Chapter 1

(Verses 1 through 5) "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made. In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not."

A great deal in this text is dependent upon one Greek word, "Logos," which appears three times in the first verse, and is translated "Word." It comes from the Greek verb, "lego," and has many meanings. Its original and basic meaning was "a collecting, or a collection." In John's usage of it here, its most widely accepted meaning seems to be "the essential word of God, i. e. the personal (hypostatic) wisdom and power in union with God, His Minister in the creation and government of the universe, the cause of all the world's life both physical and ethical, Which for the procurement of man's salvation put on human nature in the Person of Jesus the Messiah and shone forth conspicuously from His words and deeds." (THAYER'S GREEK-ENGLISH LEXICON OF THE NEW TESTAMENT)

Now with this definition of "Word," one should have little difficulty understanding this text. God's very Being and power were with Him in the beginning; and He is One with His Being and power. It was also by this Being and power that he created, or made, all things. In fact this Word of God is the very Essence of God. So in Him, and in Him alone, was, and is, life. All that has life has it as a gift from Him, and not of itself. This life was, and is, the light of men, whether physical, mental, or spiritual. There is no other source of light. "And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not." Since the life that was in Him is the light of men, it is obvious that wherever this life is present, there is light; and where it is absent, there is darkness. Therefore outside of Him the whole world is darkness. Since this life which is in Him is light, it shines forth into this world which is darkness; "and the darkness comprehended it not." We commonly consider "comprehend," as a synonym for "understand," and that is one of the meanings of the Greek verb which is used here. But, in the context in which it is used it seems more fitting to consider its more basic meaning, "lay hold of," either in the sense of taking it captive, or appropriating it unto itself. The light shines when and where it will, and is never brought under the control of the darkness.

(Verses 6 through 9) "There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, Which lighteth every man that cometh into the world."

It seems that the first three verses of this quotation are taken by all readers as being simple statements, and clearly enough expressed that no one has any difficulty understanding them. The apostle declares that God sent a man named John to be a witness of this Light. The first thing he emphasizes about John is that John was not that Light, but was only a witness of It. The purpose of sending this witness was that through him, or by his testimony, all might believe. In the Greek text "men" does not occur in connection with "all," although the masculine plural of "all" is used. This is of little consequence, because when the phrase, "all men," is used in scripture, it seldom, if ever, means every individual in the world, as some like to claim. Its usual meaning is, "men of every race," or "of every class." Those who would in this particular instance insist that it included every person in the world, would be immediately faced with the fact that, if that were true, God's purpose was an abject failure, which IT CERTAINLY WAS NOT. Later, we shall find Jesus Himself explaining what the purpose, or will, of God is; and declaring that it will be accomplished, without failure. In verse 9 John says, "That was the true Light, Which lighteth every man that cometh into the world." He has already declared that, that life which is in the Word of God, is the light of men. Now he emphasizes that, that same Life is the true Light; and that this very Life, or light, (and at this point they are interchangeable,) is the light of every man that cometh into the world." Every person who ever has, or ever will, come into this world receives whatever light he has, from this same Light, whether that light be the physical light which enables him to see objects and people around him, the light of reason which enables men to reach various heights of achievement in natural things, or that wonderful spiritual light by which we are able to see Jesus as "the Christ, the Son of the living God." If there be any other kind of true light, He is also the source of it.

(Verses 10 through 13) "He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. He came unto His own, and His own received Him not. But to as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God."

People seem to have a tendency to break up this text, and separate the parts thereof, thus destroying its continuity, and making all manner of strange meanings for it. Verses 10 and 11 are identical in meaning, but said in slightly different words. Let us reverse the order of the two verses to show their interaction. "He came unto His own, and His own received Him not. He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not." The most common interpretation of verse 11 is, "He came to the Jews, and they rejected Him." There is not a Jew mentioned in the text. What He came unto is "His own," that is, the world and its fullness which He had made, and which belonged to him. The neuter plural of the Greek word, "idios," meaning "His own," is used at this point; and since verse 10 declares "He was in the world, and the world was made by Him," there can be no doubt that "His own," to which He came, is the world. Then in verse 11, we are told, “and His own received Him not." In this clause, the masculine plural of "idios" is used, which just as clearly refers not to the Jews, but to "the people in the world," whether Jews or Gentiles: for the last clause of verse 10 says, "And the world knew Him not." Clearly the meaning is the people of the world, not the rocks, rivers, trees, etc. Since the people of the world, whether Jews or Gentiles, do not, and cannot, know Him except by a direct revelation of God, (See Matthew 11:27 , Matthew 16:17 , and Luke 10:22.) they did not receive Him; and this is just as true of Gentiles as of Jews. All, with the exception of those to whom He was revealed, turned away from Him, because they did not know Him. In verses 12 and 13 we have the other side of the matter. Although, in general, the world did not receive Him, yet those who did, come into consideration. They are described, and we are told what was given to them. "But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the children of God, to them that believe on His name. Obviously, no one at this late date can know why those who made the King James Version translation of this, changed "children" to "sons" in this text. The Greek text clearly has "tekna," which can only mean "children," and not "huioi," which would be "sons." Since there is no chronological order given in this verse, and this verse is not a complete sentence, we must depend upon the remainder of the sentence for the chronology. The remainder of it says, "who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." It is clear that those in verse 13 are identical with those in verse 12. An axiom of mathematics will certainly apply here also: "Equals may be substituted for equals." So let us substitute thus, "But as many as were born of God, to them He gave power to become the children of God, to them that believe on His name." We all know that he that is born of one is the child of that one; and the birth is the power by which one "becomes the child." So the chronological order is established thus: He enabled them to be born of God, thus becoming children of God, the result of which is that they believed on His name, and received Him. Neither their receiving Him, in the sense of this text, which really amounts to "welcoming Him," nor their believing on His name had anything to do with their being born of God, and thus becoming children of God. But both are the result of that birth, and are the identification of the children of God. They do not receive this by blood lineage, nor by the will of the flesh, nor by the will of man. All is by the power of that Life and Light which are in the Word of God, the very Essence of God.

(Verse 14) "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."

John does not give any account of the birth of Jesus. Matthew and Luke take care of that matter; but John thoroughly agrees with them that this One, Whom  he calls the Word, and later identifies as, Jesus the Christ, is the fleshly body which "was made flesh, and dwelt among us." While this Word, thus embodied, dwelt among them, they saw His glory. No doubt all His disciples saw His glory as it was manifested in His works and teachings; but John, together with James and Peter, saw His glory in a special manner when He was transfigured before them on the mountain. He declares that glory to be "the glory as of the only begotten of the Father;" and indeed it was, since He is the only begotten Son of God. All the other children of God are His children by "the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will," which we also call being born of the Spirit. It is the miracle of spiritual birth, but Jesus was the Son of God by natural birth. This Word that was made flesh was full of grace and truth. In Him there was neither falsehood nor deceit.

(Verses 15 through 18) "John bare witness of Him, and cried, saying, This is He of Whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for He was before me. And of His fullness have all we received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, Which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him."

We often hear men take some verse, or even a fragment of a verse from what has been set forth from verse 1 of this chapter through the present text, and try to use it, as independent of the remainder, for a text. This can only result in, at best, a very limited view of the subject matter. Certainly we have broken it into segments to attempt a clearer focus upon each part, but they should all be viewed as a single, very short, record of One Person, Jesus, the Christ, the only begotten Son of God. It begins with the Word of God, who is indeed God himself, as He was in the beginning, (as He was in eternity before the world began,) then as He was in the world, but not recognized by it, which is also the time in which He was made flesh and dwelt among men. Now the Apostle John tells us the testimony of John the Baptist: "This is He of Whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for He was before me." We often see men who, having begun a work, are set aside and their places given to others. When they are thus served, they often will be bitter and jealous against those who replace them. (We are not, in any wise, saying that John the Baptist came to save sinners, and was replaced by Jesus. That work was never started, carried on, or finished by anyone other than Our Lord Jesus the Christ Himself; but John came preaching, "Repent ye: for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand;" and Jesus also preached the same message, and more came to Him than to John. See John 4:1-2.) The success of Jesus did not embitter John, nor cause him to be jealous. His testimony was, "He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for He was before me."

Chronologically the ministry of John started before that of our Lord, thus making Jesus "come after" John; but Jesus is "preferred before," or placed in higher honor, than John, because He was before John. As the Word of God He was in eternity before not only John, but even the world itself; and as God He was of infinitely greater honor than John. So He is preferred before John.

Now the Apostle John adds his testimony to that of John the Baptist:  "And of His fullness have all we received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." He has already declared, in verse 14, that this Word Who "was made flesh, and dwelt among us," was "full of grace and truth." Since we have received of His fullness, we must have received grace and truth. He has shed upon us His grace and truth, to which all the other New Testament writers bear witness. Not only so, but we have received "grace for grace." "Grace" is a short word, but in the dictionary one can find a half column of definitions for it; but since we here are, obviously, concerned with the grace of God, only those that bear upon it need to be considered. Thus grace is "the love and favor of God; divine influence renewing the heart and restraining from sin; a state of reconciliation to God; virtuous or religious affection or disposition proceeding from divine influence; mercy; pardon; a favor conferred." The Greek word "Charis," used here, carries the idea of "kindness, which bestows upon one what he has not deserved." The phrase, "grace for grace," indicates clearly that the grace given us was given simply because of God's own kindness and His will to bestow it upon us in spite of our unworthiness. "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." All readers of the Bible are well aware that the law was given by Moses, not that He originated it, but that he was chosen to deliver it to Israel . As we read the history of God's dealing with Israel, we see that it was by God's grace that he made choice of Israel, delivered them out of Egypt, gave them His laws, and brought them to the promised land. But so far as the law itself was concerned, there was no grace in it. Its promises were based upon "If ye will obey My voice Indeed." Any failure carried a penalty, and required a sacrifice. Now in Jesus, the Word that was made flesh and dwelt among men has come "full of grace and truth." He is the source of all grace and truth; and we have received of His fullness.

Verse 18 may seem to some a contradiction of things in the Old Testament. One thing to which they point is Genesis 18:1-33, the account of God's appearing to Abraham before the destruction of Sodom . In that account Abraham did not see God as he is in His glory and power; but only three men. This can also be said of all the other Theophanies recorded in the Old Testament. Even Moses was denied the privilege of seeing the face of God. See Exodus 33:9-23. Verse 11 of that excerpt means only that God's speaking to Moses was with the familiarity of friends speaking face to face; not that Moses saw His face. If otherwise, the remainder of that chapter is totally moot. So "no man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, Which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him." Again John bears witness that Jesus is the "only begotten Son" of the Father, and that, as such He has declared the Father to us. The clause, "Which is in the bosom of the Father," may be considered in at least three different ways. First, since God is eternal, it is always proper to use the present tense in speaking of Him. And as the Word was with God in the beginning, is now, and will be when this world shall be no more, it is correct to say that the Son is in the bosom of the Father. Second, inasmuch as at the time of John's writing Jesus had already returned to the Father, He "is in the bosom of the Father." The third consideration is that John may have been speaking of that close relationship of Father and Son, which was Theirs: for several times Jesus declared, "I and My Father are One." Either, or all three, of these considerations will fit the context.

In verses 19 through 28 John tells of the answer of John the Baptist to the priests and Levites who came out to see and hear him that they might report back to the council of priests and elders in Jerusalem who would then decide whether or not, according to their judgment, he had the right to preach and baptize as he was doing. The Apostle John makes no mention of the rebuke John the Baptist spoke to the Pharisees and Sadducees, (see Matthew 3:7-10,) but deals more with his answer to their questions. Apparently their first question was whether or not he were the Christ, though John phrases it simply, "Who art thou?" but "he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ." Their next question was, "Are you Elijah?" The significance of this question is that, according to the prophet Malachi, Elijah must come before the coming of the Messiah, or the Christ. He rendered a negative answer to this question also, as well as to the next one, which may actually have been a series of questions. For John's wording of it, "Art thou that prophet?" seems to indicate a possibility of their naming one prophet after another; and, if so, he denied them all. They seem to have been somewhat frustrated by this time, so they asked, "Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?" His answer to this was, "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias." Though Matthew mentions Pharisees and Sadducees, John says these were Pharisees who were doing all this questioning. They evidently were not satisfied with the answers they had received: for they tried a final question, "Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?" It is noteworthy that John the Baptist did not answer this question until the next day. Whether or not these Pharisees were still present to hear the answer is not indicated. His immediate response to them was really not an answer to their question. "I baptize with water: but there standeth One among you, Whom ye know not; He it is, Who coming after me is preferred before me, Whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose." We were already informed in verse 15 that He of whom John the Baptist here spoke is the Word, who "was made flesh, and dwelt among us." This encounter took place in Bethabara, which is on the opposite side of Jordan from Jerusalem . Since Jordan is where John was baptizing, it seems that he had, for a little while, retired from the river to the village of Bethabara; or the name of the village may have been given only to show the approximate, and not the exact, location.

(Verses 29 through 34) "The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God Which taketh away the sin of the world. This is He of Whom I said, after me cometh a man Which is preferred before me: for He was before me. And I knew Him not: but that He should be made manifest to Israel , therefore am I come baptizing with water. And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and It abode upon Him. and I knew Him not: but He that sent me to baptize with water, the Same said unto me, Upon Whom thou seest the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, the same is He which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw and bare record that This is the Son of God."

There is little need for explanation of this text. John's expression, "Behold the Lamb of God Which taketh away the sin of the world," is, no doubt as welcome to the believers of today as it was to the believers who were in the crowd of people who heard John say it. "Behold," though it does mean "see," is often used to call special attention to that which is to follow, thus indicating that what follows is of great importance. In this instance, it calls attention to the "Lamb of God," the One, Who takes away the sin of the world. The Jews were well acquainted with lambs, which were offered for sin; but they thought this was only for Israel , not for the world. Also the lambs they offered only made a memorial of their sins, and never did, or could, take them away. Here is the Lamb God has purposed, and sent into the world to TAKE AWAY sin, not only for the Jews, but this sacrifice will reach men of every nation and race in the world. This is not to be taken to mean that He is going to take away the sin of each and every person in the world; but that He will reach people from every kindred, tongue, nation, and tribe in the whole world. Verse 30 is a repetition of John's declaration of verse 15, which we have already discussed. In verses 31 through 33 John the Baptist tells us that he was commissioned to come baptizing with water for the purpose of identifying to the world Him, Who would baptize with the Holy Ghost. The sign by which he was to recognize Him is that he would see the Spirit of God "descending and remaining on Him." John makes no mention of the voice from heaven, which is recorded by all three of the other gospel writers. Nevertheless John the Baptist's testimony is closed thus: "And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God."

Verses 35 through 42 tell of the calling of Andrew and Simon as Jesus' disciples. This account seems to be somewhat different from those of the other three writers; but it may be that this took place before the incident recorded by the others. If John's timing is to be followed exactly, it appears that this took place before Jesus went into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil, (though some of the details seem to place it later,) while that recorded by the others was definitely later. According to John's account, on the day after John the Baptist made his declaration, Jesus walked by where John was standing with two of his disciples, one of whom was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter. At this time John said of Jesus, "Behold the Lamb of God!" whereupon the two disciples followed Jesus. There is nothing difficult to be understood in the remainder of that incident.

(Verses 38 through 42) "Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto Him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest Thou? He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where He dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour. One of the two which heard John speak, and followed Him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ. And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, He said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, a stone."

Though this needs no explanation, it may be profitable to notice a point or two about it. The first thing we wish to bring to mind is that Jesus at one time told one man who volunteered to follow Him, "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the son of man hath not where to lay His head." This does not contradict verses 38 and 39 of the above text: for one must remember that, at Bethabara He was a long way from what we would call His home territory, which was in the area around Nazareth of Galilee. So here He was either temporarily staying in the home of a friend, or, as some often did, He was making camp in the shade of a tree or a rock projection, and most likely the latter. The next thing we notice is that immediately after staying the remainder of the day with Jesus, Andrew went, found his brother Simon, told him that they had found the Christ, and brought him to Jesus. This sounds as if it all took place in a matter of a few minutes, or, at most, a few hours, and it may have; but only if Simon also had come down to hear John, and observe his baptism. For nothing is said about his being a disciple of John. If he was still up on the Sea of Galilee casting his nets, it could have taken a few days: for even by a straight line, he could have been sixty or seventy miles away. Nevertheless when Andrew did find him, he brought him to Jesus. When Jesus saw Simon He addressed him as "Simon the son of Jona." We later find Him calling him "Simon Bar-jona," which is identical to that, since "Bar" means "son," or "son of." The name "Cephas" also means the same as "Peter," a stone. We cannot be exactly sure at what point the temptations of Jesus, as recorded by Matthew and Luke, and mentioned by Mark, should be inserted in this account: for John omits them entirely.

The remainder of this chapter records the calling of Philip and Nathanael. Nathanael, possibly, is the same as he whom the other three writers call Bartholomew. Here John's timing must be laid aside: for if we follow it exactly, this would be only the second day from John the Baptist's announcement in verses 29 through 34. And this is not sufficient time for what has already been said and for Jesus to get back to Bethsaida of Galilee, without traveling in some miraculous manner, which, if He had, would certainly have been mentioned in the record. In Galilee, and apparently at Bethsaida , Jesus found Philip who was of that city, as were also Simon and Andrew. Jesus said to Philip, "Follow Me." John does not tell us whether Philip followed Jesus for a time, and thereby became convinced of His identity, or whether just Jesus' speaking to him convinced him so that he went immediately in search of Nathanael, probably, the latter. Be that as it may, when He found Nathanael he said to him, "We have found Him, of Whom Moses in the law, and all the prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." Deuteronomy 18:15 says, "The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto Him ye shall hearken." And though John the Baptist said, in verse 34 of this chapter, "And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God," the general idea of all the Jews was that this Prophet would be only a man, as was Moses. Philip still thought like the other Jews, and therefore called Him, "the son of Joseph." Nathanael must have had the same opinion of Nazareth that some of us have about some places we have known; for his answer was, "Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth" This, at least, shows how important Nathanael thought Nazareth to be. Philip persuaded him to check this matter out by coming to see for himself. Here we pick up the conversation between Jesus and Nathanael.

(Verses 47 through 51) "Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile! Nathanael saith unto Him, Whence knowest Thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee. Nathanael answered and said unto Him, Rabbi, Thou art the Son of God; Thou art the King of Israel. Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these. and He saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the son of man."

For the greater part, this seems clear enough. However as we read verse 47 and Nathanael's question to Jesus in verse 48, we might wonder, "Is Jesus speaking of Nathanael as he is, or as he thinks himself to be?" His earlier question to Philip, together with the present one to Jesus make us think that Nathanael considered himself as "an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile." When Jesus said this about him, his answering question is the equivalent of, "Yes, that is what I am; but how did you know?" It seemingly indicates a little arrogance in Nathanael; but all of that quickly left him, when Jesus said, "Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee." At this point Nathanael made a confession of faith equal to that of John the Baptist, "Rabbi, Thou art the Son of God; Thou art the King of Israel." Philip had only told him that they had found the prophet, the son of Joseph; but Nathanael could not stop with that. He was convinced that He is the Son of God, the King of Israel.  Jesus' next question to Nathanael in answer to this is, no doubt, written for our learning as much as for that of Nathanael: "Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou?" That answer, of itself, would never have had the effect upon Nathanael that is here so quickly and strongly manifested. He was changed from a somewhat arrogant, self-righteous skeptic, to an humble believer, not just believing that this is that prophet for whom he and the other Jews were looking, but that This is the Son of God. The fact that this answer was spoken by Jesus, no doubt, did make this change in him: for as He says in another place, "The words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit and they are life." Jesus further declared to him that he would see greater things than this. Some of the things that not only he, but the other disciples as well, would see, inasmuch as He changes His address from the singular to the plural, are "Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man." This is a promise, which many today try to "spiritualize" and water down so that it does not even resemble what Jesus said; but He prefaced it with, "Verily, verily, I say unto you," and this binds it as a promise, which cannot be broken nor changed. The Greek word, "epi," translated "upon," in the last phrase of this promise, is one of the most versatile words in the Greek language. Its meaning in the present text, no doubt, is "before," or "in the presence of." The fact that there is no recording of such an event witnessed by the disciples does not prove that it did not take place. See John 21:25. It may be that it will not take place until Jesus returns, descending in the air, and sending His angels to gather his elect from the four corners of the earth, from one end of heaven to the other.

The first eleven verses of this chapter tell of the "beginning of miracles" wrought by Jesus in His earthly ministry. The only thing in this text that might require explanation is verse 4; and an incorrect translation is what causes the confusion in it. Our King James translation says, "Jesus saith unto her, `Woman, what have I to do with thee? Mine hour is not yet come.'" All is properly translated except the question, which literally translated is, "What to Me and to you, woman?" With the addition of two words, this becomes completely clear, thus: "What (is that) to Me and to you, woman?" Verse 2 makes it clear that Jesus was there as a guest only, "And both Jesus was called, (invited,) and His disciples." As a guest, it was not His concern whether they had wine or not; and neither was it any of His mother's business. His statement, "Mine hour is not yet come," simply means, "My ministry of working miracles has not yet begun." The remainder of this account is as clear as it can be made. He did tell the servants to fill the water pots with water, which at His command they drew out, and carried to the governor of the feast. When he had tasted the wine, and found it better than what they had been drinking, he called it to the attention of the bridegroom. While one surely can draw some very beautiful spiritual lessons from this incident, the event itself is a very simple matter. This is the first recorded miracle of our Lord. It took place in Cana of Galilee; and after this, Jesus, together with his mother, His brothers, and His disciples, went to Capernaum , and stayed there a few days. Since the Passover was soon to be celebrated, He went to Jerusalem .

(Verses 14 through 17) "And He found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: and when He had made a scourge of small cords, He drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; and said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not My Father's house an house of merchandise. And His disciples remembered that it is written, The zeal of Thine house hath eaten Me up."

As with the other writers' accounts, the record of this incident is clear enough as it is. Yet a few words concerning those whom Jesus drove out of the temple may be in order. The temple was the only place in the world where it was lawful for a Jew to offer a sacrifice to God. So it was necessary that one desiring to make an offering come to the temple, no matter where he might live. Thus when the distance was too great for one to carry his animal for sacrifice, he would sell his animal, take the proceeds of the sale with him to Jerusalem and the temple. In the temple he would find men who kept animals for this purpose nearby the temple, and, apparently, according to verse 15, even in the temple itself, or, at least, in the court of the temple. From these he could buy a sacrificial animal, usually at inflated prices; but since these animals were all that were available, he had no choice.  The shekel of the sanctuary was the only currency recognized as "lawful" for an offering, or for buying a sacrificial animal. Therefore if one who lived in a foreign country came to make an offering, he first had to exchange his money for "lawful currency" before buying an animal for sacrifice. The moneychangers would take care of this for him, at a rate tilted in their favor. There were also those who sold doves to those who needed them for certain offerings; and they kept their booths in the temple. All of these are the ones Jesus drove out of the temple with the whip He had made of small cords. This action caused His disciples to remember that this had been prophesied long before.

(Verses 18 through 22) "Then answered the Jews and said unto Him, What sign shewest Thou unto us, seeing Thou doest these things? Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt Thou rear it up in three days? But He spake of the temple of His body. When therefore He was risen from the dead His disciples remembered that He had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said."

Although John only says, "Jews," we can be sure from what the other writers say, that the chief priests and elders were the ones who asked for a sign to justify what Jesus had done. The only sign He would give them is the one He also gave them on other occasions, and called it "the sign of the prophet Jonas," though He does not here mention Jonas. That sign is His death and resurrection. From verse 22 we would have to conclude that, even His disciples did not understand or believe His declaration of this sign; but were brought to believe it only after it came to pass.

(Verses 23 through 25) "Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, in the feast day, many believed in His name when they saw the miracles which He did. But Jesus did not commit Himself unto them, because He knew all men, and needed not that any should testify of man: for He knew what was in man."

Though John does not record any of the miracles wrought by Jesus at this Passover feast, he does say that as they saw these miracles, many believed in His name. The name in which they believed is "Jesus," or rather the Hebrew name, which, after passing through the Greek into English, is "Jesus." That name is "Yeshua," or Joshua," and means, "the help of God," and is often rendered, "Saviour." Reference may also be had to His name "Emmanuel," which Matthew tells us means, "God with us." In verse 24, the phrase which, is translated, "commit Himself," means "have confidence in." So with this change, verses 24 and 25 read, "But Jesus did not have confidence in them, because He knew all men, and needed not that any should testify of man: for He knew what was in man." We may, because of our lack of wisdom, often be fooled by people. But not so with our Lord Jesus: for He knows their secret thoughts.

(Verses 1 through 3) "There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: the same came to Jesus by night, and said unto Him, Rabbi, we know Thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do the miracles Thou doest, except God be with Him. Jesus answered and said, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God ."

This man, Nicodemus, was a prominent member of the Sanhedrin and thus a "ruler," of the Jews, not a political ruler, or governor. This man came to Jesus by night, because he was ashamed for others to know that he, a religious leader, would visit Jesus, or because he feared his colleagues in the Sanhedrin. He, at this time, had no thought that Jesus was anything more than a man who had been blessed with the power of doing miracles, which no man could, or can, do without God's being with him. It had not entered his mind that Jesus is the Son of God. There seems to be a note of that Pharisee arrogance in his manner when he addressed Jesus. His statement seems almost equivalent to saying, "We have you catalogued.  You are a teacher God has sent, or you could not do these miracles." One can almost feel that, had Jesus not answered him as He did, the next thing Nicodemus would have said, is, "We of the Sanhedrin are the custodians of the things of God. So we want to know what is your mission here." Whether or not that would have been said, we will never know; for Jesus answered him with these words, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God .” Although Nicodemus thought himself to be highly learned in the things of God, Jesus, in effect, told him, "You cannot even see the kingdom of God : because to do so, one must be born again."

(Verses 4 through 8) "Nicodemus saith unto Him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God . That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou canst hear the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit."

Paul, John, and Peter, all mention our being born of God, or of the Spirit, or of an incorruptible seed, but this is the first, and most comprehensive teaching concerning it, and, very fittingly, it was done by our Lord himself. Nicodemus' questions appear to have the force of complete denial of what Jesus had said. It is impossible for an adult to go back through the process of natural birth; but Jesus explained that even if that were possible, it would be of no value. He first declared very solemnly that, “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God ." At this point many get the idea that when He says, "born of water," He means "be baptized in water." However a little closer examination of what He says in verse 6 will dispel that thought. By extending the same logic He uses when He says, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit," we are forced to the conclusion that, "That which is born of water is water." And this would certainly have no effect upon one's entering into the kingdom of God . What then is His meaning of the phrase, "born of water?" We believe that the answer is given by Jesus Himself, "In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this He spake of the spirit Which they that should believe on Him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)" (John 7:37-39). Inasmuch as He said, "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God ," it is evident that "water" in this matter is as essential as "Spirit." In the quotation from Chapter 7 He declares that anyone who thirsts may come to Him, and drink, and those who believe in Him shall have rivers of living water flow from them. Though we shall defer further discussion of this text until its proper sequence, it seems evident that this "living water" is the water of which He spoke in His statement to Nicodemus. Verse 6 is a clear declaration that nothing can by birth rise up, and be of a higher realm than that of which it is born.

In verses 7 and 8 Jesus cautions Nicodemus against becoming overawed by what he has just heard, and gives him an illustration of how it is with those who are born of the Spirit. "The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit."

We should examine this illustration very carefully. The first thing to notice is that when He says, "The wind bloweth where it listeth," (or where it will,) He does not mean that it has a mind of its own, and is not subject to the control of God; but only that we have no control over it. Another point we should consider concerning the wind is that it blows with varying intensity; sometimes so lightly that it will hardly move a feather, and at others with sufficient strength to destroy forests and buildings. Yet it is the same wind, and under the control of the same power, God. Sometimes people try to make something of the next statement, which is not there. When he says, "Thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth," some try to interpret it to mean that, since we can not tell where the wind comes from, and where it goes, He is teaching that we have no means of distinguishing between those who are born of the Spirit and those who are not. Although this question is not even introduced by our Lord, we call attention to the fact that he did not say that we can not tell from which direction the wind is blowing, and which direction it is going; but only that we cannot determine its exact source and destination. So we also can tell by the movement of those upon whom the Spirit comes, that it is of the Lord. The real lesson in this is simply that just as the wind is free from our control and influence, so also is the Spirit. Those born of the spirit are so born "not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." This so astonished and confounded Nicodemus, that he said, "How can these things be?" He had never heard of such.

