me, let these gotheir way,” 9 to fulfill the word which Hespoke, “a Of those whom You have givenMe I lost not one.” 10 Simon Peter then,a having a sword, drew it and struck thehigh priest’s slave, and cut off his right ear;and the slave’s name was Malchus. 11 SoJesus said to Peter, “Put the sword into thesheath; a the cup which the Father has givenMe, shall I not drink it?”

First Jewish Trial Before AnnasMt 26:69, 70; Mk 14:66-68; Lk 22:55-57

12 a So b the Roman 1 cohort and the 2 com-mander and the b officers of the Jews,

loved Me. 24 Father, I desire that a they also,whom You have given Me, b be with Mewhere I am, so that they may see My c glorywhich You have given Me, for You lovedMe before d the foundation of the world.

25 “O a righteous Father, 1 although b theworld has not known You, yet I haveknown You; and these have known thatc You sent Me; 26 and a I have made Yourname known to them, and will make itknown, so that b the love with which Youloved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

The Arrest of ChristMt 26:47-56; Mk 14:43-52; Lk 22:47-53

18When Jesus had spoken these words,a He went forth with His disciples

over b the 1 ravine of the Kidron, wherethere was c a garden, in which He entered2 with His disciples. 2 Now Judas also, whowas 1 betraying Him, knew the place, forJesus had a often met there with His disci-ples. 3 a Judas then, having received b theRoman 1 cohort and c officers from the chiefpriests and the Pharisees, *came there withlanterns and d torches and weapons. 4 SoJesus, a knowing all the things that were

17:24 be with Me. This will be in heaven, where one can see thefull glory that is His (cf. v. 5). Someday believers will not only see Hisglory, but share it (Php 3:20,21; 1Jn 3:2). Until then, we participate init spiritually (2Co 3:18).

17:25,26 This summarizes the prayer of this chapter and promis-es the continuing indwelling Christ and His love. Cf. Ro 5:5.

18:1-40 The events of Jesus’ arrest and trial receive emphasis inthis chapter. Since John’s purpose was to present Jesus as the Mes-siah and Son of God, he produced evidence to substantiate this pur-pose throughout his account of Jesus’ passion. Through all of thedebasing, shameful acts that were directed toward Jesus, John skill-fully shows that these events, rather than detracting from His personand mission, actually constitute decisive evidence confirming whoHe was and the reason for which He came (1:29; cf. 2Co 5:21).

18:1 He went forth. Jesus’ supreme courage is seen in His deter-mination to go to the cross, where His purity and sinlessness wouldbe violated as He bore the wrath of God for the sins of the world(3:16; see note on 12:27). The time of “the power of darkness” hadcome (Lk 22:53; see notes on 1:5; 9:4; 13:30). ravine of the Kidron.The Kidron valley was between the temple mount on the E ofJerusalem and the Mt. of Olives further to the E. a garden. On theslopes of the Mt. of Olives, named for ever present olive groves,were many gardens. Matthew 26:36 and Mark 14:32 call this particu-lar garden “Gethsemane,” which means “oil press.” entered. Thewording here suggests a walled enclosure around the garden.

18:3 the Roman cohort and officers from the chief priests andthe Pharisees. A full auxiliary Roman cohort had the potentialstrength of 1,000 men (i.e., 760 foot soldiers and 240 cavalry led bya chiliarch or “leader of a thousand”). Usually, however, in practice acohort normally numbered 600 men, but could sometimes refer toas little as 200 (i.e., a “maniple”). Roman auxiliary troops were usual-ly stationed at Caesarea, but during feast days they were garrisonedin the Antonia Fortress, on the NW perimeter of the temple complex(in order to ensure against mob violence or rebellion because of thelarge population that filled Jerusalem). The second group designat-

ed as “officers” refers to temple police who were the primary arrest-ing officers since Jesus’ destination after the arrest was to bebrought before the High-Priest (vv. 12-14). They came ready for re-sistance from Jesus and His followers (“weapons”).

18:4 knowing all . . . things. John, in a matter-of-fact way, statesthat Jesus was omniscient, thus God.

18:4-8 Whom do you seek? By twice asking that question (vv.4,7), to which they replied, “Jesus the Nazarene” (vv. 5,7), Jesus wasforcing them to acknowledge that they had no authority to take Hisdisciples. In fact, He demanded that they let the disciples go (v. 8).The force of His demand was established by the power of His words.When He spoke, “I am He” (v. 6), a designation He had used beforeto declare Himself God (8:28,58; cf. 6:35; 8:12; 10:7,9,11,14; 11:25;14:6; 15:1,5), they were jolted backward and to the ground (v. 6).This power display and the authoritative demand not to take thedisciples were of immense significance, as the next verse indicates.

18:9 I lost not one. Jesus was saying that He protected the disci-ples from being arrested, so He would not lose any of them, thusfulfilling the promises He made earlier (6:39,40,44; 10:28; 17:12). Heknew that being arrested and perhaps imprisoned or executed wasmore than they could bear, and it could shatter their faith. So Hemade sure it did not happen. All believers are weak and vulnerable ifnot protected by the Lord. But He will never let them be temptedbeyond what they can bear (1Co 10:13), as evidenced here. Believersare eternally secure, not in their own strength, but by the graciousand constant protection of the Savior (cf. Ro 8:35-39).

18:10 Simon Peter. He surely aimed for Malchus’ head, ready tostart the battle in defense of His Lord, but his was an ignorant loveand courage. Christ healed Malchus’ ear (Lk 22:51).

18:11 cup . . . given Me . . . not drink it? Peter’s impetuous brav-ery in v. 10 was not only misguided, but exhibited failure to under-stand the centrality of the death that Jesus came to die. The “cup” inthe OT is associated with suffering and especially judgment, i.e., thecup of God’s wrath (Ps 75:8; Is 51:17,22; Jer 25:15; Eze 23:31-34; seenotes on Mt 26:39; Mk 14:36; Lk 22:42; cf. Rev 14:10; 16:19).

Mk 14:36; Lk 22:42 12 1 Or battalion 2 I.e. chiliarch, in command of athousand troops a Jn 18:12f: Mt 26:57ff b Jn 18:3

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13 a Lk 3:2; Jn 18:24b Mt 26:3; Jn 11:49,51

14 a Jn 11:5015 a Mt 26:58; Mk

14:54; Lk 22:54 b Mt26:3; Jn 18:24, 28

16 a Jn 18:16-18: Mt26:69f; Mk 14:66-68;Lk 22:55-57

17 a Ac 12:13 b Jn18:25

18 a Jn 18:3 b Jn 21:9c Mk 14:54, 67

19 a Jn 18:19-24: Mt26:59-68; Mk 14:55-65; Lk 22:63-71

20 1 Lit a synagoguea Jn 7:26; 8:26 b Mt4:23; Jn 6:59 c Mt26:55

22 a Jn 18:3 b Jn 19:323 a Mt 5:39; Ac 23:2-524 a Jn 18:1325 a Jn 18:25-27: Mt

26:71-75; Mk 14:69-72; Lk 22:58-62 b Jn18:18 c Jn 18:17

26 a Jn 18:10 b Jn 18:127 a Jn 13:3828 1 I.e. governor’s

official residencea Mt 27:2; Mk 15:1;Lk 23:1 b Jn 18:13c Mt 27:27; Jn 18:33;19:9 d Jn 11:55; Ac11:3

spoke to them; they know what I said.”22 When He had said this, one of the a offi-cers standing nearby b struck Jesus, saying,“Is that the way You answer the highpriest?” 23 a Jesus answered him, “If I havespoken wrongly, testify of the wrong; but ifrightly, why do you strike Me?” 24 a SoAnnas sent Him bound to a Caiaphas thehigh priest.

Second Jewish Trial Before CaiaphasMt 26:57-68, 73-75; Mk 14:53-65, 70-72; Lk 22:59-65

25 a Now b Simon Peter was standing andwarming himself. So they said to him,“c You are not also one of His disciples, areyou?” He denied it, and said, “I am not.”26 One of the slaves of the high priest,being a relative of the one a whose ear Petercut off, *said, “Did I not see you in b the gar-den with Him?” 27 Peter then denied itagain, and immediately a a rooster crowed.

First Roman Trial Before PilateMt 27:2, 11-14; Mk 15:1-5; Lk 23:1-5

28 a Then they *led Jesus from b Caiaphasinto c the 1 Praetorium, and it was early; and they themselves did not enter into c the 1 Praetorium so that d they would notbe defiled, but might eat the Passover.

arrested Jesus and bound Him, 13 and ledHim to a Annas first; for he was father-in-law of b Caiaphas, who was high priest thatyear. 14 Now Caiaphas was the one whohad advised the Jews that a it was expedi-ent for one man to die on behalf of the peo-ple.

15 a Simon Peter was following Jesus, andso was another disciple. Now that disciplewas known to the high priest, and enteredwith Jesus into b the court of the high priest,16 a but Peter was standing at the door out-side. So the other disciple, who was knownto the high priest, went out and spoke tothe doorkeeper, and brought Peter in.17 a Then the slave-girl who kept the door*said to Peter, “b You are not also one of thisman’s disciples, are you?” He *said, “I amnot.” 18 Now the slaves and the a officerswere standing there, having made b a char-coal fire, for it was cold and they werec warming themselves; and Peter was alsowith them, standing and warming himself.

19 a The high priest then questioned Jesusabout His disciples, and about His teach-ing. 20 Jesus answered him, “I a have spo-ken openly to the world; I always b taughtin 1 synagogues and c in the temple, whereall the Jews come together; and I spokenothing in secret. 21 Why do you questionMe? Question those who have heard what I

18:13 Annas first. Annas held the High-Priesthood office from A.D.6–15 when Valerius Gratus, Pilate’s predecessor, removed him from of-fice. In spite of this, Annas continued to wield influence over the office,most likely because he was still regarded as the true High-Priest andalso because no fewer than 5 of his sons, and his son-in-law Caiaphas,held the office at one time or another. Two trials occurred: one Jewishand one Roman. The Jewish phase began with the informal examina-tion by Annas (vv. 12-14,19-23), probably giving time for the membersof the Sanhedrin to hurriedly gather together. A session before theSanhedrin was next (Mt 26:57-68) at which consensus was reached tosend Jesus to Pilate (Mt 27:1,2). The Roman phase began with a firstexamination before Pilate (vv. 28-38a; Mt 27:11-14) and then HerodAntipas (“that fox”—Lk 13:32) interrogated Him (Lk 23:6-12). Lastly,Jesus appeared again before Pilate (vv. 38b–19:16; Mt 27:15-31).

18:13,14 Caiaphas. See notes on 11:49. The examination underCaiaphas was not reported by John (see Mt 26:57-68).

18:15 another disciple . . . that disciple. Traditionally this personhas been identified with the “disciple whom Jesus loved” (13:23,24),i.e., John the apostle who authored this gospel, but he never men-tioned his own name (see Introduction: Author and Date).

18:16-18 Peter. Here is the record of the first of Peter’s predicted3 denials (see note on 18:25-27).

18:16 known to the high priest. Apparently, John was more thanjust an acquaintance, because the term for “known” can mean afriend (Lk 2:44). The fact that he mentioned Nicodemus (3:1) andJoseph (19:38) may indicate his knowledge of other prominent Jews.

18:19 At the core of their concern was Jesus’ claim that He wasthe Son of God (19:7). In a formal Jewish hearing, to question thedefendant may have been illegal because a case had to rest on theweight of the testimony of witnesses (see note on 1:7). If this was aninformal interrogation before the High-Priest emeritus and not be-

fore the Sanhedrin, Annas may have thought that he was not boundby such rules. Jesus, however, knew the law and demanded thatwitnesses be called (vv. 20,21). An official knew Jesus was rebukingAnnas and retaliated (v. 22).

18:23 In essence, Jesus was asking for a fair trial, while His oppo-nents, who had already decided on the sentence (see 11:47-57), hadno intention of providing one.

18:24 Annas recognized that he was not getting anywhere withJesus and sent Him to Caiaphas because, if Jesus was to be broughtbefore Pilate for execution, the legal accusation must be brought bythe current reigning High-Priest (i.e., Caiaphas) in his capacity aschairman of the Sanhedrin (see also note on v. 13).

18:25-27 Simon Peter. Here was the final fulfillment of Jesus’prediction that Peter would deny Him 3 times (cf. Mt 26:34).

18:28–19:16 This section deals with Jesus’ trial before Pilate. Al-though Pilate appears in every scene here, Jesus Himself and the na-ture of His kingdom occupy center stage.

18:28 Praetorium. The headquarters of the commanding officerof the Roman military camp or the headquarters of the Roman mili-tary governor (i.e., Pilate). Pilate’s normal headquarters was in Caes-area, in the palace that Herod the Great had built for himself. How-ever, Pilate and his predecessors made it a point to be in Jerusalemduring the feasts in order to quell any riots. Jerusalem became hispraetorium or headquarters. early. The word is ambiguous. Mostlikely, it refers to around 6:00 a.m. since many Roman officials begantheir day very early and finished by 10:00 or 11:00 a.m. not be de-filed. Jewish oral law gives evidence that a Jew who entered thedwelling places of Gentiles became ceremonially unclean. Their re-maining outside in the colonnade avoided that pollution. John loadsthis statement with great irony by noting the chief priests’ scrupu-lousness in the matter of ceremonial cleansing, when all the time

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29 a Jn 18:29-38: Mt27:11-14; Mk 15:2-5;Lk 23:2, 3

32 a Mt 20:19; 26:2;Mk 10:33f; Lk 18:32f;Jn 3:14; 8:28; 12:32f

33 a Jn 18:28, 29; 19:9b Lk 23:3; Jn 19:12

34 1 Lit from yourself36 1 Or is not derived

from 2 Lit from herea Mt 26:53; Lk 17:21;Jn 6:15

37 a Mt 27:11; Mk15:2; Lk 22:70; 23:3b Jn 1:14; 3:32; 8:14c Jn 8:47; 1 Jn 4:6

38 a Jn 18:33; 19:4 b Lk23:4; Jn 19:4, 6

39 1 Or to you a Jn18:39-19:16: Mt27:15-26; Mk 15:6-15;Lk 23:18-25

40 a Ac 3:14

CHAPTER 19

1 1 Or had Himscourged a Mt 27:26

2 a Mt 27:27-30: Mk15:16-19

3 a Mt 27:29; Mk 15:18b Jn 18:22

4 a Jn 18:33, 38 b Lk23:4; Jn 18:38; 19:6

king?” Jesus answered, “a You say correctlythat I am a king. For this I have been born,and for this I have come into the world, b totestify to the truth. c Everyone who is of thetruth hears My voice.” 38 Pilate *said toHim, “What is truth?”

Second Roman Trial Before PilateMt 27:15-31; Mk 15:6-20; Lk 23:13-25

And when he had said this, he a went outagain to the Jews and *said to them, “b I findno guilt in Him. 39 a But you have a customthat I release someone 1 for you at thePassover; do you wish then that I release1 for you the King of the Jews?” 40 So theycried out again, saying, “a Not this Man, butBarabbas.” Now Barabbas was a robber.

19Pilate then took Jesus and 1 a scourgedHim. 2 a And the soldiers twisted

together a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and put a purple robe on Him;3 and they began to come up to Him and say, “a Hail, King of the Jews!” and to b giveHim slaps in the face. 4 Pilate a came outagain and *said to them, “Behold, I ambringing Him out to you so that youmay know that b I find no guilt in Him.”

29 a Therefore Pilate went out to them and*said, “What accusation do you bringagainst this Man?” 30 They answered andsaid to him, “If this Man were not an evil-doer, we would not have delivered Him toyou.” 31 So Pilate said to them, “Take Himyourselves, and judge Him according toyour law.” The Jews said to him, “We arenot permitted to put anyone to death,” 32 tofulfill a the word of Jesus which He spoke,signifying by what kind of death He wasabout to die.

33 Therefore Pilate a entered again intothe Praetorium, and summoned Jesus andsaid to Him, “b Are You the King of theJews?” 34 Jesus answered, “Are you sayingthis 1 on your own initiative, or did otherstell you about Me?” 35 Pilate answered, “Iam not a Jew, am I? Your own nation andthe chief priests delivered You to me; whathave You done?” 36 Jesus answered, “a Mykingdom 1 is not of this world. If My king-dom were of this world, then My servantswould be fighting so that I would not behanded over to the Jews; but as it is, Mykingdom is not 2 of this realm.” 37 There-fore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a

they were incurring incomparably greater moral defilement by theirproceedings against Jesus.