(Verses 10 through 13) "Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master in Israel , and knowest not these things? Verily, verily, I say unto you, we speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. If I tell you of earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man Which is in heaven."

In verse 10 the word translated "master" is "didaskalos," and in this instance would have fit the context better, had it been translated "teacher:" for the idea conveyed is, "Do you consider yourself a teacher of Israel, God's chosen people, and don't even know such simple things as this?" Then Jesus tells Nicodemus that He has only told him things that we know and have seen, and still Nicodemus does not believe the testimony. He would not receive this witness. Since the wind is an earthly thing, and its action is observed by all earthly beings, if Nicodemus is the teacher he claims to be, he should understand this. Inasmuch as he cannot understand or believe earthly things, which he sees daily, it would be entirely unprofitable to tell him of heavenly things: for surely he cannot believe them. Not only so, but the only One, Who can teach him heavenly things is He who is before him: for no one else has ascended into heaven to see those things, that he might teach them. He, Who came down from heaven, is the Son of man; and he is the only One Who has ever been in heaven; and even now, though He is on earth as "God with us," He also, as the eternal Word of God, is in heaven. So He, and He alone, is fully qualified to teach heavenly things.

(Verses 14 through 17) "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved."

Men, seemingly, like to break this up, using only a verse at a time, taken out of context, and interpreted as they please, for a text. Thus they come up with some strange ideas. In fact, even the quotation we have just taken should not be considered as separate and apart from the remainder of our Lord's speech at this time: for it ties directly with what follows. We have broken it at this point only with the understanding that the remainder is to be linked with this.

Since Jesus has declared Himself the only qualified teacher of heavenly things, He proceeds to present the gospel to Nicodemus. The first item is the foundation of it all, His death.  Without that, there would be no resurrection, and without His resurrection, there would be no justification for any one.  (Romans 4:23-25) "Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on Him That raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; Who was delivered for our offences and raised again for our justification." So it begins with His death: "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up." The serpent Moses lifted up was made in the image of the serpents, which had bitten the Israelites, but it was totally without the venom that those serpents had. Our Lord, when He was lifted up on the cross, though he was condemned by men as an impostor, a blasphemer, and every thing else that the imagination of men could devise, was totally without sin of His own: yet our sins were laid upon Him. As Isaiah said, "He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; He was despised, and we esteemed Him not." And again, "for He was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken," and, "Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him, He hath put Him to grief: when Thou shalt make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand." Paul says of Him, "He hath made Him to be sin for us, Who knew no sin." So when He was lifted up on the cross, He was as much the image of sin as was the brazen serpent on the pole the image of the serpents which had bitten the children of Israel; but as that serpent had no venom, neither did He have any sin. The sin for which He was crucified was ours, not His. Since verse 15 and the latter part of 16 are identical, we shall first discuss the earlier part of 16, and then consider these together. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son." This statement contains a word upon which men have deliberately placed a great strain. That word is "world." In the Greek language there are several words which translate into the English as "world." The one used here is "kosmos." Basically this word, when translated "world," is the same as "universe;" and, if applied to people, does not mean "every individual in the world," but rather, "inhabitants of the whole world," as opposed to those of a particular locality. Even this usage was foreign to professional authors. And, no doubt, the intention of the gospel writers in using this word was to show that the blessings procured by and emanating from the suffering, death, and resurrection of our Lord reach to the elect of God throughout the world, and not just to the Jews. This was necessary to combat the idea among the Jews that, they, and they alone, were the heirs of all the promises of God. Thus God's love was not limited to the Jews, but reached, and still reaches, into the whole world. This love of God was such that He gave His only begotten Son. Though we are "born of God," by the work of the Holy Ghost, we cannot claim to be "begotten of God" as was Jesus; but are adopted by Him. See Ephesians 1:3-5.

Now we come to the purpose of both the giving of this Son of God, and His being lifted up, as was the serpent in the wilderness. "That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." (In our K. J. V. of the scriptures, verse 16 says "everlasting life," but the Greek wording is the same in verse 16 as in 15.) Many today try to change the meaning of this to, "If they will believe in Him, they may have eternal life." This is totally unacceptable. Certainly no one can be inserted into this statement but a believer, and it covers every believer; but believing in Him is the result, and not a condition that one can fulfill to make God's purpose come to pass, or leave off, and cause God to fail in His purpose. It simply identifies those who will not perish, but have eternal life. See John 6:35-47. He here uses the present tense of the verb "believe," which surely is to be considered the "historical present." No one questions that Abel, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and many others, through the history of the world down to the time of the coming of our Lord, believed in Him. Yet, had God not given His Son according to His promise, every one of them would finally be cast into hell, just as will be Satan and his angels. Their believing would have been worth nothing, had He not come. Since He has come, they will not perish, but will have eternal life. The same can be said about every believer in every age. Our believing does not make the power of God effectual, nor does our unbelief make it of none effect. On the contrary, His power produces our faith and our believing.

In verse 17 we are told, "For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." Here we must retain the same consideration of "world" as set forth above. Jesus was not sent for condemnation or judgment upon the world at this time, but rather for the salvation of His people throughout the world. He will come for judgment of the world at a later date.

(Verses 18 through 21) "He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God."

Since God has sent His Son into this world not for condemnation, but for the salvation of His elect throughout the world, and not just the Jews, He has given us a sign for our assurance, "He that believeth on Him is not condemned." Any one who is concerned about his salvation, needs only to ask himself one question, "Do I believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God?" If an honest and truthful answer is, "Yes," he has nothing to fear: for he is not condemned. The testimony of Jesus himself is, "He that believeth on Him is not condemned." Where can we find greater comfort or assurance? When He says, "But he that believeth not is condemned already," the meaning is "He that never believes is condemned already." The one who today does not believe, may by the power of God be brought tomorrow to a strong faith in Him. So that leaves us out of any excuse for judging another. The unbelief of the unbeliever is the evidence that he is condemned already, but that is still for God to judge. The unbeliever remains an unbeliever because he is condemned already, and "has not believed in the name of the only begotten son of God." That is, since the name of God's only begotten Son is "Jesus," which means "the help of God," or "Saviour," he has never been brought to the realization that he needs a Saviour. The next question for examination is, "What condemnation, or judgment, is under consideration?" Jesus says, "And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." As Jesus said in another place, "If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloak for their sin." Until he came, the world was in darkness, and men continued on without a clear awareness of what sin is. But now He, the Light, has shined in the world; and men love the darkness better than the light: for, to their minds, it provides a cloak for their evil deeds. Those who love and practice evil deeds want to stay as far away from the light as possible, lest the light will shine upon their evil deeds and reveal them to men. On the other hand, those who work righteousness and truth are glad for the light to shine on their deeds, and reveal them as having been "wrought in God," that is, that they are in keeping with God's will and commandments.

Since no mention is made of Jesus' having gone to any new location at the beginning of this chapter, we can be reasonably sure that the conversation with Nicodemus took place in Jerusalem . After that Jesus and His disciples left Jerusalem , and went out into Judaea, evidently to the Jordan river ; because there they stayed for a while, and baptized. Verse 23 says, "And John also was baptizing in Arnon near to Salim, because there was much water there: and they came and were baptized." In the light of what follows, the clause, "And they came and were baptized," clearly refers not to Jesus and His disciples, but to the people of the area. The apostle reminds us that this was before John the Baptist was imprisoned. Some question about purifying (ceremonial purification under the law) came up between some of John's disciples and the Jews. Apparently the Jews came to John to ask his opinion of the matter. But, as often happens to all of us, they thought of something else they wanted to mention first; so they said, "Rabbi, He that was with thee beyond Jordan , to Whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to Him." We cannot surely know what their reason was for saying this, but with the reputation they had for trouble making, it may be that they hoped to stir up jealousy between John and Jesus. The remainder of this chapter is John's answer to them.

(Verses 27 through 30) "John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven. Ye yourselves bear me witness that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before Him. He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease."

John was fully aware of his mission as the forerunner of the Christ, and he reminded these people that he had already declared to them the positions of both Jesus and himself; and that this had not changed. Since no man can receive any thing except it be given him of God, he is satisfied with God's gift to him. Not only so, but, just as, at a wedding, the friend of the bridegroom rejoices at the happiness of the bridegroom, he rejoices at the growth of the ministry of Jesus: for He answers to the bridegroom, while John is the friend of the bridegroom. Therefore John's joy is fulfilled; and it is now time for his ministry to decrease while that of Jesus increases.

(Verses 31 through 34) "He that is from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: He that cometh from heaven is above all. And what He hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth His testimony. He that hath received His testimony hath set to his seal that God is true. For He Whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto Him."

John clearly maintains that Jesus is from above, it is He who has come down from heaven. Therefore He testifies of heavenly things, those He has seen and heard; but His testimony no man receives, (or takes to himself). The very next verse shows that this statement is not to be strictly construed. Instead it means that those who do receive His testimony are so few as to be considered as "no man." Yet there are some, who do receive it, and they have "set to their seal," or given their witness, that God is true; not that He needs their witness; but He does have witnesses. When one receives, or believes, the testimony of Him Whom God has sent, he bears witness that God is true; because this testimony is "the words of God." This One, Who was sent of God, will speak only the words of God: for the Spirit was not given by measure to Him; but as the Apostle Paul said, "In Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily."

(Verses 35 and 36) "The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into His hand. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him."

Not only is Jesus the Father's beloved Son in Whom He is well pleased; but to Him the Father has committed all things, and this will be the situation until all enemies are put under His feet. Death will be the last enemy destroyed. Notice the wording of verse 36, "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting (eternal) life." Some try to tell people that, if they will believe on the Son, He will give them eternal life, and this is totally incorrect: for John says that those who believe on Him already have eternal life. The other side of the picture is that "he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him." Again, this is to be understood as "he that never believes _ _ _:" for God is able to change one who is an unbeliever today into one who does believe tomorrow; but only God can do it. Neither the believer nor the unbeliever has this power. As Jesus told His disciples, "With men it is impossible; but with God all things are possible." For the Apostle Paul's view of this, see Ephesians 2:1-5.

The first incident recorded in this chapter is an encounter between Jesus and a woman of Sychar, a city of Samaria . As Jesus and His disciples passed through the area, about noon they came to a well, that had been dug by Jacob, and was still in use, and was called "Jacob's well." Jesus sat down on the well and rested while His disciples went into the city to buy food. A Samaritan woman came to the well for water. During this encounter Jesus wrought no miracle that would be considered as such, but the incident is important, more for what was said, than for what was done.

(Verses 7 through 9) "There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give Me to drink. (For the disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) Then saith the woman of Samaria unto Him, How is it that Thou, being a Jew, asketh drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria ? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans."

This seems clear enough, albeit, the woman was greatly surprised that Jesus, Whom she immediately recognized as a Jew, would even speak to her, to say nothing of asking a drink from her. Though Samaria was a part of what was once the Northern Kingdom, Israel , the Jews wanted nothing to do with the Samaritans: for some of them had intermarried with people of other nations, and  all were considered by the Jews as of "mixed blood."

(Verses 10 through 12) "Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and Who it is that saith unto thee, Give Me to drink, thou wouldest have asked of Him, and He would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto Him, Sir, Thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast Thou that living water? Art Thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?"

When Jesus told this woman that, had she known the gift of God, and Who it was that asked a drink from her, she would have asked of Him, and He would have given her living water, she probably thought that He was trying to play some kind of trick on her. She called His attention to two things. First, He had nothing to draw with; and second, the well was deep. So where would He get this living water? Obviously, she was thinking of natural water. She really could not imagine anyone greater than "our father Jacob," who had given them this well. That is, he dug it, and it served generation after generation down to her day. So, she asked, "Art Thou greater than our father Jacob _ _ _?"

(Verses 13 through 15) "Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever shall drink of this water shall thirst again: but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto Him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw."

The water of which Jesus spoke is the same as that of which He spoke in John 7:37-38; and John explains this in John 7:39, "But this He spake of the Spirit which they that believe on Him should receive." However the woman was still thinking of natural water, and how pleasant it would be not to have to come to the well, and draw the water.

(Verses 16 through 18) "Jesus saith unto her, Go, call your husband, and come hither. The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband: for thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly."

We have heard men attempt to "spiritualize" this text to make a great thing of it beyond what is written; but there is absolutely no scriptural support for making anything more of it than is recorded. This is the beginning of the opening of this woman's eyes spiritually. Our Lord's command to her, "Go, call thy husband, and come hither," was given for the purpose of opening the way for His next statement to her. When she said, "I have no husband," the door was open for His answer. This woman had been married five times, and she was now living with a man to whom she was not married. We have no way of knowing how well known her life was to the people in the city, but Jesus was a total stranger. Yet He knew the most intimate details of her life.

(Verses 19 and 20) "The woman saith unto Him, Sir, I perceive that Thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship."

When Jesus first spoke to this woman about the living water, she saw Him as only a man of the Jews, who claimed to have access to water, but with no physical evidence to support his claim. Now, after He has described her manner of life, she sees Him only as a prophet, but still a Jew; and she reminds Him of the controversy between Jews and Samaritans about the place of worship.

(Verses 21 through 24) "Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe Me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem , worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in Spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship Him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in truth."

Notice the difference of wording of the clauses concerning time in verses 21 and 23: in the former, "the hour cometh," and in the latter, "the hour cometh, and now is." In the first, there was a time to come when the worshippers of the Father would be cut off at Jerusalem . Since those who worshipped in this mountain did not know what they worshipped anyway, when the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed, "ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem , worship the Father." Inasmuch as salvation is of the Jews, they know what they worship. However, the time was already at hand, and would continue, in which those who truly worship the Father must do so, not in the name of a place, but "in Spirit and in truth." While it is true that the Word of God was made flesh, and dwelt among men, God is Spirit, and for this reason He will no longer be worshipped with men's hands, as in sacrifices and offerings, but must be worshipped in Spirit and in truth. See Hosea 6:5-7.

(Verses 25 and 26) "The woman saith unto Him, I know that Messias cometh, Which is called Christ: when He is come, He will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am He."

This is one of the few places in scripture where Jesus speaks out plainly declaring Himself the Christ. He usually refers to Himself as "the Son of man." since it was evident from what she said that this woman looked for the coming of the Messiah, or the Christ, He made the simple declaration, "I that speak unto thee am He."

About this time the disciples returned, and though they were surprised that Jesus talked with the woman, they would not ask Him anything about it. At this point the woman left her water pot, and went back into the city, to tell the people about Jesus. We have seen her opinion of Him change from total unbelief to that of believing Him to be a prophet. And now we come to the climax of it with her, as she said to the people, "Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?" Then the people of the city came out to the well to see Him. While this was being done, Jesus' disciples tried to persuade Him to eat.

(Verses 32 through 38) "But He said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of. Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought Him ought to eat? Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of Him that sent Me, and to finish His work. Say not ye, There are four months, and then cometh the harvest? Behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together. And herein is that saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth, I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours."

This text is easier to understand if we keep in mind that Jesus focused upon, and worked toward only one goal, to do the will of the Father Who sent Him. This was more important to Him than was food for the natural body. He uses the fields and the crops grown there as an illustration of His "wheat," as set forth in the parable of the wheat and the tares in Matthew 13:24 -31. As people looked upon the natural fields, they considered that it would be about four months until harvest time; but Jesus tells His disciples that the grain in His field is ready now for the harvest. This harvest is not to be confused with the harvest of the above mentioned parable, which is to be done by His angels at the end of the world. Rather it is the gathering in, by the gospel call, of those who have been made ready, "are white already to harvest." Those who do this reaping receive wages, and gather fruit unto life eternal. In Matthew 19:29 Jesus tells His disciples what the wages are that they who do this reaping shall receive, and also that they shall inherit eternal life. "And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for My name's sake, shall receive an hundred fold, and shall inherit everlasting life." Notice the separation between the wages he shall "receive" and everlasting life, which he shall "inherit." Eternal life is never wages: it is "an inheritance," or "a gift." Those who reap shall "gather fruit unto life eternal." but the life itself is an inheritance. All this is to the purpose that "both He that soweth, and he that reapeth may rejoice together." The above mentioned parable clearly states that the owner of the field (our Lord Himself) is "He that soweth." And as we noted earlier, this reaping is not that final reaping, which shall be done by angels only, but that done by the gospel ministry, whereby the grain that is ripe is gathered together. So these reapers can rejoice together with their Master. In the parable of the Talents, in Matthew 26:14-30, the reward given to the faithful servant was, "enter thou into the joy of thy lord." Master and servant will rejoice together. Jesus quotes a true saying, and says that herein it is true, "I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour. Other men have laboured, and ye are entered into their labours." Since the Master is He who did the sowing, and these disciples are the first servants He has sent forth to this reaping, the "other men" who have labored in this harvest must be the prophets, who have prophesied of the coming of the Messiah, or the Christ. So the disciples are entering into their labors. Thus we see that the kingdom of God is of one piece, whatever the dispensation under which it is ministered.

Many of the Samaritans from the city of the woman to whom Jesus had talked believed her testimony when she said, "Come, see a Man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?" They persuaded Jesus to remain with them for two days, during which time many more believed in Him because of His own words. Then they said to the woman, "Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard Him ourselves, and know that This is the Christ, the Saviour of the world." This certainly needs no explanation, but one thing must be kept in mind: John is still using "kosmos" for what is translated "world," and our earlier discussion of the word still applies.

After the two days were past, Jesus and His disciples left Samaria , and went back into Galilee , though Jesus had Himself declared that a prophet has no honor in his own country. On this occasion the Galilaeans welcomed Him, because they also had been in Jerusalem at the feast, and had seen the miracles He wrought there. He returned to Cana , where He had wrought His first miracle, that of changing the water into wine. While they were there, a nobleman from Capernaum , whose son was at the point of death, came to Him, and begged Him to come to Capernaum , and heal his son. The remainder of this chapter deals with this event.

(Verses 48 through 50) "Then Jesus said unto him, Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe. The nobleman saith unto Him, Sir, come down ere my child die. Jesus saith unto him, Go thy way; thy son liveth. And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him, and went his way."

Two things stand out in this text. When Jesus said, "Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe," the nobleman had only a limited faith in Jesus. He thought that for Him to do anything, He must be present where the power was needed, and that if He waited, his son would be dead, and it would be too late for any help: for he said, "Sir, come down ere my child die." The second outstanding point is that, when Jesus speaks, all doubt and fear is removed. When Jesus said to him, "Go thy way; thy son liveth," the man believed all that Jesus had told him, and immediately went his way, with no further argument. As Jesus Himself said in another place, "The words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit, and they are life."

(Verses 51 through 54) "And as he was now going down, his servants met him, and told him, saying, Thy son liveth. Then inquired he of them the hour when he began to mend. and they said unto him, Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him. So the father knew that it was at the same hour, in the which Jesus said unto him Thy son liveth: and himself believed, and his whole house. This is again the second miracle that Jesus did when He was come out of Judaea into Galilee ."

This certainly needs no explanation. But it is a wonderful testimonial to the power of Jesus, not only that He was able by speaking in Cana to heal one who was in Capernaum, but also He caused not only the father to whom He spoke, but his "whole house" to believe. The phrase, "whole house," includes both his family and all his servants. The father himself was, apparently, the only one to whom Jesus spoke; but His power reached the whole household.

The first sixteen verses of this chapter tell of a miracle of healing Jesus wrought upon a man, who had had this infirmity for thirty-eight years. The account is clear enough to need no explanation; but it caused the Jews to be stirred, because it was done on the Sabbath day. Because of it they persecuted Jesus, and even set about to kill Him.

(Verses 17 and 18) "But Jesus answered them, My father worketh hitherto, and I work. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because He not only had broken the Sabbath, but said also that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God."

Even if the Jews had believed that Jesus is the Messiah, which they did not, they still would have considered it blasphemy for Him to say that He was the Son of God. For they looked for the Messiah as only a natural man, though a prophet, and one they expected to deliver Israel from all her enemies, and make her the super power of the world. Inasmuch as they did not even believe Jesus to be this prophet, they were ready to put Him to death as a blasphemer, for saying that God is His Father.

(Verses 19 and 20) "Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He seeth the Father do: for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth Him all things that Himself doeth: and He will shew Him greater works than these, that ye might marvel."

Jesus declares that He only does that which He has seen the Father do; and His last statement in this text, "And He will shew Him greater works than these, that ye may marvel," must be kept in mind through all that is said down to and including verse 27. We must also remember that this whole speech is addressed to the Jews, and not to His disciples.

(Verses 21 through 27) "For as the Father raiseth the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom He will. For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son: that all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father Which hath sent Him. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word, and believeth in Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. For as the Father hath life in Himself; so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself; and hath given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of man."

This might be a little more easily understood if the parenthetical subject in verses 22 through 24 were taken from its present location, and appended to verse 27; not that there is any thing wrong with its present location, but that people have a tendency to think when they come to a parenthesis, that the whole subject has been changed; which is certainly not the case in this text. As earlier mentioned, we should keep in mind that this whole speech is addressed to the Jews, and not to the disciples. Also we must keep in mind Jesus' last statement in verse 20. Some forgetting these two things, have attempted to interpret verses 21 and 25 as having to do with quickening to spiritual life those who are dead in sins. While, without question, it takes the same power to give spiritual life that it does to give natural life; since the address of this is to those who can in no wise witness the spiritual, and He has told them that the purpose of the "greater works than these," which the Father will show Him, is that they may marvel, or be astonished; there can be no doubt that the physically dead are the ones to whom He is referring when He says, "even so, the Son quickeneth whom He will." And the time for this to begin to take place is at hand: "The hour is coming, and now is." He will not, at this time, quicken all the dead, but only "whom He will," that these unbelievers may marvel. A close study of John's gospel will show that until this time Jesus had not raised a single dead person; but that is to change. The Father does not judge any man, but has committed all judgment unto the Son. This we find to hold all the way through the final judgment of the wicked, and the destruction of death. The purpose of this is that "all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father." Not only is this true, but it also follows that, "He that honoureth not the son honoureth not the Father Which hath sent Him." Therefore these Jews, who claimed to be so intent upon defending the honor of the Father against One, Whom they accused of blaspheming, were not honoring the Father at all, because they dishonored the Son whom He had sent. He declares solemnly, and without any doubt or possibility of failure, "He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." This was not said to persuade these unbelievers to believe, but rather to do two things. Following as it does upon verse 23, it declares to these unbelievers that they do not have eternal life, and they will come into condemnation. At the same time it is of the greatest comfort to any in the crowd who do believe. They do not have to fear coming into condemnation, but are already clear of that, and are "passed from death unto life." The dead to whom He shall speak shall hear His voice, and live, thus astonishing these unbelievers: for the Father has given Him to have life in Himself, that is, the power of giving life, even as does the Father. Also to Him the Father has given authority to execute judgment, "because He is the Son of man." Notice that, in verse 25, it is the voice of the "Son of God" which the dead shall hear; but it is "because He is the Son of man" that He is given the authority to execute judgment. Only as the "Son of man" could He die, and redeem His people from their sins, thus establishing Himself as the rightful Judge of both them and their enemies.

(Verses 28 through 31) "Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. I can of Mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and My judgment is just; because I seek not Mine own will, but the will of the Father Which hath sent Me. If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true."

Having already declared that He would raise from the dead whomsoever He would, He reveals a greater work, and tells them not to be astonished at the first. This second work, for which the time is still in the future, is that he shall speak to all that are in the graves, and raise them up. Some seem to have difficulty with the expression, "the hour is coming, in the which," all this shall be done, if the resurrection of life and the resurrection of damnation are to be separated by the space of time given in other scriptures. This should give no difficulty. First, because "the hour is coming" was a common way of speaking, when the literal meaning is, more accurately, "the time is coming;" and second, because the hour for each of these resurrections is coming; but they do not have to be the same hour. Their separation can be whatever time the Lord sees fit to make it. That they will be separate is evident from the language itself. They even have different names: the first is "The Resurrection Of Life," and the second is "The Resurrection Of Damnation." In the former shall come forth those that have done good; and in the latter, those who have done evil. Anyone familiar with the doctrine of our Lord knows that they who have done good are those to whom the righteousness of Jesus is imputed, and those who have done evil are they whose sins are not forgiven, who have not received the imputation of the righteousness of our Lord. Jesus then declares that He does nothing of Himself, signifying that everything He does is of the Father, Who has sent Him. Also His judgments are all according to His hearing as the Son of God; and therefore, because His only aim is to do the will of the Father Who sent Him, His judgment is always just. Verse 31 does not mean that He would give false witness of any thing; but that if there is no other witness, His testimony could not be accepted as truth: for the law says that, in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established. Therefore, unless there is another witness, His testimony cannot be accepted.

(Verses 32 through 35) "There is another that beareth witness of Me; and I know that the witness which he witnesseth of Me is true. Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth. But I receive not testimony from man: but these things I say, that ye might be saved. He was a burning and a shining light; and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light."

One only has to look back to Chapter 1, verses 26 through 36 to find John's witness of Jesus; and these Jews were well acquainted with it; and Jesus declares that John's witness was true. He further says, "But I receive not testimony from man: but these things I say, that ye might be saved." The word "saved," in this statement has nothing to do with the salvation of the souls of these unbelievers from their sins. In this context, since He has told them that this witness of man is not necessary to Him, but is for them, it means that with these two witnesses, as required by the law, the matter may be settled; and they be delivered from their erroneous idea that He was making a false claim when He said that God was His Father. So far as John was concerned, "He was a burning and a shining light." This may be slightly clearer, if we consider the kind of lights, or lamps, they had in those days. They usually consisted of some sort of vessel containing oil, with a wick of some sort placed in it. Sometimes the oil would burn low in the vessel in which the wick was set, whereupon the light would grow dim, and even begin to smolder, thus giving very little, if any, light. Such was not the case with John's ministry. "He was a burning and a shining light." Not only so, but for a time the Jews rejoiced in his light, that is, in the doctrine he taught. Thus Jesus shows that the requirements of the law are fulfilled: there are two acceptable witnesses.

(Verses 36 through 38) "But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given Me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of Me, that the Father hath sent Me. And the Father himself Which sent Me hath borne witness of Me. Ye have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His shape. And ye have not His word abiding in you: for Whom He hath sent, Him ye believe not."

Although the requirements of the law are fulfilled by the two witnesses already presented, there are even greater witnesses. They are greater in that they are more acceptable to the law, because His own testimony, though true, is of Himself; and one's testimony of himself is not, in the eyes of the law, equal to the witness of a third party. So a more acceptable witness is the works which the Father has given Him to finish. This includes not only the miracles He daily wrought before the people, but also His resurrection and ascension, which He was yet to finish. They all testified of Him. In addition to this, the Father Himself gave witness, "This is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased." Though this was an open and public declaration, these to whom He was here speaking may not have heard it: for He says, "Ye have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His shape." However, in this instance, "hear" may carry more the meaning of "heed" than of simply receiving the sound by the ear. He then declares to them their condition, and the evidence which proves the condition: "And ye have not His word abiding in you: for Whom He hath sent, Him ye believe not."

This thread of identification runs unbroken through the entire New Testament. Those in whom the word of God abides, or those who have eternal life, believe Him Whom the Father hath sent; and those in whom the word of God does not abide, or they who have not eternal life, believe Him not. Believing, or not believing, is not the cause of the condition; but it is the result.

(Verses 39 through 44) "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they, which testify of Me. And ye will not come to Me, that ye might have life. I receive not honour from men. But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you. For I am come in My Father's name, and ye receive Me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not that honour that cometh from God only?"