18:29 What accusation . . . ? This question formally opened theRoman civil phase of proceedings against Jesus (in contrast to thereligious phase before the Jews in v. 24). The fact that Roman troopswere used at the arrest (see note on v. 3) proves that the Jewish au-thorities communicated something about this case to Pilate in ad-vance. Although they most likely had expected Pilate to confirmtheir judgment against Jesus and order His death sentence, Pilateordered instead a fresh hearing in his presence.

18:31 We are not permitted. When Rome took over Judea andbegan direct rule through a prefect in A.D. 6, capital jurisdiction (i.e.,the right to execute) was taken away from the Jews and given tothe Roman governor. Capital punishment was the most jealouslyguarded of all the attributes in Roman provincial administration.

18:32 to fulfill the word of Jesus. Jesus had said that He woulddie by being “lifted up” (3:14; 8:28; 12:32,33). If the Jews had executedHim it would have been by throwing Him down and stoning Him. ButGod providentially controlled all the political procedures to assure thatwhen sentence was finally passed, He would be crucified by the Ro-mans and not stoned by the Jews, as was Stephen (Ac 7:59). The Jewsmay have preferred this form of execution based on Dt 21:23.

18:34 others. Again (cf. vv. 20,21), Jesus demanded witnesses.18:36 My kingdom is not of this realm. By this phrase, Jesus

meant that His kingdom is not connected to earthly political and na-tional entities, nor does it have its origin in the evil world system thatis in rebellion against God. If His kingdom was of this world, He wouldhave fought. The kingships of this world preserve themselves by fight-ing with force. Messiah’s kingdom does not originate in the efforts ofman but with the Son of Man forcefully and decisively conquering sinin the lives of His people and someday conquering the evil world sys-tem at His second coming when He establishes the earthly form of Hiskingdom. His kingdom was no threat to the national identity of Israelor the political and military identity of Rome. It exists in the spiritualdimension until the end of the age (Rev 11:15).

18:38 What is truth? In response to Jesus’ mention of “truth” inv. 37, Pilate responded rhetorically with cynicism, convinced that noanswer existed to the question. The retort proved that he was notamong those whom the Father had given to the Son (“Everyonewho is of the truth hears My voice”—v. 37; see notes on 10:1-5). noguilt. Cf. 19:4. John made it clear that Jesus was not guilty of any sinor crime, thus exhibiting the severe injustice and guilt of both theJews and Romans who executed Him.

18:40 Now Barabbas was a robber. The word “robber” means“one who seizes plunder” and may depict not only a robber but aterrorist or guerrilla fighter who participated in bloody insurrection(see Mk 15:7).

19:1 scourged. Pilate appears to have flogged Jesus as a strategyto set Him free (see vv. 4-6). He was hoping that the Jews would beappeased by this action and that sympathy for Jesus’ sufferingwould result in their desire that He be released (see Lk 23:13-16).Scourging was a horribly cruel act in which the victim was stripped,tied to a post and beaten by several torturers, i.e., soldiers who alter-nated when exhausted. For victims who were not Roman citizens,the preferred instrument was a short wooden handle to which sev-eral leather thongs were attached. Each leather thong had pieces ofbones or metal on the end. The beatings were so savage that some-times victims died. The body could be torn or lacerated to such anextent that muscles, veins or bones were exposed. Such floggingoften preceded execution in order to weaken and dehumanize thevictim (Is 53:5). Apparently, however, Pilate intended this to createsympathy for Jesus.

19:2 crown of thorns. This “crown” was made from the longspikes (up to 12 inches) of a date palm formed into an imitation ofthe radiating crowns which oriental kings wore. The long thornswould have cut deeply into Jesus’ head, adding to the pain andbleeding. purple robe. The color represented royalty. The robeprobably was a military cloak flung around Jesus’ shoulders, intend-ed to mock His claim to be King of the Jews.

19:4 I find no guilt in Him. See note on 18:38.

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5 a Jn 19:26 a Mt 26:58; Jn 18:3 b Lk

23:4; Jn 18:38; 19:47 a Lv 24:16; Mt 26:63-

66 b Jn 5:18; 10:339 1 I.e. governor’s

official residence a Jn18:33 b Mt 26:63;27:12, 14; Jn 18:34-37

11 1 Lit against a Ro13:1 b Jn 18:13f, 28ff;Ac 3:13

12 1 Lit was seeking toa Lk 23:2; Jn 18:33ff

2 Or speaks against13 1 Gr The Lithostrotos

2 I.e. Jewish Aramaica Mt 27:19 b Jn 5:2;19:17, 20

14 1 Perhaps 6 a.m.a Mt 27:62; Jn 19:31,42 b Mt 27:45; Mk15:25 c Jn 19:19, 21

15 a Lk 23:1816 a Mt 27:26; Mk

15:15; Lk 23:2517 1 Lit bearing the

cross for Himself 2 I.e.Jewish Aramaic a Jn19:17-24: Mt 27:33-44; Mk 15:22-32; Lk23:33-43 b Mt 27:32;

no friend of Caesar; everyone who makeshimself out to be a king 2 opposes Caesar.”

13 Therefore when Pilate heard thesewords, he brought Jesus out, and a satdown on the judgment seat at a placecalled 1 The Pavement, but b in 2 Hebrew,Gabbatha. 14 Now it was a the day of prepa-ration for the Passover; it was about the1 b sixth hour. And he *said to the Jews, “Be-hold, c your King!” 15 So they cried out,“a Away with Him, away with Him, crucifyHim!” Pilate *said to them, “Shall I crucifyyour King?” The chief priests answered,“We have no king but Caesar.” 16 So hethen a handed Him over to them to be cru-cified.

The Crucifixion of ChristMt 27:32-38, 48, 50; Mk 15:21-26, 36, 37; Lk 23:26-33, 38, 46

17 a They took Jesus, therefore, and Hewent out, 1 b bearing His own cross, tothe place called c the Place of a Skull,which is called d in 2 Hebrew, Golgotha.

5 Jesus then came out, a wearing the crownof thorns and the purple robe. Pilate *said tothem, “Behold, the Man!” 6 So when thechief priests and the a officers saw Him, theycried out saying, “Crucify, crucify!” Pilate*said to them, “Take Him yourselves andcrucify Him, for b I find no guilt in Him.”7 The Jews answered him, “a We have a law,and by that law He ought to die because Heb made Himself out to be the Son of God.”

8 Therefore when Pilate heard this state-ment, he was even more afraid; 9 and hea entered into the 1 Praetorium again and*said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” Butb Jesus gave him no answer. 10 So Pilate *saidto Him, “You do not speak to me? Do Younot know that I have authority to releaseYou, and I have authority to crucify You?”11 Jesus answered, “a You would have noauthority 1 over Me, unless it had beengiven you from above; for this reason b hewho delivered Me to you has the greatersin.” 12 As a result of this Pilate 1 made ef-forts to release Him, but the Jews cried outsaying, “a If you release this Man, you are

19:5 “Behold, the Man!” Pilate dramatically presented Jesus afterHis torturous treatment by the soldiers. Jesus would have beenswollen, bruised, and bleeding. Pilate displayed Jesus as a beatenand pathetic figure hoping to gain the people’s choice of Jesus forrelease. Pilate’s phrase is filled with sarcasm since he was attempt-ing to impress upon the Jewish authorities that Jesus was not thedangerous man that they had made Him out to be.

19:6 Take Him yourselves and crucify Him. The pronouns “your-selves” and “Him” have an emphatic force indicating Pilate’s disgustand indignation at the Jews for their callousness toward Jesus.

19:7 We have a law. This probably refers to Lv 24:16: “the onewho blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death.”The charge of blasphemy (5:18; 8:58,59; 10:33,36) was central inJesus’ trial before Caiaphas (see Mt 26:57-68).

19:8 more afraid. Many Roman officials were deeply supersti-tious. While Jews interpreted Jesus’ claims as messianic, to theGreco-Roman person, the title “Son of God” would place Jesus in thecategory of “divine men” who were gifted with supernatural powers.Pilate was afraid because he had just whipped and tortured some-one who, in his mind, could bring down a curse or vengeance uponhim.