Although in our King James Version of the Bible the first clause of verse 39 seems to be a command, in the Greek it is the second person plural present indicative of the verb "eraunao," which simply means "You search." So they were constantly searching the scriptures, because they thought, as do many today, that by the outward doing of what is commanded therein they could gain eternal life, not realizing that the scriptures are the testimony of Jesus the Christ. Because they do not realize this, they will not come to Him, that they might have life. Someone will surely say immediately, "But they COULD NOT come to Him, unless _ _ _." Be that as it may, the subject of their ability has not yet been presented in this address. The only subject at the moment is their will. They have not been made to feel any need of a Saviour, and have no desire to come to Him; therefore they WILL NOT come to Him. They do not give Him honor, but this is no surprise, nor disappointment to Him: for He says, "But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you." We may sometimes think, because of the actions of some, that they do not have the love of God in them, but we have not the right of judgment, as does our Lord, to make such a statement. These to whom He speaks are so enwrapped in their desire and struggle for the honor men give one to another, that they can not believe the word of God, nor Him whom the Father has sent. If someone will come in his own name, that is, only as a great man, not as the Son of God, they will readily receive him. For that will harmonize with their own ideas and desires; but God's ways, and the qualifications He has declared for those He will honor, are so opposed to their own that they cannot believe Him.

(Verses 45 through 47) "Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses in whom ye trust. For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed Me: for he wrote of Me. But if ye believe not his writings, how can ye believe My words?"

This surely needs no explanation. Jesus says that not He, but Moses, the very one in whom these Jews are trusting, is the one who accuses them to the Father, especially of their sin of unbelief. For he wrote of the coming of this Prophet Who would speak unto them all the words given Him of the Father; and to Whom they must hearken, or God will require it of them. See Deuteronomy 18:15-18. The fact that they do not believe in Jesus, for Whom there are so many witnesses, shows clearly that they do not even believe Moses, whom they so greatly honor with their lips. Since they do not believe his writings, they certainly cannot believe the words of Jesus.

Chapter 6

The first fourteen verses of this chapter give the account of a great miracle wrought by Jesus. This took place on a mountain near the Sea of Galilee . A great multitude had followed Him because of the miracles of healing they had seen Him do for those who were sick. Since this account is so clearly written, we shall not attempt to quote all of it, nor make comment on each verse. This event is also recorded by both Matthew and Mark; and both say that it took place shortly after the execution of John the Baptist.

The multitude had followed Jesus out to a place far enough from any village that obtaining food would have presented some problems, and all the provisions that could be found in the crowd were five barley loaves and two small fishes. The disciples considered this totally inadequate for such a crowd, but Jesus told them to have the people sit down on the grass that was in the area. Then after giving thanks, He had the disciples distribute the food among the multitude, which numbered about five thousand men. Matthew and Mark both say that there were also women and children in addition to the five thousand men. Everyone ate his fill; and after the feast, Jesus said to His disciples, "Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost;" and they gathered up twelve baskets full of the fragments. Although this certainly was a physical event, in which Jesus took five barley loaves and two small fishes, and increased them to feed five thousand men and an undisclosed number of women and children, from it can be drawn a beautiful spiritual parallel. When we may be brought so low that it seems spiritual food is as scarce as was natural food in that time, our Lord can bestow upon us such a rich blessing that there seems to be more overflow from it than there appeared to be in all at the beginning. At this point John gives some details which are omitted by Matthew and Mark.

(Verses 14 and 15) "Then those men, when they had seen the miracle which Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take Him by force, to make Him a king, He departed again into the mountain Himself alone."

A little later we shall see that Jesus told these men what their motive was in following Him, which was also why they wanted to make Him king. They did not know that He is already King of kings, and Lord of lords, though His kingdom is not of this world, but is a heavenly kingdom. Since the promise of food has always been one of the most effective means of gaining followers from among hungry people, how much greater would be the effect of giving them food instead of promising it, and especially providing it in so miraculous a manner. These men did not want to let slip such a wonderful opportunity for a constant food supply. They were ready to make Him their king, whether, or not, He wished to be king. So Jesus quietly slipped away from them, and went alone farther up on the mountain.

According to verses 15 through 17, the disciples waited until evening, and as Jesus had not returned, they took ship, and started across the Sea of Galilee toward Capernaum ; and even after it became dark, Jesus had not returned to them.

(Verses 18 through 21) "And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew. So when they had rowed about five and twenty or thirty furlongs, they see Jesus walking on the sea, and drawing nigh unto the ship: and they were afraid. But He saith unto them, It is I, be not afraid. Then they willingly received Him into the ship: and immediately the ship was at the land whither they went."

Matthew, in recording this, also tells of Peter's walking on the water to go to Jesus, but his faith failing, he began to sink, and had to be rescued by Jesus. However, both Mark and John omit this. As the disciples "had rowed about five and twenty or thirty furlongs," they were not far from the middle of the sea: for it is only about six miles wide. In such a storm as they were having, the sight of Jesus walking on the sea would, most certainly, add to their fright. For both Matthew and Mark testify that they thought Him to be a spirit, or ghost; since, evidently, in the darkness they could not see well enough to know that it was Jesus. When He called to them, no doubt, they were greatly relieved, and "willingly received Him into the ship." Matthew and Mark tell us that when He came into the ship, there was a great calm. John says that, "immediately the ship was at the land whither they went."

Although the people who were on the shore when Jesus fed the multitude saw that Jesus did not get into the boat with his disciples, they could not find Him; but they were not too surprised, because other boats came from Tiberias near to where they were at the feast. So they also took ship and went across to Capernaum , seeking him.

(Verses 25 through 27) "And when they had found Him on the other side of the sea, they said unto Him, Rabbi, when camest Thou hither? Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek Me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for Him hath God the Father sealed."

These are the same people who, on the day before, were going to make Him their king, even by force, if necessary. Jesus gave them no answer to the question they asked; but He told them why they came hunting Him. As we mentioned earlier, He declared that their concern was for no more than the natural food with which they had been filled. His counsel to them is that they give less effort and attention to seeking natural food, and concentrate upon spiritual food, "that meat which endureth unto everlasting life." He also tells them that He is the One Whom God the Father has sealed, (or anointed) to give this food; and He will give it.

(Verses 28 and 29) "Then said they unto Him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him Whom He hath sent."

This is a very simple question, and a very simple answer, but both are extremely important. The question is, in reality, the same as that asked by a lawyer, in Luke 10:25 , and by a certain ruler, in Luke 18:18 , "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?" Although the answers given in the different locations have slightly different wording, they all come out to the same conclusion, "The things that are impossible with men are possible with God." (Luke 18:27) To the lawyer Jesus answered with, what He, in another place, said is the first and second commandments of the law, which the lawyer could not fulfill. And for the ruler, that was equally impossible; and to these, "This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him Whom He hath sent." This they could not do. For they were in the same condition as those back in Chapter 5, to whom He said, "How can ye believe, which receive honour one from another, and seek not that honour that cometh from God only?" And again, "But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe My words?" The only way they can ever believe is that God release them from their prison of unbelief. Man cannot do that. So "the things that are impossible with men are possible with God."

As with all the unbelievers Jesus encountered, although they were literally surrounded with signs and miracles, they asked Him, in verses 30 and 31, "What sign shewest Thou then, that we may see, and believe Thee? What dost Thou work? Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat." They wanted Him to cause some great sign in the heavens, to prove His identity, which, if He had wrought before their very eyes, would not have convinced them; for they were blinded to the things of God.

(Verses 32 through 34) "Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but My Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He, Which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life to the world. Then said they unto Him, Lord, evermore give us this bread."

Jesus has here begun a subject, which continues through verse 58 of this chapter, and therefore cannot be definitively discussed until we follow Him further into it. Here he is only pointing out, that what the Israelites ate in the desert was only natural food, though given in a miraculous manner, and it only sustained natural life; and therefore could not have been the true bread from heaven. For that bread will give life, while natural food will not. These to whom He spoke, still laboring under the same motive which made them want to make Him king, said, "Lord, evermore give us this bread." As we shall see a little further on, they had no idea of what this bread really is.

(Verses 35 through 40) "And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst. But I said unto you, That ye also have seen Me, and believe not. All that the father giveth Me shall come to Me; and he that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of Him That sent Me. And this is the Father's will Which hath sent Me, that of all which He hath given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of Him That sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day."

This, without question, is one of the strongest declarations of the sovereignty of God in the salvation of sinners that is found in all scripture. It is worthy of notice that Jesus begins and ends this with sayings of comfort to all who believe in Him. First, He says, "I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst." We surely understand that this is not said concerning natural hunger and thirst, which many of His saints have endured; but it is a promise of a constant supply of His Spirit and grace that are given to every believer. He will never suffer us to be deprived of these wonderful blessings, whatever may be our situation in natural things. Nevertheless, these to whom He was speaking, in spite of not only having seen Him, but also having seen His miracles, and having been partakers of the loaves and fishes He had so wonderfully multiplied, still did not believe. In verse 37 He says, "All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me; and he that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out." Thus He declares to them that they are not of those given to Him of the Father: for if they were, they would come to Him, since all that the Father has given Him will come to Him. Those who do come to Him have His positive promise, "I will in no wise cast out." To do so would be contrary to His whole purpose, and to the Father's will: "For I came down from heaven not to do mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me." There is not here even the slightest hint that His will is any different from that of the Father, Who sent him. What is established is that, just as is always the case when one is sent by someone in authority to do a certain work, his will is never considered in the matter. All is based upon the will of the one who sent him to do the work. So it is with Jesus and the Father. The Father's will is the moving cause of the transaction; and for the work to be successful, the Father's will must be completely fulfilled. So Jesus proceeds to tell what is the will of the Father. This He does in two separate statements. "And this is the Father's will Which hath sent Me, that of all which He hath given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day." This is His first statement concerning it; and it should forever put to silence those who claim that He is trying to save every person in the world, but some just will not let Him save them. Such doctrine is, undoubtedly, the most ridiculous thing that can be said about the great and mighty God Who created heaven, earth, and all things therein. Jesus says that the Father has charged Him to save, with the loss of nothing, all that He has given Him; and that is His mission on earth. He is to raise up every one of them at the last day, and that He will do, without fail. As impressive as this is, it is worth very little to me or to you, unless we have something that will assure us of being in that number. So His next declaration is for that very purpose. "And this is the will of Him that sent Me, that every one that seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day." There is absolutely no difference between "all which He hath given Me," and "every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him," in spite of the difference of wording: for in verse 37, He said, "All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me." So if I believe in the Son, that He is the Christ, the Son of the living God, there is my assurance that the Father gave me to Him; and because He did so, He will raise me up at the last day.

Verses 41 and 42 are self-explanatory, "The Jews murmured at Him, because He said, I am the bread which came down from heaven. And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it that he saith, I came down from heaven?"

(Verses 43 through 47) "Jesus therefore answered and said unto them, Murmur not among yourselves. No man can come to Me, except the Father Which sent Me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God.  Every man therefore that hath heard, and learned of the Father cometh to Me. Not that any man hath seen the Father, save He Which is of God, He hath seen the Father. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life."

The murmuring of the Jews against Jesus will do them no good: for the only ones who can come to Jesus are those who are drawn of the Father to Him; and those who are thus drawn to Him, He will raise up at the last day. It seems impossible for the natural man to accept the thought that God has the right to do what He will with that which He created. Then Jesus quotes from the prophets, (probably, Isaiah 54:13,) "And they shall be all taught of God." He shows clearly that this does not mean "taught about God," but rather that God is the Teacher. Everyone who is so taught comes to the Son, and will by Him be raised up at the last day. Though they are taught of the Father, they still have not seen Him. No one has, except the Son Himself. Nevertheless, every one who believes on the Son has everlasting life. Notice that He uses the present, not the future; they have it, not will receive it.

(Verses 48 through 52) "I am the bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if a man eat of this bread, he shall live forever: and the bread that I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us His flesh to eat?"

Jesus declares that He, and He only, is the true bread of life, or the bread of heaven. As proof thereof He reminds these Jews that though their fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, they still died, which proves that manna was not the bread of life, or the bread from heaven. The true bread of heaven is such that, if a man eats it, he will not die; but will live forever. Then He identifies this bread as His own flesh. Certainly He is not teaching cannibalism, but is declaring that it is only through His taking upon Himself a body of flesh, and in that body suffering death on the cross for the sins of His people, that salvation is purchased for, and eternal life given to, them. As by the grace of God we are brought to believe in Him, and by faith to contemplate this wonderful sacrifice which God has made for us, we are said to eat His flesh and drink His blood. This is the true bread of heaven, and is spiritual, not natural, food. The Jews, having been given no understanding of this, could only think of it as his natural flesh; and so they were much agitated, and questioned among themselves, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?"

(Verses 53 through 58) "Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life: and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me. This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live forever."

Again, we emphasize that Jesus is not teaching cannibalism. But He is establishing, doctrinally, that one, whose eyes are opened to the fact that He, the flesh and blood Jesus, Who died on the cross of Calvary , is the Christ of God, and the only means of salvation, is born of the Spirit, and is made to believe in Him. And, as his faith is exercised upon the wonderful sacrifice appointed by the Father, and accomplished by the Son in the flesh, it is as if he were feasting upon the choicest of food and drink. Remember that John said, "Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: and every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God.:" (1 John 4:2-3.) Those who confess Him to have come in the flesh, and by faith feast upon Him, knowing that nothing else has any part in their salvation, dwell in Him, and He dwells in them. Just as Jesus lives by the Father, so they who thus feast by faith upon Him live by Him. Those Jews who ate of the manna in the wilderness all died; but they who by faith feast upon the flesh and blood of our Lord shall live forever. So He is the true bread from heaven.

Jesus taught these things in the synagogue at Capernaum . Not only did the Jewish leaders become offended at this doctrine, but, even some of His disciples were so without understanding of it, that they said, "This is a hard saying; who can hear it?" The word "hear" certainly at this point means "understand," rather than "hear," as it is usually considered: for their "hearing" it with their ears is what caused them to ask the question in the first place.

(Verses 61 through 65) "When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples murmured at it, He said unto them, Doth this offend you? What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where He was before? It is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life. But there are some among you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed, and who should betray Him. And He said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto Me, except it were given unto him of My Father."

Jesus did not have to hear the question asked by His disciples to know what was in their minds. (This is one of the few places in the gospels where "His disciples" reaches beyond the twelve. Here it embraces all those who had followed along with Him, especially since the feeding of the five thousand.) His question to the disciples was, "Doth this offend you?" (Literally, "Does this put a stumbling block before you," that is, so far as their understanding was concerned.) If so, then "What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where He was before?" If this was so unclear to them that it hindered their understanding, what will they do when they see Him ascend back into the heavens? For this event, see Chapter 1 of The Acts of The Apostles. Then He says, "It is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." Thus He declares that in all this, which He has been teaching, the flesh, or the natural understanding of the words, is of no profit. For the Spirit quickens, or gives life; and therefore the spiritual import of the teaching is to be taken rather than the literal, just as we have pointed out. To literally eat His flesh and drink His blood would be of no profit; but to feast upon it by faith is of great value: because it is the Spirit, Which does the quickening. Then He says, "The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." In this statement the Greek word, "Hrama," not "logos," is used. This means "the spoken word." Notice should be taken that He says, "The words that I speak," not the words that the preacher, or some other person speaks. When He speaks directly to a person, he speaks the Spirit and the life into that one.  Yet He tells them that there are among them some that do not believe. John explains that Jesus knew from the beginning both who did not believe, and who it was who would betray Him. He was never surprised by either. He declares to them that the presence of unbelievers among them is the reason He earlier told them that no one could come to Him, that is, no one could believe in Him, "except it be given him of My Father."

(Verses 66 through 71) "From that time many of His disciples went back, and walked no more with Him. Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? Then Simon Peter answered Him, Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe, and are sure that Thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray Him, being one of the twelve."

As many of this multitude that followed Jesus turned away, He asked the twelve, "Will ye also go away?" He did not ask this for information, because he already knew their thoughts. This was asked that their resolve might be manifested, and to bring forth a confession of their faith. As so often was the case, Simon Peter spoke for them, not that he had been elected by them as spokesman, but that he usually spoke more quickly than did the others. It is evident that he spoke the sentiment of all: for none of them dissented, and when Jesus addressed them, His words were to all, and not just to Peter. Even today we meet with situations in which the same question may be presented to us: "Will you also go away?" If so, may God grant us faith to answer as did Peter: "Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe, and are sure that Thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God." The seriousness of the first part of this answer is often overlooked. It carries the idea that if there were someone else, if there were another way, one more compatible with the world, there might be some temptation to go to it; but there is nowhere else to go, and there is no one else who has the words of eternal life. Therefore we must stay; and we are fully convinced that He, and He alone, is the "Christ, the Son of the living God." This is the answer of faith. Jesus then proves that He is not surprised, nor will He be, by the events that will soon take place, as He says, "Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil." Judas Iscariot is "the devil," "the son of perdition," and the "betrayer;" and this Jesus has known from the beginning. Judas was not the son of Simon Peter, and, probably, not the son of Simon Zelotes. Since Simon was such a common name among the Jews, perhaps, no one will ever know which Simon was the father of Judas, and that, no doubt, is the way it should be.

After the events of Chapter 6, the Jews seriously engaged in plotting to kill Jesus. So He remained in Galilee, and would not go into Judaea . The time of the feast of tabernacles was near at hand, so throughout the whole area the people were preparing to go to Jerusalem for the feast. Jesus' brothers, who did not yet believe in Him, urged Him to "go into Judaea , that Thy disciples also may see the works that Thou doest. For there is no man that doeth any thing in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If Thou do these things, shew Thyself to the world." They not believing Him, probably, thought that if He set Himself more in the public eye, He would sooner see the futility of what He was doing, and lay it aside.

(Verses 6 through 9) "Then Jesus said unto them, My time is not yet come: but your time is alway ready. The world cannot hate you, but Me it hateth, because I testify of it that the works thereof are evil. Go ye up unto this feast: I go not yet unto this feast; for My time is not yet full come. When He had said these words unto them, He abode still in Galilee ."

This is one of the clearest declarations in scripture of how closely every action of Jesus was timed of the Father before it ever came to pass. "My time is not yet come: but your time is alway ready." His brethren were at liberty to go up to the feast when they desired, "your time is alway ready." This does not mean that they could go without God's knowing about it: for Jesus once said, "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And not one of them shall fall to the ground without your heavenly Father." What it does mean is that, within certain limits, they were allowed to follow their own wills. On the other hand, Jesus came to earth to do the will of the Father. Therefore even His timing was according to the will of the Father. There seems to be sufficient evidence in scripture to prove that Jesus' brothers did become followers of Him; but, at this time, they did not believe in Him: so the world could not hate them, because they were of it. And Jesus said in another place, "If ye were of the world, the world would love its own." Inasmuch as Jesus was not of the world, but testified of it, that its works were evil, the world hated Him. He again tells His brethren that they can go up to the feast when they will; but that he must wait until His appointed time, and he continued to remain in Galilee .

After His brethren were gone, He also went to the feast, but secretly, lest He draw the attention of those who were trying to kill Him. Of course, the Jews tried to find Him, but could not, so they began to ask, "Where is he?" There was a great deal of discussion about Him among the people; some saying that he was a good man; and others, that He was a deceiver of the people. However, most of this discussion was in secret, because everyone was afraid of the Jewish leaders.

(Verses 14 through 19) "Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and taught. And the Jews marveled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned? Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not Mine, but His That sent Me. If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of Myself. He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him. Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keep it? Why go ye about to kill Me?"

One might think it strange that, after going in secret up to the feast, Jesus would go boldly into the temple, and teach publicly. It was proved time after time that there was little danger in such a public place. It might anger the Jewish leaders; but they were too much afraid of the people to do anything publicly against Him. While He was teaching in the temple, "the Jews" (primarily the Jewish teachers and leaders) were astonished at His wisdom and knowledge. Knowing that He had not studied in their school, they began to question, "How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?" Jesus answered them thus, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His That sent Me." The school He attended was greater than all the universities in the world. His Teacher was the eternal Father; and His classroom, the throne of God. His doctrine then is only that which He received of the Father: for it is the Father's will He came to do. He then sets forth a test, by which any man can know whether the doctrine is of the Father, or whether He has made it up Himself. “If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of Myself." This is as fair a test as can be put forth. In verse 18 He tells us a principle that will work in every case, no matter who the agent is, or who it is that sends him. And it is the principle upon which He conducts His ministry: "He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him." Then He reminds the Jews that, although the law was given them by Moses, in spite of their claims none of them keep it. Then He directs a question at their leaders, "Why go ye about to kill Me?"

(Verses 20 through 24) "The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil: who goeth about to kill thee? Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel. Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it was of Moses, but of the fathers,) and ye on the Sabbath day circumcise a man. If a man on the Sabbath day receive circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at Me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the Sabbath day? Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment."

In verse 20 the people, apparently not aware of what their leaders were trying to do, thought Jesus to be possessed of a devil, because He asked why they were trying to kill Him. We shall see later that they do begin to realize that there is reason for His question. No doubt, the "one work," to which Jesus refers here is that of healing the man at the pool of Bethesda , which was done on the Sabbath day. This was done the last time He was in Jerusalem before this. He reminds them that a man, (or, actually, a male baby,) will be circumcised on the Sabbath day, if it is the eighth day, in keeping with the law of Moses. And since this is done without any complaints of Sabbath breaking, against those who do it, surely no one should object because He has completely healed a man on the Sabbath day, especially since this man had been burdened with this infirmity for so long. Finally He says, "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment."

Now we see the people beginning to understand that Jesus knew what He was saying when He asked, "Why go ye about to kill Me?"

(Verses 25 through 27) "Then said some of them of Jerusalem , Is not this He, whom they seek to kill? But, lo, He speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto Him. Do the rulers know indeed that This is the very Christ? Howbeit we know this man whence He is: but when Christ cometh, no one knoweth whence He is."

They had thought Jesus possessed of a demon when He asked why they went about to kill Him. And now they begin to realize that He is indeed the One against Whom the leaders have been plotting; but amazingly the leaders make no move against Him as He speaks publicly and boldly in the temple. They begin to question among themselves, "Do the rulers (the priests, elders, and scribes) know that This is the very Christ?" Then we see just how easy it is to get false ideas of what the scriptures say, by listening to interpretations instead of studying them for what they say. It was by the scriptures that Herod and the wise men were informed where Jesus was to be born. It was to fulfill the scriptures that Joseph was warned to take Jesus to Egypt , and also, on his return from Egypt , to turn aside and live in Nazareth . And yet these people say, "Howbeit we know this man whence He is: but when Christ cometh, no man knoweth whence He is."

(Verses 28 through 31) "Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying, Ye both know Me, and ye know whence I am: and I am not come of Myself, but He that sent Me is true, Whom ye know not. But I know Him: for I am from Him, and He hath sent Me. Then they sought to take Him: but no man laid hands on Him, because His hour was not yet come. And many of the people believed on Him, and said, When Christ cometh, will He do more miracles than these which this man hath done?"

Down to the colon in Jesus' declaration in verse 28, He is telling these people what they know. They know two things only about the situation. They know Him. That is, as a man only, they know Him, and they know the place where He grew up. In this respect only they know whence He is. Then He tells them some things they do not know. First, they do not know that He came to earth on a mission, having been sent by the very One Whom they claim to worship as their God; and second, they do not even know the One they thus claim. Nevertheless He is true in spite of their not knowing Him. He clinches the matter with, "But I know Him: for I am from Him, and He sent Me." Once again we are reminded that every move of the mission of Jesus was meticulously appointed before He came. "Then they sought to take Him: but no man laid hands on Him, because His hour was not come." Several times in scripture we find this reason given for their not taking Him. In Luke 22:53 Jesus says, "When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched forth no hands against Me: but this is your hour, and the power of darkness." This brings to mind a prophecy, (Psalms 76:10,) "Surely the wrath of man shall praise Thee: the remainder of wrath shalt Thou restrain." God so restrained the remainder of wrath that in spite of their hatred and wrath against Jesus, they could not, at this time, lay hands on Him. "And many of the people believed on Him, and said, When Christ cometh, will He do more miracles than this man hath done?"

(Verses 32 through 39) "The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such things concerning Him; and the Pharisees and chief priests sent officers to take Him. Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto Him that sent Me. Ye shall seek Me, and shall not find Me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come. Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will He go, that we shall not find Him? will He go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles? What manner of saying is this that he said, Ye shall seek Me, and shall not find Me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come. In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this He spake of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)"

The principal things of interest in this are not so much what the Pharisees and chief priests did, or said, but what Jesus said to the officers who came to Him. He foretold to them His death, resurrection, and ascension, but they were completely confused by it. He knew the end of His ministry from the beginning. He at this point knew that it would soon be time to offer Himself up as the sacrifice for sins by dying on the cross. After that He would arise from the dead, and at the appointed time ascend back to the Father, Who sent Him. Then seek as they would for Him, the Jews could not find Him: for even after His death, resurrection, and ascension, only those drawn by the Father can come unto Him. These Jews could understand no part of this. Then on the last day of the feast, He made the declaration in verses 37 and 38. Had not the Holy Ghost directed John to explain this to us, we might have been fully as confused about it as were the Jews concerning verses 33 and 34. With his explanation we need look no further. Those who have been by the power of God brought from death in sins into life in the Lord, so that they can have a thirst for the Spirit, are invited, yea, commanded, to come to Jesus and drink. The refreshment of that drink will be as if rivers of the Spirit flow through them.

(Verses 40 through 44) "Many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is the Prophet. Others said, This is Christ. But some said, Shall Christ come out of Galilee ? Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem , where David was. So there was a division among the people because of Him. And some of them would have taken Him; but no man laid hands on Him."

This seems to need little explanation. There were many of the people who, as they listened to what Jesus said, were given faith in Him, and they openly declared that He is the Christ. There were others who did not believe; and they thought it impossible that the Christ should come from Galilee . Strangely enough, they said He should come from Bethlehem , the very city where Jesus was born. So this caused a division among the people. This was not unusual: for there is a saying among Jews to the effect that, "If as many as two Jews come together, there will be at least three opinions among them." It is a little unclear whether the expression, "And some of them would have taken Him," refers to some who were ready to arrest Him, or, as in Chapter 6, some wanted to take Him forcibly, and make Him king. Either way, no man did lay hands on Him.

(Verses 45 through 53) "Then came the officers to the chief priests and Pharisees; and they said unto them, Why have ye not brought Him? The officers answered, Never man spake as this man. Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived? Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed on Him? But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed. Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came to Jesus by night, being one of them,) Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth? They answered and said unto him, Art thou also of Galilee ? Search, and look: for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet, And every man went to his own house."

When questioned as to why they did not arrest Jesus, the officers could only say that they had never heard a man speak like He did, whereupon the Pharisees displayed that spirit for which they are famous even today, their self-righteousness. First, they tried to accuse their own officers of being Jesus' disciples, and then they declared that those who believed in Him were cursed, but they themselves were righteous, and none of their number had believed on Him. There is nothing to indicate whether or not Nicodemus was at this time a believer. But simply as a voice of moderation, he asked, "Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth?" Only one thing can be said for this question: it was a call, not as to what Jesus taught and did, but simply as to how He, or any other man, could legally be judged by the law. Even this question seemed to irritate the other members of the council. And they adamantly declared that, there was no prophet to come from Galilee, completely overlooking Isaiah 9:1-2, which, though it does not say that He would be born in Galilee, was the very prophecy fulfilled by God's sending Joseph, with Jesus and Mary, to dwell in Nazareth of Galilee. The other council members even asked Nicodemus if he were from Galilee , though they well knew from whence he was. Their disagreement broke up the meeting, and every one went to his own house.

Chapter 8

Apparently Jesus often went out to the Mount of Olives to spend the night, and this is the course He followed at this time. The next morning He came back early to the temple, where the people, as usual, crowded around Him, and He taught them, without any recurrence of attempts to arrest Him.

(Verses 3 through 6) "And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto Him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst, they say unto Him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses in the law commanded us that such should be stoned: but what sayest Thou? This they said, tempting Him, that they might have to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down, and with His finger wrote on the ground, (as though He heard them not.)"

Down through verse 5, this seems clear enough that, probably, the only question that would arise is, "Where is the woman's partner in this sin?" Since this question is not addressed in the account, it will do us no good to inquire about it. John tells us that their purpose in this was to tempt, or, actually, entrap, Jesus with their question. If He said anything contrary to the commandment given by Moses, they would accuse Him of teaching against the law of Moses; and if He told them to follow the commandment, they would accuse Him to the people as only a man, and not the Christ. They thought they had Him in a trap from which there was no escape. Instead of giving them any answer, "Jesus stooped down, and with His finger wrote on the ground." The remainder of verse 6 is not in the Greek text, though it certainly agrees with the situation. In fact, the whole incident, verses 1 through 11, is omitted from some Greek texts.