19:9 Where are You from? Pilate was concerned about Jesus’ ori-gins. His superstitious mind was wondering just what kind of personhe was dealing with.

19:11 Jesus’ statement here indicates that even the worst evilcannot escape the sovereignty of God. Pilate had no real control(vv. 10,11), yet still stood as a responsible moral agent for his ac-tions. When confronted with opposition and evil, Jesus oftenfound solace in the sovereignty of His Father (e.g., 6:43,44,65;10:18,28,29). he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.This could refer either to Judas or Caiaphas. Since Caiaphas tooksuch an active part in the plot against Jesus (11:49-53) andpresided over the Sanhedrin, the reference may center on him(18:30,35). The critical point is not the identity of the person butguilt because of the deliberate, high-handed, and coldly calculatedact of handing Jesus over to Pilate, after having seen and heardthe overwhelming evidence that He was Messiah and Son of God.

Pilate had not been exposed to that. See notes on 9:41; 15:22-24;Heb 10:26-31.

19:12 no friend of Caesar. This statement by the Jews wasloaded with irony, for the Jews’ hatred of Rome certainly indicatedthey too were no friends of Caesar. But they knew Pilate fearedTiberius Caesar (the Roman emperor at the time of Jesus’ crucifixion)since he had a highly suspicious personality and exacted ruthlesspunishment. Pilate had already created upheaval in Palestine by sev-eral foolish acts that had infuriated the Jews, and so was under thescrutiny of Rome to see if his ineptness continued. The Jews wereintimidating him by threatening another upheaval that could spellthe end of his power in Palestine, if he did not execute Jesus.

19:13 the judgment seat. Pilate capitulated under pressure (v.12) and prepared to render judgment on the original charge of sedi-tion against Rome. This “judgment seat” was the place Pilate sat torender the official verdict. The seat was placed on an area pavedwith stones known as “The Pavement.” The irony is that Pilate ren-dered judgment on the One whom the Father Himself entrustedwith all judgment (5:22) and who would render a just condemna-tion of Pilate.

19:14 day of preparation for the Passover. Since this refers tothe day before the Passover when preparation for the Passover wasdone, John presents Jesus as being sent to execution about the timePassover lambs were being slaughtered. For the chronology of theweek, see Introduction: Interpretive Challenges. about the sixthhour. John is here reckoning time by the Roman method of the daybeginning at midnight. See note on Mk 15:25. Behold, your King!That was Pilate’s mockery—that such a brutalized and helpless manwas a fitting king for them. This mockery continued in the placardon the cross (vv. 19-22).

19:17 bearing His own cross. This refers to the cross-member,the horizontal bar. The condemned man carried it on his shouldersto the place of execution. Jesus carried His cross as far as the citygate, but due to the effects of the previous brutal beating, someoneelse had to eventually carry it for Him, i.e., Simon of Cyrene (Mt27:32; Mk 15:21; Lk 23:26). Golgotha. This term is an Eng. transliter-ation of the Gr. which, in turn, is a translation of the Aram. word

Mk 15:21; Lk 14:27; 23:26 c Lk 23:33 d Jn 19:13

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20 1 I.e. JewishAramaic a Jn 19:13

21 a Jn 19:14, 1922 a Ge 43:14; Est 4:1623 1 Gr khiton, the

garment worn nextto the skin 2 Lit fromthe upper partthrough the wholea Mt 27:35; Mk 15:24;Lk 23:34 b Ac 12:4

24 1 Lit a lot a Ex 28:32;Mt 27:35; Mk 15:24;Lk 23:34 b Jn 19:28,36f c Ps 22:18

25 a Mt 27:55f; Mk15:40f; Lk 23:49 b Mt12:46 c Lk 8:2; Jn20:1, 18

26 a Jn 13:23 b Jn 2:427 a Lk 18:28; Jn 1:11;

16:32; Ac 21:628 a Jn 13:1; 17:4 b Jn

19:24, 36f c Ps 69:2129 a Jn 19:29, 30: Mt

27:48, 50; Mk 15:36f;Lk 23:36

30 a Jn 17:4 b Mt27:50; Mk 15:37;

a But standing by the cross of Jesus wereb His mother, and His mother’s sister, Marythe wife of Clopas, and c Mary Magdalene.26 When Jesus then saw His mother, and a thedisciple whom He loved standing nearby,He *said to His mother, “b Woman, behold,your son!” 27 Then He *said to the disciple,“Behold, your mother!” From that hour thedisciple took her into a his own household.

28 After this, Jesus, a knowing that allthings had already been accomplished, b tofulfill the Scripture, *said, “c I am thirsty.”29 A jar full of sour wine was standingthere; so a they put a sponge full of the sourwine upon a branch of hyssop and broughtit up to His mouth. 30 Therefore when Jesushad received the sour wine, He said, “a It isfinished!” And He bowed His head andb gave up His spirit.

31 Then the Jews, because it was a the dayof preparation, so that b the bodies wouldnot remain on the cross on the Sabbath(1 for that Sabbath was a c high day), asked

18 There they crucified Him, and with Hima two other men, one on either side, andJesus in between. 19 Pilate also wrote an in-scription and put it on the cross. It was writ-ten, “a JESUS THE NAZARENE, b THEKING OF THE JEWS.” 20 Therefore many ofthe Jews read this inscription, for the placewhere Jesus was crucified was near the city;and it was written a in 1 Hebrew, Latin and inGreek. 21 So the chief priests of the Jewswere saying to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘a TheKing of the Jews’; but that He said, ‘I ama King of the Jews.’” 22 Pilate answered,“a What I have written I have written.”

23 Then a the soldiers, when they had cru-cified Jesus, took His outer garments andmade b four parts, a part to every soldierand also the 1 tunic; now the tunic wasseamless, woven 2 in one piece. 24 So theysaid to one another, “a Let us not tear it, butcast lots for it, to decide whose it shall be”;b this was to fulfill the Scripture: “THEY c DI-VIDED MY OUTER GARMENTS AMONG THEM,AND FOR MY CLOTHING THEY CAST 1 LOTS.”25 Therefore the soldiers did these things.

meaning “skull.” The place probably derived its name from its ap-pearance. The precise location of the site today is uncertain.

19:18 crucified Him. Jesus was made to lie on the ground whileHis arms were stretched out and nailed to the horizontal beam thatHe carried. The beam was then hoisted up, along with the victim,and fastened to the vertical beam. His feet were nailed to the verti-cal beam to which sometimes was attached a piece of wood thatserved as a kind of seat that partially supported the weight of thebody. The latter, however, was designed to prolong and increase theagony, not relieve it. Having been stripped naked and beaten, Jesuscould hang in the hot sun for hours if not days. To breathe, it wasnecessary to push with the legs and pull with the arms, creating ex-cruciating pain. Terrible muscle spasms wracked the entire body;but since collapse meant asphyxiation, the struggle for life contin-ued (see note on Mt 27:31). two other men. Matthew (27:38) andLuke (23:33) use the same word for these two as John used forBarabbas, i.e., guerrilla fighters. See note on 18:40.

19:19-22 wrote an inscription. The custom in such executionswas to place a placard or tablet around the neck of the victim as hemade his way to execution. The tablet would then be nailed to thevictim’s cross (see Mt 27:37; Mk 15:26; Lk 23:38). Pilate used this op-portunity for mocking revenge on the Jews who had so intimidatedhim into this execution (see note on v. 12).

19:23 His outer garments . . . and also the tunic. By custom, theclothes of the condemned person were the property of the execu-tioners. The division of the garments suggests that the executionsquad was made up of 4 soldiers (cf. Ac 12:4). The tunic was wornnext to the skin. The plural “garments” probably refers to otherclothes, including an outer garment, belt, sandals, and head cover-ing.

19:24 John cites Ps 22:18. In the psalm, David, beset by physicaldistress and mockery by his opponents, used the symbolism of thecommon practice in an execution scene in which the executioner di-vided the victim’s clothes to portray the depth of his trouble. It isnotable that David precisely described a form of execution that hehad never seen. The passage was typologically prophetic of Jesus,David’s heir to the messianic throne (see Mt 27:46; Mk 15:34).

19:25 Although the exact number of women mentioned here isquestioned, John probably refers to 4 women rather than 3, i.e., twoby name and two without naming them: 1) “His mother” (Mary); 2) “His mother’s sister” (probably Salome [Mk 15:40] the sister of Maryand mother of James and John, the sons of Zebedee [Mt 27:56,57;Mk 15:40]); 3) “Mary the wife of Cleopas” (the mother of James theyounger and Joses—Mt 27:56); and 4) Mary Magdalene (“Magda-lene” signifies “Magdala” a village on the W shore of Galilee, 2 or 3mi. N of Tiberias). Mary Magdalene figures prominently in the resur-rection account (see 20:1-18; cf. Lk 8:2,3 where Jesus healed herfrom demon possession).

19:26 the disciple whom He loved. This is a reference to John(see note on 13:23; cf. Introduction: Author and Date). Jesus, as first-born and breadwinner of the family before He started His ministry,did not give the responsibility to His brothers because they were notsympathetic to His ministry nor did they believe in Him (7:3-5) andthey likely were not present at the time (i.e., their home was in Ca-pernaum—see 2:12).

19:29 The drink here is not to be confused with the wine “mixedwith gall” offered to Him on the way to the cross (Mt 27:34) intend-ed to help deaden pain. The purpose of this drink (cf. Mk 15:36) wasto prolong life and increase the torture and pain. It was a cheap,sour wine used by soldiers. The use of this word recalls Ps 69:21where the same noun occurs in the LXX. Hyssop is a little plant thatis ideal for sprinkling (see Ex 12:22).

19:30 It is finished! The verb here carries the idea of fulfillingone’s task and, in religious contexts, has the idea of fulfilling one’sreligious obligations (see 17:4). The entire work of redemption hadbeen brought to completion. The single Gr. word here (translated “itis finished”) has been found in the papyri being placed on receiptsfor taxes meaning “paid in full” (see Col 3:13,14). He . . . gave up Hisspirit. The sentence signaled that Jesus “handed over” His spirit asan act of His will. No one took His life from Him, for He voluntarilyand willingly gave it up (see 10:17,18).

19:31 day of preparation. This refers to Friday, the day before orthe “preparation” day for the Sabbath. See Introduction: InterpretiveChallenges. would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath. The

Lk 23:46 31 1 Lit for the day of that Sabbath was great a Jn 19:14, 42b Dt 21:23; Jos 8:29; 10:26f c Ex 12:16

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32 a Jn 19:1834 a 1 Jn 5:6, 835 a Jn 15:27; 21:2436 1 Or crushed or

shattered a Jn 19:24,28 b Ex 12:46; Nu9:12; Ps 34:20

37 a Zec 12:10; Rev 1:738 a Jn 19:38-42: Mt

27:57-61; Mk 15:42-47; Lk 23:50-56 b Mk15:43 c Jn 7:13

39 1 Two early mssread package of 2 Lit100 litras (12 ozeach) a Jn 3:1 b Mk16:1 c Ps 45:8; Pr7:17; SS 4:14; Mt 2:11d Jn 12:3

40 a Mt 26:12; Mk14:8; Jn 11:44 b Lk24:12; Jn 20:5, 7

41 a Mt 27:60 b Lk23:53

42 a Jn 19:14, 31 b Jn19:20, 41

CHAPTER 20

1 a Jn 20:1-8: Mt 28:1-8;Mk 16:1-8; Lk 24:1-10

that he might take away the body of Jesus;and Pilate granted permission. So he cameand took away His body. 39 a Nicodemus,who had first come to Him by night, alsocame, b bringing a 1 mixture of c myrrh andaloes, about a d hundred 2 pounds weight.40 So they took the body of Jesus anda bound it in b linen wrappings with thespices, as is the burial custom of the Jews.41 Now in the place where He was cruci-fied there was a garden, and in the gardena a new tomb b in which no one had yet beenlaid. 42 Therefore because of the Jewish dayof a preparation, since the tomb was b near-by, they laid Jesus there.

The Resurrection of ChristMt 28:1-8; Mk 16:1-8; Lk 24:1-12

20a Now on the first day of the weekb Mary Magdalene *came early to the

tomb, while it *was still dark, and *saw c thestone already taken away from the tomb.

Pilate that their legs might be broken, andthat they might be taken away. 32 So the sol-diers came, and broke the legs of the firstman and of the other who was a crucifiedwith Him; 33 but coming to Jesus, whenthey saw that He was already dead, theydid not break His legs. 34 But one of the sol-diers pierced His side with a spear, and im-mediately a blood and water came out.35 And he who has seen has a testified, andhis testimony is true; and he knows that heis telling the truth, so that you also may be-lieve. 36 For these things came to pass a tofulfill the Scripture, “b NOT A BONE OF HIMSHALL BE 1 BROKEN.” 37 And again anotherScripture says, “a THEY SHALL LOOK ON HIMWHOM THEY PIERCED.”

The Burial of ChristMt 27:57-60; Mk 15:42-46; Lk 23:50-54

38 a After these things Joseph of Ari-mathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but a b se-cret one for c fear of the Jews, asked Pilate

normal Roman practice was to leave crucified men and women onthe cross until they died (and this could take days) and then leavetheir rotting bodies hanging there to be devoured by vultures. TheMosaic law insisted that anyone being impaled (usually after execu-tion) should not remain there overnight (Dt 21:22,23). Such a personwas under God’s curse, and to leave him exposed would be to dese-crate the land in their minds. their legs might be broken. In orderto hasten death for certain reasons, soldiers would smash the legs ofthe victim with an iron mallet. Not only did this action induce shockand additional loss of blood, but it prevented the victim from push-ing with his legs to keep breathing (see note on v. 18.), and thus thevictim died due to asphyxiation.

19:34 The soldier’s stabbing of Jesus’ side caused significant pen-etration because of the sudden flow of blood and water. Either thespear pierced Jesus’ heart or the chest cavity was pierced at the bot-tom. In either event, John mentioned the outflow of “blood andwater” to emphasize that Jesus was unquestionably dead.

19:35 he who has seen. This has reference to John the apostlewho was an eyewitness of these events (v. 26; 13:23; 20:2; 21:7,20;cf. 1Jn 1:1-4).

19:36,37 John quoted from either Ex 12:46 or Nu 9:12, both ofwhich specify that no bone of the Passover lamb may be broken.Since the NT portrays Jesus as the Passover Lamb that takes awaythe sins of the world (1:29; cf. 1Co 5:7; 1Pe 1:19), these verses havespecial typologically prophetic significance for Him. The quote in v.37 comes from Zec 12:10, which indicates God Himself was piercedwhen His representative, the Shepherd (Zec 13:7; cf. Zec 11:4,8,9,15-17) was pierced. The anguish and contrition of the Jews in theZechariah passage, because of their wounding of God’s Shepherd, istypologically prophetic of the time of the coming of the Son of God,Messiah, when at His return, Israel shall mourn for the rejection andkilling of their King (cf. Rev 1:7).

19:38 Joseph of Arimathea. This man appears in all 4 gospels,only in connection with Jesus’ burial. The synoptics relate that hewas a member of the Sanhedrin (Mk 15:43), he was rich (Mt 27:57),and he was looking for the kingdom of God (Lk 23:51). John treatedthe idea of secret disciples negatively (see 12:42,43) but sinceJoseph publicly risked his reputation and even his life in asking forthe body of Jesus, John pictured him in a more positive light.

19:39 Nicodemus. See notes on 3:1-10. about a hundredpounds. An inaccurate understanding of the term used in the origi-nal, this mixture of spices weighed closer to 65 pounds. Myrrh was avery fragrant gummy resin, which the Jews turned into a powderedform and mixed with aloes, a powder from the aromatic sandal-wood. The Jews did not embalm but did this procedure to stifle thesmell of putrefaction (see note on 11:39).

19:40 linen wrappings . . . spices. The spices most likely werelaid on the entire length of the strips of linen which were thenwound around Jesus’ body. More spices were laid under the bodyand perhaps packed around it. The sticky resin would help the clothadhere.

19:41,42 garden . . . new tomb. Only John relates that the tombwas near the place where Jesus was crucified. Since the Sabbath,when all work had to cease, was nearly upon them (6:00 p.m., sun-set), the nearness of the tomb was helpful. John does not mentionthat Joseph of Arimathea rolled a stone across the tomb’s mouth orthat Mary Madgdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where Hewas laid (Mt 27:58-61). For the time of the Lord’s death and burial,see note on Mt 27:45.