(Verses 7 through 11) "So when they continued asking Him, he lifted up Himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the eldest, even to the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst."

This is a remarkable incident in many ways, perhaps, the most outstanding of which, is that, a group of Pharisees were convicted so heavily by their own consciences, that they silently stole away when He said, "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her." The Pharisees' consciences are usually somewhat harder than a stone, inasmuch as the Pharisee's whole religion is based upon his self-righteousness, in which he emphatically denies that he has any sin. Yet, when brought face to face with the matter in the presence of Jesus, every one of them had to leave. Before they brought in this woman, there was a crowd of people gathered around Jesus to hear His teaching. These Pharisees, evidently, made the crowd back away enough to give them space to bring the woman before Him. Now that they who brought her are gone, Jesus and she are standing alone in the midst of the crowd that was already present before the incident.

(Verses 10 and 11) "When Jesus had lifted up Himself, and saw none but the woman, He said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? Hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go and sin no more."

Sometimes there are those who will take this incident to prove that Jesus can, and will, forgive adultery. While it is not to be denied that He can, and in some cases does, forgive adultery, this incident has nothing to do with that subject. Forgiveness is not even mentioned, nor is it implied. Before one can be condemned according to the law, there must be at least two or three witnesses. The witnesses have to remain, and give their testimony openly; and, in the event the accused is condemned to be stoned, the witnesses are the first to cast a stone. In this case, every accuser has gone, and Jesus was not a witness to the act of which the woman was accused. Therefore, since there are no accusers, He says, "Neither do I condemn thee;" and more importantly, He gives her a commandment, "Go, and sin no more."

(Verses 12 through 18) "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. The Pharisees therefore said unto Him, Thou bearest record of Thyself; Thy record is not true. Jesus answered and said unto them, Though I bear record of Myself, My record is true; for I know whence I come, and whither I go; but ye cannot tell whence I come, and whither I go. Ye judge after the flesh; I judge no man.  And yet if I judge, My judgment is true: for I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent Me.  It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. I am one that bear witness of Myself. And the Father that sent Me beareth witness of Me."

Just as John told us in Chapter 1, verses 4 through 9, Jesus is the light of the world. His light is the true light, which lights every man who comes into the world. Jesus declares that those who follow Him will walk not in darkness, but in the true light. The answer of the Pharisees to this appears more to mean, "Since you are alone in what you say of yourself, your testimony cannot be accepted," than that His testimony would actually be false. His answer to this is, "Though I bear record of Myself," (or "Even if My testimony is alone,") "yet My record is true: for I know whence I come, and whither I go." Even without corroboration, His testimony is acceptable, because He knows both His point of origin and His destination; and these Pharisees know neither, so they cannot disprove what He says. "Ye judge after the flesh; I judge no man." Though in Chapter 5 He told the Jews that the Father has committed all judgment to Him, it is still not the time for judgment, since that is not what he has come into the world to accomplish at this time. Nevertheless, if He did judge now, His judgment would be true, because the Father is with Him, so He is not alone. Again He drops back to the matter of His testimony. He is not alone in that either, for the Father is with Him; and that testimony has to be accepted because the law says that, the testimony of two men is acceptable: and both He and the Father are witnesses.

(Verses 19 through 24) "Then said they unto him, Where is Thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know Me, nor My Father: if ye had known Me, ye should have known My Father also. These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple; and no man laid hands on Him; for His hour was not yet come.  Then said Jesus again unto them, I go My way, and ye shall seek Me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come. Then said the Jews, Will He kill Himself? because He saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come. And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world. I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am He, ye shall die in your sins."

The only parts of this that might need any explanation, are the things Jesus said; though we might call attention to verse 20, as it again points out the timing of all things pertaining to Jesus and his work, "And no man laid hands on Him; for His hour was not yet come." In all his sayings here as he addresses the Pharisees, who, in verse 13, questioned His testimony, He builds up the case for their condemnation. First, He tells them that they know neither Him nor His Father. Their failure to know and believe in Him proves their lack of knowledge of the Father. Next He says that after He has gone, they will seek Him, and shall die in their sins: for they cannot come to Him where he is going. Finally He tells them that they are from beneath; and the best thing he can say of them is that they are of this world, while He is not, but is from above. He tells them why He earlier told them they would die in their sins, "For if ye believe not that I am He, ye shall die in your sins." Review the word order in verse 24. It establishes that their unbelief is the reason for His telling them that they would die in their sins. It is not the reason for their dying in their sins, but the evidence which causes Him to tell them that this is their fate: for continuing in unbelief is the sign of a person, who has not been forgiven.

(Verses 25 through 27) "Then said they unto him, Who art Thou? And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I said unto you from the beginning. I have many things to say and to judge of you: but He that sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of Him. They understood not that He spake to them of the Father."

Although in verse 15, Jesus has said "_ _ _ I judge no man," He here says, "I have many things to say and to judge of you." He has by no means finished His testimony against them, nor His judgment of them, both of which were told Him of the Father, Who sent Him. Not only so, but, since the Father, Who sent Him, and of Whom He has heard these things, is true, His judgments must be declared to the world, that is, openly. As to Who He is, that has not changed: He is the same as He has said from the beginning. As we would say today, all of this went over their heads. They could not even understand that it was the Father of Whom He spoke, saying, "He that sent Me is true."

(Verses 28 through 30) "Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father hath taught me, I speak these things. And He that sent Me is with Me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please Him. As he spake these words, many believed on Him."

Jesus spoke His first reference to the lifting up of the Son of man in John 3:14. Here he mentions it again, and will again speak of it in John 12:32 . In all three references He is speaking of His crucifixion, in which He was lifted up on the cross, as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness. Here, when He says, "When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then ye shall know _ _ _," He does not mean that they shall acknowledge Him as the Christ; but that they shall be informed by the signs, such as the earthquake, the rending of the veil of the temple, and the great darkness, as well as by the report of their own guards concerning His resurrection. (See Matthew 28: 11-15.) By these things they would know that he is the Christ, and that he is never alone, but is always supported by the father. However there is a vast difference between knowing something from physical evidence, and knowing it by the gift of faith and the revelation of God. This, in essence, is practically the same thing he said to them at other times, "No sign shall be given them, except the sign of the prophet Jonas." When He says, "When ye have lifted up _ _ _," the inference is "not until you lift up _ _ _." In that day they shall see that what he has said, He also has done. Inasmuch as He has told them what the Father sent him to do, they shall see that He has done that, and only that; and since what He has done is always pleasing to the Father, the Father is always with Him. As mentioned earlier, this does not mean that they shall acknowledge it, but only that they shall have knowledge of it.

In Chapter 2, verses 23 through 25, we are told that many people, when they saw the miracles which Jesus did, believed on Him, but Jesus did not have confidence in them,(K. J. V. "commit Himself to them,") "because He knew all men, and needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man." This also should be kept in mind as one reads verse 30 of the present text. As we continue we shall see that the belief of these will inspire no more confidence than did that of those in Chapter 2.

(Verses 31 and 32) "Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on Him, If ye continue in My word, then are ye My disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

The first point to which we call attention is the persons to whom Jesus addressed this statement. They are "those Jews which believed on Him." From here to the end of the chapter, we find these same characters, and no one else. In some places they are referred to only by the pronouns "they," and "them," while at others they are called "the Jews." Since this is all covered in the expression, "those Jews which believed on Him," all the remainder of the chapter deals with them, and them only. So He begins His address with the measure of whether or not they really are His disciples, that is, whether their believing is the result of real faith, or just the effect of His having put to silence these Pharisees. If they continue in His word, they prove themselves to be His disciples. The other side of this, though not spoken, is just as true. If they do not continue in His word, they show themselves not to be His disciples. Those who continue in His word shall know the truth, not just from having heard it, but from experience also. By this sort of knowledge of the truth they will be made free. They will be free from doubts as to what is the truth. In the situation and time frame in which it is said, as well as the context in which it is used, it, no doubt, means that they will be set free from any doubt as to His being the Christ, the Son of God. They will know that His claim is true. They immediately show that they have not the slightest idea of what Jesus is talking about, and no desire to find out.

(Verse 33) "They answered Him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest Thou, Ye shall be made free?"

How strange it is that men, in order to support their own ego, will lie when they, and everyone around them, know that they are lying. Though the freedom of which Jesus spoke had no reference to their physical condition, they could think of no other kind. So they must be considered on that basis. They said, "We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man," while their entire nation, including themselves, was in bondage to the Caesar at Rome . They were also certainly in the bondage from which Jesus said the truth would free them, that of false doctrines imposed upon them by the interpretations placed by their teachers on the law and the prophets.

(Verses 34 through 38) "Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. And the servant abideth not in the house forever. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but ye seek to kill Me, because My word hath no place in you. I speak that which I have seen with My Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father."

Notice that as Jesus continues His address to these "Jews which believed on Him," His language gets progressively stronger against them. Since they deny having ever been in bondage to any man, He tells them that anyone who commits (literally, "practices") sin is the servant of sin, and that such a condition does not promise eternal life, because "the servant abideth not in the house for ever." No matter how enjoyable it may seem at the moment, there will be an end to it. On the other hand, "If the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed." He then acknowledges that they are Abraham's seed, but only according to the flesh, as will be made clear in verses 39 and 40. Even now they were seeking an opportunity to kill Him, because His word ("logos") has no place in them. Notice that verse 38 prepares for what He will say to them in verses 39 through 44. Though He has acknowledged their descent, according to the flesh, from Abraham, He prepares the way for telling them who their real father is.

(Verses 39 through 41) "They answered and said unto Him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham. But now ye seek to kill Me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham. Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they unto Him, We be not born of fornication; we have one father, even God."

In this these "Jews which believed on Him," first protest that Abraham is their father, a claim which Jesus immediately disproves by their own actions, showing that they do not have the characteristics of Abraham, as they surely would, if they were the children of Abraham. They are plotting to kill Him because He has told them the truth; and Abraham would never have done so. Their deeds show who is their father. They, seeing that He has left them no further claim to Abraham, try to reach beyond, and claim to be children of God.

(Verses 42 through 47) "Jesus said unto them, If God were your father, ye would love Me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of Myself, but He sent Me. Why do ye not understand My speech? Even because ye cannot hear My word. Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in Him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. And because I tell you the truth, ye believe not. Which of you convinceth Me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe Me? He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God."

Jesus had just finished declaring to these Jews a principle that will hold true all the way, "The children will show some characteristics of their father." So after they make the claim that God is their father, He disproves it just as he did their former claim. If they were the children of God, they would surely love Him: for He is the Son of God, and was sent by the Father to them, although, without question, His mission to them was as a witness against them rather than for their salvation. He asks and answers a question in verse 43, "Why do ye not understand My speech? Even because ye cannot hear my word." This seems clear enough concerning why they do not understand. Here John uses "logos," which is translated "word." In this context it should be understood in its original meaning, "collection," that is, the collection of Jesus' sayings to them, which make up the doctrine He taught. Some might question even the answer He gave, inasmuch as they would wonder why these could not hear these teachings. The answer to this becomes clear, when we look at verse 47: "He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God." In this verse "hrama" is used instead of "logos," and means "the spoken word." So God speaks directly, in the Person of the Holy Spirit, to those who are "of God," and they, hearing His spoken word, can also hear his doctrine. In verse 44 He declares them to be "of their father the devil," and subject to doing his lusts. He then describes the devil, not as one who has fallen into lying, but one in whom there never has been any truth. He is even the father of lies, and every one of his lies is of himself. In addition to being the father of the lie, he is also a murderer, and has been from the beginning. This is the being, who, Jesus says, is their father. Since they are the children of their father, the fact that He has told them the truth is the very cause of their not believing Him. Their nature is so warped that they can believe nothing but a lie. Verse 46 might be a little clearer by a different choice of words in translation; "Who of you convicts Me of being in error? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe Me?" He gives them the challenge to prove Him wrong, if they can, which, of course, they cannot do. Then, although He has already given the answer to the question, by way of jogging their memory, He asks, "And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe Me?"

(Verses 48 through 51) "Then answered the Jews, and said unto Him, Say we not well that Thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil? Jesus answered, I have not a devil; but I honour My Father, and ye do dishonour Me. And I seek not Mine own glory: there is One that seeketh and judgeth. Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep My sayings, he shall never see death."

Remember that these are the same "Jews which believed on Him." They, being completely frustrated at not being able to overthrow His argument, did as men often do when they lose a debate, they resorted to name calling, accusing Him of being a Samaritan and possessed of a devil. They knew He was not a Samaritan, but since all Jews hated the Samaritans, they thought that if they could convince the people that He was, all His followers would desert Him. He declared that He did not have a devil, but was only honoring His Father, God, by speaking forth that which the Father had declared to Him. He sought not His own glory, but that of the Father, while these Jews were dishonoring Him by their name-calling. Nevertheless, there is One, Who both seeks and judges. That is, He seeks out the secret thoughts of the mind and heart, and judges them. He closes this segment of His address thus: "Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep My sayings, he shall never see death." Again, we call attention to the fact that the keeping of His sayings is not what frees a man from death, but it is what identifies the man who has been freed therefrom. All Christians understand that Jesus did not mean that the body should not pass through what we call death, but that the spirit and soul will never die, and the body will be raised again, and reunited to them; but these Jews had no understanding of this at all.

(Verses 52 and 53) "Then said the Jews unto Him, Now we know that Thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and Thou sayest, If a man keep My sayings, he shall never taste of death. Art Thou greater than our father Abraham, which is dead? And the prophets are dead: Whom makest Thou Thyself?"

All these Jews could understand was concerning natural things. They had no spiritual understanding. So, to them, Abraham and the prophets were dead, though Jesus, when talking to the Sadducees about the resurrection, proved by the Old Testament that they are alive, since "God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." The Jews, knowing and understanding nothing of this, thought that Jesus' statement in verse 51 proved Him possessed of a devil. They could not conceive the idea that anyone could be greater than "our father Abraham." So in derision they asked, "Whom makest Thou Thyself?" Our modern equivalent of that is, "Who do you think you are?"

(Verses 54 through 56) "Jesus answered, If I honour Myself, My honour is nothing: it is My Father that honoureth Me; of Whom ye say, that He is your God: yet ye have not known Him; but I know Him: and if I should say, I know Him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know Him, and keep His saying. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day: and he saw it, and was glad."

This is a very simple speech, and should need little in the way of explanation. Jesus declares that it would be totally unprofitable for Him to honor Himself, that is, by telling these Jews anything about His glory and power. His Father gives Him sufficient glory; and He is the One, Whom they claim as their God. Then He lays a bombshell upon them, "Yet ye have not known Him." This certainly is not an accusation, which they would receive with pleasure: for their constant effort has been to teach people to know the Lord; and now they are charged with not even knowing Him themselves. To reinforce this, Jesus says, "But I know Him: and if I should say I know Him not, I shall be a liar like unto you." If He denied that He knows the Father, that would be a lie of equal magnitude with their claim that He is their God. Yet the fact remains, "I know Him, and keep His saying." Then he tells them that Abraham, the one whom they claim as their father, looked with rejoicing for the coming of His day: "And he saw it, and was glad." Whether He has reference to the fact that through the promises and revelations of God to him, Abraham saw the day of His coming, and even that of His second coming, or whether the reference may be to the Theophanies given to Abraham, we may never be completely sure. But both are facts. And both may be included. It may also be that His meaning is that since, as He told the Sadducees, "For all live unto Him," (God,) As Abraham lives with God, he is able even now to see Jesus' day; and is now rejoicing in it.

(Verses 57 through 59) "Then said the Jews unto Him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast Thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I AM. Then took they up stones to cast at Him: but Jesus hid Himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by."

Certainly there is no need for explanation here, unless it be that Jesus' statement, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am," might seem obscure to some. Some seem to think this is merely a play upon words, since God told Moses to tell the children of Israel that I AM had sent him. It seems more in keeping with reality to consider it as declaring exactly the same thing as John 1:1. Although He was made flesh when Jesus was born in Bethlehem , the Word, Who was made flesh, was in the beginning with God, and was God.

Chapter 9

(Verses 1 through 7) "And as Jesus passed by, He saw a man which was blind from his birth. And His disciples asked Him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him. I must work the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world. When He had thus spoken, He spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay, and said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing."

Surely no one would experience any difficulty in understanding this, but there are some interesting points in it of which we should take notice. The question asked by the disciples indicates that they thought, just as do many today, that handicaps only come about as a direct result of some particular sin of the one afflicted, or someone close to him. It also shows an idea that was fairly common among the Jews, that a child, even before birth, might commit sin. This idea the Apostle Paul completely rules out in Romans 9:11, for if such were possible, it could have been the basis upon which God hated Esau, and loved Jacob; and Paul emphatically denies that. Although certainly every ill and every evil in the world is here by reason of the entrance of sin into the world, Jesus says that, in this case, the blindness was not brought about by the sin of either parents or child, but for an entirely different purpose. It was to provide an occasion for the works of God to be made manifest. He then says, "I must work the works of Him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work." In order that we not be confused over the meaning of this, He further declares, "As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." So "while it is day" means as long as he is in the world; and the coming of the night is the coming of the time when He shall be taken out of the world, that is, the time of His crucifixion. Then He set about giving sight to the blind man. What He did, and the medium He used for His work were so simple that no one could doubt that the power is in Him, and not in the medium.

The reaction to, and the follow up of, this incident continue through verse 38. Rather than commenting on each verse, we shall attempt to comment on the overall account, with emphasis on special points. When he who had been blind was given his sight, it caused great confusion among his neighbors, so much that some of them hardly believed that this was the man who had been blind. They went to him and questioned as to how it came about; and he told them that a man did it, and described how he did it. They wanted to know where the man was who had done this, but he did not know. Since it was on the Sabbath day that this was done, the people had to get the opinion of the Pharisees about the matter, so they brought the man to them. After hearing the man repeat the story, the Pharisees were divided in their opinions of the one who did the healing, none of them, as yet knowing Who He was. Finally they asked the man who had been blind what was his opinion of Him. His answer was, "He is a prophet." The people were so confused that some did not believe this to be the same man who had been blind. So finally they went to his parents, who acknowledged him as their son, and testified that he had been born blind; but they refused to tell them anything about the incident, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue. The Pharisees again called the man who had been blind before them, and said to him, "Give God the praise: we know that this man is a sinner." This shows the arrogance of the Pharisees. They did not even yet know Who had healed the man, but in their self-righteousness they had already judged Him a sinner. The man whom Jesus had healed answered them, "Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see." This should be answer enough for anyone, but not for the Pharisees. They asked him again how the man had healed him. He was by this time more than a little irritated at the Pharisees. He refused to tell them again, asking them, "Will ye also be his disciples?" They railed at him, and accused him of being a disciple of that man. Then to show their great knowledge of the things of God, they said, "We know that God spake to Moses: as for this man, we know not from whence he is." In their minds this was the end of the matter. They had spoken. It was not so satisfactory to the man who had been blind: he answered them thus, "Why herein is a marvelous thing, that ye know not from whence he is, and yet he hath opened mine eyes. Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth His will, him He heareth. Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind. If this man were not of God, he could do nothing." This was like hitting the Pharisees in the face twice with a whip. First, they did not want anyone to declare approval of this man who had done the healing; and second, they thought no one could possibly know as much about the things of God as they themselves did. Their answer to this was very much in character for them: "Thou wast altogether born in sin, and dost thou teach us?" Then they drove him out of the synagogue.

(Verses 35 through 38) "Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God? He answered and said, Who is He, Lord, that I might believe on Him? And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen Him, and it is He that talketh with thee. And he said, Lord, I believe. And worshipped Him."

To review the testimony of this man to whom Jesus gave sight, we find that he was fully convinced that He Who had done this had to be a worshipper of God and a doer of His will; for otherwise He could have done nothing. Yet he did not know Who He was. Now that he is cast out of the synagogue, and, no doubt, ostracized by his former friends, Jesus finds him (the language implies that Jesus actively sought until He found him) and asks the question, "Dost thou believe on the Son of God?" There is no doubt, from the testimony he had already given, that this man not only had his natural eyes opened, but also his eyes and heart had been opened to the things of God. Nevertheless, he did not know the identity of Him, Who had healed him, nor did he know the identity of the Son of God. As we study his question, "Who is He, Lord, that I might believe on Him?" it appears that, behind this question, he is really saying, "I know that it is He Who has healed me; but I do not know Who He is, so identify Him to me that I may believe on Him, and worship Him." And as soon as Jesus said to him, "Thou hast both seen Him, and He it is that talketh with thee," all delay was over, and he said, "Lord, I believe," and worshipped Him.

(Verses 39 through 41) "And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and they which see might be made blind. And some of the Pharisees which were with Him heard these words, and said unto Him, Are we blind also? Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth."

In verses 39 and 41 Jesus is using the contrast of seeing and being blind, in reference to the attitude of the Pharisees. In verses 29 and 34 this attitude is as clearly presented as anywhere else in scripture. They thought that they, and they alone, could see, so far as the things of God are concerned, and everyone else was in total blindness. Paul refers to this attitude in Romans 2:17-20. "Behold, thou art called a Jew, and resteth in the law, and makest thy boast of God, and knoweth His will, and approvest the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law; and art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and the truth in the law." These are the ones who thought themselves to have wonderful sight, but Jesus came to make them blind; and at the same time to take these "blind," "which are in darkness," "foolish," and "babes," and make them see.  When the Pharisees asked, "Are we blind also?" His answer seems clear enough, "If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth."

This is an example showing that those who divided this book into chapters either did not know, or did not care, what they were doing: for this is obviously a continuation of that begun in the last verse of the preceding chapter.

(Verses 1 through 5) "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice; and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers."

Anyone who can read can understand what Jesus has said here. One might not understand what He is illustrating with it, but so far as the speech itself is concerned, there is nothing difficult about it. Most of us today know little, if anything at all, about sheep, but in this description we can readily see a sheepfold, a walled in enclosure with gates; and in this enclosure sheep are temporarily penned up for their protection. This sheepfold is, evidently, one in which several shepherds leave their sheep temporarily, in the charge of a gatekeeper ("porter"). The first scene we have is that of someone who will not go up to the door, or gate, and identify himself, but climbs over the wall at some other place. Jesus says what is obvious to all; he that does such is a thief and a robber. Surely no one else would use that means of entry. He who comes to the door, or gate, identifies himself is the shepherd; and the porter will open the gate for him. Since there are several flocks of sheep in this fold, each shepherd who comes for his flock, calls his own sheep by name, and they hearing his voice, follow him. To say that he calls them by name could mean that he calls each sheep by an individual name, or, as is most likely the case with a large flock, the shepherd has a special call, which his sheep recognize. When he takes them out of the fold he leads the way, ("he goeth before them,") and they follow him. They follow him because they know his voice. At the same time, they will flee from a stranger, because they do not know his voice. According to those who have studied the customs of that day, this is a very accurate description. Our Lord said this in order to illustrate something else. That is why it is called a parable.

(Verses 6 through 10) "This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which He spake unto them. Then Jesus said unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before Me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by Me if any man shall enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

When Jesus spoke this parable the people surely understood what He said; but they had no idea at all what application to make of it. So He began to explain to them what He was illustrating by it. In this parable we have two characters, who actually turn out to be the same Person. In verses 1 through 5 the description of the shepherd leaves no doubt that Jesus is referring to Himself, as He also does again later in the parable. But He also speaks of the porter, or gatekeeper, in such a manner that one might think of him as being different from the shepherd. Yet in verse 7 He says, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. So He is not only the shepherd, but also the door, which we shall explain is also the porter, or gatekeeper. This comes about by reason of a custom of long standing in that part of the world, as explained by a shepherd of that area to a tourist. The tourist was looking at a sheepfold. It was completely enclosed by a wall, except for a narrow opening through which the sheep could pass; but there was no gate. So the tourist inquired of the shepherd about the lack of a gate.  The shepherd answered, "I am the gate. At night I sleep stretched out across the opening on the ground. Nothing goes in or out except by me." Thus also Jesus is to His sheep Shepherd, Gate, and Gatekeeper. The sheep, of course are His elect, which is clearly established in many places in scripture. It is obvious that His reference in verse 8, to "all that ever came before Me," is directed against the very Pharisees to whom He was speaking, together with their predecessors. One should notice that in verse 4, He said, "And when He putteth forth His sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow Him." This is directly opposite from the system used by the scribes and Pharisees: for Jesus said of them, "For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers." They tried to drive the sheep instead of trying to lead them. Obviously they did not come in by Him, the door, but tried to climb up some other way, which identifies them as thieves and robbers. Their purpose was not to benefit the sheep, but to steal, kill, and destroy. After He says, "I am the door," the remainder of verse 9 seems to embrace the sheep instead of the pretended shepherds who came before. All who enter in by Him shall be saved, and shall "go in and out, and find pasture," that is, they shall be provided with both shelter and food. Instead of coming "to steal, and to kill, and to destroy," as did those who came before, He has come for two purposes. First, that He may give life to His sheep. And, second, that His sheep may have this life more abundantly. They shall no more be driven by these "would be shepherds," who load them with such heavy burdens; but they shall be led by the true Shepherd Whose voice gently calls them, as He leads the way.

(Verses 11 through 14) "I am the good Shepherd; the good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep. But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good Shepherd, and I know My sheep, and am known of mine."

We have already discussed the change Jesus makes, in that earlier He said, "I am the door of the sheep," and now He says, "I am the good Shepherd," showing how He is both. Here He gives us a contrast between the good Shepherd and the hireling. A hireling, whether in keeping sheep, or in any other work, is one whose interest in the matter is what he hopes to receive for his participation in it. He has no interest in the project itself. The shepherd, according to the practice of that time, whether he actually owned the sheep outright, or not, was charged with them as though they were his own; and a faithful shepherd, or "good shepherd," would defend the flock with His life. Many years ago we used to hear some very foolish arguing about the wolf's catching the hireling, and scattering the sheep. Perhaps, without knowing it, Gamaliel explained this better than anyone else has since his day. "Ye men of Israel , take heed what ye intend to do as touching these men. For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered, and brought to naught. After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of the taxing, and drew away much people after him: he also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed him, were dispersed." (Acts 5:35-37.) In recent years we have seen the Jonestown mass suicide, and the Waco incident, both of which illustrate the same thing; and our Lord has already laid this charge against the scribes and Pharisees. So His meaning here should be clear. The hireling is only interested in making a name for himself. But the Good Shepherd is interested in the welfare of the sheep. Not only so, but He knows His sheep, and they know Him. This should give us full assurance that all of His sheep shall come to Him, and that He will not take any which are not His.

(Verses 15 through 18) "As the Father knoweth Me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one fold, and one Shepherd. Therefore doth My Father love Me, because I lay down My life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of My Father."

Jesus declares that His knowledge of the Father is as intimate and complete as is the father's knowledge of Him. His mission is to lay down His life for the sheep. He then makes a statement, which identifies, by contrast, the sheepfold of which He spoke in the parable. He says, "And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold," which is, without question, a reference to the fact that He has a people among the Gentiles. And it thereby identifies "this fold" as the Jews, those enclosed in the law, as sheep are sheltered in a fold. He did not even say that the other sheep were in a fold; and indeed they were not, that is, in the sense in which the Jews were, that of being enclosed in the law. Nevertheless He says, "Them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one fold, and one Shepherd." He makes no mention of sending someone for them, but says, "them also I must bring," signifying that He only is capable of finding them, and bringing them to the fold. When He does this, they hear His voice: for His is the only voice that can speak the words that are Spirit and life. For all His sheep there is never to be but one Shepherd, and one fold.  All His ministers are, at best, only under shepherds, or servants of the Shepherd. Jesus alone is the Beloved of the Father, because it is in Him that the Father is well pleased, as He testified at both the baptism, and the transfiguration of Jesus. We are beloved of God only through Him, as Paul says, "He hath made us accepted in the Beloved." He is loved of the Father, and is well pleasing to the Father: for He lays down His life, that He may take it again. This surely is not the only cause of the Father's love for Him; but it is the only cause under present consideration. When He says, No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself, I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of My Father," this is not in contradiction to Peter's statement, "Him being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain." Peter was there charging those he addressed with the intent and therefore the guilt of the crucifixion, which is perfectly true; while here Jesus speaks, not of the guilt of that evil act, but of the power of laying down and taking again of His life. And His declaration is also true: for this was already commanded of the Father.