20:1-31 This chapter records the appearances of Jesus to His ownfollowers: 1) the appearance to Mary Magdalene (vv. 1-18); 2) theappearance to the 10 disciples (vv. 19-23); and 3) the appearance toThomas (vv. 24-29). Jesus did not appear to unbelievers (see 14:19;16:16,22) because the evidence of His resurrection would not haveconvinced them as the miracles had not (Lk 16:31). The god of thisworld had blinded them and prevented their belief (2Co 4:4). Jesus,therefore, appears exclusively to His own in order to confirm theirfaith in the living Christ. Such appearances were so profound thatthey transformed the disciples from cowardly men hiding in fear tobold witnesses for Jesus (e.g., Peter; see 18:27; cf. Ac 2:14-39). Onceagain John’s purpose in recording these resurrection appearanceswas to demonstrate that Jesus’ physical and bodily resurrection wasthe crowning proof that He truly is the Messiah and Son of God wholaid down His life for His own (10:17,18; 15:13; cf. Ro 1:4).

20:1 first day of the week. A reference to Sunday. From then on,believers set aside Sunday to meet and remember the marvelous res-urrection of the Lord (see Ac 20:7; 1Co 16:2). It became known as theLord’s Day (Rev 1:10). See notes on Lk 24:4,34. Mary Magdalene came

b Jn 19:25; 20:18 c Mt 27:60, 66; 28:2; Mk 15:46; 16:3f; Lk 24:2; Jn 11:38

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105 a Jn 20:11 b Jn 19:407 a Jn 11:44 b Jn 19:408 a Jn 20:49 a Mt 22:29; Jn 2:22

b Lk 24:26ff, 4610 a Lk 24:1211 a Mk 16:5 b Jn 20:512 a Mt 28:2f; Mk 16:5;

Lk 24:4

13 a Jn 20:15 b Jn 20:214 a Mt 28:9; Mk 16:9

b Jn 21:415 a Jn 20:1316 1 I.e. Jewish

Aramaic a Jn 5:2 b Mt23:7; Mk 10:51

17 a Mt 28:10 b Mk12:26; 16:19; Jn 7:33

18 a Jn 20:1 b Mk16:10; Lk 24:10, 23

at the head and one at the feet, where thebody of Jesus had been lying. 13 And they*said to her, “a Woman, why are you weep-ing?” She *said to them, “Because b theyhave taken away my Lord, and I do notknow where they have laid Him.” 14 Whenshe had said this, she turned around and*a saw Jesus standing there, and b did notknow that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus *said to her,“a Woman, why are you weeping? Whom areyou seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gar-dener, she *said to Him, “Sir, if you have car-ried Him away, tell me where you have laidHim, and I will take Him away.” 16 Jesus*said to her, “Mary!” She turned and *saidto Him a in 1 Hebrew, “b Rabboni!” (whichmeans, Teacher). 17 Jesus *said to her, “Stopclinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended tothe Father; but go to a My brethren and say tothem, ‘I b ascend to My Father and your Fa-ther, and My God and your God.’” 18 a MaryMagdalene *came, b announcing to the disci-ples, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He hadsaid these things to her.

Christ Appears to the Disciples (ThomasAbsent)—Mk 16:14; Lk 24:36-43

19 So when it was evening on that day,the first day of the week, and when the

2 So she *ran and *came to Simon Peter andto the other a disciple whom Jesus loved,and *said to them, “b They have taken awaythe Lord out of the tomb, and we do notknow where they have laid Him.” 3 a SoPeter and the other disciple went forth, andthey were going to the tomb. 4 The twowere running together; and the other disci-ple ran ahead faster than Peter and came tothe tomb first; 5 and a stooping and lookingin, he *saw the b linen wrappings lying there;but he did not go in. 6 And so Simon Peteralso *came, following him, and entered thetomb; and he *saw the linen wrappingslying there, 7 and a the face-cloth which hadbeen on His head, not lying with the b linenwrappings, but rolled up in a place by it-self. 8 So the other disciple who a had firstcome to the tomb then also entered, and hesaw and believed. 9 For as yet a they did notunderstand the Scripture, b that He mustrise again from the dead. 10 So the discipleswent away again a to their own homes.

Christ Appears to Mary Magdalene11 a But Mary was standing outside the

tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, sheb stooped and looked into the tomb; 12 andshe *saw a two angels in white sitting, one

early to the tomb, while it was still dark. Perhaps the reason whyJesus first appeared to Mary Magdalene was to demonstrate grace byHis personal, loving faithfulness to someone who formerly had a sor-did past; but clearly also because she loved Him so dearly and deeply,that she appeared before anyone else at the tomb. Her purpose incoming was to finish the preparation of Jesus’ body for burial bybringing more spices to anoint the corpse (Lk 24:1).

20:2 other disciple whom Jesus loved. This is the author John.They have taken. Though Jesus had predicted His resurrection nu-merous times, it was more than she could believe at that point. Itwould take His showing Himself alive to them by many “convincingproofs” (Ac 1:3) for them to believe.

20:5-7 saw the linen wrappings lying there. A contrast existedbetween the resurrection of Lazarus (11:44) and that of Jesus. WhileLazarus came forth from the grave wearing his graveclothes, Jesus’body, though physical and material, was glorified and was now ableto pass through the graveclothes much in the same way that He laterappeared in the locked room (see vv. 19,20; cf. Php 3:21). linen wrap-pings . . . face-cloth. The state of those items indicates no struggle,no hurried unwrapping of the body by grave robbers, who wouldn’tunwrap the body anyway, since transporting it elsewhere would beeasier and more pleasant if it was left in its wrapped and spiced con-dition. All appearances indicated that no one had taken the body, butthat it had moved through the cloth and left it behind in the tomb.

20:8 the other disciple. John saw the graveclothes and was con-vinced by them that He had risen.

20:9 did not understand the Scripture. Neither Peter nor Johnunderstood that Scripture said Jesus would rise (Ps 16:10). This is ev-ident by the reports of Luke (24:25-27,32,44-47). Jesus had foretoldHis resurrection (2:19; Mt 16:21; Mk 8:31; 9:31; Lk 9:22), but theywould not accept it (Mt 16:22; Lk 9:44,45). By the time John wrotethis gospel, the church had developed an understanding of the OTprediction of Messiah’s resurrection (cf. “as yet”).

20:11-13 weeping. Mary’s sense of grief and loss may have drivenher back to the tomb. She apparently had not crossed paths withPeter or John and thus did not know of Jesus’ resurrection (see v. 9).

20:12 two angels. Luke (24:4) describes both. Matthew (28:2,3)and Mark (16:5) report only one. John’s reason for the mention ofangels is to demonstrate that no grave robbers took the body. Thiswas an operation of the power of God.

20:14 did not know that it was Jesus. The reason for Mary’s fail-ure to recognize Jesus is uncertain. She may not have recognizedHim because her tears blurred her eyes (v. 11). Possibly also, thevivid memories of Jesus’ bruised and broken body were still etchedin her mind, and Jesus’ resurrection appearance was so dramaticallydifferent that she failed to recognize Him. Perhaps, however, like thedisciples on the road to Emmaus, she was supernaturally preventedfrom recognizing Him until He chose for her to do so (see Lk 24:16).

20:16 Mary! Whatever the reason for her failure to recognizeJesus, the moment He spoke the single word, “Mary,” she immedi-ately recognized Him. This is reminiscent of Jesus’ words “My sheephear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (10:27; cf.10:3,4).

20:17 Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended. Marywas expressing a desire to hold on to His physical presence for fearthat she would once again lose Him. Jesus’ reference to His ascen-sion signifies that He would only be temporarily with them andthough she desperately wanted Him to stay, He could not. Jesus waswith them only for 40 more days and then He ascended (Ac 1:3-11).After He went to the Father, He sent the Holy Spirit (“The Helper”) sothat they would not feel abandoned (see note on 14:18,19). Mybrethren. Disciples have been called “slaves” or “friends” (15:15),but not “brothers,” until here. Because of Jesus’ work on the cross inplace of the sinner, this new relationship to Christ was made possi-ble (Ro 8:14-17; Gal 3:26,27; Eph 1:5; Heb 2:10-13).