As had been going on for some time, there was much controversy among the Jews. Some of them accused Jesus of being demon possessed, while others maintained that a devil could not open the eyes of the blind. John reminds us that this all took place at Jerusalem , in Solomon's porch of the temple. The Jews came to Jesus, and asked Him, "How long dost Thou make us to doubt? If Thou be the Christ tell us plainly," but it does not take long for the situation itself to prove their hypocrisy.

(Verses 25 through 31) "Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. But ye believe not, because ye are not of My sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any (man) pluck them out of My hand. My Father, Which gave them Me, is greater than all; and no (man) is able to pluck them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are One. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him."

Jesus declares to these Jews that He is the same that He has already told them, but they have not believed him. Nevertheless the works He did in the name of His Father were sufficient testimony to the truth of his claim. In the original manuscripts from which the translators worked there was no punctuation; and from the wording it is obvious that in verse 26 the translators put their comma and their period in the wrong places. They should be swapped. Then it would read, "But ye believe not because ye are not of My sheep. As I said unto you, My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me:" and this is clearly the meaning. This is His first time to tell them that the reason for their unbelief is that they are not of His sheep. So the "As I said unto you," should not apply to it. However, in verse 14, He did say, "I am the good Shepherd, and know My sheep, and am known of Mine;" and in the parable He points out clearly that not only does the Shepherd know His sheep, but they also know His voice. So the "As I said unto you" does apply here. He declares that He gives to His sheep eternal life; and they shall never perish, nor be plucked from His hand. They are a gift from His Father to Him; and His Father is greater than all, not just greater than any other, but greater than all others together. Therefore it is impossible that these which He has given to His Son should be plucked away. Their safety is totally and eternally secured. As noted earlier, the hypocrisy of these Jews soon manifested itself. No sooner had Jesus answered their question than they began collecting stones with which to stone Him.

(Verses 32 and 33) "Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from My Father; for which of those works do ye stone Me? The Jews answered Him, saying, For a good work we stone Thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that Thou, being a man, makest Thyself God."

Many of the Jews, and even of the Pharisees, might have acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah, or the Christ, had He not also declared Himself the Son of God. In all their studying of the law and the prophets they had never entertained the idea of His being more than "the son of David," that is, only a man, though certainly a great one. And the great king that should restore Israel to all her former glory, and even greater glory than she ever had before; but they had never understood that He is the Son of God, though, in retrospect, we can see it set forth in prophecy. For this claim they were ready to stone Him.

(Verses 34 through 38) "Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, ye are gods? If He called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken: say ye of Him, Whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? If I do not the works of My Father, believe Me not. But if I do, though ye believe not Me, believe the works; that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in Me, and I in Him."

Jesus refers these Jews to a statement in Psalms 8:6. The whole statement is, "I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High." since this is scripture, and the scriptures are true for ever, there is no room for their charge of blasphemy because He declared Himself the Son of God. Then He tells them that they should examine the works that he does. If they are not the works of God, they are under no obligation to believe Him; but if they are, even if they do not believe Him, they should believe the works themselves. When they see that these works are such that none but God can do them, they should recognize that the power of God the Father is in Him, and that He must be abiding in the Father: for even the works will bear witness of this. These Jews still could not be placated by this. But again they attempted to take Him, and again He escaped them.

(Verses 40 through 42) "And He went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized; and there abode. And many resorted unto Him, and said, John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man were true. And many believed on Him there."

In Chapter 5 Jesus announced to the people that it was time for Him to speak to the dead, and raise them up to life, not all the dead, but whom He would. In the present chapter is the only incident of this that John records, though the other gospel writers record at least two more, the daughter of Jairus, and the son of the widow at Nain. There may have been others that are not recorded: for when He sent forth His apostles, He gave them power to raise the dead. See Matthew 10:8.

Since the incident recorded in this chapter continues through verse 46, we shall not attempt to quote all of it for comment, but only selected passages. There was a family, Lazarus and his two sisters, Mary and Martha, living in the little town of Bethany . They were very close friends of Jesus. While Jesus was over in the area where John had at first baptized, He received a message that Lazarus was sick. When He received this message, He said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby." After receiving this message Jesus remained where He was for two days. Here we pick up the conversational exchange between Jesus and His disciples.

(Verses 7 through 10) "Then after that saith Jesus to His disciples, Let us go to Judaea again. His disciples say unto him, Master, the Jews of late sought to stone Thee; and goest Thou thither again? Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in a day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world. But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because there is no light in him."

At first glance it may appear that Jesus is just reminding His disciples of the physical light of day, and instructing them to walk in the daylight for safety. However, He is pointing beyond that to the fact that, just as this natural principle is true, so also it is true that until His day is finished, that is, until He has finished the work for which He came, no evil can befall Him. When that is finished will also be fulfilled that which He told the mob in the garden of Gethsemane , "But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."

(Verses 11 through 16) "These things said He: and after that He saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go that I may wake him out of sleep. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that He had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye might believe; nevertheless let us go unto him. Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus, unto his fellow disciples, Let us also go, that we may die with Him."

This shows us why Jesus did not go immediately after receiving the message that Lazarus was sick. Remember that He said when He received the message, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified." Some might think that Jesus was being very rough on His friends, the sisters of Lazarus, by letting Lazarus die before going to see him, even though He was going to raise him from the dead. We have to remember that this is a matter of far greater importance than personal friendship; it is for the glory of God. Notice that when He told His disciples that Lazarus was dead, He added, "And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent that ye might believe." Had he been there, He might not have suffered Lazarus to die, or if so, He might have raised him from the dead sooner. Either way, it might have had less impact upon the disciples, as well as others, than it did this way. At any rate it was done according to the purpose of God. By the time Jesus and His disciples arrived at Bethany , Lazarus had been buried for four days.  Before Jesus reached the house where Mary and Martha were, Martha heard that He was approaching, and went out to meet Him.

(Verses 21 through 24) "Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if Thou hadst been here, My brother had not died. But I know, that even now, whatsoever Thou wilt ask of God, God will give it Thee. Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto Him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day."

We cannot read Martha's mind from what she said. Her statement, "If Thou hadst been here, my brother had not died," may have been said as a mild reproach for Jesus' waiting as long as He did, after receiving the message of Lazarus' sickness, before coming to Bethany, or it may not. For she still had faith that God would give Jesus anything He would ask. However, we shall see a little later that she hardly expected what was done. When Jesus told her that her brother would rise again, she readily declared that she knew that he would rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Of this she had no doubt.

(Verses 25 through 27) "Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die. Believest thou this? She saith unto Him, Yea, Lord: I believe that Thou art the Christ, the Son of God, Which should come into the world."

Jesus' statement to Martha is, no doubt, one of the most important declarations in the Bible. John 1:4 says, "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men." In John 14:6 Jesus says, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." Here, however, He adds another dimension to it, "I am the RESURRECTION and the life. Though men have, from time immemorial, believed that there is to be a resurrection, no one had ever witnessed it, unless one might consider that of the man who is mentioned in 2 Kings 13:21. Yet some might think that he was not in the grave long enough for this to be really classed as a resurrection. Here Jesus declares Himself to be not only the resurrection, but the life also; and He is shortly to prove it. He further declares that one who believes in Him, though he dies, yet shall he live; and anyone who lives and believes in Him shall never die. As this relates to Lazarus, it is soon to be proved by a physical resurrection; but in general it is yet to come. When He says that living believers shall never die, He does not mean that their bodies shall not pass through death, but that the spirit and soul never die; and the death of the body is not permanent, because, as He would soon demonstrate, He is the resurrection. He then asks Martha a question, "Believest thou this?" and that same question is constantly facing us today. Upon its answer depends our tranquillity as we sojourn here. What joy is in our hearts when we can truthfully answer as she did, "Yea, Lord: I believe that Thou art the Christ, the Son of God, Which should come into the world."

From this point through verse 37 John simply tells the details leading up to the great miracle for which Jesus had come to Bethany . Martha went, and informed Mary that Jesus had arrived, and Mary went to where He was, Just as is often the case, the two sisters were quite different in personality, as appears from several instances mentioned in scripture. Martha was more of what we today sometimes call "the strong silent type," while Mary was more emotional. When she came to Jesus, "she fell down at His feet, saying unto Him, Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother had not died." Since this is all she said, we do not know whether or not she would have concurred with Martha's statement in verse 22. Mary and the Jews who had gathered to comfort the sisters, were weeping; and Jesus wept also, as He inquired where they had laid Lazarus. The Jews seeing how greatly Jesus loved Lazarus, began to say among themselves, "Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not die?"

(Verses 38 through 40) Jesus therefore again groaning in Himself cometh to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it. Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto Him, Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been (dead) four days. Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee, that if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?"

It was not unusual to make use of natural caves in the hillsides, or even to dig caves there for graves. This grave was such a cave, with a stone set in the mouth of it to close it. Jesus' first action upon reaching it, was to command that the stone be taken away. Here we see an example of how easy it is for us to claim to believe something, as long as we think it to be in the far distant future, but when faced with the present reality, to shrink from it. In verses 22 through 24, and 27, Martha's faith appears to be rock solid, while she was looking to the future. Now when faced with the reality of opening the grave, she says, "Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he has been (dead) four days." Her faith is not nearly so strong now; but do not judge her too harshly: for this is also a picture of you and me. We call attention to the word "dead" in her statement. This word was not in the Greek text; and verse 17 shows that it was incorrectly supplied. There it says, "Then when Jesus came, He found that he had been in the grave four days already." In the light of this, the statement should read, "_ _ _ for he hath been here four days." How long he had been dead we do not know: for, surely, it took a little time to prepare him for burial. Jesus reminded Martha that He had already told her that faith is the key to seeing the glory of God.

(Verses 41 and 42) "Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up His eyes, and said, I thank Thee, Father, that Thou hast heard Me. And I know that Thou hearest Me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that Thou hast sent Me."

Since, in this prayer, Jesus says that the purpose of it is for the sake of those who stood by, and heard it, perhaps, we too should take a lesson from it. Though none of us would even claim to know that God will always do that for which we ask, which is really the idea expressed by Jesus when He said, "I thank Thee, Father, that Thou hast heard Me. And I know that Thou hearest Me always," if our faith is not sufficient that we can thank our heavenly Father beforehand for His blessings, as if we had already received them, we may not receive that for which we ask. For Jesus said, (Mark 11:24 ,) "Therefore I say unto you, What things soever that ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them." Yet the principal purpose of this prayer is that those who heard it might believe that He, Jesus, was sent by the Father.

(Verses 43 through 45) "And when He thus had spoken, He cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And Lazarus came forth bound hand and foot with grave clothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go. Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on Him."

In John 5:25 Jesus said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live." This is the most glorious fulfilling of that declaration recorded in scripture. True, He had raised Jairus' daughter, the widow's son at Nain, and, possibly, others; but here was a man who had been in the grave for four days. Even his own sister did not want the grave opened for fear of the unpleasant smell it would cause. And when Jesus spoke to him, commanding him to come forth, he came forth, and in such a manner that had he not been dead, he could not have done so under his own power. He was bound hand and foot with grave clothes. It was customary at that time, when one was being prepared for burial, to place his arms down by his sides, take a large linen cloth, later known as "a winding sheet," and wrap it tightly around the body, from head to foot. This is what is here called "grave clothes." Obviously, if this were done to one who was alive, and in perfect health, he would be totally unable to move. Yet Lazarus, who had been dead and buried for four days, came forth in this condition. There can be no doubt that the voice of the Son of God is what brought him forth. Even after being thus brought forth, he could not move by his own power. So Jesus commanded those who stood by, "Loose him, and let him go." No such great demonstration of His power was made in any other of the recorded instances of His raising the dead, up to this time. Certainly His own resurrection, and that of the saints who arose after His resurrection eclipsed this, but except for that, this is the greatest. Even this did not convince all the Jews who were present; but many of them did believe.

(Verses 46 through 48) "But some of them went their ways to the Pharisees, and told them what things Jesus had done. Then gathered the chief priests and Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles. If we let Him thus alone, all men will believe on Him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and our nation."

The Pharisees and the chief priests, in spite of the fact that a very few of them did believe in Jesus, were, as a group, absolutely implacable in their hatred of Him. Instead of rejoicing in the manifestation of the power of God, and, as Jesus said, (John 10:38 ,) "though ye believe not Me, believe the works," they plotted ways of bringing all of this to an end. This council is the fulfilling of David's prophecy, "The people imagined a vain thing." They actually imagined two vain things. One of them is expressed here, "If we let Him thus alone, all men will believe on Him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and our nation." The other, though not expressed, is clearly shown, and is the sole purpose of this council. They imagined that they could overthrow and destroy Jesus and His work.

(Verses 49 through 52) "And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, "Ye know nothing at all, nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. And he spake this not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; and not for that nation only, but that He also should gather together in One the children of God that were scattered abroad."

John explains to us that Caiaphas was prophesying of Jesus' death for not only the nation of the Jews, but for the gathering together in One all of God's children throughout the world; and that Caiaphas was in this a prophet of God, by reason of the office which he held. Certainly, God, Who caused the ass to speak to Balaam, can also cause a wicked man, the leader of wicked men, to speak forth His word. John makes it clear that Caiaphas was not speaking this with any consciousness of its being a prophecy. It was his thought that it would be better to kill Jesus than to have happen what the others had just said would happen, if He were let live.

This is when the Pharisees and chief priests set to work in earnest to find a way and an opportunity of killing Jesus without too much uproar from the people. So Jesus went to a city called Ephraim, which was near to the wilderness, and there He remained until almost time for the feast of the Passover. Many of the people from outlying areas went up to Jerusalem long enough before the Passover to have time for their purification ritual before the beginning of the feast. Among them there was much discussion about Jesus; and they questioned among themselves as to whether or not He would come to the feast: because a commandment had been issued by the Pharisees and chief priests that anyone knowing His whereabouts must disclose it so that they could arrest Him.

(Verses 1 through 3) "Then Jesus six days before the Passover came to Bethany , where Lazarus was which had been dead, whom He raised from the dead. There they made Him a supper; and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with Him. Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped them with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment."

Although he does not say so, one might, from reading only John's report of this, think this feast to be in the home of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. However both Matthew and Mark tell us that it was in the home of one Simon the leper, who, evidently, was a friend of both Jesus and Lazarus. Since Bethany was only a small village, this presents no problem: for it is likely that all, who lived there, were well acquainted one with another. Both Jesus and Lazarus seem to have been what we would call "guests of honor." While they were seated at the table, Mary came with a box of very expensive perfumed ointment. Here the three accounts seem to differ slightly, but with only such differences that they complement, instead of contradicting, each other. Here John says that Mary anointed the feet of Jesus, while both Matthew and Mark say that she poured the ointment on His head. When we consider how much there was of it, we see that both could easily be true. John says that there was a pound of it. No doubt, that much ointment poured on the head would run down over the body, and even down to the feet; and, as we shall see, what Mark records Jesus as saying lends evidence to this. (Mark 14:8) "She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint My body to the burying." John, probably spoke of her anointing His feet, because she wiped them with her hair.

(Verses 4 through 6) "Then said one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which also should betray Him, Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor? This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and carried the bag, and bare what was put therein."

John gives more detail of this than do either of the other writers. They do not even identify the disciple who asked the question. John not only identifies him, but also explains why he asked the question; and his explanation should be clear enough for anyone, without further comment.

(Verses 7 and 8) "Then said Jesus, Let her alone: against the day of My burying hath she kept this. For the poor always ye have with you: but Me ye have not always."

Mark's record of this speech goes more into detail, and as noted earlier, indicates that the ointment, though poured on the head of Jesus, ran down onto the body, and possibly, to His feet. He records it thus: "And Jesus said, Let her alone, why trouble ye her? She hath wrought a good work on Me. For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but Me ye have not always. She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint My body to the burying. Verily I say unto you, wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her." It was customary to anoint the bodies of the dead before burying them, though, as we shall see later, the disciples had no opportunity to anoint the body of Jesus; and for that reason they came to the tomb as early as possible on the first day of the week. Here Jesus declares that this is what Mary has done "aforehand," that is before the usual time. Therefore this is to be told as a memorial of what she has done wherever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world. John does not go into that much detail; but he does record Jesus' statement thus, "Against the day of My burying hath she kept this." So although they use different words, the writers bear the same testimony.

(Verses 9 through 11) "Much people of the Jews therefore knew that He was there: and they came not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might see Lazarus also, whom He raised from the dead. But the chief priests consulted that they might put Lazarus also to death. Because that by reason of him many of the Jews went away, and believed on Jesus."

One might think that, not a rumor, nor a false report, but absolute knowledge of the raising of a man from the dead, after his having been buried for four days, would cause these chief priests to reconsider and re-evaluate the situation; but not so. Instead, they not only wanted to kill our Lord, but also to destroy the evidence of His work. They wanted to kill Lazarus because his resurrection was leading others to believe in Jesus.

(Verses 12 through 16) "On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet Him, and cried Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel That cometh in the name of the Lord. And Jesus, when He had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written, Fear not, daughter of Sion: behold, thy King cometh, sitting on an ass's colt. These things understood not His disciples at the first: but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they that these things were written of Him, and that they had done these things unto Him."

For more information concerning Jesus' entry into Jerusalem at this time, see Matthew 21:1-9, Mark 11: 1-11, and Luke 19: 29-40. John makes it as simple, and gives as little detail of it as any of them. We have been told by a Jew of the tribe of Levi, who has been converted to Christianity, that "Hosanna," which appears in verse 13, is the Greek translation of the Hebrew "Yeshuanna," the root of which is "Yeshua," meaning "the help of God." And the complete word "Yeshuanna" means "God save us." Thus it is the equivalent of declaring Jesus God, Which, as the Son of God, He is, as even His name "Emmanuel" ("God with us") bears witness. Luke tells us that as the multitude thus glorified the Lord, "some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto Him, Master, rebuke Thy disciples. And He answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out." John says that His disciples did not understand these things that were being done at this time, until after He was glorified.

(Verses 17 through 19) "The people therefore that were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his grave, and raised him from the dead bare record. For this cause the people also met Him, for that they heard that He had done this miracle. The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? behold, the world is gone after Him."

Those who had witnessed the resurrection of Lazarus "bare record," that is, they spread the news wherever they went. Therefore the people who heard this testimony came to meet Jesus. Of course, the Pharisees were furious at this: they were getting nowhere at all with their efforts to stop the people from following Jesus.

(Verses 20 through 22) "And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast: the same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus. Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus."

It is not clear whether these Greeks had come up to Jerusalem to worship, or whether they just happened to be among the crowd of those who did. The latter seems more likely, since they, in effect, came asking permission to see Jesus. Had they themselves come up to worship at this season, it would have been to take part in the Passover, which would identify them as proselytes, fully accepted into the Jewish faith; and as such they, most likely, would have felt no necessity to ask permission for this, or anything else. Be that as it may, they approached Philip, saying, "Sir, we would see Jesus." Philip's action in this matter does not even suggest the existence of a hierarchy among the disciples, but since he and Andrew were of the same town, he probably felt more at ease to mention to him the subject of the Gentiles wanting to see Jesus. They then went together to Jesus, and told Him. No mention is made of how many there were of these Greeks, but there were more than one.

(Verses 23 through 28) "And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come that the Son of man should be glorified. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it: and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there shall also My servant be: if any man serve Me, him will My Father honour. Now is My soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save Me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. Father, glorify Thy name. Then came there a voice from Heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again."

Sometimes, when considering parts of this text, we are prone to forget under what circumstances it was said. To do so is a mistake: for the circumstances of its being said are the key to the proper understanding of it. Philip and Andrew had just reported to Jesus that there were some Gentiles, Greeks, who wanted to see Him. There are a few occasions recorded of contact with Gentiles during His ministry, but for the greater part, they were all what we today call "one on one." Here for the first recorded time we have a group of Gentiles seeking an audience with Jesus. It was in answer to this that Jesus said these things. Heretofore His declaration has been, "I am not sent, but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel ." This was, of course, applicable to Him before His crucifixion: for after His resurrection, He released His disciples from this restriction, and gave them permission to go into the whole world. Here He declares that the coming of these Greeks is the signal that His ministry is drawing to a close; and all that is lacking is that He be glorified, which we understand from the gospel records was accomplished by His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. The time is at hand when these Greeks, and any other Gentiles, who have been given a desire to approach unto Him, may freely do so. Verses 24 and 25 are parenthetical. They set forth two principles. First, He says, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit," signifying that He, the "corn of wheat," must die in order that He may produce the "fruit" of salvation for His people. The Father had predestinated that those whom He foreknew would be conformed "to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren." But, as with the "corn of wheat," (grain of wheat,) unless He died, He would abide alone, and never be the firstborn among many. On the other hand, by His death He would "bring forth much fruit." In verse 25 the principle established is: "Those, whose only love is this present life and the things pertaining to it, have no promise of eternal life; but will even lose the life they so much love; while those who have been made to hate this life, as Paul sets it forth in Romans 7:8-25, are they to whom the promise of eternal life is given."

Since therefore the time is now at hand for the completion of His earthly ministry, "If any man," not just "the lost sheep of the house of Israel," but a man of any race, including, but not limited to, these Greeks who desired to see Him, "serve Me, let him follow Me, and where I am, there shall also My servant be: if any man serve Me, him will My Father honour." As mentioned before, there was no punctuation in the Greek texts from which the translators worked. In verse 27 it seems that a question mark should have been used instead of the colon after "Father save Me from this hour," because it appears that he is asking, "Is this the thing to say?" His answer to that question is, "But for this cause came I unto this hour," signifying that such a prayer would be contrary to the very purpose of His coming to this time. The proper thing to say is, "Father, glorify Thy name." The answer from heaven needs no comment: "I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again."

(Verses 29 through 33) "The people therefore that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to Him. Jesus answered and said, This voice came not because of Me, but for your sakes. Now is the judgment of this world: now is the prince of this world cast out. And I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto Me. This He said signifying what death He should die."

There has been, and, no doubt, will continue to be, some controversy concerning what Jesus said here, particularly in verse 31, which we shall address momentarily, but first we should notice the reaction of the people to the voice from heaven. They heard the sound, but, apparently, did not understand the words. So there was a division of opinion among them. Two opinions are given: some said that it thundered; and others said an angel spoke to Jesus. there may also have been still other opinions, but they are not given in this record. Jesus told the people, "This voice came not because of Me, but for your sakes." He had no need for it, but it was to prove that the Father approved of what Jesus was doing.

"Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out." This certainly is not the final phase of the judgment of this world, nor the final casting out of Satan who is usually referred to by this title. Revelation, Chapters 12 and 20, gives us the final word on both of these matters. However it does bring us to the beginning of the judgment of this world, and the casting out of Satan. Jesus has already declared, I saw Satan as lightning fall from heaven." This was done before the history of man on earth began, so there is little said about it in scripture. Some commentators have tried to consider "this world," as meaning what they call, "the Jewish world." But since "kosmos" is the Greek word used here, there seems to be no necessity for such restriction, particularly since in this judgment which is to begin, there will be the evaluation of the good and the evil. Not only will, in the end, the saints be exonerated and glorified, and the wicked condemned and punished, but also there will be "the restitution of all things." Nature itself "shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God." The fact that the beginning of this judgment, so far as our calendar is concerned, comes so long before the final verdict and the sentencing, poses no difficulty with God: for with Him "one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day." Satan is called the prince of this world, not because the title belongs to him, but because he has by usurpation laid claim to it, and because by his cunning he has gained such control over the minds of men. As noted earlier, he was not totally cast out, but when Jesus arose from the grave holding the keys of hell and of death, the power of Satan was broken; and those who believe in the Christ are no longer in bondage under the fear of death. This is only the beginning of the end for Satan, but that end is sure, and since it is the work of God, it can be spoken of as having been done: for it can not fail of accomplishment. So He continues, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, shall draw all (men) unto Me.” One must always keep in mind that the phrase, "all men," as used in scripture, does not mean every individual in the world, but persons of every nation, family, kindred, and tongue of the world. When He says, "If I be lifted up," this is to be understood as in John 3:14, "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:" for "This He said, signifying what death He should die."

(Verses 34 through 36) "The people answered Him, We have heard out of the law that Christ abideth for ever: and how sayest Thou, The Son of man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of man? Then Jesus said unto them, yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth. While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of the light. These things spake Jesus, and departed, and did hide Himself from them."

One can hardly blame these people for thinking that the Christ should abide for ever, in the sense of remaining alive among them for ever. So many of the prophecies concerning Him, so mingle His suffering and His glory, that if we did not have the gospel to show us the separation between them, we too would likely be as confused as were these who asked Jesus what He meant by the things He had said about His death. Instead of explaining these things, He simply warned them that the light, which is He Himself, would soon be taken from them, and exhorted them to walk in the light while it was yet with them. This is to be done by believing in the light, "that ye may be the children of the light." This is an expression which means much the same as one we often hear today. If a child strongly exhibits the characteristics of his father, we will say of him, "He is his father's son." This does not mean that these characteristics make him his father's son, but that they prove it beyond doubt. After saying these things, Jesus went away where they could not find him.

(Verses 37 through 41) "But though He had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on Him: that the saying of Esaias the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? Therefore they could not believe, because that Esaias said again, He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them. These things said Esaias when he saw His glory, and spake of Him."

This should need little comment, but some seem bent upon raising questions concerning verse 40. However, a review of the original prophecy, Isaiah 6: 9-10, will prove beyond question that the blinding of these eyes, and the hardening of these hearts is the work of God Himself. For the prophecy says, "Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed." so with God having laid this condition upon them, they could not believe.

In spite of this, as is always the case, God reserved to Himself a remnant, who did believe, even among the teachers of the synagogue. But their faith was not yet strong enough for them to openly confess the Christ, and brave the wrath of the Pharisees who had decreed sometime before, (see John 9:22,) that all who did confess Him should be cast out of the synagogue. Again Jesus came out of hiding.

(Verses 44 through 48) "Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on Me, believeth not on Me, but on Him that sent Me. and he that seeth Me seeth Him that sent Me. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not abide in darkness. And if any man hear My words, and believe not I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth Me, and receiveth not My words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day."

What is said here is neither in violation of, nor contradiction to what Jesus said in John 6:37-39, but even as John 6:40 explains the aforementioned selection so that we may have comfort therein by the identification of being believers in Him, so is the present text. Those who believe in Jesus do so because they have been given faith that reaches even beyond Him, and is anchored in the Father, Who sent Him. By His coming He has given light to all who have this faith, so that they may no longer have to walk in darkness, even the darkness in which the saints of Old Testament times had to walk.  Though they did have the light of the law and the prophets, it is as darkness when compared to the gospel. Verse 47 is simply a declaration that the coming of Jesus into the world at this time was not for judgment, but for the salvation of His people throughout the whole world. However, those who turn away from Him, and receive not His word, though He will not at this time judge, or condemn them, will in the last day be judged by the very word He has spoken.

(Verses 49 and 50) "For I have not spoken of Myself; but the Father Which sent Me, He gave Me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. And I know that His commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto Me, so I speak."

This is a declaration of the unity that exists between Jesus and the Father, in the work and the message of His ministry. Earlier He said, "The words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit, and they are life." Now He says, "And I know that His commandment is life everlasting." He declares that of Himself He has said nothing, but every word has been as commanded by the Father. So none of it can fail, or be false.

In the first eleven verses of this chapter, John gives an account of something which none of the other writers mention. He does not even tell us exactly when it took place. Some have claimed that it did not take place on the same night in which He instituted what we call "The Lord's Supper," but sometime earlier in the week. What is recorded here makes it seem that it did take place that same night. John introduces this event with the words, "And supper being ended." (Verse 2) This makes one wonder if some scribe, in copying from manuscript to manuscript, before it ever reached the translators, may have gotten some of this out of its original order. Nevertheless we shall try to follow the order in which it now is.

(Verses 1 through 5) "Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour was come that He should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved His own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end. And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray Him; Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He was come from God, and went to God; He riseth from supper, and laid aside His garments; and took a towel and girded Himself.  After that He poureth water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith He was girded."

The first expression in this is the one on which some key to prove that this took place earlier in the week than Thursday night which seems to be established as the time of The Lord's Supper. All three of the other writers affirm that that took place on the night of the first day of the Passover feast, while John says, concerning this, "Now before the feast of the Passover _ _ _." If this be the case, it appears that there must be a break somewhere between verse 15 and verse 18: for the things in verse 18 and the following verses are recorded by the other writers as taking place on the night of the first day of the Passover feast.

Jesus, being "God with us," knew all things, and therefore He was fully aware of the time for His going back to the Father. As it drew nearer, He did not abandon His disciples, but continued to manifest His love for them, even to the end. At this time, whatever night it may have been, they were having supper together. Although John earlier said that Judas was a thief, this seems to have been by retrospect, rather than to have been known by the disciples at the time. But by the time of this incident Satan had already set Judas' mind to betray Jesus, but nothing is said to him about what he will do until after the event.

When this supper was ended Jesus prepared for what He was about to do, by laying aside His garments. While, since there is no indication of the presence of anyone except Jesus and His twelve disciples, all of whom were men, it is possible that when John says "His garments" he means all of them. But it is far more likely that only His robe is meant, and he would still have been dressed in His tunic. He then girded Himself with a towel, poured water into a basin, and began to wash His disciples' feet, and wipe them with the towel.

Many argue that this act holds no significance for a Christian, but was only according to the custom of the day. This is totally false. There are two major things about it that are contrary to the custom. First, the custom which had been observed, at least since Abraham's day, is that the master of the house furnish water for the guests to wash their own feet, and not that he wash their feet. (See Genesis 18:4.) Second, this was done upon the arrival of the guests, and not after having eaten a meal. As to its significance, we shall address that a little later.

(Verses 6 through 11) "Then cometh He to Simon Peter, and Peter saith unto Him, Lord, dost Thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto Him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me. Simon Peter saith unto Him, Lord, not my feet only, but my hands and my head. Jesus saith unto him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all. For He knew who should betray Him; therefore He said, ye are not all clean."

No doubt, Peter's reluctance to have Jesus wash his feet stemmed from his feeling of unworthiness, just as did that of John the Baptist to baptize Jesus. This vanished the moment Jesus said, "If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me." Many argue over what Jesus meant by this; but any meaning beyond the natural meaning of the words is completely moot: for this can only be in effect "if I wash thee not," which is a condition contrary to fact, because He did wash him. Now instead of just his feet, Peter also wanted his hands and his head washed, signifying the cleansing of his works and his thoughts.

In verse 10 Jesus establishes the significance of the washing of the feet. "He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit." In that day bathing facilities in the home were not so plentiful as they are today. However, they did have great public baths. A man, in preparation for some social function, would go to one of these baths. Then, as he walked along the street, though he was clean, his feet would become defiled, and for him to be "clean every whit," he had to wash his feet. This answers to the fact that, though we have indeed been washed, or cleansed by the blood of Jesus, as we walk through this sinful world, we are constantly in need of daily forgiveness for our errors and failures, that our fellowship be not broken by them. Later He will show that this has to do not so much with our relationship with Him, as with one another. In this statement, He said also, "And ye are clean, but not all," showing that He knew who should betray Him: the traitor was not clean.

(Verses 12 through 17) "So after He had washed their feet, and had taken His garments, and was set down again, He said unto them, Know ye what I have done unto you? Ye call Me Master and Lord: ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, the servant is not greater than his lord; neither is he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them."

When Jesus asked the question, "Know ye what I have done to you?" He did it to call attention to what He had done, because there was very important significance to it. He knew that they knew He had washed their feet. What they did not know was why He had done so, and what was the significance of it. No doubt, they had heard Him conversing with Peter concerning it, but there is still something else. He begins His explanation with, "Ye call Me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am." He establishes the fact that they, and we also, are servants; and He is the Master; and He uses this as the foundation for His next statement. "If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done." As we pointed out earlier, the old argument that some try to use for His reason for washing their feet, (that they were dirty from walking in sandals instead of shoes, and because it was the custom,) has no truth in it. Now we find still another witness against that argument. It was never the custom for the master to wash the feet of his servants; but Jesus emphasizes the fact that, that is exactly what has taken place. Why then did He do it? "For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done." Certainly, we not being the master, and not having servants under us, cannot humble ourselves at the feet of those non-existing servants, and wash their feet; but verse 14 clears all of that up. "If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, ye also ought to wash one another's feet." In this act, we are saying to our brethren, "If you have committed any trespass against me, even if it be something of which neither of us is aware, I forgive you of it, and place myself at your feet as your servant." In addition to this, Jesus said, "Ye also ought to wash one another's feet," and, "I have given you an example that ye should do as I have done to you." We are under obligation to Him to do as He has done; and His example is before us. Those who argue against this are motivated by one thing only, PRIDE. He then declares that the servant is not greater than his lord. Therefore the servant is not at liberty to judge his master's commands or his examples, and select those he will follow, while discarding the rest. To reinforce this, He reminds them that, neither is he that is sent greater than he that sent him. He has several times said that even He has done and said only that which the Father has commanded Him; and that He always does that which is pleasing to the Father. This should establish to us the fact that we are not to deviate from the commandments and examples, which He has given us. Verse 17 sets forth a principle, which we should always keep in mind. The happiness of a Christian depends not upon his knowing the commandments of his Lord, but upon doing them. "If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them."

(Verses 18 through 21) "I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture might be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with Me, hath lifted up his heel against Me. Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am He. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth Me; and he that receiveth Me receiveth Him that sent Me. When Jesus had thus said, He was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray Me."

John 2:24-25 says, "But Jesus did not commit Himself unto them, because He knew all men, and needed not that any should testify of man: for He knew what was in man," in John 6:70, Jesus says, "Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil," and here He says, "I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture might be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with Me hath lifted up his heel against Me." There also are other scriptures which bear witness that, Jesus was from the beginning well aware of who would betray Him; and it was for this purpose that Judas was chosen. Yet some have the audacity to say that Jesus made a serious mistake when He chose Judas as an apostle. Here He says, "Now I tell you before it come, that when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am He." This is very much in keeping with His discourse, which starts at the beginning of Chapter 14, and continues through Chapter 16. He is preparing His disciples for His leaving them by way of His crucifixion. They already believe, and have testified that He is the Christ. Yet, when He is crucified, their faith will be badly shaken. He is not here telling them, that when these things come to pass, they will begin to believe that He is the Christ, but rather that, as they remember that He told them of these things before they came to pass, it will strengthen their weakening faith, that they may continue to hold steadfastly to their faith in Him, in the face of their sorrow. He reminds them of the chain of fellowship between them and Himself, and between Himself and the Father who sent Him. Since "He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth Me; and he that receiveth Me receiveth Him that sent Me," the logical next step is, "He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth Him that sent Me." Therefore He assures the disciples that whosoever receives them receives the Father also, thus proving that, their fellowship is not only with Him, but with the Father also. So even by His return to the Father, their fellowship is not broken. He then tells them that one of their number shall betray Him. Some may wonder why He did not tell them this long before. We certainly would not attempt to give an answer which He never has given us in the first place. But there appear to be reasons we would consider to be sufficient, whether or not they be His reason for it, among which the foremost is, Had they known that one of their number would do this, without knowing just who it was, they would have been torn completely apart by suspicion one of another. And had they known who the traitor was, they, probably, would have held him in such contempt that they could not have endured his presence with them. So until time for his deed, though Jesus knew him from the beginning, He held him incognito.

(Verses 22 through 30) "Then the disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom He spake. Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter therefore beckoned to him, that he should ask who it should be of whom He spake. He then lying on Jesus' breast saith unto Him, Lord, who is it? Jesus answered, He it is to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it. And when He had dipped the sop, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do quickly. Now no man at the table knew for what intent He spake this unto him. For some of them thought, because Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, Buy those things that we have need of against the feast; or that he should give something to the poor. He then having received the sop went immediately out: and it was night."

Since this is primarily a simple account of what took place immediately following Jesus' announcement that one of the twelve would betray Him, there is little that needs explanation. The disciples were, apparently, much surprised by this news. Since John does not record The Lord's Supper, there is no way of determining from his writing exactly the sequence of events on that night. But it is certain, from the testimony of all three of the other gospel writers, that this did take place on the same occasion as that in which this ordinance was established. Matthew and Mark indicate that this announcement was made during the eating of the Passover feast, before The Lord's Supper was observed, while Luke seems to indicate that it followed The Lord's Supper. (See Matthew 26:21-25, Mark 14:18 -20, and Luke 22:21-22.) In spite of this minor difference, all three place it at the same event. John's account seems to more clearly indicate the positive identification of Judas as the traitor; and yet the other disciples even then seemed not to know what the Lord meant by that. John's statement in verse 27, "And after the sop Satan entered into him," does not mean that this was the first time Judas had considered this: for Luke tells us that prior to this, (Luke 22:3-4,) "Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve. And he went his way, and communed with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him unto them." What is under consideration here is that at this point Satan came upon him so strongly that he was ready to carry out his act. As soon as he received the sop, and Jesus said unto him, "That thou doest, do quickly," he went out to do his evil deed. Even now the other disciples had no thought of what he was really doing.

(Verses 31 through 35) "Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the son of man glorified, and God is glorified in Him. If God is glorified in Him, God shall also glorify Him in Himself, and shall straightway glorify Him. Little children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye shall seek Me: and as I said unto the Jews, Whither I go ye cannot come; so now I say to you. A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye have love one to another."

The time was at hand that Jesus must suffer the agony in the garden, the mock trials before the Sanhedrin, before Pilate, and before Herod, the mockings of the soldiers and the multitude, the beatings and scourgings inflicted upon Him, and the crucifixion. But His focus was not upon these things. Rather it was upon His resurrection and ascension, His glorification. The Apostle Paul said of Him, (Romans 1:3-4,) "Concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, Which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead." God is glorified in Him through His patient suffering for the sins of His people, and will glorify Him in Himself by raising Him from the dead, and seating Him in His proper place at the right hand of the Majesty on high. So Jesus says to the disciples, "Little children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye shall seek Me: and as I said unto the Jews, whither I go, ye cannot come; so now I say to you." Though He makes the same statement to the disciples that He earlier made to the Jews, there is a difference in the meaning. Though the disciples will in sadness seek Him, and long for Him, they can neither find Him, nor come to where He is. But He has promised that, at the proper time, He will return to take them where He is, while no such promise was made to those Jews of whom He spoke. He now says, "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." When we consider the fact that Jesus has already declared that next to that greatest of all commandments, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength," the other great commandment is, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself," one might wonder why He would say that He is giving a new commandment. In 1 John 1:7-8 we find the answer to that question. The newness of it is not found in its words, but in the new light, which now shines upon it, and upon us. That love is measured by that which He suffered for it, and He says, “As I have loved you, that ye also love one another." Then He gives us what we can properly call "our I. D. card" as Christians, "By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye have love one to another."

(Verses 36 through 38) "Simon Peter said unto Him, Lord, whither goest Thou? Jesus answered him, Whither I go, thou canst not follow Me now, but thou shalt follow Me afterwards. Peter said unto Him, Lord, why cannot I follow Thee now? I will lay down my life for Thy sake. Jesus answered him, Wilt thou lay down thy life for My sake? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, The cock shall not crow, till thou hast denied Me thrice."

Although the disciples believed Jesus to be the Christ, they still could not understand that He must die, and rise from the dead, in spite of His having told them repeatedly that this was His mission on earth. So when He told them that He was going where they could not follow Him, Peter asked Him where He was going. Jesus did not answer that question, but again told him that he could not follow Him at this time, but that later he would. At this point Peter declared himself ready to give his life for Jesus' sake, evidently, thinking that this qualified him to follow Jesus now. However, Jesus knowing Peter better than Peter knew himself said to him, "Wilt thou lay down thy life for My sake? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, The cock shall not crow, till thou hast denied Me thrice." We should never be too hard in our judgment of Peter. We are no better than was he. He verily thought that he was ready to die for Jesus, but Jesus knew his weakness, just as He knows ours. We need to pay much more attention to our Lord's warning to Peter than to Peter's own claim. We have no record of exactly what time it was when the cock crowed that night, but, most likely, it was at the normal time, which is shortly before daybreak. The time of the year being what it was, this would likely be about three or four o'clock in the morning. Then considering that Jesus and His disciples had celebrated the Passover, which would not have started until about six o'clock, and Jesus had instituted The Lord's Supper following it, it was by now at least nine o'clock, and, perhaps, later. From nine o'clock p. m. to four o'clock a. m. would be only about seven hours. In this short time Peter declines from his feeling of being ready to die for Jesus' sake, to that of three times denying even any knowledge of Who He is. This is also a picture of you and me, unless our Lord should see fit to supply us with grace and strength.

(Verses 1 through 4) "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know."

This is really the beginning of a discourse of our Lord to His disciples only an hour or so before He was arrested to be brought before the Sanhedrin, Pilate, and Herod, and then to be crucified. As is evident throughout, it is for the purpose of comforting the disciples, and strengthening their faith for the time of sorrow and doubt that was shortly to come upon them because of the death of Jesus. The very first words set the tone for the whole, "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in Me." The literal translation of this is, "Let not your heart be troubled; believe ye in God, and believe ye also in Me." This was said for the comfort of the disciples in the times ahead, when they would be laden with sorrow, and made even to doubt whether or not Jesus is the Christ. Jesus knew what lay ahead for them. Therefore He is exhorting them to hold fast to their faith in God the Father and also in the Christ, the Son of God. This is no exhortation to someone to begin to believe in God and His Son, but encouragement for those, who already believed, to hold fast to their faith, which was to be sorely tried during the time from His crucifixion to that when He reappeared to them. He is exhorting them to remember what He has already told them He must do, and must suffer. They are not to "desert the ship" because of the fulfilling of those things, although they did not understand these things when He had told them before of the necessity for them. They are all part of the Father's plan, and must come to pass. These things, instead of being the end of the matter, as the disciples thought after the crucifixion, are only the fulfilling of the Father's purpose in the salvation of His people.

In verse 2 we come to a statement which has been somewhat controversial through the years, "In My Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you." The Greek word "monai," here translated, "mansions," literally means, "a staying, abiding, dwelling, abode," having not so much reference to the place where one stays, as to the staying itself. If applied to the place, it can just as well mean a Bedouin's tent, as a mansion. Because of the substitution of "mansion," it is commonly thought that "My Father's house" means heaven. The only other place in scripture where this phrase is used is John 2:16, where Jesus says, "Take these things hence; make not My Father's house a house of merchandise." Obviously, in that place it has no reference to heaven; but it refers to the temple which was the place God had sanctified as the place for His servants to worship Him under the law dispensation. Since the resurrection of our Lord, that has given way to the gospel church. In addition to this, Jesus says that these dwellings are presently in His Father's house, which seems to indicate that we would be much closer to His meaning to consider "My Father's house" as the gospel church, and these dwellings, as actually "work stations." Since He had just told Peter, "Whither I go, thou canst not follow Me now; but thou shalt follow Me afterwards," it seems apparent that, in effect, He is saying, "I must go, but you must remain behind for now, but do not be concerned about that. For there are many places here for you to work, and much for you to do." There are indeed plenty of places in the church for every one of His servants that remain here. We emphasize one thing at this point. When we refer to the church of God , or the gospel church, we are not considering any denomination or organization, by whatsoever name called, but the whole family of God on earth. Not only are there many places for His servants who remain here to serve, but He is going to prepare a place for them, indicating that this place is not yet prepared. This has given rise to the idea that many have, That He is, even now busy preparing mansions in heaven for all His saints. This idea is completely contrary to what the writer of Hebrews says, (Hebrews 10:12-13,) "But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; from henceforth expecting till His enemies be made His footstool." He is not busy preparing mansions, but is seated at the right hand of God, which signifies that His work is done, until His enemies have been made His footstool.

He says that He is going to prepare a place for us. Notice that He did not say, I go to prepare a place for you to stay," but only, "I go to prepare a place for you." There is a place that must be prepared for God's saints before they can be brought home. The picture is given under the law. A study of the Hebrew Epistle proves beyond doubt that the whole operation under the law was a type of the work of our Lord Jesus, the Christ. The writer of the Hebrew Epistle refers us to this, as he mentions the high priest, who went into the "Holiest of all," with the blood of the sacrifice for sin, to sprinkle this blood before the cherubim and on the mercy seat, and make an atonement for the people of Israel . He then points out clearly that without blood, no atonement can be made. Let us then look at the mercy seat. It was really the lid of the Ark of the Covenant. In this ark were three things, and all of them were of utmost importance; but each of them was a witness against Israel .  The tables of the covenant and law were in this ark. In Galatians 3:19 , Paul says, "Wherefore then serveth the law?  It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made." Also in the ark there was the golden pot filled with manna. Chapter 16 of Exodus tells how the Israelites broke every commandment God gave them concerning the manna. Finally, there was also in it Aaron's rod that budded; Chapter 17 of Numbers will give all necessary details of why this rod was kept. With all these witnesses against Israel stored up in the ark, without the blood sprinkled upon it, the mercy seat would instead have been a seat of judgment; and there could have been no atonement. Since this is the figure, or type, of the work of the Christ, the writer of Hebrews says, "But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us." (Hebrews 9:11-12) Thus, just as by his entering into the holy of holies in the tabernacle, and sprinkling the blood of the sacrifice before the cherubim, and upon the mercy seat, the high priest prepared a place for Israel, in that this atonement made the judgment seat into a mercy seat, all of which was symbolic; our Lord Jesus, the Christ, has done the real work to which this points, by entering into the Holy of Holies in heaven itself, and there preparing for us a mercy seat, or throne of grace, by presenting His own precious blood, and with it making an eternal atonement for us. Without this preparation no one would ever enter heaven. Since He has prepared this place for us, He will also come again and receive us to Himself, that we may be where He is. He also said to the disciples, "And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know."

(Verses 5 through 7) "Thomas saith unto Him, Lord, we know not whither Thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me. If ye had known Me, ye should have known My Father also: and from henceforth ye know Him, and have seen Him."

Although Jesus had taught His disciples that He must return to His Father in heaven, they were still confused about the subject, with their minds occupied with questions about physical location and direction to the place where He was going. Like them, we often get caught up in a geographic consideration of these things, forgetting that geography will not reach them, because the very meaning of geography precludes it from the matter: for its meaning is "earth writing." And where Jesus was going, and where He is, is not on the earth. Thomas said, "Lord, we know not whither Thou goest; so how can we know the way?" He knew that Jesus had taught that He must return to the Father, but what He wanted to know is, "Which direction is that? How far is it? And how can we get there?" Jesus did not address any of these things in a physical way, because such is of no avail in spiritual things. Instead He said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me." Since the physical and geographic directions men use for getting from place to place in this world will not help in this case, Jesus gives identification, and not description of the way. There may be more than one way of getting from point "X" to point "Y" on this earth; but there is only one way from here to the Father: that way is Jesus. He is also "the truth." That is, He, and He alone, is fundamental truth; and is in no wise compromised, and indeed cannot be compromised, because in Him is not even the shadow of falsehood. All truth, not only spiritual truth, but even truth of mundane things, springs from Him. He is also "the life," as John says, (John 1:4,) "In Him was life; and the life was the light of men." He holds not only the life of saints, but of sinners also, in His hands. For this reason He is Judge of all. Any man who ever has come, or ever will come to the Father, must come by Him. There is no other access.

When Jesus says, "If ye had known Me, ye should have known My Father also: and from henceforth ye know Him, and have seen Him," the emphasis is not to be placed upon physical appearance, but upon characteristics. For, though in this and His answer to Philip, it may at first glance, seem that physical appearance might be involved, we soon see that His principal reference is to His works which are of the Father. Paul speaks thus of Him, "For it pleased the Father that in Him should all fullness dwell," (Col. 1:19,) and, "For in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." (Col. 2:9).

(Verses 8 through 14) "Philip saith unto Him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet thou hast not known Me, Philip? He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou, Shew us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of Myself: but the Father that dwelleth in Me, He doeth the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the very works' sake. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also: and greater works than these shall he do; because I go to My father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in My name, I will do it."

Philip, just as was Thomas, was caught up in the idea of the physical. He wanted to see the Father in a physical appearance. This we are not allowed to do. Even when Moses desired to see the glory of God, God said to him, "Thou canst not see My face: for there shall no man see Me, and live." (Exodus 33:20.) So Jesus told Philip, "He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father." To show that He is not speaking of physical appearance, He immediately takes up the words He speaks and the works He does, and declares that they are not His, but the Father's. For He was in the Father, and the Father was in Him. He then says, in effect, "If you can't believe this, then consider the works themselves, and believe for the sake of their witness."

When we consider verses 12 through 14, we must remember that He is speaking to the eleven apostles, and, at least, some of what He says may not extend beyond them. He declares to them that those who believe in Him shall not only do the same works that he does, but "greater" than these. He certainly has no reference to their doing works of greater magnitude than those He does: for He has raised the dead. Since He follows the expression, "and greater works than these shall he do," with "because I go to My Father," it appears that His meaning is "greater" in the sense of their continuing on for a longer time, since His time of doing these works is at an end, and theirs is about to begin. Verses 13 and 14 seem clear enough without explanation. But, evidently, their promise extends no further than to the audience addressed, the apostles: for there is no scriptural record of anyone else who received everything for which he prayed; unless one might assume that somewhere in transcribing from one manuscript to another, a modifying clause has been lost. There are other places in scripture that tell us that when we pray, if we believe, and have no doubts at all, we shall receive that for which we ask; but that is not here given.

(Verses 15 through 19) "If ye love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever; even the Spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world seeth Me no more; but ye see Me; because I live, ye shall live also."

Certainly Jesus knew that His disciples loved Him, and He was not telling them to keep His commandments in order that He might know that they loved Him. The "if" should be regarded more as "since." He is here, as we have said before, preparing them for that time of the severe trial of their faith that will be brought on by His death. So His message to them is that they not let sorrow overcome them so that they give up, and turn away from following Him. Rather they are, because of their love for Him, to "keep," or continue in, His commandments. As they do this, He will pray the Father, Who will send another Comforter to them; and this Comforter, Who is the Spirit of truth, will abide with them for ever. Unlike Jesus Himself, Who now must return to the father, the Spirit of truth, Who is later called the Holy Ghost, will abide with them forever, as long as God's people are here on earth. The world cannot receive this Comforter, because it cannot see Him. Its eyes are blinded to Him, and therefore it cannot know, or recognize, Him. This, however, is not the case with His disciples: for He dwells in them, and they know Him. Jesus promises that He will not leave them comfortless, because He will come to them. He later explains that He will not come in human form, but in spirit, to abide with them. Then He declares that the time of his departure is near, "Yet a little while, and the world shall see Me no more." The world could only see Jesus in the flesh, with the natural eye; but this is soon to come to an end, and the world can see Him no more. Not so, however, with His disciples: for they can see Him by faith; and because He lives, so shall His disciples.

(Verses 20 and 21) "At that day ye shall know that I am in My Father, and ye in Me, and I in you. He that hath My commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me: and he that loveth Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him, and manifest Myself to him."

"That day," in verse 20, is the day in which the Holy Ghost comes into one's heart. He is the Comforter who was to be sent, and He gives us the knowledge of our relationship with God, and with His Christ. He then says that our love for Him is proved by our keeping His commandments, the very same principle He has taught throughout His entire ministry. In other places He expresses it as, "A tree is known by its fruit." When He says, "He that loveth Me shall be loved by My father, and I will love him, and manifest Myself to him," it is not to be thought that He means that our love for Him is the cause of the Father's loving us, nor of His loving us. For He has consistently taught that God's love is first, and is the cause of our loving Him, and not the other way around. His meaning is that we who love Him need have no fear that either He or the father will ever cease to love us. By this those who love Him can be comforted.

(Verses 22 through 24) "Judas saith unto Him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that Thou wilt manifest Thyself unto us, and not unto the world? Jesus answered and said unto him, if a man love Me, he will keep My words: and My Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth Me not keepeth not My sayings: and the word which ye hear is not Mine, but the Father's which hath sent Me."

Judas Iscariot was already gone from among the apostles, but there was another apostle named Judas. He it was who asked Jesus how He would manifest Himself to those who love Him, and not be seen by the world. This was, no doubt, the question that bothered all the disciples: for they were accustomed to the personal and physical contact with Jesus, and could not yet be comfortable with the idea of spiritual fellowship only. Nevertheless, Jesus explained that that is exactly what will take place. Both He and the Father will in the Spirit come, and abide in the hearts of those who love Him. The way to distinguish between those who love Him and those who do not is simple. Those who do will keep His words, or commandments; and those who do not, will not keep them: and what is of more importance, these words, or sayings, are not His only, but are of the Father.

(Verses 25 through 27) "These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, Whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."

Jesus reminds the disciples that He is telling them these things while He is still with them, which signifies that the time is shortly to come when He will not be with them, and they will be, more or less, on their own. In this period they may forget some of these things, but when the Comforter, the Holy Ghost, is sent to them in His name by the Father, He will teach them, and bring back to their minds, all that He has taught them. When He says, "Peace I leave with you _ _ _," he does not mean that there will be no trouble and sorrow, but rather that this peace will calm their hearts and minds, even in the midst of all the turmoil. Then He admonishes them, "Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." This can be done only by their remembering what He has taught.

(Verses 28 through 31) "Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved Me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for My Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it is come to pass, that when it is come to pass, ye might believe. Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in Me. But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, even so I do. Arise, let us go hence."

Jesus reminds His disciples that, they have heard His teachings, and by them know that, He is going away from them to the Father; but that, this is, in a manner, only temporary, as then both He and the Father will come to them, in the Spirit, and abide with them. He tells them that if they loved Him, they would rejoice in this, because He is going to the Father Who is greater than He. We sometimes, when considering Jesus' declaration that He and the Father are One, consider Him as the equal of the Father in every respect. But He consistently maintains that as long as He was engaged in His earthly ministry, though He is the Son of God, He was in the position of a servant, and in that respect the Father is greater than He. All these things He has told them before they come to pass, for the purpose of strengthening their faith when they do come to pass, and they remember that He did tell them beforehand. He says that there will be little time for any more teaching of them, because "the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in Me." His reference to being unable to "talk much" with the disciples has to do only with the time before His death. After his resurrection He spent forty days with them, teaching them the things pertaining to the kingdom of God . "The prince of this world," or, as we pointed out earlier, Satan, is soon to come, that is, with the concentration of all his forces of evil, against our Lord. This begins in the garden of Gethsemane , and continues all the way through the trial before the Sanhedrin, the trial before Herod, the two appearances before Pilate, with all the beatings, scourgings, and mockings attendant upon them, and climaxes in the crucifixion. Dr. Gill says that there was a personal appearance of Satan against Jesus in the garden, just as there was in His temptations in the wilderness. This seems to have existed in Dr. Gill's mind only: for there is no mention of it in scripture. Nevertheless all the forces of evil concentrated against Him throughout all these events, because the prince of this world had nothing in Him, that is there was no fellowship between them. In that time God's first prophecy of the Christ was fulfilled. Satan, the serpent, did bruise His heel. But when He came forth from the tomb, He bruised the serpent's head; and He can, and does now declare, "I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death." All this was said in the room where they had eaten the Passover, but now He says, "Arise, let us go hence, and apparently they started to the garden of Gethsemane , while He continued His discourse.

(Verses 1 through 6) "I am the true vine, and My Father is the husbandman. Every branch in Me that beareth not fruit He taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, He purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in Me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned."