20:19 on that day. See note on v. 1. the doors were shut. The Gr.

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19 1 Lit Peace to youa Jn 7:13 b Lk 24:36;Jn 14:27; 20:21, 26

20 a Lk 24:39, 40; Jn19:34 b Jn 16:20, 22

21 a Lk 24:36; Jn 14:27;20:19, 26 b Jn 17:18

23 1 I.e. havepreviously beenforgiven a Mt 16:19;18:18

24 1 I.e. the Twin a Jn11:16 b Jn 6:67

25 a Jn 20:20 b Mk16:11

26 1 Or A week later2 Or locked a Lk24:36; Jn 14:27;20:19, 21

27 a Lk 24:40; Jn 20:2529 a 1Pe 1:830 1 Or attesting

miracles a Jn 21:25b Jn 2:11

31 1 I.e. the Messiaha Jn 19:35 b Mt 4:3c Jn 3:15

CHAPTER 21

1 1 Or made Himselfvisible a Mk 16:12; Jn21:14 b Jn 20:19, 26c Jn 6:1

2 1 I.e. the Twin a Jn11:16 b Jn 1:45ff c Jn2:1 d Mt 4:21; Mk1:19; Lk 5:10

“a Reach here with your finger, and see Myhands; and reach here your hand and put itinto My side; and do not be unbelieving,but believing.” 28 Thomas answered andsaid to Him, “My Lord and my God!”29 Jesus *said to him, “Because you haveseen Me, have you believed? a Blessed arethey who did not see, and yet believed.”

The Purpose of John’s Gospel30 a Therefore many other 1 b signs Jesus

also performed in the presence of the dis-ciples, which are not written in this book;31 but these have been written a so that youmay believe that Jesus is 1 the Christ, b theSon of God; and that c believing you mayhave life in His name.

Christ Appears to the Seven Disciples

21After these things Jesus 1 a mani-fested Himself b again to the disciples

at the c Sea of Tiberias, and He manifestedHimself in this way. 2 Simon Peter, anda Thomas called 1 Didymus, and b Nathanaelof c Cana in Galilee, and d the sons ofZebedee, and two others of His discipleswere together. 3 Simon Peter *said to them,“I am going fishing.” They *said to him,“We will also come with you.” They went

doors were shut where the disciples were,for a fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stoodin their midst and *said to them, “1 b Peacebe with you.” 20 And when He had saidthis, a He showed them both His hands andHis side. The disciples then b rejoiced whenthey saw the Lord. 21 So Jesus said to themagain, “a Peace be with you; b as the Fatherhas sent Me, I also send you.” 22 And whenHe had *said this, He breathed on themand said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.23 a If you forgive the sins of any, their sins1 have been forgiven them; if you retain thesins of any, they have been retained.”

24 But a Thomas, one of b the twelve,called 1 a Didymus, was not with themwhen Jesus came. 25 So the other discipleswere saying to him, “We have seen theLord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see ina His hands the imprint of the nails, and putmy finger into the place of the nails, andput my hand into His side, b I will not be-lieve.”

Christ Appears to the Disciples (ThomasPresent)—1Co 15:5

26 1 After eight days His disciples wereagain inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus*came, the doors having been 2 shut, andstood in their midst and said, “a Peace bewith you.” 27 Then He *said to Thomas,

word indicates the doors were locked for fear of the Jews. Since theauthorities had executed their leader, they reasonably expected thatJesus’ fate could be their own. Peace be with you. See notes on14:27; 16:33. Jesus’ greeting complements His “It is finished,” for Hiswork on the cross accomplished peace between God and His people(Ro 5:1; Eph 2:14-17).

20:20 Jesus proved that He who appeared to them was the sameOne who was crucified (cf. Lk 24:39).

20:21 This commission builds on 17:18. See Mt 28:19,20.20:22 Since the disciples did not actually receive the Holy Spirit

until the day of Pentecost, some 40 days in the future (Ac 1:8; 2:1-3),this statement must be understood as a pledge on Christ’s part thatthe Holy Spirit would be coming.

20:23 See notes on Mt 16:19; 18:18. This verse does not give au-thority to Christians to forgive sins. Jesus was saying that the believ-er can boldly declare the certainty of a sinner’s forgiveness by theFather because of the work of His Son if that sinner has repentedand believed the gospel. The believer with certainty can also tellthose who do not respond to the message of God’s forgivenessthrough faith in Christ that their sins, as a result, are not forgiven.

20:24-26 Thomas has already been portrayed as loyal but pes-simistic. Jesus did not rebuke Thomas for his failure, but insteadcompassionately offered him proof of His resurrection. Jesus loving-ly met him at the point of his weakness (2Ti 2:13). Thomas’ actionsindicated that Jesus had to convince the disciples rather forcefully ofHis resurrection, i.e., they were not gullible people predisposed tobelieving in resurrection. The point is they would not have fabricat-ed it or hallucinated it, since they were so reluctant to believe evenwith the evidence they could see.

20:28 My Lord and my God! With these words, Thomas declaredhis firm belief in the resurrection and, therefore, the deity of Jesus

the Messiah and Son of God (Tit 2:13). This is the greatest confessiona person can make. Thomas’ confession functions as the fitting cap-stone of John’s purpose in writing (see vv. 30,31).

20:29 Jesus foresaw the time when such tangible evidence asThomas received would not be available. When Jesus ascended per-manently to the Father, all those who believe would do so withoutthe benefit of seeing the resurrected Lord. Jesus pronounced a spe-cial blessing on those who believe without having Thomas’ privilege(1Pe 1:8,9).

20:30,31 These verses constitute the goal and purpose for whichJohn wrote the gospel (see Introduction: Background and Setting).

21:1-25 The epilogue or appendix of John’s gospel. While20:30,31 constitute the conclusion of the body of the fourth gospel,the information here at the end of his work provides a balance to hisprologue in 1:1-18. The epilogue essentially ties up 5 loose ends thatwere unanswered in chap. 20. 1) Will Jesus no longer directly pro-vide for His own (cf. 20:17)? This question is answered in vv. 1-14. 2) What happened to Peter? Peter had denied Christ 3 times andfled. The last time Peter was seen was in 20:6-8 where both he andJohn saw the empty tomb but only John believed (20:8). This ques-tion is answered in vv. 15-17. 3) What about the future of the disci-ples now that they are without their Master? This question is an-swered in vv. 18,19. 4) Was John going to die? Jesus answers thisquestion in vv. 20-23. 5) Why weren’t other things that Jesus didrecorded by John? John gives the answer to that in vv. 24,25.

21:1 Sea of Tiberias. An alternate name for the Sea of Galilee,found only in John (see 6:1).

21:2 Simon Peter. In all lists of the apostles, he is named first, in-dicating his general leadership of the group (e.g., Mt 10:2).

21:3 I am going fishing. The most reasonable explanation forPeter and the others to go to Galilee in order to fish was that they

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3 a Lk 5:54 a Lk 24:16; Jn 20:145 1 Lit something eaten

with bread a Lk 24:416 a Lk 5:4ff7 a Jn 13:23; 21:208 1 Lit 200 cubits9 a Jn 18:18 b Jn 6:9,

11; 21:10, 1310 a Jn 6:9, 11; 21:9,

1312 a Jn 21:15

13 a Jn 21:9 b Jn 6:9,11; 21:9, 10

14 1 Or made Himselfvisible a Jn 20:19, 26

15 1 Gr agapao 2 Grphileo a Jn 21:12 b Mt26:33; Mk 14:29; Jn13:37 c Lk 12:32

16 1 Gr agapao 2 Grphileo a Mt 2:6; Ac20:28; 1Pe 5:2; Rev7:17

17 1 Gr phileo a Jn13:38 b Jn 16:30 c Jn21:15, 16

19 a Jn 12:33; 18:32b 2Pe 1:14

to question Him, “Who are You?” knowingthat it was the Lord. 13 Jesus *came and*took a the bread and *gave it to them, andthe b fish likewise. 14 This is now the a thirdtime that Jesus 1 was manifested to the dis-ciples, after He was raised from the dead.