To understand this, or any other, illustration, or parable, identification of all elements is necessary. We do not have to develop this identification for ourselves in this illustration: for Jesus has given it at the beginning. We are concerned with a vine, "the true vine," the husbandman, or vine dresser, and the branches. Jesus first says, I am the true vine, and My Father is the husbandman." This leaves us no room to even wonder about these two elements of the parable. Since the husbandman of a vineyard is he who prunes and dresses the vine, Jesus says that this husbandman, His Father, takes away, or prunes off, every branch in Him that does not bring forth fruit. This is in perfect keeping with the statement of John the Baptist, "And now also the axe is laid to the root of the trees; therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire." The only difference between that statement and what Jesus says here, is the use of different elements for illustration. While John speaks of trees, Jesus uses the branches of a vine. In both instances the unfruitful ones are taken away. John says that they are burned; and, later in this lesson, Jesus says the same thing. Those branches that do bear fruit, the Father "purges," or prunes off the little suckers, which would sap their strength, in order that they might bear more fruit. Notice that He has not yet identified the branches, but He makes some preparatory statements leading to that. First, He says, "Now ye are clean through the word, which I have spoken unto you." Just as the lepers were cleansed when He said, "I will; be thou clean," so were His disciples, and so are all who believe in Him today, cleansed by the word He has spoken to them. He then delivered to them a commandment, and gave them a reason for it. "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in Me." At this point we need to be reminded of whom He here was addressing. These were not even all of His disciples, but only the eleven apostles, Judas having already gone to make final arrangements for the betrayal. He declares them all to be clean. Yet even they cannot bear fruit of themselves, any more than a branch of a vine can bear fruit after being severed from the vine. They, in order to bear fruit, must abide in Him, that is, remain faithful, even through that period of sorrow which is shortly to come upon them. As we have pointed out before, this entire discourse is focused upon preparing these disciples for the sorrow they are soon to experience. Now He makes the positive identification of the branches, "I am the vine, ye are the branches." Having thus declared them the branches, He says, "He that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing." There certainly can be no argument against the applicability of this to every Christian, but there is, no doubt, a special application of it to these apostles. Though immediately after His resurrection, Jesus told His disciples to go into all the world, and preach the gospel to all nations, He yet told them to remain in Jerusalem until they were endued with power from on high. They could not bear fruit on their own, but had to wait until the appointed time, when the Holy Ghost came upon them, which is the same as Jesus coming to them: for until His return in glory He works through the Person of the Holy Ghost. In this verse Jesus identifies the apostles as the branches of the vine, and shows their utter dependence upon Him. Now He says, "If any man abide not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." Notice that Jesus did not say, "If any man among you," or "If any of you," but "If any man abide not in Me." This needs no explanation: for the words are self-explanatory. Any person who does not abide in Him is then "cast forth as a branch, and is withered." He does not say that such an one is a branch, but that just as a branch that is cut off is cast away, and is withered, so is he. The remainder of the verse deals with such withered branches, not with the man. Any further analogy is drawn only by the mind of men. As is the case with so many of our Lord's parables, men want so much to deal with the negative, that they will even add to what is given in order to carry their point. However, Jesus leaves that side of the matter here, and deals only with the positive side of it; and so should we.

(Verses 7 through 11) "If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is My Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be My disciples. As the Father hath loved Me, so have I loved you: continue ye in My love. If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My love; even as I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His love. These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full."

In the days ahead, the apostles were to be sorely tried, insofar as their faith is concerned; so much so, in fact, that at one point Peter said, "I go a-fishing." Whether, or not, this meant that he felt disillusioned, and was going back to his old work, we will never know. Six of the other apostles also agreed that this was the proper thing to do; and they said, "We also go with you." To strengthen their faith, and hold in check such feelings, Jesus says to them, "If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done for you," thus exhorting them to fight the battle to the end. The Father is glorified by their bearing much fruit, and to do so will prove them to be the disciples of Jesus. He reminds them that His love for them has been just as has been that of the Father for Him, which is indeed love in its perfection; and He exhorts them to continue in His love. This is to be done by keeping His commandments. To abide in anything is to stay in it, and manifest it as one's home. That is what Jesus did by keeping the Father's commandments, He showed Himself to be abiding in the Father's love. In the same manner we can prove that we are abiding in Jesus' love. In verse 11 He tells His purpose in saying these things, not only what He has said, but also what He will say, as He continues. His purpose to these disciples is that His joy might remain in them, that is, that the joy of His presence and fellowship might remain with them even through the time of sorrow and darkness ahead. Thus, and thus only, could their joy be full, or complete.

(Verses 12 through 15) "This is My commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are My friends if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of My Father I have made known unto you."

Throughout His ministry Jesus stressed the importance of love. Now He delivers to them the declaration: "This is My commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you." He was fully aware that He was about to demonstrate to them the greatest example of love for them that is possible, and He called upon them to be ready to do the same for one another. If they, or if we, follow that commandment, no other will ever be needed concerning our relationship one with another. This is the pinnacle of love, which can never be surpassed, "That a man lay down his life for his friends," and this He was about to do. Heretofore He had sometimes spoken of them as His servants, on one occasion saying, "Where I am, there will My servant be." But He declares that His relationship with them is no more that of Master and servant, but friend with friend, because the master does not tell his servant all about his business. But He has told them all things that he has heard of His Father, thus elevating them from the status of servants to that of friends.

(Verses 16 and 17) "Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in My name, He may give it you. These things I command you, that ye love one another."

While it is certainly true that each of God's children is "elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father," and is "predestinated unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ unto Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will," that is not what is under consideration at this point. Here Jesus is telling the apostles that they did not volunteer for the work they are to do, but He has chosen, and ordained (appointed, established, prepared, or all three) them for this work, that they shall go and bring forth fruit, that is, that their ministry shall be successful. And not only so, but that the fruit of their ministry shall not be temporary, but shall remain through the ages; and to them He gives the privilege of asking whatsoever they will of the Father in His name, and it shall be done for them of the Father. They, these eleven, have been elevated to an office above that of the remainder of His disciples; and with that office are also given special gifts, powers, and privileges. With all of this, He repeats His commandment, "That ye love one another." Although this commandment is necessary to all His disciples, it is especially so for them, the leaders.

(Verses 18 through 21) "If the world hate you, ye know that it hated Me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, the servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept My saying, they will keep yours also. But all these things will they do unto you for My name's sake, because they know not Him that sent Me."

Certainly this leaves little need for explanation. The first caution is, "Do not expect any better treatment from the world than that which your Master has received. When you find that the world hates you, there is no need to be surprised: for it hated Him first. If He had left you as you were, of the world, the world would still love you, because you would still be like it. Since the Master has chosen you out of the world, and made you desire to seek a heavenly country, the world hates you, because it perceives His characteristics in you. Those who hated Him will also hate you; and those who received His teachings will also receive yours. It is in, and because of, their ignorance of God Who sent His Son into the world, that they will do all these evil things to the friends of the Son. Only by keeping this in mind can we fulfill another of Jesus' commandments, "Pray for them that despitefully use you."

(Verses 22 through 27) "If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloak for their sin. He that hateth Me hateth My Father also. If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both Me and My Father. But this cometh to pass that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated Me without a cause. But when the Comforter is come, Whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, Which proceedeth from the Father, He shall testify of Me. And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with Me from the beginning."

Just as it is true that those who hate the ones sent forth by the Son, hate the Son also, those who hate the Son also hate the Father Who sent Him, thus making the chain complete. The hatred of those who hate the disciples of Jesus is actually directed at God the Father. If Jesus had not come and spoken to them the word of the Father, and had not done the works that He did among them, there would have been no standard set forth, in contrast to which their works are manifested to be evil. (And only in this sense, they would have had no sin.) But since He has done this, there is no way in which they can hide their sin: they are shown up as haters of both the Son and the Father. Nevertheless, all this comes to pass as the fulfilling of the prophecy, "They hated Me without a cause." (Psalms 69:4) He renews the promise of the comforter, and says, "He shall testify of Me. And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with Me from the beginning."

Chapter 16

(Verses 1 through 4)"These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended. They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor Me. But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you."

Jesus continues His address to the eleven, and though some of what He says may also be extended to all His servants, it all primarily applies to the eleven, and is peculiarly suited to them. In verse 1, the word, "offended," should, according to our modern meanings of words, be translated "made to stumble," or "caused to doubt." It has no reference to "being offended," in the meaning we apply to that term today. He has foretold these things to the eleven, so that when they see these things they will not be frightened by them, nor wonder if this is something Jesus did not know about. He tells them of some of the evils that they can expect to receive from the world. One of these that was very clearly fulfilled by Saul of Tarsus before the Lord appeared to him, is, "The time will come that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service." Saul was the representative of the Sanhedrin at the stoning of Stephen. Jesus repeats that they will do these things because of their ignorance of both Him and His Father. Yet when these things take place, the disciples will remember that He has already forewarned them. There was no need to tell them about these things earlier, because He was still with them, but now that it is time for Him to leave them, they need to know.

(Verses 5 through 11) "But now I go My way to Him that sent Me; and none of you asketh Me, Whither goest Thou? But because I have said these things unto you, sorrow hath filled your heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth; it is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you. And when He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment; of sin, because they believe not on Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father, and ye see Me no more; of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged."

Earlier both Thomas and Philip wanted Jesus to show them the Father, and tell them a physical description of the way they must go to get where He is. Now their hearts are so sad because of the things He has told them, especially because He continues to tell them that He must go away, that they no longer ask. Still He must go; and it is for their benefit that He should do so. There surely are many benefits brought to them, and to us, by His going, but the one upon which He focuses their attention is that unless He returns to the Father, the Comforter will not come to them. One great benefit, that will accrue to them by His going away and the Comforter's coming to them is that, Jesus, while in the flesh, usually limited Himself to the limitations of the flesh, in that, He could be with only one of them at a time, or all of them only when they were together, but the Holy Ghost, having no fleshly body, can be everywhere at once. When the Comforter does come, "He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment." This might have appeared a little clearer, had the translators used a slightly different choice of the word they used when translating "peri," which they translated as "of." This word also means "concerning." Also the word translated, "reprove," means "convict," or "call to account," as well as several other meanings. So the passage could have been translated, "He will call the world to account concerning sin, and concerning righteousness, and concerning judgment." As we find in The Acts Of The Apostles, the Holy Ghost was not to come until Pentecost. (See Acts, Chapter 2.) On that day "there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven." On the day of Pentecost there were all of these representatives from all over the world at Jerusalem .  Though these were indeed Jews, they would, and did, as they returned to the nations from which they came, spread the news of what took place in Jerusalem .  What did take place is that the Holy Ghost made His appearance, and on that day convicted, or called to account, three thousand of these representatives of the world in one day. He convicted them concerning their sin of not believing in Jesus, the Son of God: He called them to account concerning righteousness, because they had accused Jesus of blasphemy, and had demanded that He be crucified as a sinner, but God manifested His righteousness by raising Him from the dead; and He called them to account concerning judgment, because He whom they judged a sinner has overcome Satan the prince of this world, has broken the bonds of death and of hell, has arisen from the grave, and has ascended to the Father on high. Having thus called these to account, and graciously setting them free from the condemnation, the Holy Ghost has made them witnesses against the world for its participation in all the evils perpetrated against the Christ, and has thus convicted it concerning all these things; and it remains, and will remain, under this condemnation. As Jesus has ascended to the Father, the Father "hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ." Thus Satan, the prince of this world, is judged and cast down from that high position he had usurped, that of "prince of this world:" for that is a position he has occupied by usurpation only; it was never legally his. The Holy Ghost is still continuing this same work, but, without controversy, this is the greatest single act of it that has ever been recorded.

(Verses 12 through 15) "I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come. He shall glorify Me: for He shall receive of Mine, and shall shew it unto you. All things that the Father hath are Mine: therefore said I that He shall take of Mine, and shall shew it unto you."

Jesus knowing all things, knew that if He told them all that lay ahead, they would be so burdened with sadness and, possibly, even with anger, at some of those things that were to take place, that they could not bear it. So some things would for their sakes have to wait, that the Holy Ghost might reveal them when He should come.  The Holy Ghost neither speaks nor works of His own, but only at the will of the Father and the Son.  All things that he shows, (says and does,) are those that belong to the Son: for He, the only begotten of the father, is the Father's sole Heir, and all that the Father has is His. This is why He said, "He shall take of Mine, and shew it unto you."

(Verses 16 through 18) "A little while, and ye shall not see Me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see Me, because I go to the Father. Then said some of His disciples among themselves, What is this that he saith unto us, A little while, and ye shall not see Me:, and again, a little while, and ye shall see Me:, and, Because I go to the father? They said therefore, What is this that he saith, A little while? We cannot tell what He saith."

 We need not be critical of the disciples for their failure to understand this saying. If we did not have the gospel record to enlighten us, we would be fully as confused as were they. By that record we are informed that "A little while, and ye shall not see Me," is a literally accurate description of the time from His saying it until His crucifixion and burial. Time was swiftly drawing to a close for this. "Again, a little while, and ye shall see Me," is the promise that He would rise on the third day, and that he would again appear to His disciples. They, without this record, were totally confused.

(Verses 19 through 21) "Now Jesus knew that they were desirous to ask Him, and said unto them, Do ye inquire among yourselves of that I said, A little while, and ye shall not see Me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see Me? Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her time is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world."

Jesus, knowing their thoughts, explained to the disciples that, though they were sorrowful now for those things He had told them, they will in a very short time be in such deep sorrow that they will weep and lament. And to make their sorrow worse, the world will rejoice; and both their sorrow and the joy of the world will be because of His death. Yet their sorrow will soon be turned into joy, when He shall appear to them after His resurrection. He likens their sorrow at His death and their joy at His resurrection to the sorrow of a woman in childbirth and her joy, after it is over, in her newborn child.

(Verses 22 through 25) "And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you. And in that day ye shall ask Me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in My name, He will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in My name: ask and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father."

Jesus renews His promise to His disciples that, after His resurrection He will come to them again; and their sorrow shall be turned into joy. Then He tells them of a new privilege that will at that day be given unto them. Until now they have brought all questions, problems, and needs to Jesus. Now He tells them, "In that day," the time when He reappears to them after His resurrection, they will no more ask Him for anything, but only ask the Father in His name, and "Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in My name, He will give it you." There is no record that this promise was ever given to any besides the eleven. He encourages them to make use of this privilege, that their joy may be full. Moreover, at that time all proverbs will be set aside, and He will show them, and speak to them "plainly of the Father." This, no doubt, refers to the forty days He spent with His disciples after His resurrection, and taught them the things pertaining to the kingdom of God .

(Verses 26 through 30) "At that day ye shall ask in My name: and I say not that I will pray the Father for you: for the Father Himself loveth you, because ye have loved Me, and have believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father. His disciples said unto Him, Lo, now speakest Thou plainly, and speakest no proverb. Now are we sure that Thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask Thee: by this we believe that Thou camest forth from God."

Jesus continues to encourage His disciples that in the day of His return to them, they should use the privilege of direct access to the Father through His name. It will not even be necessary that He pray to the Father in their behalf, because the Father's love for them is such that this would be unnecessary. He then simply declares that just as He came forth from the Father, and came into this world, so must He leave the world, and return to the Father. At this the understanding of the disciples is opened so that they say His speech is plain enough that they can understand, and believe it.

(Verses 31 through 33) "Jesus answered them, Do ye now believe? Behold the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave Me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me. These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

Jesus' question to the disciples followed by His next statement to them, points out very clearly how weak is the mind and resolve of man. At that particular moment, there is no reason to doubt that they were sure that Jesus is the Son of God, and that He came forth from God, just as He declared that He had. Yet in a matter of, perhaps, an hour, or scarcely more, they would all forsake Him, and attempt to look out for themselves. We have no right to judge them for this, because we would have done the same as they. God had already had this prophesied long before. Jesus told them that, though they would forsake Him, He would not be alone; for the Father would be with Him. He has told them all these things for one purpose, that in Him they may have peace. As they later think back upon their desertion of Him, and are saddened thereby, they will also remember that He knew beforehand that they would do so, but still loved them just the same. All these things he has told them will, as they are later brought back to memory, strengthen their faith, as they more fully realize that He knew all things before they came to pass. They are promised nothing but tribulation in the world; but He has overcome the world, and they can rest in this knowledge. This promise, according to the witness of the apostles, extends to us also.

Chapter 17

As we read this chapter and the next, we are made to wonder if, perchance, through human error in transcribing from one manuscript to another, the first verse of Chapter 18 might have been transposed from the beginning of this chapter to its present position. Since the garden is where Jesus went to pray, it seems a little unlikely that He would either have stopped on the wayside for this prayer, or that he would have prayed it as He walked along. It could be that, the darkness of the little valley of Kedron , may have seemed to Him more appropriate for this prayer than the Garden of Gethsemane itself. Be that as it may, we shall take it up as recorded.

(Verses 1 through 5) "These words spake Jesus and lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify Thy Son, that Thy Son may also glorify Thee: As Thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as Thou hast given Him. And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, Whom Thou hast sent. I have glorified Thee on earth: I have finished the work Thou gavest Me to do. And now, O Father, glorify Thou Me with Thine own self with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was."

After all the discourse He had addressed to His disciples, as recorded in the previous three chapters, Jesus looked up to heaven, the throne of the Father, and began praying. He knew, and, of course, so did the Father, that the time appointed for His making the great sacrifice for which He came into the world, was at hand. So He prayed that the Father would glorify Him, not for His own sake, but that He, in turn, might glorify the Father. We might more readily understand verse 2 by reading it, "Since Thou hast _ _ _." Since the Father has given Him power over all humanity, thus enabling Him to give eternal life to all whom the father has given Him, He asks that the Father glorify Him by giving Him the strength to endure, in a manner that will glorify the Father, all that He must undergo in the remainder of this night and the next day. Some might wonder why it would be necessary for the Son of God to pray for strength to endure.  The reason is simply that He was in a body of flesh and blood, with all the ability to suffer every kind of pain that is common to you and me. The only difference between that body and ours is that it had no sin.

He was empowered to give eternal life to all that the Father had given Him, all the elect of God. "And this is life eternal, that they may know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ Whom Thou hast sent." we have heard arguments to the effect that not the knowledge of "the only true God, and Jesus Christ," but the ability to know Them, is life eternal. This is an exercise in hair-splitting in which we will not engage. Those who have this knowledge have eternal life, and those who do not have this knowledge do not have eternal life.

Jesus declares that He has glorified the Father on the earth. This He has done by the doctrine He has taught, and the works He has done; and now the work which He came to do is finished, and it is time for Him to be offered up as the sacrifice for the sins of His people. So He asks, "And now, O Father, glorify Thou Me with Thine own self with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was." In verse 1, He asked that the Father would glorify Him, that He might glorify the Father; which seems to be a prayer that the Father would give Him the glory of being able to endure all that was coming upon Him, in such a manner as would glorify the Father. Here He is apparently looking beyond that, to the glory that was His with the Father before the world was. All of this was to be His upon His resurrection and ascension back to the Father. In John 1:1, we have the description of that glory, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

(Verses 6 through 10) "I have manifested Thy name unto the men which Thou gavest Me out of the world: Thine they were, and Thou gavest them Me; and they have kept Thy word. Now they have known that all things whatsoever Thou hast given Me are of Thee. For I have given unto them the words which Thou gavest Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from Thee, and they have believed that Thou didst send Me. I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which Thou hast given Me; for they are Thine. And all Mine are Thine, and Thine are Mine; and I am glorified in them."

There are some things in this text which seem for some reason to baffle great minds, probably, because they declare God to have, and use, the right of total sovereignty, and to be answerable to no man. First, Jesus addresses the matter of His disciples; and since the Apostle Paul enlarges so much upon this subject in his writings, we can be assured that the same principle applies to all of His disciples, even to the present day. Jesus declares that He has manifested, or displayed, the name of the Father, not to every man, but to particular ones, "the men which Thou gavest Me out of the world." Further, these belonged to the Father beforehand, and are His by gift from the Father. Now since they belonged to the Father, and were given by Him to the Son, Who has manifested the name of the Father to them, they have kept the Father's word, and are thereby made to know that all things that were given to the Son are of the Father. Jesus has delivered to them the words, or doctrines, which were given Him of the Father; and by their receiving these they have been made to know both that Jesus came forth from the Father, and that He did not come of Himself, but was sent of the Father.

Verse 9 is a direct contradiction of what we often hear preached today, by some, who claim to be gospel ministers. They say that it is the Lord's will that the entire world be saved. If that were true, this would have been the ideal time and place to make that clear, but instead He emphatically denies that, as He says, "I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which Thou hast given Me; for they are Thine." Because of what follows this, it carries the force of, "For they only are Thine:" for He continues, "And all Mine are Thine, and Thine are Mine." Finally, He says, "And I am glorified in them." The reason He is glorified in them is that they have kept the Father's words, and have been brought to the knowledge that He, the Son, was sent by the Father.

(Verses 11 through 15) "And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep through Thine own name those whom Thou hast given Me, that they may be one, as we are. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Thy name: those that Thou gavest Me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled. And now come I to Thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have My joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them Thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that Thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil."

Here Jesus, as He is about to leave the world and return to the Father, asks the Father to take over the care of these whom He, the Father, has given to Him, and to give them a unity such as is between the Father and the Son. While in the world, He has kept them, and none of them is lost. Some have imagined that the fall of Judas is the loss of one given to Him of the Father, but that is totally contrary to what He says here, as well as at other places in scripture. Even the choice of Judas was for the purpose of fulfilling the prophecy, "He that eateth bread with Me, hath lifted up his heel against Me." Here Jesus calls him "the son of perdition," a term applied to only one other person in scripture, "that man of sin, the son of perdition." (2 Thessalonians 2:3) He cannot be counted as a failure of the Son of God. He made no failures.

Now Jesus says that since the time has come for His return to the Father, He has spoken these things while in the world, that His joy, the joy of the return to the bosom of the Father, may be fulfilled in His disciples. His purpose is that they too may have the joy of that same expectation. He declares that the world's reason for hating them is that by His giving them the word of the Father, they are no more of the world, even as He Himself is not of the world. His prayer for His disciples is not that they be taken out of the world, for that would be contrary to the father's purpose of spreading the gospel to every nation of the world. Instead He prays that the Father will "keep them from the evil." This prayer is not that they be kept free from persecution and suffering, but that they be constantly supported under these things that they not be overcome by them, nor be led astray in an effort to avoid them.

(Verses 16 through 21) "They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth. As Thou hast sent Me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their word; that they all may be one, as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us: that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me."

Jesus again declares that just as He is not of the world, neither are His disciples, and He asks the Father to "Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth." The Greek word "agiadzo," here translated, "sanctify," means, "to make, render, or declare sacred or holy, consecrate, to separate from things profane and dedicate to God, and so render inviolable." This He prays that the Father will do for His disciples through His truth; and His word is truth. Then He says that, just as the Father sent Him into the world, so has He sent His disciples into the world. When the Father sent Him into the world, it was with no protection nor defense except that of the Father Himself; and this was to be removed when His mission was fulfilled that He might be offered as the sacrifice for sin. So Jesus sent His disciples into the world, "as sheep among wolves," with no defense except that of their Shepherd. There are many other ways in which His mission and that of His disciples are similar, but, perhaps, this will be sufficient to stimulate the mind to think of more of them.

For the sake of His disciples He sanctifies Himself, that is, by dying on the cross for our sins, He dedicates Himself to the Father, as the sacrifice that "perfects for ever them that are sanctified." Since He is the truth, they are all sanctified through the truth. To prove that this reaches to us also, see verse 20, "Neither pray I for these alone, but for all them also which shall believe on Me through their word." This embraces every believer in that day and in all time from thenceforth. What a wonderful blessing He asks for us all! "That they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us: that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me." To me it appears that this prayer was designed that all who believe in the Son of God might enjoy a unity while they struggle through this world of sin and sorrow, and by that unity prove to the world that not only was Jesus sent by the Father, but also that we in one accord believe it. Yet as I view the "in-fighting", and lack of unity among all who profess to believe in Him, I greatly fear that it will never be achieved until that day when "every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that Christ is Lord, to the glory of the Father." We know that it will be accomplished then.

(Verses 22 through 24) "And the glory which Thou gavest Me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are One: I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be perfect in one; and that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me, and hast loved them as Thou hast loved Me. Father, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am; that they may behold My glory, which Thou hast given Me: for Thou lovedst Me before the foundation of the world."

This glory which He has given His disciples may mean the glory of access through His name directly to the Father, as He earlier told them. Or it may also embrace that eternal glory, which is given in trust, which is in Him, with the earnest thereof, which is the sealing "with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of the inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession." Even this earnest of the inheritance should draw together all who have it, into a unity that would show the world that the Father has sent the Son into the world. But, alas, that seems as noted above. Without question, verse 24 has in view the final ingathering of all the saints of God that they may behold the full and eternal glory of the Son, which He had with the Father before the foundation of the world.

Chapter 18

Although this chapter gives the account of the arrest of Jesus, and follows the course of events until He stands before Pilate, with the mob calling for the release of Barabbas instead of Jesus, no mention is made of the agony in the garden, as recorded by the other writers. It begins with the coming of Judas and his band to the garden.

(Verses 1 through 3) "When Jesus had spoken these words, He went forth over the brook Cedron, where was a garden into which He entered, and His disciples. And Judas also, which betrayed Him, knew the place: for Jesus ofttimes resorted thither with His disciples. Judas then, having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons."

This hardly needs any explanation, but some things concerning it should be mentioned. Judas knew where to find Jesus at this time, because he had many times been there with Jesus and the disciples. The whole matter shows great premeditation and preparation. This is the place chosen by Judas for his crime, because the Jews did not want it done in public, lest there be a great uproar of the people. But here in the solitude and seclusion of the garden at night, it could be done with none of the public alerted to what was taking place. By the time it became public knowledge the Sanhedrin would already have officially condemned Jesus, and the people would be afraid to rise up against them. Judas knew how gentle Jesus was, and yet he was afraid to come for Him without a large group of armed men.

(Verses 4 through 9) "Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon Him, went forth, and said unto them, Whom seek ye? They answered Him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am He. And Judas also, which betrayed Him, stood with them. As soon as He said unto them, I am He, they went backward and fell to the ground. Then asked He again, Whom seek ye? And they said, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus answered, I have told you that I am He: if therefore ye seek Me, let these go their way. That the saying might be fulfilled, which He spake, Of them which Thou gavest Me have I lost none."

Remember that Jesus said, "Therefore doth My Father love Me, because I lay down My life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself." (John 10:17-18). We usually think of this as being applicable to the time when, while on the cross, He said, "Father into Thy hands I commend My Spirit," and it does; but it is also very vividly shown here. As soon as He told this gang, "I am He," they were powerless, even to the point of backing away from Him, and falling to the ground. They could do nothing until He instructed them what they must do. Then He voluntarily yielded Himself to them.

(Verses 10 through 14) "Then Simon Peter having a sword drew it and smote the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus. Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy sword into the sheath: the cup, which My Father hath given Me, shall I not drink it? Then the band and the captain and officers of the Jews took Jesus, and bound Him, and led Him away to Annas first; for he was father in law to Caiaphas, which was the high priest that same year. Now Caiaphas was he, which gave counsel to the Jews, that it was expedient that one man should die for the people."

Though all three of the other writers mention the cutting off of the ear of the high priest's servant, John is the only one who identifies by name the servant and who it was who cut off his ear. The question Jesus asked Peter shows that He was still in full control of the situation, "The cup which My Father hath given Me, shall I not drink it?" Only after this could they lay hands on Him. Then they bound Him, and led Him away to begin that awful mockery of trials. Caiaphas was the high priest who had said to the council of chief priests and Pharisees, "Ye know nothing at all, nor consider that it is expedient that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not." (John 11:40)

(Verses 15 through 18) "And Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple: that disciple was known to the high priest, and went in with Jesus into the palace of the high priest. But Peter stood at the door without. Then went out that other disciple, which was known unto the high priest, and spake unto her that kept the door, and brought in Peter. Then saith the damsel that kept the door unto Peter, Art not thou also one of this man's disciples? He saith, I am not. And the servants and officers stood there, who had made a fire of coals; for it was cold: and they warmed themselves: and Peter stood with them, and warmed himself."

Although John never identifies by name the disciple who was known to the high priest, it is commonly accepted that he is himself the one. However, the focus of all the writers is on Peter during this time, because of his rash promise, and our Lord's answer to it. In John 13:38, Jesus said to Peter, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, The cock shall not crow, till thou hast denied Me thrice." In this text we find his first denial. We notice that this takes place at the palace of the high priest. Evidently, Annas did not detain Jesus, but sent Him immediately to Caiaphas.

(Verses 19 through 23) "The high priest then asked Jesus of His disciples, and His doctrine. Jesus answered him. I spake openly to the world, I taught in the synagogue, and in the temple, whither the Jews always resort; and in secret have I said nothing. Why askest thou Me? Ask them which heard Me, what I have said unto them; behold, they know what I said. And when He had thus spoken, one of the officers which stood by struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, saying, Answereth Thou the high priest so? Jesus answered him, If I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil: but if not, why smitest thou Me?"

Any reasonable minded person would have accepted Jesus' answer to Caiaphas as reasonable and proper. So the reaction of Caiaphas' officer shows that this whole "trial" was to be nothing but a sham. Their minds were made up before the trial began. It was their purpose to destroy Jesus. Jesus knew all of this beforehand, but in the face of such treatment, He remained calm, and to use our modern manner of speech, said, “If I have said something wrong, tell us what it is: but if not, why did you hit Me."