Christ Speaks to Peter15 So when they had a finished breakfast,

Jesus *said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son ofJohn, do you 1 b love Me more than these?”He *said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know thatI 2 love You.” He *said to him, “Tend c Mylambs.” 16 He *said to him again a secondtime, “Simon, son of John, do you 1 loveMe?” He *said to Him, “Yes, Lord; Youknow that I 2 love You.” He *said to him,“a Shepherd My sheep.” 17 He *said to himthe third time, “Simon, son of John, do you1 love Me?” Peter was grieved because Hesaid to him a the third time, “Do you 1 loveMe?” And he said to Him, “Lord, b Youknow all things; You know that I 1 loveYou.” Jesus *said to him, “c Tend My sheep.18 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you wereyounger, you used to gird yourself andwalk wherever you wished; but when yougrow old, you will stretch out your handsand someone else will gird you, and bringyou where you do not wish to go.” 19 Nowthis He *said, a signifying by b what kind of

out and got into the boat; and a that nightthey caught nothing.

4 But when the day was now breaking,Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciplesdid not a know that it was Jesus. 5 So Jesus*said to them, “Children, a you do not have1 any fish, do you?” They answered Him,“No.” 6 And He said to them, “a Cast thenet on the right-hand side of the boat andyou will find a catch.” So they cast, andthen they were not able to haul it in be-cause of the great number of fish. 7 a There-fore that disciple whom Jesus loved *saidto Peter, “It is the Lord.” So when SimonPeter heard that it was the Lord, he put hisouter garment on (for he was stripped forwork), and threw himself into the sea. 8 Butthe other disciples came in the little boat,for they were not far from the land, butabout 1 one hundred yards away, draggingthe net full of fish.

9 So when they got out on the land, they*saw a charcoal a fire already laid and b fishplaced on it, and bread. 10 Jesus *said tothem, “Bring some of the a fish which youhave now caught.” 11 Simon Peter went upand drew the net to land, full of large fish,a hundred and fifty-three; and althoughthere were so many, the net was not torn.12 Jesus *said to them, “Come and havea breakfast.” None of the disciples ventured

went in obedience to the Lord’s command to meet Him in Galilee(Mt 28:16). Peter and the others occupied themselves with fishing,which was their former livelihood, while they awaited Jesus’ appear-ance.

21:4 This could be another instance in which the Lord kept Hisdisciples from recognizing Him (20:14,15; cf. Lk 24:16).

21:7 that disciple whom Jesus loved. John immediately recog-nized that the stranger was the risen Lord, for only He had such su-pernatural knowledge and power (v. 6). Peter impulsively jumped inand headed to see the Lord.

21:9 fish . . . and bread. Apparently, the Lord created this break-fast as He had created food for the multitudes (6:1-13).

21:11 a hundred and fifty-three. John’s recording of the precisenumber reinforces the fact that he was an eyewitness author of theevents he recorded (1Jn 1:1-4). Jesus’ action here in providing thefish also indicated that He would still provide for His disciples’ needs(see Php 4:19; Mt 6:25-33).

21:14 the third time. The reference to the “third time” refersonly to the appearances reported in John’s gospel, i.e., the firstbeing in 20:19-23 and the second in 20:26-29.

21:15-17 The meaning of this section hinges upon the usage oftwo synonyms for love. In terms of interpretation, when two syn-onyms are placed in close proximity in context, a difference inmeaning, however slight, is emphasized. When Jesus asked Peter ifhe loved Him, He used a word for love that signified total commit-ment. Peter responded with a word for love that signified his lovefor Jesus, but not necessarily his total commitment. This was not be-cause he was reluctant to express that greater love, but because hehad been disobedient and denied the Lord in the past. He was, per-haps, now reluctant to make a claim of supreme devotion when, inthe past, his life did not support such a claim. Jesus pressed home to

Peter the need for unswerving devotion by repeatedly asking Peterif he loved Him supremely. The essential message here is that Jesusdemands total commitment from His followers. Their love for Himmust place Him above their love for all else. Jesus confronted Peterwith love because He wanted Peter to lead the apostles (Mt 16:18),but in order for Peter to be an effective shepherd, his overwhelmingdrive must exemplify supreme love for his Lord.

21:15 more than these? This probably refers to the fish (v. 11)representing Peter’s profession as a fisherman, for he had gone backto it while waiting for Jesus (see v. 3). Jesus wanted Peter to loveHim so supremely as to forsake all that he was familiar with and beexclusively devoted to being a fisher of men (Mt 4:19). The phrasemay refer to the other disciples, since Peter had claimed he wouldbe more devoted than all the others (Mt 26:33). Tend My lambs.The word “tend” conveys the idea of being devoted to the Lord’sservice as an undershepherd who cares for His flock (see 1Pe 5:1-4).The word has the idea of constantly feeding and nourishing thesheep. This served as a reminder that the primary duty of the mes-senger of Jesus Christ is to teach the Word of God (2Ti 4:2). Acts1–12 records Peter’s obedience to this commission.

21:17 Peter was grieved. The third time Jesus asked Peter, Heused Peter’s word for love that signified something less than totaldevotion, questioning even that level of love Peter thought he wassafe in claiming (see note on vv. 15-17). The lessons driven home toPeter grieved his heart, so that he sought for a proper understand-ing of his heart, not by what he said or had done, but based on theLord’s omniscience (cf. 2:24,25).

21:18,19 A prophecy of Peter’s martyrdom. Jesus’ call of devotionto Him would also mean that Peter’s devotion would entail his owndeath (Mt 10:37-39). Whenever any Christian follows Christ, he mustbe prepared to suffer and die (Mt 16:24-26). Peter lived 3 decades

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19 c Mt 8:22; 16:24; Jn21:22

20 a Jn 21:7 b Jn 13:2522 a Mt 16:27f; 1Co

4:5; 11:26; Jas 5:7;Rev 2:25 b Mt 8:22;16:24; Jn 21:19

23 a Ac 1:15

b Mt 16:27f; 1Co 4:5;11:26; Jas 5:7; Rev2:25

24 a Jn 15:2725 a Jn 20:30

would not die; yet Jesus did not say tohim that he would not die, but only, “If Iwant him to remain b until I come, what isthat to you?”

The Conclusion of John’s Gospel24 This is the disciple who a is testifying

to these things and wrote these things, andwe know that his testimony is true.

25 And there are also a many other thingswhich Jesus did, which if they *were writ-ten in detail, I suppose that even the worlditself *would not contain the books that*would be written.

death he would glorify God. And when Hehad spoken this, He said to him, “c FollowMe!”

20 Peter, turning around, *saw the a dis-ciple whom Jesus loved following them;the one who also had b leaned back on Hisbosom at the supper and said, “Lord,who is the one who betrays You?” 21 SoPeter seeing him *said to Jesus, “Lord,and what about this man?” 22 Jesus *saidto him, “If I want him to remain a until Icome, what is that to you? You b followMe!” 23 Therefore this saying went outamong a the brethren that that disciple

serving the Lord and anticipating the death that was before him (2Pe1:12-15), but he wrote that such suffering and death for the Lordbrings praise to God (1Pe 4:14-16). Church tradition records that Petersuffered martyrdom under Nero (ca. A.D. 67–68), being crucified up-side down, because he refused to be crucified like his Lord.

21:20-22 Jesus’ prophecy regarding Peter’s martyrdom prompt-ed Peter to ask what would happen to John (“the disciple whomJesus loved”—see 13:23). He may have asked this because of hisdeep concern for John’s future, since he was an intimate friend.Jesus’ reply, “You follow Me,” signified that his primary concernmust not be John but his continued devotion to the Lord and Hisservice, i.e., Christ’s service must be his all-consuming passion andnothing must detract from it.

21:22,23 until I come. Jesus’ hypothetical statement for empha-sis was that, if John lived until His second coming, it was none ofPeter’s concern. He needed to live his own life in faithfulness, notcompare it with any other.

21:24 the disciple who is testifying. John is a personal witnessof the truth of the events that he recorded. The “we” most likely isan editorial device referring only to John (see 1:14; 1Jn 1:1-4; 3Jn12), or it may include the collective witness of his apostolic col-leagues.

21:25 John explained that he had been selective rather than ex-haustive in his testimony. Although selective, the truth revealed inJohn’s gospel is sufficient to bring anyone to faith in the Messiahand Son of God (14:26; 16:13).

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