(Verses 24 through 27) "Now Annas had sent Him bound unto Caiaphas, the high priest. And Simon Peter stood and warmed himself. They said therefore unto him, Art not thou also one of His disciples? He denied it, and said, I am not. One of the servants of the high priest, being his kinsman whose ear Peter cut off, saith, Did not I see thee in the garden with Him? Peter denied again: and immediately the cock crew."

Here we have Peter's second and third denials, and the crowing of the cock. John, Luke, and Matthew, all record Jesus as telling Peter that before the cock should crow, he would deny Him three times: but Mark says that this would be done before the cock should crow twice; and each records the incident as taking place exactly as predicted. One thing that is fairly consistent is the order of the denials, and Mark records the first crowing as taking place immediately after the first denial. John makes no mention of Peter's repentance, but it is witnessed by all three of the others.

(Verses 28 through 32) "Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of judgment: and it was early; and they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the Passover. Pilate then went out unto them, and said, What accusation bring ye against this man? They answered and said unto him, If He were not a malefactor, we would not deliver Him up unto thee. Then said Pilate unto them, Take Him, and judge Him according to your law. The Jews therefore said unto him, It is not lawful for us to put any man to death: that the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled, which He spake, signifying what death He should die."

The hypocrisy of these Jews is utterly appalling. They could, under cover of darkness, go out, arrest a man they knew to be innocent, bring him in, set up false witnesses against him so that they could condemn him to death unjustly, and yet, to go into the judgment hall in the daylight would defile them. However they have had in all ages, and still have, their counterpart in every place, who think that it is perfectly all right to do any thing they please, as long as it is done in secret, if only they are not seen in the light, breaking some ritualistic requirement. When Pilate asked them what accusation they brought against Jesus, they could not answer. They only said, "If He were not a malefactor, (doer of evil,) we would not have delivered Him up to thee." When Pilate told them to take Jesus, and judge Him according to their law, they showed their true purpose. They wanted Him killed, but they could not legally do this, so they brought Him to Pilate. Nevertheless this was only the fulfilling of Jesus' saying, which He said three times, though not in exactly the same words. See John 3:14, John 8:28, and John 12:32. In all of these He spoke of His being "lifted up," in reference to His crucifixion, the Romans' preferred manner of execution: the Jewish preference was stoning.

(Verses 33 through 36) "Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again, and called Jesus, and said unto Him, Art Thou the King of the Jews? Jesus answered him, Sayest thou this of thyself? Or did others tell it thee of Me? Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered Thee unto me: what hast Thou done? Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if My kingdom were of this world, then would My servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but My kingdom is not from hence."

One thing we should notice immediately about this trial. Roman law declared that no man could be condemned without first being allowed to face his accusers in open court. Here Pilate called Jesus into the judgment hall, but the Jews, His accusers, remained on the outside. So even its beginning appears to have been illegal. There is little about what either Jesus or Pilate said that needs any explanation. Though Jesus is indeed the King of the Jews, and of the whole world beside, His is a spiritual kingdom, and was no threat to Pilate, nor even to Caesar. Pilate being, as he was, acquainted with both political and military matters, well knew the truth of Jesus' statement, "If My kingdom were of this world, then would My servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews." The first thing any man would do in trying to establish a worldly kingdom is to train his followers to fight, so that, should he be taken by his enemies, his army might rescue him. But Jesus says, "But My kingdom is not from hence," signifying that there will be no battle to fear.

(Verses 37 through 40) "Pilate therefore said unto Him, Art Thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth My voice. Pilate said unto Him, What is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in Him no fault at all. But ye have a custom, that I should release unto you one at the Passover: will ye therefore that I release unto you the King of the Jews? Then cried they all again, saying, Not this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber."

In view of the fact that Pilate has made no indicative statement of such, but has only asked Jesus if He is a king, it seems that the first sentence of His answer actually carries the meaning of, "You have said it. I am a king," which is in keeping with what Luke records as His answer in Luke 23:3. After Jesus' declaration of the purpose of His being born, and coming into the world, Pilate answered Him with a question, which we may never understand from Pilate's viewpoint. Because, from what is said here, no one can determine whether this shows him to be one who is seeking the truth, or one who is so cynical that he does not believe that real truth exists. This latter, is the type of thinking which is so prevalent today in modern society. It is often said, "There is no black and white; but all things are varying shades of gray." Those who know our Lord Jesus, the Christ, know better than this: for He not only bears witness unto the truth, but is the truth itself. What Pilate said to the Jews, and their reaction can hardly be made any clearer.

Chapter 19

(Verses 1 through 7) "Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and scourged Him. And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and put it on His head, and put on Him a purple robe, and said, Hail, King of the Jews! and they smote Him with their hands. Pilate therefore went forth again, and saith unto them, Behold I bring Him forth unto you, that ye may know that I find no fault in Him. Then came Jesus forth wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man! When the chief priests therefore and officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, Crucify Him, crucify Him. Pilate saith unto them, Take ye Him, and crucify Him: for I find no fault in Him. The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God."

This is, beyond question, the strangest trial ever recorded. Though scourging was sometimes used to force a confession from a suspect, in this case the judge, Pilate, knew that Jesus was guilty of no crime, and there was therefore no excuse for scourging. Yet he had Jesus scourged, and then turned Him over to his soldiers to "play with." In the event someone might not know just what a scourging, such as they used was, here is a short description of it. The one to be scourged was tied to a post, with his face to the post. Then a strong man, well trained in the use of it, would take a whip made up of several strands, to the ends of which were attached small pieces of metal or bone: and with this whip he would beat the victim, often to unconsciousness. The pieces of metal or bone would literally cut the flesh off the back of the victim. After the scourging, the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and not very gently put it on His head, put a robe on Him, and continued beating Him with their hands while they mocked Him. After they tired of mocking and beating Jesus, Pilate had them bring Him out to where the Jews were, and made his famous "Behold the Man!" declaration. Pilate having done all this to Jesus, said to the Jews, "Take Him, and crucify Him: for I find no fault in Him." When the Jews told Pilate that Jesus had declared Himself the Son of God, Pilate's superstition began to show.

(Verses 8 through 12) "When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he was the more afraid; and went again into the judgment hall, and saith unto Jesus, Whence art Thou? But Jesus gave him no answer. Then saith Pilate unto Him, Speakest Thou not unto me? Knowest Thou not that I have power to crucify Thee, and I have power to release Thee? Jesus answered, Thou shouldest have no power at all against Me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered Me unto thee hath the greater sin. And from thenceforth Pilate sought to release Him: but the Jews cried out, saying, If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar's friend: whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar."

Pilate knew what he had already had done to Jesus, and when he heard that Jesus had declared Himself the Son of God, his superstition was so aroused that he was afraid for what he had done. Notice that John says, "he was the more afraid," not that he felt any repentance. So he took Jesus back into the judgment hall for further questioning. In Jesus' answer to him when He said, "Therefore he that delivered Me unto thee hath the greater sin," it is not clear whether this reference is to Judas who betrayed Him, Caiaphas who, as high priest, was in command of the Jews who brought Him to Pilate, or whether He is using the singular for the plural to indicate that each person involved in the matter was equally guilty, and all had a greater sin than Pilate. After this, Pilate wanted to release Jesus, but he too well knew the meaning of the Jew's statement, "If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar's friend." He knew that they cared no more for Caesar than they did for Jesus, but their threat was that, if He, Pilate, did not do what they wanted him to, they would report him to Caesar as a traitor; and he knew the consequences of such.

(Verses 13 through 15) "When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the Pavement, but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha. And it was the preparation of the Passover, and about the sixth hour: and He saith unto the Jews, Behold your king! But they cried out, Away with Him, away with Him, crucify Him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar."

Finding no way to appease these Jews, except by doing what they wanted, Pilate brought Jesus back before them, and sat down in the judgment seat in this open judgment court instead of the judgment hall. Whether in an effort to declare Jesus King, and release Him to the Jews, or as a further act of mockery, we shall, probably, never know. But at about the sixth hour, ( 12:00 noon , if according to Roman counting,) with Jesus standing before them, he said to the Jews, "Behold your King!" Here we have the fulfilling of Isaiah's prophecy. Isaiah 52:14, "As many were astonied at Thee; His visage was so marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men." And Isaiah 53:2, "He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him." Remember that the beating of Jesus began even in the palace of Caiaphas , the high priest, and continued through that time, and three more trials. In reading all four accounts of this, we see that after He was carried to Pilate for a trial, He was sent to Herod, whose soldiers also mocked Him and beat him before He was sent back to Pilate. With all the scourgings and beatings He had endured, Jesus could hardly look human at this time, because "His visage was so marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men." He must have been at that moment a most repulsive sight to the natural eye. It is no wonder Isaiah said, "And we hid as it were our faces from Him." Thus He looked when presented to the Jews as their king. They immediately cried out, "Away with this man, away with Him, crucify Him." Then, in their excitement and haste, they said something they had no intention of ever saying, "We have no king but Caesar."

"Then delivered he Him therefore unto them to be crucified. And they took Jesus and led Him away. And He bearing His cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha: where they crucified Him, and two other with Him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst. And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS. This title then read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh unto the city: and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin. Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King Of The Jews, but that He said, I am King of the Jews. Pilate answered, What I have written I have written."

There is little here that needs explanation, although if one strictly follows what John says without comparing it to what the other writers have recorded, he might miss one very significant point. John says, in verse 17, "And He bearing His cross went forth _ _ _." All the other writers tell us that the soldiers compelled one Simon of Cyrene to bear the cross. This is not a contradiction, nor a discrepancy. As we have pointed out, Jesus was terribly beaten and scourged before He was finally ordered crucified. Two of the writers tell us that even when He was to be delivered to the execution squad, He was first scourged. Though it was the custom for the condemned to bear His cross to the place of execution, what must have happened is that as Jesus went forth from the judgment hall bearing His cross, He was so weakened from the beatings and scourgings inflicted upon him, that He fell under the weight of the cross. And the soldiers laid hold of the first stranger they saw, who was this Simon, and compelled him to carry the cross. It is debatable whether Pilate wrote the title he did because he thought it correct, and for that reason refused to change it, or whether he was enough irritated at the Jews that he refused just to show them that he was still in command, and would do as he pleased.

(Verses 23 and 24) "Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also His coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted My raiment among them, and for My vesture they did cast lots."

It was customary for the execution squad to take whatever they wanted of the condemned person's possessions, and that is just what they were doing here. One can be well assured that, though they were exactly fulfilling the scriptures, it was not their intention to fulfill the prophecy: for, as Roman soldiers, they likely knew nothing about it, but God, knowing all things, had described exactly what they would do. This is the only place in scripture that tells us how many soldiers were involved in the crucifixion, four. Whether this includes the centurion who was in charge of the squad, or just the soldiers under him is not clear. Though a centurion was the commander of a hundred men, the whole contingent was not used for this work.

(Verses 25 through 30) "Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple standing by, whom He loved, He saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then He saith to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home. After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst. Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a sponge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to His mouth. When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, He said, It is finished: and He bowed His head and gave up the Ghost."

There is no scriptural record of the death of Joseph, the husband of Mary, but the fact that we find no record of his activities makes one think it likely that he had died prior to this. The only mention of his name in the gospels after the boyhood of Jesus are Luke 3:25, Luke 4:22, John 1:45, and John 6:42. In neither of these is any mention made of any of his activities. Here we are told that three Marys stood by the cross of Jesus, His mother Mary, her sister Mary, who was the wife of Cleopas, and Mary Magdalene. Some commentators have said that the second Mary was not the sister, but the sister in law of the mother of Jesus. Since I have no further information on the subject, than that given by John, I shall refrain from further comment on it. Another who stood by was one of Jesus' disciples. John identifies him only as "the disciple standing by, whom Jesus loved," but it is commonly accepted that this disciple was John himself. Jesus showed His love for both His mother and His disciple, as He says to His mother, "Woman behold thy son!" and to the disciple, "Behold thy mother!" Some have seemed to think that He was calling His mother's attention to Himself on the cross; but this seems hardly the case in the context: for here He is committing the two persons on earth for whom He had the greatest human love to the care of each other. John says that from that time forward that disciple took Jesus' mother to his own home. At this point every thing that Jesus had come to do had been done, (or at least begun, since He had not yet laid aside His life,) so, in order that one final prophecy might be fulfilled, He said, "I thirst." They took a sponge filled with vinegar, and put it to His lips. Psalms 69:21 says, "_ _ _ in My thirst they gave Me vinegar to drink." Then He quietly said, "It is finished," bowed His head, and died. The other writers mention several things that Jesus said while on the cross, but these seem to be His last words.

In the span of verses 31 through 37, John tells us, first, that the Jews wanted those who were crucified to be dead in time to be taken down from the crosses before the day was over. So Pilate had the soldiers break the legs of those crucified with Jesus, but when they came to Him, they found Him already dead. Therefore they did not break his legs, but a soldier "with a spear pierced His side, and forthwith there came out blood and water." Since "water" was sometimes used by Jesus to mean "the Spirit," this gives us a beautiful picture of Jesus in Whom is both the life giving power of the Spirit and the cleansing, or atoning power of the blood. John says, "And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe." No doubt, He is himself the one who saw this. He then tells us that these things done by the soldiers were the fulfilling of the prophecies concerning Jesus.

(Verses 38 through 42) "And after this, Joseph of Arimathaea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, besought Pilate that He might take away the body of Jesus: and Pilate gave him leave. He came therefore, and took the body of Jesus. And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pounds weight. Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury. Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man yet laid. There they laid Jesus therefore because of the Jews' preparation day; for the sepulchre was nigh at hand."

Mark tells us that this Joseph of Arimathaea was "an honourable counselor," from which we might assume that he may even have been one of the "elders" of the Jews. Nicodemus has been mentioned a couple of times before. These spices that Nicodemus brought, and which he and Joseph wrapped with Jesus, were not all they intended to use, or else the women who followed Jesus did not know that Joseph and Nicodemus had taken care of this matter. The latter seems unlikely, since Matthew tells us that when Joseph departed from the tomb, Mary the mother of Jesus and Mary Magdalene were both sitting by the tomb. They had, evidently, watched the proceedings, and they are the ones who were carrying spices to the tomb early on the first day of the week. Matthew also says that the tomb in which Jesus was placed was the one Joseph had hewn out for himself.

Chapter 20

There is no scripture, which tells or describes the time of the resurrection of our Lord. In John's record, as in all the others, there is a gap from the laying of His body in the tomb and sealing the tomb with a stone, to the finding the tomb empty on the first day of the week. All four of the gospel writers give a slightly different version of events in the latter; but the differences seem to be more complementary that contradictory.

(Verses 1 through 5) "The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre. Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid Him. Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre. So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre. And stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in."

There are many who feel that they have to have a "sunrise service" to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord. This is an utterly pagan idea, that originated in the ancient worship of the "sun god," and was also linked to the fertility cult worship of Astarte, the pagan goddess of spring, from whose name comes the word, "Easter." The word, "Easter," occurs only once in the New Testament, and that is by reason of an incorrect translation of the Greek word, "pascha," which in all other places where it is used, is translated "Passover." Since Mary came to the tomb "when it was yet dark," and found Him already gone, sunrise seems a little late for the celebration service. No one knows when He arose; but it certainly was before sunrise.

When Mary Magdalene found the tomb open, and the body of Jesus gone, she thought that someone had removed Him to another place. So she ran to find someone to help her find where He had been placed. She found Peter and the "other disciple, whom Jesus loved," (which is John's way of referring to himself.) Upon hearing Mary's message, both disciples ran to the tomb to start their search. John outran Peter to the tomb, and while awaiting him, stooped down, and looked inside, but did not go into the tomb.

(Verses 6 through 10) "Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie, and the napkin, that was about His head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself. Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed. For as yet they knew not the scripture, that He must rise from the dead. Then the disciples went away again unto their own home."

Since the linen clothes are mentioned three times in this account, once in each verse of verses 5, 6, and 7, they must have some significance. The first point that comes to mind is that they, being material things, were left behind that we might know that material things have no part in the resurrection; and therefore we should not be concerned so much with material things. In the resurrection He had no need of material things, and neither will we. God will supply the resurrection garments. Secondly, these were special clothes for the dead, and He being alive for evermore, has no need of such. In our comments concerning the resurrection of Lazarus, we described the manner of wrapping the dead in "grave clothes," showing how one so wrapped is completely bound, and immovable. These are laid aside. He is no longer bound, even by the voluntary restrictions He placed upon Himself while in the flesh. He now has all power in heaven and on earth. This shows that in the resurrection we also shall be made free. Some may wish to continue further with this, but this is only a beginning. John says nothing about Peter's state of mind, but he does say that the other disciple saw these things, and believed. This proves that he is speaking of himself. Otherwise he would have had no more knowledge about that disciple's state of mind than he did of Peter's. He then says, "For as yet they knew not the scripture, that He must rise again from the dead." This certainly must be taken to mean, not that they did not know, in the sense of having been told of it, or of having had it read or quoted to them, but in the sense of understanding its significance and the depth of its meaning. They several times had heard Jesus say that He must be killed, and must rise again from the dead; but their minds had never before been able to receive it. At this point they returned to their own homes.

(Verses 11 through 18) "But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre, and seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet where the body of Jesus had lain. and they said unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid Him. And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou? She, supposing Him to be the gardener, saith unto Him, Sir, if thou have borne Him hence, tell me where thou hast laid Him, and I will take Him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto Him, Rabboni, which is to say, Master. Jesus saith unto her, Touch Me not; for I am not yet ascended to My Father: but go to My brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto My Father, and your Father; and to My God, and your God. Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things unto her."

Mary was so overcome with grief that she did not readily believe the prophecy of Jesus' resurrection as did John, or it might be that indeed she had never heard it before: for in those days women were not, in general, so well instructed as were men. Howbeit as she stood at the tomb weeping, she looked in and saw two angels who asked the cause of her grief. After she answered them she turned around, and saw Jesus, though she did not recognize Him. He also inquired the cause of her grief, and asked whom she sought, still without revealing Himself to her. After she answered Him, He called her name, and revealed Himself to her. When she acknowledged Him, He gave her a message to His disciples, whom He called "My brethren," showing that indeed His disciples are His brethren. As the Apostle Paul said, "For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren." (Romans 8:29.) That message is, "I ascend unto My Father, and your Father; and to My God, and your God." What a wonderful blessing it is to know that His Father is our Father; and His God is our God! Mary went immediately and reported these things to the disciples.

(Verses 19 through 23) "Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, He shewed unto them His hands and His side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord, Then said Jesus unto them again, Peace be unto you; as My Father hath sent Me, even so send I you. And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained."

Heretofore, though Jesus is "God with us," and therefore is the embodiment of the power of God, He, in general, limited himself to the same restrictions of movement that are on human beings. But here, as the disciples were assembled in a closed room, He came and stood in their midst. Some have argued that he opened the door and came in. If this had been the case, there would either have been no mention of the doors' being closed, or it would specifically have been said that He opened the door. The significance of the closed doors is that such is no barrier to Him. His first message to them is one of comfort, "Peace be unto you." After showing them His hands and His side, and thus proving that He is the same Jesus who was crucified, He repeats His message of comfort to them, and adds, "As My Father hath sent Me, even so send I you." Since this mission is one that could not be done by men without extraordinary powers given to them, He breathed on them, and said, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost: whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained." This is a power that was given to the apostles, even to the Apostle Paul who was not yet with them. That is exactly what he meant when he said, "To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgive any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ." (2 Corinthians 2:10) This power was never given to any except the apostles of our Lord. This is not the complete fulfilling of the promise of Jesus to send the Holy Ghost. That took place on the day of Pentecost, about fifty days later than this.

(Verses 24 through 29) "But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into His side, I will not believe. And after eight days again His disciples were within, and Thomas was with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith He unto Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold My hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into My side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord, and My God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."

Though Thomas has through the centuries been called "doubting Thomas," it is because of what he said, and not because of the name "Didymus," by which he was sometimes called: for that name means "twin," not "doubting." However, when the other disciples reported to him that they had seen the Lord, he was so adamant in his unbelief that he declared that, he would not believe until he had placed his finger in the nail prints in the hands of Jesus, and thrust his hand into His side. This opportunity was given him about eight days later. Again the doors were shut to the place where the disciples were assembled; but, as before, Jesus came and stood in their midst. First, He spoke peace to them, as before, and then invited Thomas to do what he had said that he must do before he would believe, and said to him, "Be not faithless, but believing." No mention is made of Thomas' doing what he had said that he must. Instead, John tells us, "And Thomas answered and said unto Him, My Lord, and my God." There seem to have been no more doubts. Jesus' answer to him stands upon its own, with no need of comment: "Thomas, because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."

(Verses 30 and 31) "And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book: but these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through His name."

This is John's assurance to every believer, that, he has made no effort to write everything that Jesus did in the presence of His disciples. Therefore if we find in the records of the other writers things which he has omitted, we are not to question their accuracy. What he did write, he wrote to bear witness that this Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, to the intent "that ye might believe" this. Not only that it might lead someone to begin believing in Jesus, but that also by reviewing these things, the believer's faith may be kept bright and strong. Those who believe have life, not through believing, but through His name.

Chapter 21

(Verses 1 through 4) "After these things Jesus shewed Himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias ; and on this wise shewed He Himself. There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee , and the sons of Zebedee, and two other of His disciples. Simon Peter saith, I go a-fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing. But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus."

So far this should present no difficulty to the understanding. The Sea of Tiberias is the same as the Sea of Galilee , where Peter, Andrew, James, and John, had all made their living by fishing before Jesus called them to be His disciples. We are not told just how long this was after Jesus' last appearance to them, nor are we told why Peter decided to go fishing. His faith may have begun to waver, and he may have begun to think that the hope of the kingdom of God was no longer a possibility, or the fact that he was always a man of action may have caused him to be bored by the waiting. Whatever the cause, he decided to go back to his nets. When he announced his intention, the others who were with him, joined him. They wasted no time, but went aboard their boat immediately, and fished all night with no success at all. When the morning came, they saw Jesus on the shore, but did not recognize Him. This is the second occasion John records of Jesus' temporarily hiding His identity: first, when He appeared to Mary at the tomb; and now, as he appears to the weary disciples.

(Verses 5 through 9) "Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered Him, No. And he said unto them, cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it up for the great multitude of fishes. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher's coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and cast himself into the sea. And the other disciples come in a little ship; (for they were not far from land, but as it were two hundred cubits,) dragging the net with the fishes. As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, with fish laid thereon, and bread."

Certainly John's account of this is plain enough. Yet, since some have tried to make such a great thing out of the fact that Jesus told the disciples to "cast the net on the right side of the ship," we must say that, had he said "cast the net on the left side of the ship," "cast the net behind the ship," or "cast the net in front of the ship," and the disciples had obeyed, the result would have been exactly the same. Obedience to His commands is the key, not on which side of the ship he told them to cast the net. When they enclosed such a great catch, John remarked to Peter, "It is the Lord." Peter, impetuous as usual, put on his coat and jumped into the sea, probably, thinking that he could make better time that way than waiting for the ship. The other disciples came in "a little ship," and dragged the net with them. They were only about three hundred feet from the shore. As soon as they reached the shore, they found that Jesus had already prepared a fire with fish on it, and had also provided bread.

(Verses 10 through 14) "Jesus saith unto them, Bring of the fish ye have now caught. Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three: and for all there were so many, yet was not the net broken. Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. And none of the disciples durst ask Him, Who art Thou? knowing that it was the Lord. Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish likewise. This is now the third time that Jesus shewed himself to His disciples, after that he was risen from the dead."

Though Jesus told the disciples to bring of the fish they had caught, and Peter went up and drew the net to land; this seems to have been a commandment for them to secure the net and the fish, rather than to bring any of them to add to the meal He had prepared. For nothing is said about their bringing any of these fish for that purpose. No doubt the disciples were almost as surprised that the net did not break, as they were at the number of fish they had caught. There are those who attempt to "spiritualize" everything in scripture. Not long ago, one such, in speaking of this incident, said that the one hundred and fifty-three fishes represent the fact that God has a people in every nation, kindred, and tongue, because there are exactly one hundred and fifty-three nations in the world today. I have not attempted to verify his count of nations, but even if that be true, it is much like the old saying about the weather, "If you don't like the weather today, just stick around: for it will soon change." Anyone who has ever studied history of any period, either ancient or current, knows this to be true of nations.  They are subject to sudden changes. Besides this, we do not know that all these fish were not of the same species.  Those who try to make more of the scriptures than is there, often entangle themselves, as well as their hearers. Jesus said to His disciples, "Come and dine," and by this time they all knew that it was He. He fed them with fish and bread, evidently, that which He had already prepared. John says this was the third time He had appeared to the disciples after His resurrection.

(Verses 15 through 19) "So when they had dined, Jesus saith unto Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me more than these? He saith unto Him, Yea, Lord; Thou knowest that I love Thee. He said unto him, Feed My lambs. He saith unto him again the second time, Simon son of Jonas, lovest thou Me? He saith unto Him, Yea, Lord; Thou knowest that I love Thee. He saith unto him, Feed My sheep. He saith unto him a third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me? Peter was grieved because He said unto him the third time, Lovest thou Me? And he said unto Him, Lord, Thou knowest all things; Thou knowest that I love Thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed My sheep. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girded thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. This He spake signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He saith unto him, Follow Me."

Verses 15 through 17 give a conversation between Jesus and Peter, which, though seemingly plain enough, has often provoked argument among some. In Jesus' first question to Peter, the phrase, "more than these," is the subject of controversy: some say that it refers to the fish and bread, (or natural food,) while others maintain that He means the other disciples. May we present a different idea, which, though it may be by some thought questionable, seems reasonable. Peter had, from boyhood, made his living by fishing. He was the leader in going fishing at this time, as suggested before, possibly, even because his faith was wavering a little. He has now seen the worst and the best of fishing. He worked all night, and caught nothing; and he has made one cast, and caught the greatest catch of his life. Now Jesus asks, "Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me more than these?" Jesus was not asking for information, but to fix the matter in Peter's mind. If he did not love Jesus more than he did "these," that is, this way of life, he would be a total failure as an apostle. Upon receiving Peter's answer, Jesus said to him, "Feed My lambs." Although Jesus knew the answer before asking the question, He asked in order to impress the matter on Peter's mind. His repetition of the question was for the purpose of reinforcing it in Peter's consciousness; and in both instances His command to Peter was, "Feed My sheep." There is a slight play upon words in this. In the Greek the word used by Jesus, which is translated "love," is "agapao," while Peter used "phileo."  The primary difference between the words is that agapao denotes a love founded upon admiration, veneration, or esteem, while phileo has to do more with the senses and emotions. After having thus commissioned Peter to feed both His lambs and His sheep, Jesus declares to Peter that when he is old, he will no longer be able to just dress himself, and go where he pleases, but will be dressed by another, and taken where he would not go on his own. Since John explains this as showing "by what death he should glorify God," it seems to mean that he will be helplessly imprisoned, and taken by another to his execution. Then Jesus says to him, "Follow Me."

(Verses 20 through 23) "Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on His breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth Thee? Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou Me. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?

This is one of the greatest lessons for us today, concerning the service of our Lord that we can find anywhere. After Jesus had commanded Peter, "Follow Me," Peter, like so many of us today, wanted first to know what a fellow disciple was going to do. Without re-quoting exactly what Jesus said, we can sum it up thus: "That is none of your business. Follow Me." Here we see how easily false rumors can become generally accepted as the truth, even among the saints of God. These brethren immediately started the saying that "that disciple should not die," but that is neither what Jesus said, nor what He meant. Often today a brother will say something, and a hearer will repeat, not what the brother said, but what he, the hearer thinks he means by it, and the wildfire breaks forth. John explained very carefully, "Yet Jesus said not to him, He shall not die; but, if I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?" As we said before, a "free translation" of it is, "That is none of your business."

(Verses 24 and 25) "This is the disciple which testifieth of these things and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true. And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen."

Finally John declares openly that he is this "disciple whom Jesus loved," and that the testimony he gives in this record is true. Not only so, but he has omitted so many things which Jesus did, that if they were all written, the world itself could not contain all the books that would be written. To this he adds his "Amen."